Khyentse Foundation announced the 2024 prize for outstanding translation
Khyentse Foundation announced Trent Walker as the recipient of the 2024 Prize for Outstanding Translation.
His work, “Until Nirvana’s Time: Buddhist Songs from Cambodia,” published by Shambhala Publications in 2022, clinched the prestigious award.
This groundbreaking collection marks the first-ever English translation of traditional Khmer Buddhist poetry, offering 45 dharma songs that have long inspired Cambodian Buddhist communities.
Drawing from 15 years of research, Walker presents poems dating from the 16th to 20th centuries, preserved through oral and written traditions.
Notably, many texts, transcribed from tape recordings or bark-paper manuscripts, debut in print within this volume. Accompanied by insightful essays and notes, Walker situates these compositions within a broader Buddhist context.
Selected unanimously by Khyentse Foundation’s five-member committee, Walker’s translation captivated Professor Natalie Gummer, who praised its fidelity to the songs’ vocal qualities and its comprehensive contextualization.
As the 10th recipient of the award, Walker’s contribution sets a new standard for translations that illuminate the power of performative Buddhist texts.
