THAI WOMEN IN BUDDHISM (CHATSUMARN KABILSINGH Por Press Besley California“Trad as ad fr hive psi Sabot (1253-150), Aya (1350-176); Thonburt (17671782), and Ratnaosin, (1782 resem) The history of Bhi in Tila and the i toro Tanda a nation re logy lige lore acertng Baio, the Thal people practice Kin of animten, believing the its of wen count andthe mt fal phenomena. Aa ingot’ stone incrpion dating om the Sithota period provider evidence ha Tai venerated Pa Kh Pang the int ofa muni a the rete pt in the bd and made cies to him in drt gun favor and protection {eter Bahan ad Indian cil values became the nm ‘Suniomta Pnuoo (1253-1350) ‘The eatles evidence ofa strong and unified Thal kingdom, with is capital ae Sukhothal ates fom the year 1253. By the end ofthe thirteenth eentry, the new kingdom had succeeded in devin out the Khmer and Mon peoples and had established control over rast area in north-central Thailand. For neatly a century, this Kingdom begun the development of Thai civilisation, adopting and syniesis- ing elements fiom neighboring cultures and forging its own tad tions and customs. Many scholars consider the Sukhthal period the “eral of Thi culture." The That alphabet was developed ou: of Pall and Sanskee sources and rendered through Khmer (Cambo- dian) culture during this pti. Khmer aesthetic frm ina and architecture were ako adopted. “The Sukhothai period reached is height with the reign of King Rambharohaeng (1283-1317), who strengthened the system of be- ‘nevolent patriarchal rule begun by hs father, King e-Indradiya, the founder of the Sukhothai kingdom. Ramkhamhaengssabjets referred whim as Father" and we are told chat he kept in clove cone tact with his people by hanging a bell at his gate that could be sounded by any of his subjects who wanted his attention?“Tuas WoMeN my Buoetst During Rambharhaengé reign, Buddhism enjoyed wide pation age from both the royalty and the common people, both materially and spill. The Buddhist monastic community wat divided be- ‘ween Gamava, those who lived in towns, and Arangouas he or cstdwelers. Well-known bhikthus (monks) in both divisions received royal recognition. King Ramkhamhaeng alo sent for learned monks from Svtharmarja to teach the Trptaka, the Bae hist Canon. Mahatheas, senior elder, were invited to preach on the ful and new moon days, and layperson attended the als, Dre ing the three-month rinyseason retreat, many lagpeope cong fated to observe the five o eight peeceps and make offerings to the monks.’ An inscription provides deal of such an offering: ln 116 there was celebration of the Great Sa fmemo- sil monument Vira fain hl Bsibinage The King fas ven 200 sce, the King ether he pven 190 crs Nal Indasakl cleared the forse ured into a 30 tere ee eld othe temple! ‘There isno spurte mention of Buddhist women rom this period, and ti understood that there was no ordination for women. Lay” ‘women practiced Budihism inthe sme aurbers armen by obsery- {ing precepts and making offerings othe Sangha, the community of monks. The king invited the elders to preach Dharma, the Baldist teaching at public gatherings to which both men and women were invited, and the king himself also presched publicly, During this time, Theravada Bahisn, the "Way of the Elders" was not the only telisious practice. hough Buddhism was the state religion, indi enous animism continued tobe popular. Ramkharhaeng’s grandson, Li Thai, succeeded tothe throne in 1346, Well-versed in Buddhist scriptures, Li Thal continued to strengthen the foundations of Buddhism. He ruled the country in strict observance ofthe "Ten Kingly Virwes” propored in the Dharmasasra and made clear his intention to become a buddha himse in the fare to help his people across the ea of rebiths"” ‘Aer receving lower orination, he announced that he withed for no treasure ofa king, a god, of» Brahma, but only to become @ buh? These clans are remarkable fa light ofthe sual goals ofa Budo i That Hitary ‘Theravalin Bukhist—that of becoming an ava, “worthy gee." To lead the life of a bodhisatta was rare, even raret to asite £2 ‘buddhahood. These notions are more common in the Mahayona ra lion, whieh must have been popular in Thailand daring this time. Royal participation in Buddhism eached its height when King Li ‘Thal received ordination in 1362. An inseription fom 1384 stated thar the king was ordained semana (novice) inthe palace and then went on fot to Wat Pamamuang, Mango Grove Monastery, where he received the bhikthu ordination.” Many other probably followed his example ‘The oaly literary work surviving from the Sukhotha period ithe ‘Thbhumi-gaha, or The Treatise of the Three States, generally believed tarhave been composed or commissioned by King i Tha. Drawing ‘on some forty existing texts, this book discusses in deta the three reals according to Budhis kamablurs, he ean of pleasures ‘uptvaisthe realm of form: and erpabhun, the realm of formless: ‘nes; and outlines the vires and vices of thote born into each realm. The Tihum-athacontined to influence Thai society for ‘The Suthothal petiod i often called the Golden Age of Bud- «thism in Thailand. The high sandard of popular and royal sie ally was expresed through practice and inthe attic achievement seen in many fine Budd images. The Frm foundation of Budi established during the Suhothal period provided a stable base for ls growth and development daring later Tha history. ‘Aruoena Pawo (1380-1767) ln. 1350, a Tha prince from the northem kingdom of Chiengmal ctablched anew capital t Ayudhya. Centered ina productive ice rowing region, athe confluence of three major rivers that formed naturally fried site nest the Gulf of Siam, Ayuthya benefited from access to communication and local and foreign trade” King Ramathipat initiated dynasty that was to span four centurles and thireythre kings, a period of complex polical and socal change ‘marked by regule periods of warfare with neighboring kingdoms CChlengmal and Sukhothai in the north, Khmer in the east, and Burma in the west.Tian Won Bu lo the eeign of Ramesuan (1388-1395), the Khmer capital ‘Angkor Thom was cpeured, andi was later sacked in 1431 by King Paamaraja I. The Khiee people deen fom the area, withdres toform present-day Cambodia, Dating this period of expansion the Thais absorbed many elements of Khmer culture and synheseed them with That eastoms. Khmer statesmen, eligios leader and artists played influential roles in the Thai cour, affecting i ‘ministration and ceremonial and aesthetic forms. The influence of Brahmanism played astateic role inthe new kingdom, assigning absolute political and religious power in the ‘monarch. The kings im this period did not come to the throne through hereditary stecesson. There were a great numberof royal asssinations, ad those who ascended to the throne di 4 onthe basis of power. Brahmanism, by vesting absolute authority in the person of the king." was therefore a potent plitial tol readily ‘opted bythe new dyna. Some Brabmanical influence had been {ele in dhe Sukhothai period, but i beeame the dominant model during che Ayudhya dynasty, “This period was tumultacu, with constant struggles for power fom within the kingdom and wth neighboring countries. ln a ear ‘veonment of pica cont and se, there was lite room for cultural development in che ars, literature, or religion. A drastic change inthe structure of government left the royal rulers in complete contd ofall activities. addhisr didnot enjoy a solid foundaton of royal suppor asl bad inthe Sukhothai period, Although cw ail the state eligion, the Ayudhya monarchy was increasingly influenced by authoritarian Beahmanieal eaition, which reinforced the king status ane power. Even the Buddhist insituion was used by che king to stengthen and perpetuate hisright ore. Through the manipulation of opal favor and control the Buddhist order was notable to exer any real influence in secular asi” and since that ime, che Baht order Ina never regained the ability to expres any dict concern repand- ing the political or social welfare ofthe county “Ayodhya kings concerned with maintaining and enlarging thei kingdom, were more involved in warae with neighboring lands than with developing and strengthening the Buddhist istction, hom in Thal Hi “Theis involvement with and support of Buddhism usally cook the form of sponsoring religious festivals and comassioning works of ant In addition, famous end beautifl Buddha statues wre often ‘mong the spoils of wa, emoved from thei original sites afer se ‘essa miliary campaigns and ised in the capital ci King Paramatrailokanath’ reign (1441-1481) was the gest of the Avudhya period. A brian adennistatoe, he established a sounisystem of governmental procedures that became the model for sccestive periods In his spport of Buddhisn, he was Ayuda curstandingroal figure. His carect in many ways pales that of the Sokhotha king Li Thal. Parmarailokanath offered bis palace se Picanulk, then the capital city, as temple to the Bhs com- munity and he also had another espe bull there” ‘Many outstanding examples of art and architecture date from this period nciding Wat Nakhon-luang, modeled on the Khuer capi tal Angkor Thom. King Nari (1649-1681) constructed a beau new city at Lopbur and commissioned many gold- and sliver plated Buddha statues, often on an immense scale. Daring the eeign of King Th'al sa (1702-1726), an impressive sman-made canal was constructed to allow increased trade with India. The canal required the labor of 3,000 men, supervised by the ‘exmonk Maha Chai afer whom the canal war named. The king leo built a wat (Cemple) called Pa Mak in Ang Thong. ‘Alshough lacking in diect political power, the Sangha was part + fundamental knowledge of Baddhiem tothe Thai people. ‘With the arial of modem technology and Western ways se teach sng ofBadhiom have begun to seem ielevant and meaningless 19 ‘many. Many people donot fel the ned o develop themwevespr- tualyorsek theultimate goal of Buddhist practice enlightenment ‘They ae satisfied to concentrate on material pris ‘There ian urgent need for the Baas naiation in Thailand to eleame the teachings in an understandable and relevare manner forthe present situation, and most important, to provide nereased acces tothe sy and proce of Buddhism tall members of Thai soctery If this approach is adopted, he teachings ofthe Buda wil ‘once again Become meuningfl forthe Thai people, men ad women equally.“Tual Wos 1s Bono "Si oe hg Tm Cha Thame Bot Fong se ty ine * Hoey arch Wa ert Son Lend: rach, "Kaki pl 1 Te npon ig aoag ‘the Great (Bangkok: Chulalongkorn University, 1984). ” Ths Arar ra, Tha Hy Bay Ana Kai 197) {Binge Chloe en ons ae (Gens Cleghorn Unni 8H nes33 ee * Wr aman ier 3 ie 5, Ansa, Ch 128 les Op. Cn "8 PaBasharsp a he Tine (Br P1868, raion es pun rg: Mane a, 190, pa "Arama. Op. G7 45. “Toni, ued in Popa pp. 9 ‘Mah om oa Hs of hata 36. Pour ne al ng Nos Mah Bahl 182 5 Pama. Op C386 » Saha Ds Snag, VL 2. 