The Therīgāthā Festival is an international celebration of the Poems of the Elder Nuns, the world’s oldest collection of literature composed by women. These poems are a testament to women’s empowerment and a celebration of their spiritual awakening.
From May 3–16, 2021 Buddhist organisations around the world hosted events to discover the richness of these ancient women’s verses and support the living legacy of inspiring female practitioners. See our Event Page for more details.
Finding Sanctuary Discussion Series
Join Ayya Vimalanyani and her monastic guests in Finding Sanctuary, a series of conversations, as they journey through these beautiful and inspiring verses:
Daily Episodes on YouTube
Every day during the festival, a new Finding Sanctuary video premiered on the Dhammanet Youtube Channel.
Panel Discussion
The Finding Sanctuary series ended on May 16th with an interactive online Panel Discussion featuring all our guest speakers. Watch here.
Learn more about the Finding Sanctuary guests and events on our Finding Sanctuary page.
Watch the Festival on YouTube!
Watch videos from our special guests discussing the profound wisdom of the enlightened nuns on the Therigatha Festival youtube channel.
Voices of Enlightened Women
In these verses, we hear about their sorrows and their deepest despair, their joys and triumphs, and their attainment of full liberation.
We share in their struggles, their deep feelings, the humanness of their lives, and yet the potential to reach the deathless state beyond.
They offer us glimpses into the life of a nun at the Buddha’s time, the environment and society they lived in, the obstacles and prejudices they had to face and masterfully overcome.
We hear of their monastic path, how they practiced, lived in community, taught each other, shared their life with each other. And also how they practised as hermits, in seclusion deep in the forest and high on mountain tops. How they wandered throughout India to spread the liberating teaching, helping countless beings. How they were venerated by their fellow monastic practitioners, by gods, spirits, and the lay community.
We meet strong, independent, competent, wise, and fully awakened women living their best life and attaining the highest fruit. We see individuals with vastly different characters and abilities, yet all united in the pursuit of the one goal. We share in their stories, and listen to the legacy they wanted to leave the world and the generations of bhikkhunis that came after them, following in their footsteps.
We hear THEIR voices from through the mist of time.
Thank you for being a part of the Therigatha Festival!
Therigatha Festival 