[2] Most of the monks in the Theragatha lived during the time of the Buddha, but the collection seems to have continued to grow until at least the Third Buddhist Council.
[1] The omission of similar verses that were included in the Milindapanha suggests that while chapters continued to be added to the Theragatha for a period of 300 years or so, the collection was ultimately closed and put in a final form.
[1] Some of the verses in the collection seem to mirror contemporary secular poetry of their time, with romantic lyrics replaced with religious imagery.
[2] Notable texts from the Theragatha include the eighth poem of chapter sixteen, consisting of verses recited by the reformed killer Angulimala, and the third poem of chapter seventeen, in which the Buddha's cousin and retainer Ananda mourns the passing of his master.
[1] Fragments of a Sanskrit version of the Theragatha preserved by the Sarvastivadin tradition, known as the Sthaviragatha, were discovered in Turkestan and published in 1961.