6 " Copa Tesormong, Pars eupans Kang Rak Rss I (Gender Po 38 * Pn Rmhasnog ale The Roel Sec, 185 9.284 AB Goma" Montr in Frc nord of Sion Sees Bahk Gn op Cn,» 28. © Tower. Op Ce. 22 cuarrer THO Perspectives on Thai Women Ta one to wend he poston and problems of Th omen in Bhi, innecrsy examine the cil cll les of women pnely in Tan Hino, the nine a = ‘al condoningf Thal women hase med at rac ‘ren whore el-unned nthe etna “ome cece — loling carving unto ena frngs rte td and iaicsning the home cb igen accepted for many ee shat ‘Thai women do not have critical Ss es,and that emo EERE Hlewe men! etc, abd to sy that women ae the “weaken trtitona loge ie, women ae always woke se yen the fl with mer Theny wl the en lx flr tuning on day of working inthe fl wore ceo the men ee cre of chen, clean and weave? ating the ae hy yar arc ire res from ‘eck or inneqnte techie has forced many ilage women tooeel enployment in rban nde area rma fete cap {a Bangkok. Many exe factors ptr to te women bene they pce beter wor ae eth wo contol ot manipulate Sn epi les than eT ome continue obese ineconmicn pits and clue, Ir rte fd mention of he tndurance and welerificeof That women inthe pag of my ous history. Women ar doy exploited bh in fe la Structure of Thai sciety and inthe gender bios withn that Eoucanon ‘Historically, education for That women wa based on the above- stated rcil vals of women roles, Social attitudes sig cantly shaped and narrowed the edvcational femework for wome, limi fg it to one purpose—to mold women to be good howewivesTiny Wow ty Buootsie Women’ esticed educational opportunities provided them with taining only inthe “home seience,” effectively barring women fom any wider public or socal role. Educational method lid on ‘ote menerization, and women were never encouraged 10 exereie Independent critical thought. The subordinate postion of women fn ‘Thal society was aptly summed up in the popular expression, "Women are the hind lege ofthe elephant.” ln the Sukhotha period, a text by Lady Srichulalk, «consort of King Ramkhamhaeng, ecords that women of high octal seat o> celved the same education as men i literature, drawing. astronomy, 1nd astrology: Common women, however, received no education, Primarily becawe che center for education was the texmle, The Bod hist monks sug only male sents, beeawe the Vinay forbade them to come into diect contact with women. In the ile of He Avy period, woinen were sot educsted excep or being ned tobecome good wives and mothers Dung King Narts eign (1649-1681), upper-class families sent their daughters tobe rained a the palace, which was then the nly ‘cational institute for women, But women in general il rcelved limiced education. They were restricted from the stay of lange literature inthe ele chat it would encourage them to wt lone Poetry to men. Nevertheless, ewo princesses of King Beronkot ‘emerged as talented poets whove lierty works have survived ta the present. Women courtiers mer tained in thea of lasical dance, inging, and drama tof sei oles as entertainers to the king Tewasmot until 1782, with the advent ofthe Ratnakein erid, that Tha women began to have greater opportunities for higher ‘sucation although i wa stil lrely limited to ral fales and ‘heir asociates. This period sw an inereasing exposure tthe West, olneidng wih the relative eedom from Brahmanical influence in the eign of King Rama IV. His son, Prince Damrong recorded hat ‘tween the agesof thre an seven princes and princes mere ed cated tether. After this ential primary education, princes woul then receive separate taining in the howe cence la higher education, they received instruction in various fields soch a tei on, literature, and history During the reign of Rama IV (1851-1868), some progress was ‘made in eduction for women, although it continued to be estieted Pores Th Woman to those from the upper clases. Female missionaries from abroad, the wives of mae missionaries, were hired to teach young geo the «our. For he fi ime, Thi women went abo for further ede tion. Young gis frm upper-class families were educated a cour slong with the daughters ofthe royal families. Thailand’ fis female teacher, Princess Pchitjabha, founded Rajini, 2 well-known gil school. ‘Queen Saovabhapong ruled a acting regent during King Rama Vs uavels abroad. She recognized the prowing demand by women to eceive equal educational opportunities, not to compete with men ‘hue to beter equip them for thee accepted social ole, especially ‘because they had to teach their chen ‘Women began to receive university-level education tn 127, with ‘the founding of Chelalongkor Universi Is fr stents were seven women studying both the art and sciences, Although active foronly ten yeas, Chlalongkom University exalished precedent for higher education for women; since its time slow but steady progress in university education for women has been mode. How ‘ever, even a ate as 1957 only a sal percentage of Tha is were eligible to continue ther education beyond the primary leel, com pated to he ajoty of Thal boys. ‘With small advances in education, afew of che hasles negative beliefs that for centuries obstructed women’ development are d- rinishing Bur mos negative gender biases ae stil lly operative in That sci “Twa Won AND Law “The mborinate portion of women in Thal society was formally tala in legal pte, Women were explicit aside ‘ponsbities and ds, hl gamed very few rights Ely That te was heavily lence by Braman nd er vigoro repre af women Tate Socal per tee ec dine aycture: the Manu Dharmasas, the Arhanes, andthe Baie teachings. The Indian sel mors thse owes repre wee reese fr women i gee ot lester dares end formed the Bas of Thal sca nor i awe Inthe Vinaye Paka Mohaibhangs, women were categtzed apropery, subject to the dominance and protection of ether their Isard or other al my member. Wives (and hen) cold te ol tosepaya fan aecosting to he Manga Sta Novthern Thailand Loma law placed the mail vale ofa gil arena tulsa hoy! Matin law during King Uthong tne wae Based on the Dhara, which seta a husbaad legally owe his andcan beat her wth impunity, as ne igh eat» ea teat am arial Atreenly athe eighteenth cent wth the estabshment ofthe Ratton dyasy, King Rama stl ed the Dharmas a model fr ew legal sadn ‘A lst, King Rana TV said ht the od lw wat unt chat trated “women as buf, mena human beings He mteduced ove ofl that rte aan fm ling hs wut she ape to Kc however he could sll eri she war ave A ram col il Ieyally bea his wife, bi se were ericuly harmed he coll Be fie? Hncode ako eablhed thats woman cold coer et Ove Iuband afer coming fae” Since ha ie, Thal ciety has hanged a ret del Fem be ing primalyagrclral nd vilge bse, char become cm diseia Women now ata mre aly economic production td, wih beter education, the role of women in Tha sity ha substanlly improved, nthe reflect these chanes In 197, cava igh fr men and women were enabled King Rama VI rote ha egal legal rights re mark celled sey” Tehas often hen ned that Thal women tem t accept thie suppresion without compa, Exploitation, wheter pl, alo alu, as heen jtied one Wall Kara td ‘Eze ren accepted athe exprenion of reigns pine AT ‘hough That women have always hoped be uated wel thet Istana nl cn ew kad eile ining neeay ‘wera the sol economic an polit ening the Alscrminaton tat ld thet oee, Tn 19, the Univeral Deaton of Homan Right declared that ena women ae equal in thei igh and boner” [a 1967, the United Nation dss ny pete or tation Bd on the suppeson or explotation of women, andi ter decal 1995 the "Inernatonal Yes of Women The Thal government especies on Tha Wome responded by lifting restrictions on feral lamers in the ours, tabling the right of Thai women to avel abroad with er without permison from thet husbands, and allowing women to hod lead “hip positions in sillge societies, Profesor Male Prucgpongsawale, a well-known That leer and ‘educators pointed ou hat lepl equality a necessary prereq site for women fully participate building the Thai natn! The attempt 10 bing about equal rights snot only forthe benef of ‘women, hut to help the county reali the potential conerbution of uals population. ln nde to develop human resources to herfal- ct the Thai government mus abandon biased lea suuc ures that obstruct hi gol “Thar Won ano Poumcs ‘Thai women had the right to vote eatier then some European women, bur de to lack of education concerning the detmcratic pro ess thei ight co ve cared ltede politcal weight. was not un- ‘i 1940 that the fst female mene of parliament wae eketed. In 1979, nine woren were elected to paliament out of 30] seats, and this was the highest ato of Fea participation to date As recently 1 198, only ify-our seats were occupied by women, asin rere- senting the prestest number of female members of paliament. Tm other are suchas economics, academia, and eal services, women hold a ajoty ofthe adiinisteative positions and manifest ‘tstong sense of self-confidence in dealing independently withthe challenges presented by thls careers. The example of tere and ‘ther wore wil help erode che common Bele that women ate the “hind legs ofthe elephant" unsuited fr public o political ie. However, socal values resulting fom the elie that “a woman’ place isin the home" are stl domisaat in Thailand. Long denied ‘squal aeces to higher education, women have notin greacaumbers received the solid intellectual foundation required to participate flyin politial Iie, Lack of the necessary financial sources neded to condct succes campaign also severly limits womens ‘volvement in polities. Although Thai pois have taken por tive tur in the Inst two decides, the future of wonten in Tha por lice ie remains uncertain,Tua Won 1s BuooLst Til Won to Boononc Rests “The pice of «man ging ou to wrk ering ving to oport ‘say whe hs west Home tak re the ool outdated. With pesetdayeemomic ress, men women Both bear sonomi responsi. Fore ent Thal women ‘ot the ihe percentage in Ai: Bat ma are employed a ot led ltrs now payin ap orn wr Under the sytem cores intr inthe Avadhye period Men woul te aay fom their ome eat vey cher month owe Tins for ae lng aeons Dg tise women wok cae ofthe mes, Becne cs, kw catomay fone mar ted coupe to lve mith he wifes family. Thi ed vo sun ‘eile ada orl anal inkependene or women, ‘While bi busines war inthe ands of Chines es nd facgn awa he cnt in. Tn wane eee te iain sacle tine xing dere of fnanealndepen dence and some business skills. = Bataille nary work of dhe of Thal women working with teins or male rei A lead tote ra wore who woke ela car af ie {nd manage he hosel. ightyone percent a Tal women te fiteen or eder wok the umber si 087 inthe fo our © fone age pop spots eae pens the extent to which Tha women povie economists fo thei aie bt tice hat thot ween lp any Ta fees wos ot suv” In een tay was found tht 67.5% of the women fr viewed wre sponsible fr manaing fal nancen™ Seventy three percent of ual women fe tht the omy Income os isu for needa his was a soc fet concern Elghyve percent pel chat tw eer women work cutie the home top bring in moe income” Women fer teins parla ndifeen peso wok In he noth and ‘out women peer pula! wak whe women fo the cee trl repon (pecially ran ren) ee sal ee nd ‘ce work Women from the norhent eng in cane naa, sich arweving™ Parpecves on Th Women Private domestic vervce is not a popular option; only 12% of womes fom the northeast, Thailand’ poorest region, chose such work, vile none fom the south show any interest init. Thisreflets ‘both economic and cultural differences. Southern Thailand is @ wealthier region, and to work as a housemaid isnot considered de- sirable there; while people ofthe noctheast more easly accept such work and se i ae helping others ‘Whie it iste that Thai women manage the fail finances, this does nae necesaly lead to economlc contol. Women may hold the family ‘ure strings” but in most case, the pure ic empry- Women have no real economic pores, but dohave the responsibilty to make ‘ends net. This a major fact of if for most Thal women, both rural aad urban. ‘Wome anp Social PERCEPTIONS INTHAL SOCIETY Nepasie pexceptions of women, se prinaly co exten we ‘Indian inflence, have had a great impact an Thai sciery. Dr- {ng Kirg Rama IT gn, when an active trade relationship was de- ‘eloped with China, great numbers of Chinese seed in Thailand, nd many Chinese imigrants carried Thai Chinese cultural va cs we integrated with Tha belies, There were ive negative char certs assigned to women in traditional Chinese thought: ‘eomenare easily manipulated, always unsaid jealous, inating, And of ese ineligence. In waditional China, ain s0 many other Societies, the position of women was subordinated to meni sci ‘economic, pola, an altura ie onthe basis of sch definitions. “Asaleady noted Indian cultural values oa reat extent mirored «hese ume beliefs: women were anasto be under the guidance and ‘roectn ofthe men to whom they wee afiiated—as chien, to thei thers as wives, to chelr husbands at mothers, to thei sons. ‘Women were no sen as independent human being, bu were, like Westcko land, the posession of men In Thailand, men generally have an exploitative atiade towards women. Women bor into such a gender stereotyped society wll tend ta lteralze these beliefs aad accepe them a8 valid. Com tmonly held preudies of women's mental and physical inferiority, Ihanded down through cultural tation and sanctioned by eligion,Tuas Wow n Bue have profoundly affected Thai women’ sel-image and expressions ofselfoworth. With estrited aces to postions of publi authori, women have been taught to channel thei inerests and abies nto such superficial preoccupations as the beauty of their physical ap ‘pearance, too fen che ony thing fr which they ean ga tention. Soch socal values and mentality will never help women to come forward