A collection of stories about women from the thirteenth-century Buddhist work that reveals much about women's status in their society and within Buddhism.

A fascinating collection about Buddhist women translated from the thirteenth-century Sinhala Buddhist text, the Saddharmaratnavaliya, these stories provide insights into the social status and roles of women in medieval India and Sri Lanka and the Buddhist doctrinal ideal. They also reflect the changes that took place as the Buddhist position on gender and female sexuality accommodated the social realities of the time. Translating, contextualizing, and commenting on the narratives, Ranjini Obeyesekere highlights the differences in perspective between the celibate monks who were the literary authors of the Saddharmaratnavaliya and the social world of their audience.


Portraits of Buddhist Women, Ranjini Obeyesekere, Suny Press, Paperback, 2001, 231 pages, $21.95�

Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. The Udeni Cycle
2. Visakha
3. Utpalavarna
4. The Mother of Kana
5. Kundalakesi
6. The Nun Patacara
7. Kisa-gotami
8. The Nun Bahuputtika
9. The Goddess Lada
10. Visakha Companions
11. Sirima
12. The Nun Uttara
13. The Nun Rupananda
14. Queen Mallika
15. The Mother of the Elder Kumara Kasub
16. The Weaver's Daughter
17. The Young Woman Cinca
18. The Three Daughters of Mara
19. Visakha's Questions
20. The Princess Rohini
21. Uttara
22. The Daughter Punna
23. The Nun Khema
24. Maha Prajapati Gotami
25. The Elder Sunderasamudda
26. Soreyya
Bibliography
Index