Political instability provided opportunities for royal women, not available to them under the rule of powerful men.

The early second millennium was a pivotal moment in the history of Theravāda Buddhism. Religious reforms carried out at Poḷonnaruva, then-capital of Sri Lanka, shaped the latter course of Buddhism across South and Southeast Asia. However, our understanding of these reforms has been over-determined by retrospective accounts written by male monastics, who focused on the heroic deeds of male monarchs. This book offers a radical revision of this narrative.

For an audio overview of this book, see the New Books in Buddhist Studies interview.