a individual ‘Some women of the upper lass in Thai society may not expe ‘ence repression so dict. They may believe that they enjoy equal Fights, protected a they are by wealth and social sats from the rote obvious social and economic hardships. But an oppressive and ceaplitative mentality ulkimately affects everyone, sen and women of every clas In Thailand’ faschanging sociey, roles today ae shaped prima sllyby economic presure. Women are beginning o share economic responsiblity, and inthe process they ae gaining penter acces to the educational opportunites to prepare them for this expanded role: Women are making thelr way in fields previously closed £0 thea, coming sucenfoledveators doctors, lawyers and bine” sromen. These changing tle will dfiaitely bing about a change In social values. But for now, there are many deep-rooted cultural ‘ales chat continue eo restrict women's qa participation ia Th society. Until these are replace by egalitarian tli, Thai women willeaatinue to fnd ehemelves unable ro expres fully thei human potential, . a ud i Bani, Misery of Th Wien (Bongo: Seachal Pe, #2 Ian 2 “Via Sem Wer an Sil ay Baga: Rangathan Fre 198 ie, ier RT La (eh Govern Hr, Perec Thai Women * Bing omnes Grog Chg Une hk ‘Seeman wep * Som nd Bhai Op. h.1 "Boe al af Tse Asin Gare ® Bono Maen 9.3. © Shei Sl in Ta one Chae Pa ° UN Demin 380 GX, say 718, © Me Papen “Why Lg Ely cea fr Bebe” SACI yt nane Usha eae lt © Nata Ch pn Soy of ef Bey To Pree {Grad pode oT » tae 26 ° Sat ota no Son Fon Derbi em Tha Sam, SF Rtg Gk ap * Rgmen nye Pesan ann al cdg Pj ‘Se tg ms Aan ras Fn Ds Asin Mle ne Abbe, At el Wei on “Shek of ncn Ce Fy anf te (ec ‘roel ech Eee Selb, eh— curren Tunce Buddhist Texts from a Feminist Perspective Wes tare shown an tere in fllowing the path to pial ‘alation sine the te of he Bho, neal 2.00 yearsago. They fxpressed a sincere commitment by dedlating thelr lives at ‘ddan lly onained mune in the Baise onde. The coded Iistores of many Budit countries sch eS Lanka and Chin le evidene ofthe ex existence akon odes ily ‘pie the del n Bui ough of dhe wlality a pi ae trnment forall enient Being without derimination, within the Buddhist eabsment el opportunites for moment expres sensi commitment to practicing the path have often been re Sete "There san urgent need for us to examine the obstacles placed tefore women on the Badin path. Through cal analysis of Buddhist text, we can deterlne the way that women re up ete an the wae they are eres by he nto secures Cf Bodin, Such an exainaton not onl the province of Bo his schol, but can lobe caved out by fens scholars of he eligi delta cyrus. Inte cee among divers rope of scholars as proven tobe of rest Bene to Ba hat cole. The Fist Coun ofthe Sangha, hel dee months fer the Buss pasting, Poioon, war attended by ive hundred light cond men. Mahslanapa peed over the Counc, with Upali > tihng the Vingya, and Ananda ectag the Sus texts of the Bund own words Te Tia, the “tre bake ofthe each ing ad not yet een fore the Abarat thi sco, tut et exis athe tne the Ft Coun The teachings greed ‘pon ahi Cone wee preserved rough rl anation the Practice commen s the tne “There re wo inportan pols about the Fit Counel repeding vomen{ Fin, although there meres numberof enlightened Thins iy pated by the adda or thei Knowledge the Bude Tews fom a Fein Pete eae ease eek arteries ee Peer me nomtir emer prs Cees ers eee ae oe ay homage o new monks (ale ha reves the sal era chy of reno inthe Sangha), to spolatng that nun must never speak badly ofa monk not admonish improper behavior ina monk, although monks ean the right ocrehe mins] Ineramining thee rues, we mist ake ito consideration the hi torical and cultural eontext that conditioned the formation o the ‘Buddhist Sangha. The Bhd Sangha had alend been fly _ablhed before thee war led of having a woe ch astens chat were not alvay will accepted. In onder to flat tei sce tance ita the Ores the Baha ear teh {hey had nothing oa y the ison women The Bon Bain Tens fom Feminie Pepctie Sangha was thus required to adopt the Guruiharma which placed ‘them in asubordinant postin to the Biches. But the Buddha intended the lationship berween the rwo odets to be that of elder brothers ro younger sisters, wth all sharing the sme eential status ae cildren ofthe Buddha. Given the social cl ‘mate of the time, the bhikkhuns subordination to bbb ean be seen asa strategy to insure their protection inthe Sangha. Iwas not nerfed that Bhikkhunis were tobe the Beh servants; when ‘hitkhus began to take advantage oftheir superior position and re- aquired che bhikkhunis eo spend thee time on chores and services rather than spiritual practice, the Buddha established rules forbid ding this'™ While the Buddha was alive, recurrent abuses of male privilege and power in the Sangha were Leptin check “The Gurudharmay, like all Buddhist teaching, were guidelines rather than rules cat in ion to be followed blindly. The first Gurudharma stated that bhikkhunis must slways pay homage to bikkhus, regardless of story. But when a group of monk be- haved in an unseemly manner towards some bhi, the Burka fnstraced the bhikLbunis not wo pay respect to them, in effect “breaking” the fr ul. Buddhist law i by nature lenble and re: sponsve tothe situation at hand ii not state ‘Although the eighth Gurullarma focbade bhikkhunis fom com ‘menting eitzlly onthe behavior of bhikkhus, Budi laywomen (Gnd men) wer allowed and even encouraged to do 0 The rel tionship between the Sangha and it was reciprocal: in Exchange for material support, the Sangha was expected to provide spiritual auidance and exemplify the Buddhist teachings in thei behavior ‘Therefore, even though the Bhikkhu Sangha was not answerable to the criticisms offerale member of the Orde, it was required t0 ‘meet the expectations ofthe lay, egades of gender) ‘According tothe Baht text, the Gurudharnas were given to “Mahapsjapat at the tie othe formation ofthe BhkKhuni Sangha, Thishas been accepedin Buddhist ation until recent, as seho- arshave begun to question the historical origins ofthe Gurudhermat. Ven. Khantipalo, an English monk ordained inthe Thai tation, argues that since Mahapajpai herself wa not requled to undergo ‘two-year probation period pio to her ordination, asset down inThal Wow BENS he sath rule, this rle may have been established Inte, fer the [Bhikihuni Order had been in existence for some tie. Khantialo concluded that “the Gurudhormas have been backdated to “Mahapsiapat’s ordination by some thik who were in charge f| reciting the Vine." The eon for their nelsion inthe Vinay was to emphasize the subordination ofthe bhikkhunis to the Bhikkhu Sangha. ‘Another frequently quoted statement from the texts has the (CBadala proclaiming that by accepting women int the Sangha, the longevity of the Buddhist tation wll be shortened by 500 yea] ‘According 0 orginal predictions this meant that Buddbisn would lar for 1,500 eater than 2,000 years. Whether the Buddha sald it or not, the obvious untruth and negative gender bis ofthis ate tment har Begone clear. The tation har now survived for ove 300 years, moving fro Tndlate Soubeat Ast the Hialayan ‘countries, the Fa East, and now the West “The development and longevity of both the Bhikkhu and [Bhikkhini Sonehae in nia and Se Lanka were cloely related duc Ing the fs ileum ofthe radio, During King Asoka’ reign inthe third century 8. Sanghamitta Ter anda group of feared ‘hlkkbunis went to Si Lanka and established a Bike Sangha there, which was to last for more than a thousand years. In India rope, there ls ample historia and archaeological evidence fom inscriptions to establish the existence of a continuous Blunt Sangha ul dhe eth or eleventh centr, when Indian Bodhi asa whole was eclipsed by the ll of slam In Sri Lanka, Buddhism prospered with royal suppor. Both the “Maovomss and Dpowomsa chronicles that recount Si Lanka’ Bud lise history, mention the existence and activites ofthe Bike Sangha, An inscription dating fom the year 1057 describes hospi tal run by Bhikthunie in Anoradhapors, the capital lsteting 2 tive hhikdhunt lnvalvement in social work. In the eleventh century, plitical turmoil and the invasion of South India's Chola dynasty bought on the disappearance ofthe Baie Sangha in Se Lanka. The Sei Lankan Bhikkh Sangha was late revived by rece ing the ordination lineage from Thailand, but the Bhikehuni Sangha wa les ertunate and was never revived in Sei Lanka Budi Tees from a Feminist Pespecoe ‘The Sti Lankan Mhikkhunt Lineage, however, has survived in China, & group of Se Lankan sums were invited to belp sve ordi ration toa group of Chinese women in the year 43. Thislineage i stl active in China, and hasbeen transplanted ro Korea, pan, and Vietnam. ‘Local Tha belie and customs teinforce the negative pecepton of women. Some of thes attitudes are regarded by the popsation as ‘coming fom the Buihist teaching and ate believed wo select Bud dis attitudes, and this has lene them greater credibly ad in ‘eased influence Ie fequently sad, fr example, that "women ‘rere bom from der bad Karma." This aseton that beng woman itself negative dos auch damage to woman's image and creates chstacles to her apiitual and asia development. Acconding to Buddhist teaching, everyone is born according to bis or her karma. The present situation of one Ie a dite refketon of one’s actions, whether good or bad. The belie that one’ gender is the result of “bad karma" dose not hold any meaning Tet many monks, whos pincpal source of suppor i laywomen, bieve this ides. Many women te convinced that they cary heat fod of| reqative karma due tothe simple fact of thelr gender, and x there fore eager to gin meri to fe it. Making ferngs to the Sangha isthe primary way most lanpeople hope co gain meet Morks, being "flds of meet” cus benefit etl from this vicious bee ‘Ase native ble that "women at of lower bh” elects Brahmanical Wess of cae, rather than Buddha eachirg, whi 1 es tejetion ofthe rigid sol “Gal prejudices of ith centty RC Tadic The Buddha sen ox plained th the quality of one actions defined a persors worth, ‘monks who bold what ae in ewence Brahianical Beli must he rade sare that chee were not the values ofthe Buddha, but are od prejudices based on ancient Indian cultual nouns that were ex pli rejected by the Bada. “Many Budi temples in Thailand, especially inthe northern provinces do not allow women to crcumambulate che up or en ter the main hall Locl monks justify this by explaining tha sacred relies ae usualy placed inthe center ofthe stupa atthe tne of“Taal Wow BuOOH omsructon If women wee allowed to ctcumambulat the tupa, they would be walking above the sacred relics, which i consdeted cline of Budhism depends on the health and vitality ofall four groups. Women should be given fll suport to bring forth thie strength in Buddhisn, They should be encournged to become or dhained if they 0 wish. The succes ofthe Bhikkbunis compared in the tents tothe light ofthe Sangha." ‘Concerned Buddhists mar study clorely the srptures to glean from them the pure message of the Buddha, which is otherwise clouded by the impositon of calkral values and gender bias. Seem ingly negative passages must be examined eraly and no allowed te become barier to the spttal development of women. Con very, postive posses should ke brought light to conan and encourage women today. Buddhism cannoe really losom ial the world’s population is noe given its fl right to express ts eligi The frm ay Meets have been adopted from this vurce to describe the white-obed, shaven-headed mae is Some ma is believe that "i ie ashoreened fou of na, meaning “one wha has conquered” an epithe forthe Buddha, ora spriunlly advanced person. However, “i” would ‘more common te shortened to nin Tht ther explanations give the source of che term in che pease j tor, cumph." meaning one who i able to overcome negative mental influences fom la meaning "shyness" a reference to fe male chastity’ ora devivative of pablaia, an siete orone who has been ordained® Research from the Thal Departmen: of Rell ous Alla indiates thatthe connection between Thailand and SriLanka during the Ayuda pevod nay be the source ofthe term, Sti Lankan women who observed precepts and wore whit were known a upg, literally, "better life” However, Sit Lankan ‘upsivinis didnot shave their heads, andthe shortened version would more coecty