In Buddhism, women blaze a path

Luis Andres Henao (AP via Yahoo, 12/21); Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

What if a woman could blaze the trail to enlightenment, too?

Nuns chant at alter to the Buddha and female bodhisattvas and devis (AP/Yahoo! News)

Nuns: Ven. Dhammavanna, Ven. Dhammaparipunna, Ven. Dhammasumana on alms round in Nakhon Pathom province, Thailand, on Sunday, Nov. 21, 2021 (AP/Yahoo! News).

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In Buddhism, women blaze a path but strive for gender equity

Ten precept nuns or maechis in Thailand

Buddhist women are banned from becoming [fully ordained nuns or bhikkhunis] in Thailand, where over 90% of the population is Theravada Buddhist.

Historically, females could only become white-clad novices (samaneris or maechis), often treated as glorified temple housekeepers. But dozens have traveled to Sri Lanka to receive full ordination.

Western and Asian fully ordained Theravada Buddhist nuns (Ajahn Brahm's BSWA)

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British Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo, Buddhist nun

Tibetan Buddhist nun Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo, born in England, has devoted her life to attaining enlightenment in a female form — at one stage spending years isolated in a cave in the Himalayas to follow the rigorous path of the most devoted yogis.

The Buddha made it so women were equal.

She later founded a nunnery in India focused on giving women in Tibetan Buddhism some of the same opportunities reserved for monks. Venerable Dhammananda renounced her family life and a prestigious academic career in Thailand to follow the path of the Buddha.

She then defied her homeland’s unequal status of women in Buddhist practice by traveling to Sri Lanka to become Thailand’s first fully ordained nun in Theravada, one of the oldest forms of Buddhism.

Born a world apart, they’re among a group of respected female monastics or “bhikkhunis,” lay persons, and academics who have challenged longstanding patriarchal traditions. They have blazed a path of progress in recent decades for Buddhist women — from education through advanced degrees and the creation of nunneries to seeking full ordination.

Across branches, though, many at the movement's forefront say more needs to be accomplished so women can have equal opportunities.

About 100 nuns live and study at her Dongyu Gatsal Ling nunnery in India (AP/Yahoo! News).

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“It’s shifting because now there’s so much more interest in the feminine. Not just in Buddhism, but worldwide, why have women been so neglected and overlooked for millennia?" said Palmo.

• This story is part of a series by The Associated Press and Religion News Service on women’s roles in male-led religions.

We learn to debate just like the boy novices.

Women were included in Buddhism since its earliest years, and their monastic ordination dates back more than 2,500 years, said Judith Simmer-Brown, emeritus professor of contemplative and religious studies at Colorado’s Naropa University (USA), a liberal arts school associated with Buddhism. [It has actually been more than 2,600 years].

But as monasticism spread from India to other countries, there often were extra requirements to become ordained in those patriarchal societies. More

• Women blaze path and strive for gender equity

Patriarchal Faiths and Women's Roles in them series from AP.org