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Tathālokā Therī
February 28, 2026
Two years ago on one fateful morning I awoke with an intuition...
Since then, the "Yasodharā Therī Parinibbāna 'Diary of Discovery'" begun on that day has continued to unfold, even more so in these past few weeks and months...
What have we learned?
New Information
Where are we now?
As we enter #WomensHistoryMonth we continue "Reawakening Awareness" -
This March 3rd 2026 'Phagguna' Full Moon Uposatha has been passed down in endangered Southeast Asian Buddhist Pāli-text manuscript traditions as 🏵️ Rāhulamātā Yasodharā Bimbā (Bhaddakaccānā) Therī Parinibbāna Day, 🏵️ which record the 🌕✨ Phālguna Purnima/Phagguṇa Punnami (Medin Poya Day) as the date, and northern Sāvatthī / Srāvastī as the place, of this great Arahant Therī's sacred final nirvāna.
This is a long-standing tradition in mainland Southeast Asian Theravada Buddhism dating back centuries into the misty past, to the time of the introduction of 'modern' Theravāda Buddhism to the region from Sri Lanka, or even before from India, preserved through the Buddhist palm-leaf manuscript traditions and oral recitation traditions, which for millennia were the hallmarks of Buddhist monastic Sangha and Buddhist community. cultures.
💫 What have we learned since then?
READ
WATCH & LISTEN
💫 New information
In the past year, we have made two significant advances, and there has been one unspeakably special, unexpected and greatly humbling surprise.
FINDING THE STUPA | the Pāli-text manuscripts record an original Yasodharā Parinibbāna Stupa in India, long since lost.
As you can read or hear in the resources above, the central Southeast Asian manuscript tradition we have studied, that stupa is recorded at the north of the ancient city of Sāvatthī by river Achiravati. While the course of the river has changed meanwhile, the shape of the ancient walled city and the extension to river Achiravati created directly to its north have been clearly preserved in form.
Deepak Anand of the Retracing Bodhisattva Xuanzang project brought to our attention an old archeological map of the ancient city of Sāvatthī which marked a now-forgotten stupa near the northern Sāvatthi river gate to Aciravati.
Following shortly after the Footsteps of Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī: Honoring Women in Dhamma Carika, several bhikkhunis and sāmanerīs, encouraged, following that map, went to check and explore this area. Indeed, underneath overgrown vines and an old Bodhi tree, right in the area on that map, what appears to be a stupa mound still exists, surrounded by several other mounds of ancient bricks.
FINDING MORE MANUSCRIPTS | The "Yasodhara Parinibbāna" aka "Bimbā Nibbāna" Khom-script Pāli-text manuscript tradition reported above, while old and widespread, is not the only one. There are at least two others which we have begun to learn about, which are not yet well studied, if at all:
1) The same-named mainland Southeast Asian Tham Lao Pali-text manuscript tradition(s). While i noticed this peripherally at the time of our studies in the last two years, this year, in the last month, I began to turn attention to this, finding ten manuscripts preserved in Laos.
But what do they say? Do they confirm the date and location of the Pali-text Khom-script manuscript traditions?
This is what we hope to learn.
If you or anyone you know is able to read old Tham Lao (old Lao 'Dhamma'-lipi script - please let me know! There are now good scans available online. It is not necessary (initially) to read the whole manuscript, but just the very beginning, and the last portion, which will (if similar to the Khom-script manuscripts), easily give the reader the date and location of Yasodharā Bimbā's Parinibbāna.
2) I've heard and read - although not seen for myself - of both Pāli and Sinhala manuscript traditions of the Yasodharā Parinibbāna preserved in Sri Lanka. I eagerly await someone who will research and offer a study of them.
Rāhulamātā Yasodharā is currently enjoying a blaze of glory in Sri Lanka after her ancient relics being reenshrined in her own stupa, the Siri Yasodhara Mahaseya in Udupila, and a popular feature film "Yasodhara" in her name.
It would be wonderful to do a proper comparative study of these three great Pāli-text manuscript traditions of antiquity, both stemming from India - to learn of their history, their evolution...
...perhaps 2026 Women's History Month can be the time?... or at least the beginning....
Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī Arahant Therī (and with her the 'first wave' of the founding Bhikkhuni Sangha), and
Arahant Therī Yasodharā (and with her the great 'second wave' of the early Bhikkhuni Sangha)
are The Two Great Arahant Therīs of the Buddha's time whose:
dates of stream entry
arahatship
dates and location of Parinibbāna
have been passed down in the Pāli-text traditions.
Beyond them, there is just one more ancient great arahant therī, who likewise we have record of her going forth, of her arahatship, of her great deeds, and the date of her Parinibbāna. That is:
Arahant Therī Sanghamittā
These three.
💫 Where are we now?
As the moon which will becoming an extremely rare type of eclipse for us here is waxing towards full ~
The deeply humbling and practically unspeakable surprise of this year have been the arrival, here Dhammadharini, of the sacred relics of these great arahant therīs, coming to us from dear blessed 'Dhamma isle' Sri Lanka.
It started with the collection of 'sacred earth' from five ancient stupas of Great Awakened Women Disciples of the Buddha in India and Sri Lanka, a special inspiration with a heart of loving generosity for Dhammadharini's 20th Anniversary.
This led, to our great surprise, to the gifting and arrival of Sanghamittā and Anulā Therīs' sacred relics to us from Sri Lankan on the Poson Poya Day (Dhammadharini's lunar anniversary day), born by venerable international bhikkhunis' delegation.
And this, somehow also then, as we were aspiring and planning for "Footsteps of Mahapajapati" pilgrimage, led in the great chain of conditional causation to the sacred relics of both Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī herself coming to us, and, together, to our extremely humble surprise, to the sacred relics of Yasodharā Therī being gifted as well, to bless and encourage and uplift and inspire and support our very fledgling and young (only 20 years old) Bhikkhuni Sangha in the west.
It is unbelievable to recount it actually now, looking back over this last year, how all this has happened. Even now as i sit writing in sacred space pervaded by the blessings of the remaining, enduring, physical presence as well as the felt heart and spirit of these most revered of our Arahant Theri foremothers.
After writing this, I become speechless, and can write nothing more.
After a pause...
Where are we now?
FINDING OURSELVES | We are preparing to offer very simple time and space, both here in person at Dhammadharini and online - as it is our winter retreat time, for 'Patipatti Puja' - to be able to meditate with our dear most venerable Rāhulamatā Yasodharā Bimbā (Bhaddakaccānā) Arahant Therī's sacred bone fragments, offering our practice in homage, as the 'Phagunna' moon waxes full.
Even as on this day two and half millennia ago, both Mahāpajāpatī Gotamī and then Yasodharā attained to stream entry, and then forty-three years later our Yasodharā Therī attained to Parinibbāna, may we too awaken.
May we feel the great compelling presence and momentum of the Dhamma, with the Dhammacakka turning, of stepping into the arhants' tracks and of seeing the Dhamma for ourselves irreversably, and of the great and unqualifiably blissful happiness and peace of Nibbāna.
🌼🏵️🌹🌼🌿🙏🙏🙏🌿🌼🌹🏵️🌼
Tathālokā Therī, bowing to the ineffable peace of the Dhamma and of the arahats
. . .