be iin Thai athe than i." ‘Thete ae many questions concerning the origin ofthe term "mae {47 In che Thai language, “ca refer o Bude monks, ac Ba Ait groups such as Jane and alot female Buddhists who observe precepts, have shaves heads, and wear white robes. With sich av ety of wages, ti diicul to determine the actual etymnclogy and tera meaning ofthe term a relates to female Budahi, Besides mae jis there ate various other groupe of Buichist reli ious women in Thailand. They are diingulshed by the amber of precepts they undertake to observe, the color of thei ees, and ‘other eiteia of kehavioy, length of ime under the precepts, ee. ‘Slacavins wear brown robes, shave heir heads and observ en pre cepts A group of slacarnis beyan at Wat Chanasongkram in Bangkok in the 1960. Since the death ofthe abot who ordained them, thee numbers have decreased. few ail practice meditation anu observe the precepts, but thee sole lite 0 within their ‘own nunnery Similar to he slacarins,sthamats, who alse observe vegetarianism, received thee ordination inthe Bodhieak lineage, This group is uving to reintodce a simple lifestyle and adhere closely to the frm of ety Buddhse, Duet involvement in pol- tis, they were dvestablshed by the Thal government i 1989, ‘hough thie case is stil being debated inthe courts. (These wo“Tuas Woven ne Buoows soup are dacused in more dealin Chapter Six.) ‘A very smal organization of women called buddha sai, wear yellow robes, shave their heads and observe bodhisatva precepts ‘The chief nun of this set received fll hikKhusi oination in a Taiwanese lineage. (This gro i dscusted in more detain Chap ter Five.) Finally j-praam ate women who undertake eight precepts for just a brief period of time, such a one week. For practical rea sons, such as the fac that they will soon be eetring to work, these women do not shave thet heads “The white-robed mae js however, constitute the majority of Ths teligious women. Their number is disputed, but statistics fom the Thai Department of Religious Affix compiled forthe years 1976 78 timated that there were more than 1,000. According 031985 lierview with Mae i Arun, Secretary ofthe Institute of Thai Mae Jis there ae 5,000 mae js ofcialy registered with the Insite Combined with unafiliated mae jis throughout Thailand, he total ruraber probably doesnot mich exceed 10,000. “The existence of mae i not wpported in the Pall Canon or by Thai law. Mae jis ae regard by Bust legalits to be upasikay like mae js, pious laywomen undertake to observe five or eight pre- cepts. Despite the fct that mae js shave thei heads, wear white robes, and lve a frm of monastic life chat distinguishes them from ‘ordinary laywomen, they are not considered ordained etsons, and ‘hus are not under the juriietion of dhe Department of Religious “Asics. The Deparment atte toward mae jie expresed by its ‘annual report which includes detied records on the monks, nov: ices and even temple bos in each temple yet makes no mention of rac jis. An abboc is responsible for mae ji only on the basis that they ae residents of the temple” Tel ack of legal atu results in thelr being denied certain benefits enjoyed by monk, such a e- «duced fares on public transportation. Yet mae jit are aleo denied the tight to vote in Thailand, as ar ofictl members ofthe Sangh, be- ‘cause they are supposed to have rejected worldly concerns 4m the Buddhist community, che Sangha andthe lacy ae inter- ‘dependent. The Sangha peovides spiritual guidance to the ay, and the airy, in eur, provider material support. The Buddha destibed the roe ofthe Sangha toward laypecple: to “show thei love for Maedis them, keep chem rom evil encourage them to do good Fel or hem ‘ith kindly choughes, each therm what they have not heard before, ort and clarify what they have leamed and chow them the way to heaven.” The laypeople, in tn, should serve the Sangh with “Lindy acts, words, and thovghts by opening thee homes to them and by supplying chem with thei material needs" ‘Asma js do not have an official legal position in the Sangh, the lay dos not fel obligated to suppor them. In fat toa great degre, Tha society holds the fale view thatthe Buddha did not ‘ant women to join the Sangha, Monks, all ordained members ofthe Sangha, are seen as worthy “fies of merit” fr offerings, but ‘uae jisare not. To ain merit, people prefer to make offerings £2 ‘monk rather than mie jis, even though monks already have ad- quate material support while mae isstrugale with meage resources In addition, many Thal people do not think religious life efor women. Many fel chat women whe become mae js do so becnuse of some failure in their worldly lives, sich a an unsatisfactory tela- tionshp or negligence on the pat of thei husbands or families. ‘catered allover che country without an overall organizational feamevork or clea ef respons, there isa wie disparity in the behavior and degree of commitment co eligious principles ex- hiblec by mae is Some are women whose dest o join the mae community a eflection oftheir denial of «word that ha ected them. Moe js Tack of self-esteem, coupled wih negative social nic tudes, have relted in their extremely low status, Marginalized, lndereducated, and economically unsupported, mae jis are alienated in Tht society, garering litle support even fom working women who fel that mae jircdo not adequately represent thei voice in Bade his. Ac bes, the majority of Thai people prefer to ignore chem. In 1969, the Sangharjaiitiaed national meeting of mae ji, and the Institute of Thai Mae Jis was formed with his support, Ins objectives were to unite me js fom all over Thailand, work towards elevating and strengthening their stats, help propagate Buddhism, contribute ro socal welfere, and help aged and destitute ‘mae jis A foundation was formed to support the Institute, and it wat ven legal seats in 1972. The lestitute has attempted to establish minitrauvestctres for repetering and organising mae jl, but‘Dial Wours Bune se has met with only partial success. However, the Institute has proved effective in seeening and recommending potential candi des to munneries and has alo been active in varios activites such, 2 pubhing books, providing prncecal and rls raining and ‘education for mae i and organising social work” “The ltitte has ako estalhed a set of guelines and regu Hons. A woman seckng to he a ma ji must know nine darmas, whic begin with asking or odination, and include the observance of precepts Many mae js however, do not know even these base rules and ate avare only that they are to observe the eight preceps| and to behave in an appropriate manner Mae shave no formal o. Ainaion; woman wally asks forthe precepts rom a monk othe head mae ofthe munnety she intends to enter. Women who ater sw co leave thei if at a mae ji ned only approach thee orignal receptors and ak for persion by reciting certain Pali verses, “The reasons women choote a religious fe vary widely. Some women are motivated by a trong with to develop themselves pit tually while others sek release fom the dificlkies of thee lives ‘Tis was tein the time of the Badd, and it i tve today. ‘Accouding to recent reseach, Thal women who become mae jis dosoforacombination of reasons. A majority, ney three-quarters ‘ofthe women surveyed said chat they became mae jis fonder 9 study and practice Dhara. A fl hed als sa that they were a> svering to vows that i ulin a promise if they recovered fom an Illes or overcame sme ther personal dficley About a at terof those interviewed tated a with to teach and help others while tol a small number stated their hope to aan ean, individual ‘pial salvation, 96 primary motivation” Tes interesting to note the relatively low percentage (25%)o6 women whose primary concer a this oe i working fr scial we: fare. Forsome women, becoming aac offer exape fem woldly ‘resures and problems. For then, involvement in social work mean ‘3 retar to the word fom which they ae seeking release Most mae jis come from rural, low-income backgrounds, and therefore have received initededcaton nual Thalland, peu cial preference of sons over daughter is especially evident in this regard: when financial resnutes fr further eduation ae available for ony one chile isalways the hoy who is given the chance Ie Mas ko cartomary as has been mentioned, fora young man to become monk for three months when he comes of ae, daring which time he receives an elementary Baise education. Only 79% af mae i have had ten years of formal education, 6O% have ha ese haa seven yeas and many older ma is are literate" While: few mae iis have completed the highest levels of Pall study, and some serve ‘as Pali teacher to monks and other me ithe number of such a complished women i stil too small w have much efect on mae ji ‘overll stars. While monks havea choieofewo Buddhiseunver ties in Bangkok, me jis do ot ave a place where they em receive proper Bais education The lack of education severely limits the possible fr mae ji fn both the Sangha and society. Mae jis fel that, as pat of the Sangha, they should be able wo teach Dhara to laypeopl and fer spiral gutdance. But in order to effectively ull this ey they themselves must be well versed in Buddhte texts and experienced in Dhara practice. Mae is with only a primary education ae often tunable to offer a correct Buddhist understanding, fling back stead supesitions and folk belies, which lit ther silty to teach, Thisis alo true among poody educated monks “Moe ising within temple compounds say therewith the per ‘mission ofthe abbot: In many cermples, ther standard of living sow and mos are relegated oserving the tmple by cooking ad clean” ing for the monks. Those who have sone support fom the abhor oF the temple adainisration find sreval aa ae i baely possible ‘Those who donot have great difficulty making ends meet Many oer ma jis have taken up begging in the bli that people would prefer giving money to thers rather than odinary ‘eagas. Unfortunately, ehis has conubuted to the poor pblic age of mae jis Members ofthe Insitute of Thai Mae ise particu” Tay concerned abou this practice and ty to dirourage it by pacing der, destitute mae jn old-age homes. But this doesnot adres the root cause ofthe problem, which the poverty of many mae jt velop, we need both men and women tbe rooted inthe Buddhist, teaching. Monks are limited by the Viaya fom having close con- tact with women ei therefore necessary for mae jis to carry onthe ‘work of sharing the Dharma with women. In order tobe effective, mae js need atthe very least, the moral sport ofthe monks. The auitudeof che monks towards ae is must develop with tele un derstanding ofthe crucial role mae js can fil in Thai Buddhism. “The position ofthe monks in the Sangha snot dueatend, ad by joining in the flor to make availabe the Bnidhal teaching to all, rmemers of soley, Buddhism and society ata whole wil benefit. "a Lk, The gn f Si Os Ok Unive Prem 186 * Me Sam 9 May ay BD 2 2 Ve ak Nedra Mat Life Bag 9) 9. 2325 The Has Ma Rapa (anh 784 * Ream Ate Th Clr Bok Ro 1,Oxer 17 “Onan dof ess ncn isons Kahn Br ah ‘hr * Ms’ Comes (Bug Dep Rls Ae, 19629. 