The Sinhala word pirith covers anything from which protection or refuge is obtained. In that broad sense the whole of the Tripitaka as taught by the Buddha may be regarded as pirith; the Maha Pirith Potha is the narrower compilation, bringing together the sutta discourses preached to ward off illness, fear of non-human beings, and the fear of famine.
The text is entirely in Sinhala, including the Pali passages, which are set in Sinhala script. There is no English translation or transliteration, so a reader without Sinhala will not be able to use it. For Sinhala-reading Buddhist households abroad, this is the standard chanting book kept for daily recitation and for the occasions when pirith is chanted at home.
The phrase ghana bemma in the title refers to the thick-board binding of this edition — a practical consideration for a book that is handled often and expected to last.
Published in Colombo by M. D. Gunasena & Co. (Pvt) Ltd, a long-established Sinhala-language publisher.
- Publisher: M. D. Gunasena & Co. (Pvt) Ltd
- Language: Sinhala
- ISBN: 955-21-1010-0
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