Books published by Silkworm Books / Trasvin Publications LP

The diffusion of religious thought in Buddhist Asia has been marked by new modes of expression. Sometimes this has meant textual translation, as highlighted in chapters about Chinese and Japanese Buddhist texts or the analysis of manuscripts in northern Thailand. In other cases it has been cultural translation, such as local adaptations of jataka tales, legal concepts developed out of Theravada Buddhist teachings, or localization of art, inscriptions, and other material culture. Additional chapters study other types of engagement: the encounter of East and West in British geographical and anthropological exploration of Burma, and the place of Brahmanism in early Buddhist thought as expressed through the jatakas.Together these contributions recognize that beyond being isolated by sectarian divisions, disparate Buddhist traditions have flourished through their simultaneity.

SiamΓÇÖs great folk epic, The Tale of Khun Chang Khun Phaen, has entertained readers and audiences down through the centuries, with its rich and earthy portrayal of life and relationships. Here, a mix of Thai and Western scholars present five critical essays that uncover hidden layers and expose new themes using theories and approaches developed mainly within the field of Western literary criticism.The first two essays arose out of the crucible of ThailandΓÇÖs social upheaval and student protest movement in the early 1970s, while the remaining essays are more recent.

Kaing Guek Eav was an ordinary man growing up in Cambodia in the mid-twentieth century. But then, adopting the alias "Duch," he joined the Khmer Rouge and took charge of S-21, the infamous secret security center where in less than four years at least 14,000 "enemies" were interrogated, tortured, and executed. After the government's collapse, Duch fled to the Cambodian frontier, where he lived in anonymity until he was finally unmasked and sentenced to life in prison for his crimes.With remarkable and chilling precision, Duch describes firsthand the Khmer Rouge movement and his own role in the paranoid irrationality of the regime. An introduction and epilogue delve unflinchingly into Duch's character and motivations, our common humanity, and the sometimes uncomfortable implications of global justice.

Naomi Appleton is a chancellor¿s fellow in religious studies at the University of Edinburgh. Sarah Shaw is a member of the Faculty of Oriental Studies at the University of Oxford and an honourary fellow of the Oxford Centre for Buddhist Studies.

Transnational labor migration often begins with the dream of securing a more stable and prosperous future, a chance to survive. This book reveals some of the complex phenomena and processes that operate in the lives and dreams of Thai male migrant workers living abroad.

This companion volume to the translation of The Tale of Khun Chang Khun Phaen includes alternative chapters and extensions, Prince Damrong's prefaces and reference lists of Thai terms

Explores literature by migrant writers which has emerged as a powerful medium for describing the ways in which global forces are experienced at the personal level

An unlikely tale of Buddhism, politics, and the creation of modern Thailand

The first English translation of the Thai epic poem, written in lively prose, completely annotated, with over 400 original line drawings and an afterword explaining the work's historical background, social context and poetic style

Preserves the folklore of sacred sites in the mountains of northern Thailand.

Written by the author who as a young lieutenant was sent on what was no less than a spying mission in 1888 to find out the most accessible route through Siamese territory to the disputed Shan State of Keng Tung. This book describes the land through which he passes and the characters whom he meets.

Advocates bottom-up planning to bring about more balanced development and sounder natural resource management in the Mekong region

One clear, new voice emanating from the heart of Burma

Offers new insights into the tumultuous history of the relations between China and Tibet at the start of the twentieth century

Presents a wealth of rare documents and photographs

Presents a comprehensive collection of research on Hmong culture and life in Asia.

Gives a clearer sense of what a wat is and the role it plays today in the lives of Thai people

The Ascendancy of Theravada Buddhism is a comprehensive study of the advent of Buddhism in Southeast Asia, especially in Thailand during the first millennium CE.

Anthropological/sociological field research and study of a Thai Muslim island community in southern Thailand, a marginalized cultural and ethnic group on the Andaman coast.

This volume is the first to examine a vibrant sub-school of painting from the rural heartland of the North-Eastern Region, also known as Isan.

This companion volume to the translation of The Tale of Khun Chang Khun Phaen includes alternative chapters and extensions, Prince Damrong's prefaces and reference lists of Thai terms.

Khun Chang Khun Phaen is one of the most famous works of old Thai literature and this first-ever translation is based on Prince Damrong's standard edition of 1917-18, with over a hundred passages recovered from earlier versions.

A comprehensive history of Burmese painting, from eleventh-century Pagan to the present, including over 175 painters and more than 300 photographs of work. It explores the historical transformations of the art, with psychological interpretations of major artists, the legends which followed them, and analysis of their oeuvres.