3 "TW Ry Da SS Seed fe lie * Patbong Sanaa. "Rf Ts Mac si Soca Deselpme erp Tibet bLA thos Thanmact Une, antl 193 9p 158, "Quy Eechr Saonty in Th Rl of Chitin Na dBi iol MA he Ml Univer 1987) 7.188 "oti Gs ag ee Fn Wao Re oe ° dar We Unc. o at 8198 » Hee Ware Snare Kn Naruto. on Coker 4,169 Sy Uh Ty Ma id are 950046 pA Curren Five Two Bhikkhuni Movements in Thailand A though, a we have sen, thee has never ben a cil ‘tht Sagi n Tat few women have aca we Secon tlh In 928, to ng ster anand hong Bhat, ith het he eccurganent, eved Ge ennet Sina tthe ne Soe te cleats lhcen eo. There, Pr Pani Soran (ng Bet el song that Hn net oe epee Te Sa He tpe ht tun olan mul ves mean oy regis ie for women aah oinrve th ot Dig a tere with Sarno it now elon ea ol shed nor vane ode te me ofthe mae no ge het Crna res that he igh coco dif nang inthe Sangha. A the ine othe oft, he Ven Bi ‘Aale Wat Khao in Petr province ws nape ving fen onion fo thse wo wien sod ow fred as ome’ ‘Sonn oe the Sangh “The wo screed mane and ive Maklhunl od nation 81952 Apparent Ss and Chong ced et ows nly from monks, According to the ordination rls, propr Shah nln pet te pce evn eaton ‘te asenor monk ofa le ten yan tandig eee nd 3p pointed tach bythe Sangha A slain of ie nls trod the lation and the aplcant mt et civeofnation from the Bhd Sng bee eetving tom the Suk Sangha Atheros Thel But Sangha nelsence, the Tn Sng dot cone Sars and Chon to ete ees Piper onda Att tien con hs tye at Wat Narang (i erly el nn) sich hd tan Guo an gene By ther faher in ib ove compo. Pa Pann Suan ad offered the land to she Sangha be ha been tte theyTaal Wows Buowis considered him someone who a going against Buddhist radon, ‘The temple was used asa center for Dharma discussion for local people interesed in Buddhist teaching and practice. Daring thei residence at Wat Nariwong, located othe bank of the Chao Praya River, the two bhikkhuns sometimes went frais in the neighboring community. Although some people poke hanhly of them, others offered them fod. They also teaveled to diferent temples where they were given shelter with the mae jis and they seen on alms rounds jt ike the monks, During their travels, Sars and Chongl stayed at Wat Pra Buchapat in Sasbuti province, [e was local custom for laypeople to put only cooked rice inthe bowl, placing othe diches on ty Inld by the temple boy who fllowed the monks on alms rounds. “THe bhkhunis had no empl bo tofllow cher, and forthe fest three days they received only cooked rice. When the lcal people tealze this they ansred them that fod would be brough or hen tothe temple, Other mae joined them, and together they formed group of eight Bhikkhunis ‘Pe Panom Soranarin wae a controversial igure polically, who was involved in many publications, such as Natw Na (*Eront Line"), Nam Thai ("Leading Thal"), and Sarllarma ("Essence of| the Dharma’). The tides ofthese publications tlle his progeaive thinking: Most of is writings challenged the Thai goverament and raised isues about socal injustice prevalent in the Thi society of his day. He was especially vocal about the decline of the Sangha leadership. His printing pees as clved down by the government ‘many times. Pra PanomnSaanarin’ public ceils ofboth the gov fmment and the Sangha placed him in highly undestable psi- on Sosequendly his daughters and the Bhikkhuni Sangha that he supported became ages of polical wrath ‘The Sangha was opposed to both the samanerl and the Bien cxdinations. The Sangharaja ent a peronal letter to the mayor of| Nonthaburi the province where thei home temple wat situated, condring the Bihan to doke and declaring the ordination in ‘ali. In addition, the monks were formed that ordaining women as sikhamanas, samaneris, and bhikkhunis was aot allowed! ‘Two monks, Pra Saranasabhon of Wat Makut and Somde) Pra ‘Teo Bit Monee in Thlland ‘Baddhakosacaray of Wat Sudat, tated that oraining women was the act ofa crazy person, and che reiterated the traditional view ‘hat women were the enemy of monks putty “There was a violent reaction in the public media as wel News papers generally ridiculed the ordination of women. That Num (Young Thai Men") considered such ordination the enn of Bus- diam ad an act of Devadateas follower Lak Muang (“City Pos") ‘considered the women's ordination a heretical act, deserving the death sentence. Sf Knog encouraged the government te punish these women. Bangkok Kermueng (Bangkok and Polis") su ested that if Pra Panom Saranarin was a good Boda, be should ‘ot allow bis daughters to become heretics, Only one newspapen, Ying Thal ("Thai Women"), gave x postive report on the onlination of women, Finally, police areted the young bhikKhunis, and they were forced to appear in cour at Nonthabari. Some elderly bhikunis Aiaobed before the policemen asved atthe temple, but Sara and Cong fused to give up their robes. They were charged with an act of deobedience to the Oner ofthe Sangha. Sara was led for tight dys, Chong forfour At tei fathers aggestion the stared wearing brown robes similar to chose of Japanese monks when they were related, but as son as police harassment stopped, they 2e- sumed wearing thet yellow robes. ‘Ace their ret the to Bhikhunis continued to travel to dif fereneprovines. Some temples offered them shelter, while ters refused to admit them out of fear of epeial fom the authories. At Kongehak (‘Dharma Whee") temple in Supanbur provzce, the shot, Ven. Bhi Kot llowed the tro Hikkhunis and two cer samaneris fo stay in hs temple, aginst the wishes o senior admin- tstrative monks. The abor explained that ast was customary for the temple to give shelter 10 any monks, eve feign monk, who Fle lowed good practice, he saw no reson agnnet doing oo fer these swell behaved Bhkkhunis He old them that chey dno ink it seas right, they should inform the Bhikkhunis of thelr objections personaly Sara remained in robe 2 Hkh fortwo eas before dina Ing inthe face of unvelentng presre from society and fom the“Tuas Won s Browns Buddhist authorities. In toa, she remined an ordained person for eight years—a mae ji for ewo yeats, a samaneri forfour, and @ Uhikkhun! for two year. Interviewed in 1983, when she was sev ‘enty three years old, Sara's air was cotton white but she was psi cally and mentally able, Desi the presses and dificulies dhe ad encountered in her quest to become a bhikkhun, she il felt strongly abou establishing a Bhikthuni Sangha in Thailand, stat ing “We should mend whatever incomplete—a chai with a bro ken leg must be fixed. The Buddha established four groups of Buddhists: bhikkus, Bikhuns, laymen, and laywomen. As the Bhikkehuni Sangha is now missing, we have orestablish this for the sake of completion." ‘She went on to sy, “We do not have any bhikkhuniein Thailand ‘because Buddhism originated in India. It was nether convenient nor safe for women to travel, so the Bhikehuni Sangha never traveled to Thailand. During King Asoka’ period, the king asked an arahat monk how he could become a relative ofthe Saxons (Buddhism). ‘The monk replied hat one could become atlativ ofthe Sasana by condaining one son or daughter. So King Atoka allowed his daugh- ter, Pincess Sanghamita, to be ordained as a Bhikkhuni. The ‘Burka sid that wherever there Dharma chete tthe way So think when there ate people practicing Dharma, we shoud alo have Dhikkbunig” However, fllowing the strong conflict that Sara, Chong, and thelr father, Pra Panom Saranatn, experienced with the Sangha and the authorities, attempts to establish the ordintion of women cened ‘As isclealy ilstrated from Sara and Chong stor, Tal scl ty sin general, negatively disposed towards the iden of reviving the Bhikthun! Sangha. No father attempt bring abou Bikhani ‘ordination occurred until 1956, when Mrs. Voramai Kablsagh, hhaving received eight precepts from Pra Pronmunt of Wat Bovornnives, started to wear alight yellow robe to ditnguish her self from the local white-robed mae js She aio refered ta here anak bua (an ondained peron) Voramai Kabisingh was horn in 1908 in Rajbr province in cen- ‘ral Thailand, ad received pat of her eatly education at a Catholic Tuo Bhd Movements in Thailand ‘convent. Asa schoolteacher she enrolled ina physical taining ‘cour and became the fist Thal woman to tain in jt (judo) boxing, and swordfighting. In 1952, a the age of twenty-four, ‘Vora joined a group of Boy Scous on a went-eight day bieyle Journey to Singapore, becoming the fst Thai woman to make such ‘journey She later explained that she wanted to show her stents ‘that gender ference does not prevent women fom achieving wich physi fats During the Second World War, she maried Mt Kokst Shatsena, 1 merrber of parliament for Trang, a southern province. While he satin the parliament as an MF, she was also there working asa news ‘reporter. This work exposed Voramal to many cecil problems, and the lak of education for poor atl chilren became a pariculae concen. As her husband became more deeply involved in polities, she became more interested in religion. They took their separate path without legal separstion, with one child from the matige, ana thre adopted children. During 1953, her interest in Buddhist mediation practice deep- ‘ened, and in 1955 she began publishing a monthly Buddhist mage tine, which wast ast for more than thirty-two year. The magazine ‘was a forum fr a varity of articles on che teachings of Buddhisn, snd abo.on the role of women in Buddhism. ‘Vorama’s work and her interest in Buddhism continged to inten- sify ard on May 2, 1956, he shaved her head and asked freight precept fom Fra Pronmni, Viee Abbot of Wat Bovornives. Tit senior monk saton the national Council of Elers and had also been fone of the two teachers when the present king of Thailand, Bhumiol, received his ordination. He enjoyed a postion of respect and authority inthe council and was koown for his strictness VVoramai wore a white robe a the sime of her ordination but in formed her preceptor that she woul be adopting ight yellow robe to disteguish hersel fom the local mae jb This was done inten- tional to protect her preceptor from incurring any blame should trouble are ‘Vocal followed a stict vegetarian diet (most Thal monks and lay Buldhsts are not vegetarian), explaining that one cannot pssi- by gererate compasion with sincerity of hear forall beings whileTun Won BUOHIS sail eating the lsh of animals, Wiha the same year that he took the preceps afew young women joined her in becaming yellow robed nuns. She was particular about taining them in proper de- ‘meanor. When they tele, they always walked in line according to seniority and they were not allowed to tavel alone, alway ing in piso lager groups. This sll group of runs eceved Dhara training and also eared handicrafts In 1987, Voramai purchased property in Nakhonpathor prov- ince, west of Bangkok, forthe purpose of constructing 9 temple. ‘Completed in afew years, Waa Songdharma Kalyani was the fist temple in Thailand established by and for Buddhist women, At the same time, Voramal opened privat shoal for children fom ki «ceeding abot has fe to continue giving such precepts which sguarantees that che numberof silcarni wil only delve in the fate. Thesesilacarins ead quiet and secluded life. They offer re ligious consultation to dhe fe who sek their help. Their existence is known ony toa very limited number of people they dnote volve themselves in outside social work and they seldom eppeat i publ Santi Asoke is new Buddhist movement started inthe 19605 by Pra Bodhirak. This movement challenger the validity of te exist ing monks” community and ofers 2 way of Mes claims i lose to the teaching ofthe Baldha and the te sii of Buddhism. They hhave a great numberof followers, mostly young Buvhists who are iste with the materialism and consumerism of the existing Sangh. ‘Within Santi Asoke'sonaned community, Pex Badhitak has aso made olintion available o women. However, the highest ranking for women is that of sikkamat, te ten-precept brown abe runs Pra Bodhirak maintains a rato of fur monks to one sikhanat. The ‘number of sikharas willbe Linited by the umber of monks at best they can only number one-fourth ofthe total community. Tete are approximately eventy sthamats inthis center They ae exensially the sme asthe orginal smanerisof the Buddhist tradition. The we ‘ofthe erm “sthamana” (one who fllows the precepts isparposely voided, a monks in Thlland are not allowed to give saan ordination (One branch of Santi Asoke isin Nakhonpathom. Generlly this community follows avery sit routine. The nuns and monk rie‘THAl Wow ws Buoose before Sam. and are not allowed an afernoon nap. They take only ‘one vegetarian meal a day and live» lietle of extreme simplicity with only the basi necessities. They la tre communal ie each ‘one having ony asa hut with bare requirements, There ie main Ikchen where laypeople work together with the monks and nuns. “The community attempts tobe self-soporting by groring their own, vegetables using organic methods. For instance, instead of wing chemieal insecticides, they cultivate a certain species of Mower which acs a a natu insect repellant In 1989, Santi Asoke’s open supporto particular polities party whose sucess ara threat to incumbent politcal power led to the ‘movement coming under attack from the traditional Sangha Bodhiak was charged on the basis cht he claimed himself to be enlightened, claim which, sf not true, is considered a defet for a ‘monk. Bohirak’ ck of Pal knowledge has ed wo his misinterpre- talon of certain Built aching His propagation of vegetarian jem has also come under stack, Under song pres bd om the government andthe Sangh Bdhirak was forced to sop wearing the bown robe: he now wears whic abe All his male followers, arested slong with him, have now changed into loose brown pants with a white robe. The sikhamats have now changed from dark Brown robes to gray. The ‘members of Sarit Asoke still practice Dhstia in ques way, and religious activities stl go on among the ine group a the ete. ‘Armong Sani Asoke' sikhamats, many ate well educate, and some speak foreign languages, including French and English. From the standpoint of education, the Santi Acoke uns ate definitely more salyanced chan many tational mae fis ‘The Sathiendharmasathan Foundation was established by Mac ji Sansanee Sathienst age thiry seven, formerly a secces(l model tnd busigeswoman who las been a mae ji for over deere! She doesnot Believe in bling vermples merely to gain merit,» popu practice Fr her, bulling temples is ony a material and phyicl act. She would eather build good community, and her work, based fon this understanding, sdesigned to tain people xo that they can fellow dhe ght path and lead sucess happy lives. ‘To many, wealth may become an obstacle 19 Dharma practice. ‘Mac ji Sansane hat wed her wealth consructvely She ba nate Inporan Nun's Commies lover and her large compound is heal arranged wit egaden | and lous pond. The st is red ofen for teining courses including project called Buddhaputa (literally, “sons ofthe Bola”) shee-day training cours given twice yearly ro highschool dents The waning emphasis giving and sharing es an expression of com- prsion, the Basic teaching of Baldhism. The rudents are rained to beable to help those in need and to learn how to api give to others ‘The Patents Project 3 training project chat involves both par ‘nts and chilten. Speakers and erainers are usually monks who try to ImpareBoddhst teaching to stengthen family tes and ep alee ate social problems. The Invalid Children Recovery Project helps lsabed children adape and cope, and teaches healthy eden to develop compassion and become more concered for thor les fo tunate: Another project involves support of the kindergarten school at Wat Sirdharnnimit In order to help ran this school, Me i Sansanee earned a dere in home scence. After helping the abbot setup the school which includes bok a preschool ans kindergar ten of over 209 children, she continues to offer regular financial support. The Sathiendharmasathan Foundation, primaily financed with Mae ji Sansnee's personal income, helps generate and fund these worthy projects This place i ving grou that a wealthy person, ‘once turned to follow the path of Dharma, cam help society im: tenses: Such opportiniy «without gender limitation: nen and ‘women can be equally helpful othe cause of Dharma Suankaew Dhamma Center i branch of Wat Paknata branch, situated in che Chombung distct, Rajburi province. This center was established when the nunnery at Wat Paknam became over «onded. There are approximately twenty mac js, headed by Mie ji ‘anja Chookorn, age fifty, one of the many success dips of the famous fate abbor of Wat Paknar. Forty acres of and nee do- nated for her projet, alld "The Mathes Land.” Mae jt Wanjel CChookor intend itt bea place for women to lve topeher and, follow the Buddhist path. She herself has been succesful mets tion maser elowing the technique of Luang Po Wat Paka. ‘Vanasanti Nunnery istuated in Don Yigtom, Petri provinceTuas Women BuDbAIS ‘The unique characteristic of this nunnery i that it selF una vig as etre by the Bada inthe formation of the erty ‘communities Regret, this charactritic snot maintained even in some ofthe major temple. During the rainy season, mae js workin the rice il. They keep enough ice fr ther annual we, while dhe ret sso ohelp man tain che minnery Mae Thongnien Kaewnaet, herself fron an agri- cultural background, rained he followers tobe selFsuficent After the major rice harvest, the mae i prepare the sll or beans and other shoe-tem crops: Members of Ma ji Thongpien Keewneets family ssi he nunnery by traneporting and selling the exces crops in the market, ‘Women inthis small self supporting nunnery live a quiet commu- ral ife and practice Dharma. Their diy oatine begins at 5a. sith group chanting snd meditation allowed by eleaning the com pound. At 6am, soe of the mae js go au for als rounds inthe nearby villages. Following the traiional pater, pais of mae jis re sent in the four dietions, a toa of eight mae jis Asked why all thirty mae is didnot go fo als, Mae ji Thomgpien Kaewnaet sid tha the community did not want to become a burden onthe villa 8,50 they also cook o feed the res. Al the mae js share inthe responsibly of cooking forthe ethet, and the alms fod is shared mong the communi, ‘The communal ving at this nunnery contrasts with thestuation in many other nuns’ communities in Thailand. In mos, individual mae js are responsible for thelr own separate meal, situation Ingoran Nun's Conmaries which intensities the fitancaldferences between them. Vanasanti is successful in introducing communal living Because the mae jis work cogether inthe fel. The head nun has a developed tong a sminstative sytem that binds ll che me is together asa commu nity. Such a lifestyle is conducive to Dharma practice as it {encourages one co lt go of individual posession an in the lon run helps develop an understanding ofthe Buddhist principle of ‘anata (nose). This runnery i ising example of the possibility ‘of asetsupporting Buddhist commumity for women, ‘Tie information on nunneves given here a fom cplee. I {sony an atempr ro provide the reader with a general eckytound Due tothe flexible nthe populations of temple and numerics, the number of mae js given is always an appronimation this Is trae lo with the number of monks and novices, Dusing the thee ‘month rainy-season retreat, the number tends to be higher ial temples and nunneres ast seustomary for many laypeople o take ‘temporary ordination forthe retest psi Langer nunneries are found mainly in central Thallnd. Rajbut and Petburi provinces are outstanding fr lange numbers of mse ji In he south there isnot single established nunnery that worth recording. The low concentration of mae jis inthe south also tue foc monks, whereas ange numbers of monks ae found in xe north cast, where thee are a few wellknown meditation masters The northeast doesnot boat a lage amber of ge ji however and this Aiference ssl open o further teearch and stay. ‘Tradicionaly temples are meant for monks and novices. When Budhist women want to lead a religiur ie a eoditinal temples, they are usually given a small cell aay fom the monks residence, mos often ina neglected are ofthe empl, This situation s gener ally te for most ofthe cemples where mall summers of rae js ate found. Moe js teeive beter quarters only when there ata signif ‘ant number in residence. Is becoming tore popular for mae ist live ina nunnery completly separated from the temple. There are ‘ovo mjor advantages to this: mae js do not have to attend to cook ing and cleaning forthe monks, which allows them moe tine for Dharma study and practice and they have this own adicistative system which is better suited ro meet the practical needs of women,“Tal Wows BuO eerie: 90 eight Dhar ‘wort er and edb arewonby hgh ing ei 7 » See Chap, “vo Bhat Monee in Ta #2 » cold in Prostitutes and Buddhism A st eaelsovaousintmationl conferences on women ad igen, am an ake gunn about petttion tr halland “The qustors evolve around why there reso many posts any county a Bali cory Does Buh promote rst ton? What doethe Sangha say abou ponttion? Cana ona scl bs good Badia? Prowtution hes been known i human Blstoy from ancient tues I existed tn ia por tothe Buddha’ ce. In anclet Greece and Rowe, women ofered heneles to unknownmen at temple aa frm of eligus ita Money given hea fom thee encounters was donated directly othe temple nd in hi way te lieved they gained the favor ofthe ge Theft house of Presttution was stared ome 2400 yeas ago by Soon, a Geek le flit and sci former According to im, the iition of ros Urton decreed eral mitbehavior among both men anc woe, Aain, the income from poviution was given to the vemple! Around the fifth century 2, Babylonian women wee reqied to offer their boli ina temple deleted othe Godde Mpa a Tea once inher esimes ata meinang al “Akhough nearly every soit ones potato, sone hat succeeded in completly eating i Apparently, Se. Augustine ‘supported prostuton rt anton pet in making monoge ‘mows socety posible, Contemporary silos apd scl hers Aiea thet option. Some suppor prosation ar amet ‘iting men asexual ee withow much commitment apr from Aoanial patty Others consider pettutn afm of wale: plain which denigrate women and et the solely ar com Inodity to answer tothe sexual needs of een. They sce this explain ithe sume tre a xpatation nthe lb are ‘And they point ov tha economic nd socal rvtures promote tratation med onthe promotion ofthe Hen that women exist forthe plese of en“Tuas Wong Buns | wi begin this discasion by focusing on ow prostitution ape pears in Buddhist exts. Then I will explore the tue of prostitution in contemporary That soci. Finally wil examine how Buddhism can help prostates. Prosrrruresin Eanuy BuDoHISt Texts The tenm for “prostitutes ound in Buddhist text sob, bre ated fom nagar shin, meaning a beautfl woman belonging to the city. Thistle was fiat given by che king of Vajs and eons tuted, in esence a profesional positon of state prottate, To re «cive tis tte, a woman, besides being extreodinalybeatifl, had to be leaned and well-trained in social arts, sch a singing, dane- Ing, conversation, poetry and the Kamasutra, heat of sensual plea sure: Because such a woman was desired by competing kings, princes, and nobles, and coud therefore beat the center of conflict that might even escalate into wars, the king bestowed the ile ofsobhin, ‘meaning that she did nor belong to anyone in paticular, but could ‘be enjoyed by anyone who could aff the high price ofher services. One sobhini was valued at hal of the price of the city of Kast (Varanasi). Apparent the social stant ofthese women was reason sly high, a5 they practiced ther trade only among upper-easte nobles. Another clas of prostitutes served the general public. They were called gota, which simply means a community of women. Ganika were also mentioned inthe early Baddhis texts, but the f- ‘cus was onthe sobhini. The eatly Bahia texted ot eflect any negative attitude towards promitutes, The Buddha weleomed these ‘women and gave chem the opportunity to walk the path of enlight- enment in equality with all people, regardless of gender, case, of creed, Ambapali was the sobhin of Ves. Abandoned as baby, she was left the branches ofa mango tee—her namie means “il from the ‘mango tree” A gardener found her and brought her t the king of Verali and she was ase within the royal compound. passage la the Kluddhaka Naya describes her beauty “She has jt black and shiny har her eyebrows areas besuifl at drawn by the Band of « feat artist. Her two legs ate those of ivory, her feta soft as cot 'on.* The Mahavagy goes onto sate chat the rate for her services Prostate and Budo was as high sft hapa fora night, and chat she was well versed inthe “sixty-four at” of seducing and pleasing men of noble fares. Varios princes and kings of Veal wanted vo. own hes and when they could not settle their disputes over he, they gave er the tte of sobhini. Ambapali wast serve them ata set rate Laer, King Bimbisara of Rajagaha took her ashi consort, and aon was born 10 them. Their son, Vimala Konda later joined the Sangha and became enlightened The Ambapali Thesapadana narrates the story of Ambapals pre ious births. Once she was oen into the kanya (warrior) cast, st the younger sister ofthe Venerable Pusamun. She practiced well ln Dharma and mere making and her wish tobe born beaut in her next lie came true when she was born in a Brahman fai However, proud of her own beauty, she cursed and insulted a Uhilkhuni. Ths action sent her dough many suffering ives, and she was hon many times aa prostvte. At the ie ofthe preview Budtha Kassape, she was ordained and became a bhikkhuni After ‘that she was born and resided in Ttimea heaven, Then inthe tine ‘ofthe Gotama Badd, she was bon inher lt hh «postu le the Maha Parnbane Sut, we ate told of che time that the Buddha stopped and rested in mango grove belonging to ‘Amtopali She pad hi respec ad invited him and bie followers foclunch the nextday. A group of Licchav nobles, who also wanted to offer lunch to che Buddha on the sme da. offered her 100.000 Lahapanas if she would withdraw her invitation. When Aabapal refused, che nobles approached the Buddha directly, but he informed them that he had already acepeed Armbapali’ invitation. When the ‘Buddha went for lanch at her place the nexe day, she offered hee ‘mango grove to the Buddha andthe Sangha. Later she gave op het belongings, renounced her forme: life, and became a bhilkhun. She practiced Dharma diligently, became enlightened, and was a skilled Dharma propagator for many year, ‘Selavai was another famous sobhin| of Vesa? She was beaut and leamed, well-versed in the as of singing, dancing, and enter: taining men. To spend a night with her costa minimum of 100, ahapanas. He fist child, Jivaka, was eased by Prince Abbyarsi,Tua Wow 28 BoD son of King Bimbisar of Rajagals Later he left the alae, went to Taxila to study medicine, and became the phsieian ofthe Buddha and the Sangha, Salavais second child Sirima, was very beautfel and capable, and she became a sobhin after het mothet. She was a devout Buvkdhist who made daly ferings to group of eight monks, One young monk, hearing abou her beauty, desired to see her. He went to receive dana a her house. On dt particular day she was ill and appeared unadorned t9 make her routine offerings tothe monks, ‘Thinking tha even unadorned she was beautiful and how much more beatiful woud she be with fine adornments, chs young monk ‘became obsessed with irima and wa led with desire Fr her ‘Son after dis inesent ira passed away and the Buddha re- ‘quested to keep her body fr four days. On the fourth day e went to the funeral yee wit retinue of monks ialuding the young monk tho had been infaunted with her The Buddha made an offering of her hod searting witha pice of 1,000 kahapanas and lowering the price down to ane, yet no one wanted her Body. The Buddha then Went on to explain the impermanence ofthe body, Deepyafected bythe Bukhe's teaching, dhe young monk soon entered the path of How did che texts explain the caus of promitution? We have al seady seen how the Ambopll Theriyapadana related the previous bunts of Ambapali Here i a story of Addhakai, who became & sothini due to her previous karma. In the time of che Buddha Kasapa, she was a bhikchun. In anger, she eared her Miku frend calling he a prositute. Because ofthis she sllered through ‘many lives. In rls bet, she was hor nto wealthy fay, bt because of her beauy she was given the tie of sobhini. Addhakas hha heard the teaching of the Buddha and ltr joined the Sangha “To be ordained, she had to travel fom Kasi to Sevathi, but some thieves onthe highway were planning to abet her Knowing this, the Baas, for the fir rine, allowed oedinaton through amesen tet Adahalas! soon became enlightened and helped propagate the teaching ofthe Bue from her own experience ln dhe Therigatha oe Pane ofthe Buds Stes, ther isa record of Vimalapurana Gane, a beautflsobhint whe later joined the Sangha an became enlightened. Her verse on understanding the true nature of attachment i preserved in the Theat. Before turing to look at che problems of prsttion inthe con- emporary weld, ¢ might be worthwhile ro examine the Buddhist atctude towards prostitution. On a primary level, Buchs does not deny prostitutes equal epprtunty for enlightenment Some of the leading prostitutes progressed rapidly om the path becroe ofthe fact tha they were prostates, having experienced the exes of sensal indulgence and realized the meaningesses off But the prostitution ofthe Budaha' time was ently diferent {oom the prostitution prevalent in modern society. Prostitution, then, was a profession of upper-cate society. Prostitute circulated among nobles and hada relatively high socal standing However, the very existence of pestitution, then and now owes mich 0 male ‘eed an lust. When they ould nor apte among themselves about sexual ownership ofa particular woman, they made er public pop «ery she di not really belong ro anyone, yet she belonged tall. As ‘we have seen in Indian ealtre, women are treated st mete objects to be posesed by male owners A woman’ fate was determined by men's power in plies, society, religion, and economic, Women today sul ace his predicament Budkhism does not deny the spiil potential that promteates share wth all of humanity, But Buddhise does aoe promote or en courage prostitution, stead, it suggests that ira ype of existence characterised by fering. AS we have seen, Buddhist rex sy that being bow a peostitte ithe esl of karma ‘Tere mere cases of prostitutes who after accepting Buddhism, followed a feof purity and gave up prstivtion. Althcugh Bud bie is open to ponies does not support pretitatin, To the contrary itheps to strengthen women so that they can ge up prow tltution and lead beter ive. Paosrrures i THALAND lend, prostitution was mentioned during King Rama P's eign." There was taxation of prostttes and brothels called “ax for the road." When Rama V abolished slavery some eae sives were tumed over to men who started brothels. Prostitution waslepalied“THALWoMN ms BUDE ln 1934 by Rama V. He expressed his concern about prostztes who worked in gangs with men a their supervisors, The station was ‘prone to violence, and the teat af spreading venereal diate was fret. Because of thete dangers, Rams V allowed prostitutes to be registered so chat they coal receive regular medical care ‘Afr the ule applied onl oprostitte in Bangkok, but when 4 9a found that rotation was ls prevalent i the ural prow” ines the act was extended to the entre county. Ratna Vsact dealt diectly with prostitution and the prevention of venereal disease, ani atempted ro protect women from being forced into prostitution, Buc dhete was no atterpt to help prostitutes fee thesselves fom the rade, nor any attempt vo elevate the lives of proses “Thailand remained under this act until 1960, when the United [Nations declared the abolion of prostittion. The Thal govern ment answered the UN policy by intoducing "The Act to Deter Prostitution,” replacing the 1934 la. According to this new at | fone is perited wo perform inthe sex tae, ether eternal ot hhomosexal. A person who has transgressed the lw wil be fined ‘maximum of 2,00 blr (abou $50 US.) or sentenced o Inpion ‘meat for up too mont. Through this ac, pestitaion became legal which sto sy, ram the egal point of view, there are no prostitutes. Chalermpol Sauthapors, who has done research on prostitution in Thailand found tha ater legal probition the namber of rosutesinteated notieably® Before the Act, 15% of prostates were between the agesof teen and nineteen, bt after the declaration ofthe Ac, the percentage increased to 25%, Also more women from rural areas became prostitutes In provinces where there were itary hes the numberof prostitutes alo noticeably increased. Satthaporn aso found that after the Act to Dece Prestitation, the numberof people Who wete Sentenced to imprisonment on charges of exuial har ment increseed rap? Thailand prostittion indus escalated damatialy daring the 1960s when the United States eablished military bases ere da {ng the Vietnam War Even ater the bases were dismantled pros tution continued to spread in vari guiser—bargicl, singers, partners, and other “cover” occupations. Thailand hay sated ts Prone and Bad ‘women slong with social and cultural value for a shorlved eco ‘omic boom. Statistcson the number of prosttuteshas always ben controver: sll between government organizations, onthe one hand and non government organizations on the other Because prosciion i legal there ino official second of promitutes, Mortis G. Fon a United Nations consultant on social welfare who di uy om prostitution in. 1957, reported 20,00 postietes, hall in Bangkok ™ De. Pasuk Foagpaichit, an economics profesor at Chullongkorn Universi, says thatthe current number of premier i between, 700,000 to one ulin. This figure is generally accepted by many cxgznizatins desing with the problem of position, Tis ince approximately 29,000 Thai protitates working abroad Fasuk gies 1 reglonal breakdown: 3% from the north, 26% from the norh- east 20% fom central Thal, and 4% fom the south The prostitution indus i sptead throughout various "profes: sions” Arathai Dilok-Udomcha ported tht 41% ofthe prost- tutes worked in restaurants, 20% in roel, 13% in hot 11% in rented houses, 389% in barbershop, 253 in bars and 3% dn mas sage priors ‘The majoriyof pestis have only four year of primry educe ton, only a quarter had reached grade seven, and the remaining swore have had no formal edition a ll" ‘oth Sunce Mallgmalaya and Dilok-Udorachai reported thatthe majority of women became prosiues a age sateen. Malgmalaya found the age ange between sateen ad nineten ra high percent age in both voluntary (44%) and involuntary (64%) prothutes, ard pointe our the corelation Fetween younger age range and grater number of prostitutes” Woagchas informants were mainly women who had experience working in foreign counties and cele te> porte a slightly older age range: twenty-seven to teenty-nine, {2496} tht to thieyewo, (26%). ‘The major of prostates come fom agricultural files who have no financial guarantee of thee anal product. The majority of these families work on borrowed lad" Dilok-Udornchai found that 50% of er study cases were from agricultural backgrounds, 22.54% were from Inbor and 15.45% were from families owning small businesses, Malligialaya found that 60% of voluntary andTy Wome Bus 80% of involuntary prostitute came frm ariculturl backgrounds ‘Wongcha also reported thatthe highest percentage of he info. ants came fom agricultural backgrounds (56%). The finding re fects the need for the government to pay serious attention tothe standard of living of farmers, who comprise che majorly of the Thai population. Prostiation may be seen partly ar the result of ‘Thailand’ unauccel agricul system, ‘Another fading which important to consider i that prostates sualy come fom large fais, with an average of st eight hil dren. Often prostitutes are the eldest children in the fale. ‘Wongcha epoced tha 33% of he informants have between si 10 ten siblings, finding corroborated by Dilok-Udomchats sud ‘Mallgmalay foun that proscutes wu came fom fies of six to seven chidten!” This probably reflect the inability of the par ents to support such a Tage family. The young worten who became posttest the eldest children, were made to beat heavy ina lal burden ose hel fares trough Haunt Prostitutes ao fce physical and mental dificultes Wongehat se- pot gives the following saistics for common health problems en ‘countered by the women in er stay: 58% had venereal dient; 75% were addicted to cigarettes; 32% wed sexual imate 499% often had headaches 415% had rouble sleeping. A mote recent and frightening health problem wie studied by Mecchat Veeravatchya, ‘who quoted the following starsics of AIDS among prostittes in CChiengrai (which has high concentration of protien 1987 ‘there were no repored eases in 1985, 0.98% ofthe proves mere iagosel in 1989, 36%; by Agu of 199, 5686 f the rt popu Tacion of prostitutes were diagnosed as HIV positive. Fabio Ossells depaty regional representative ofthe UN Devel opment Program warned that Thailand ie”.on the verge ofa grt waged” A teport fom the Division of Epidemiology said that 100,060 Thais mighe aleeady be infected with Human Inuno-de- Fcieney Virus (HIV), the harbinger of AIDS. Onell ured: “The ‘Thai Government must mobil many moe esources..mmediate ction must be taken by all epeat, ll ministries. The strength Prssaes nd Bion ofthe HIV infection cannot be held in check by the Ministry of Pablie Health by itsll”” Considering the rapid seed of AIDS among the pretcutes of ‘Chiengray and the high total numberof posiutes in Thailand (700,000 to one million), one realizes that we are not talking ofa threat prostitutes onl, but tothe whole nation. This situation s socritcal that Meecha warmed, *we ae not aking about [al heal problem fony)..we ae nose dealing with the death ofthe nation.” Income ‘The income tht prostitutes ean for their servcesvalesacording to preferences forage and physical beauty. Mallignaaya reported thatthe highest rate 6,000 baht (about $240) for the sevice of first-time prostitutes: Generally 51% of the prosiutes receive es than 500 habe ($20) and 36% receive les than 100 babe (84). In fener, che prostitutes themselves actually receive les than one ‘hind of wht the customer pay Prostction scarred out under various guts, occurring among borg ight chib singers, is working in barbershop, walresses working i restaurants, and even univenity and college tents. ‘Wongchai has lasted diferent ypeso prostitutes, As prosiuton fsilegal, publicly known promis mt go in hing to avo a rest during police ald. "Hall-known” prostitutes ae those who hemseles view their wade a presttutin, suchas “all gis,” but senor generally publicly known a sch, A third entegory x women ‘who work as protcutes under “cover” jobs suchas bags, “pat- ner women working in easage parlor, ete. Touring provitater are another las of prostitute. They travel to lage ete, tourist r- fons, andthe lke, meet their clients in big hotels and ten move ‘on to other ites. Thir makes them dic oloeateandrecord they tend to change cheir tradenames a they move fron town to town. Another category slegally maried prostitutes whose hus: bands often woek as prs providing protection and coves and ive ‘om thle wiver’ income, Temporary proatttes turn to petition the to an immediate financial rss o nck of economic support ‘They give up the profession as son a they ae ancl table.” ‘Wengehat did a study on women working protein foreignTia Wen Busts ‘counties. ue to legal restitons, these women found themselves working sprostcutes under cover jabs "go-go" dancer sex show performers, karhostesses, night club workers, acteses In poner sraphic ils, and other Japan is consbered the bes place for the setae offering the highes income for people in this siness “The majority of prostiues working abroad ae from northern Thai land, ranging fom ssten to twenty-five yeas of age. Ther werage income is between $8C0-S1,200 a month, from which $2008240 will be deducted. They work abvoad for periods of sx to nine ‘months. Each year about ive hundred women ae deported Bock to ‘Thailand for illegal entry ino foreign counties, ‘West Germany hasan annvalenty of 2,000 Tha prostitute, and Hoong Kong has dhe se number. Thal prostitutes stared t work in Brune fouro five yes yo, working fom one too weeks each ‘wip. and averaging about $200 a day. Each trp they earn fom $2,800 up toa maximum of $6,000 depending on special ervices or popularity. Price to the Gulf War lag wa als a Tcrative destin tion inthe Middle East. Tht prostitute cere eared frm $800 19 $1,200 monthly Teiscommonly believed that poverty the sole caus of post tion in Thailand. However, statstical evidence doesnot necessaly bear thisou. Fr instance, the northeast isthe poorest region of the country. IFpovery i the le eae of prstctin, the numberof frsttute rom the northeast should he the highest. However, this is noc so all suds found that many moe women fm the north became promitites than women of ater regions Creu study te veas mote complex cause forcing women into prostitution. However, economic factors aes major caus of prostitution. The Inajority of prostitutes come fom agricultural backgrounds, fm families without econoase stability In some years, thee ale’ a> ricultural yield is enough only eo meet base survival neds- Other families work on enced land and have ro rerum hall the yield to the landowners. What remains is noe sullen to met expenses, sul as for pesticides and farm equipment, sme of which acquied on loan. Some faring fais soon find themeelves ia substantial eb, far beyond thet ailiy to ep. Linked with economic instability and povery slack of eduction, PraieandBudthion “The msjortyofpromtiutes have had ony four yeas of compulsory ‘education. Farmers who have to strugle to survive economically sill not be able to prose higher education for their chien, Many farmers, being poor ae uneducated themselves, do nt bave proper nowledge of family planning and ae a resule have large families which creat an added ecozomie burden so serous that it all lio to the eldest daughters in the fails to lp out- This eaplains the high percencage of prostitates who have many siblings, and are themselves the eldest daughters. Economic factors caste farther problems the break-up the families: hishand deserting wives nd chien; and great numbers of rua poor who come to ek oben Bangkok often with litle sects as most of them ate unskilled ‘Govemment policy in ecanomic development promotes only a terial and industrial growth, Ie pays litle attencion to thesocil and cultural values ofthe country. The promotion of tour, for ex ample, ile more than the promotion of prostitution. The Gov ‘ernment quotes succes economic growth from the rapid increase ‘ofthe National Income Per Capita, a which the high income from prostitution included. That prostcates working abroad end home such a [2 milion dolla each year Social factors interrelate with economics ar alto responsible for prostitation. We have sen how economic factors fect the educa- tional standard of ral farmer an thei children, and te connce- tion between poverty, lick of education, and promitution, Maligmalaya found the highest percentage of prostution outs in the age range Between ten and nineteen years ol She pointed out thac gis a dis age shoul tl ein schoo, but due to ack of fi ‘nanclal suppoct dey have to leave school and enter the abor nar ket without skills, with an average of oaly four years of formal education! With no other significant option for financial sabi, ‘these young gts are force ino pestitution "Young women, tie of living in rural poverty with no fear, find themelees ready and willing wo takeachance a anew ie promised by agents, who tactfully approach the guls parents. Many ofthese young women have lady been expored to the dreatn living in Txury se to cher through television another mass mdi. They want Beautifal dings and an eay lifestyle, Prostitution seems tothem to be the only meens available to actulie their dreams ‘Among teenagers especialy tis very poplar o follow the lead of ‘one's peer group and frends Dilek Udomcha found that 379% of he prostitutes joined the sex trade Because they went alongwith the pattern ser by thei friends [Negative socal values that denigrate women also contribute to the problem of postition in Thailand. Another aspects the great emphasis Thai society places on vtgnty, which isto be preserved forone husband. Ths overemphasized value has backfired. Among. rape cases, for example, young gil think that once they have lot thelr vents, they have no value, and so they belive their only option isto become a protitte Other girs become prostiutescut of sense of duty or obligation to their parents, o share the family’ economic burden, When the family iin great debt resulting fom alle tn ariularal produc tion, or even simply fom the fther’s gambling loses, the eldest daughters ae asked to “sacrifice” for thei parents andthe younger siblings: These ae cases where fichers sod and resold thei daugh- ‘er into prostitution to buy ext cows fr farming. This is done i the belie thar cles mst show “raid” to thei parents. Tes interesting to note the resemblance in the resoning ofboth prostitutes and ae jis for thet ife choles. Due to “ratte” or ‘obligation, some women become prostitues to repay thelr parents ‘materially, while athers choose to become me js to epay thee par ents spisicaly, offering them the ment of eel eligious actives, ‘Many Tha provers reflet the values tha relegate women tothe stats of commodity or an object of male desire. A woman is compared toa flower, for example, while aman i described asa insect. In the north there isa saying that encourages women to pay attention to thie ourer appearance more chan to wt they ea, ‘noone can see whats inside ther stomachs. These images rest in women overemphasising their physical beauty as their primary ‘worth. Many Thal women spend thee spate tine and toney beau tying themselves i order to maintain this projected image, even athe expense oftheir own mental and spstual development. We have even seen cases of gels who became prostittes simpy because they wanted to own beautiful clothes. Prue nd Budi Tie great majority of men in Thailand sil cling tthe sexist ‘Brahmanical soil values hat came to Thailand in the Ayadhya pe led A true man” must be good at ighting an at winning women Even today, many Thai men sill buy charms and amulets to help them gain sexual aces co women. Then, ater "winning" a woman, they often move along ro seek another sexual challenge. There 2 seying that warns women against men who work withthe railway ‘compan, the ferry company a5 Ioeal dancers and tage pxformers, and as policemen, This is because these men ten tobe onthe move allthe time, and have gained a notorious repueaion fr leaving be hind cher marital responsibilities a wll Teis common practice fr That men to visit brothels o prove their visi. Men sho do aot dos ae considered strange andeufe the osibility of becoming wcll ouests, Many men sy that they can ‘ot beak the habit of going to romiutes Because they azeso realy available and area cheap source of entertainment. Too any Thal ‘women also accept prositution asa commonplace pratce, and tome who do not wish to have a senual lationship with thet hus bunds have even encouraged them to see prostitute, Now, wth the spread of AIDS, child prostitution i farther promoted inthe belief that young il ae fe from the dangerour disease soumions In this chapes, we have seen how prostitation, from ts nl form 28a religious ritual developed and degenerated intoan intentional "flesh wade” chat destroys the vale of women st human tings. To discus solutions to what has become a great human diene seems almost imposible, but the flloing ae some proposals or addres- {ng Thailand’ prostitution problem “The Thai government mirt have a clear andaytemati olicy > sntding prostates. They mast collect and maintain up-to-date data and develop greater sesitivity in dealing withthe problem. Legal structures need tobe strengthened so that women ae preted fom exploitation by providing opportmitis in eduction, beslth cae, and secure. ‘ational development must be planned with a long-range view, to develop the nation in every sphere fle, nt just ecoromically“Taal Wowews Buooves and material The well-being of Thailand’ population depends on serong society with moral and ethical standards that elevate eather than denigrate people. Overempss on economic and material de. velopment atthe expense of mental and spiritual development ash ‘women, whose options ae already limited in soley, towards pros. tution a he only way wo aetnlize cele material desites. Reliios oranzaions and authorities must bein to show con- «em forthe exiting problems faced by women, Negative social val tues ayainse women and values promoting prostitution must be trenton Vana Dine fet BE 247 man RiP (12), * Chale! Sre, Pblene f Prtie n Thaend”(Unpublad MA. LaRosa Smcs, ena Ut Bad 94 uae itp. ‘ tn cng Rowton Abd Capel ded ° Arh Uoeh “sereg on Sc Cote Ec Se A Gees oem ed kn Wl es ha ‘ang 197), 2. ‘Disk Una Op. Cand Wega Op C4. "Se lig Land te Mem 9 Cg th Po 9 Weng Op. Ce 0 align, Op. .959 Qt sein on “Te Ralf Gor on Nem Comet Oni esi Reeve Crecente ce beenene 199) he St hen Bang, Coenen Bagh Weng Op. Gt * tgs Op Ce 1, * Saou ica, net Retr Plo Wan, "n cba © Ven Sone Hh Bae Vn Aint NIWA wo. 7, ber * Ac Than Use 18, uarrer Bou Buddhist Nuns in Other Countries Te scapes the ete provided wh gba const in oe derto compare the station o That women wth tha a Bade women note counties! Sa Lanna, Sei Lanka as 3 unique place inthe history of Badhist nus. Ke was the fs country outside of India in which the Bhikkhuei Sangha ws established nthe sie entry. King Asoka sn, Prince Mahinda Thera, traveled to Sei Lanka witha etinue of Buddhist ‘monks to each Bulhises there. While he washer. the St Lankan kings sister-in-law Anula requested ordination from Mahinda ‘Thera. He explained to her the ele that both Sanghas Fad to he present atthe ordnacon of Bhikkhunis. Mabinda suggested that King Devananpiyatisa send an envoy to India eequesting King ‘Asoka co ver his daughter, the lees nun Sanghamitta Thed, Sbnequenly, King oka sent Sanghamita The accompanied bya group of learned bhikbhual thei. The group was wellrecelved by the royal family of Sei Lanka, and ordination was given not only to Queen Anula, bu also to fe hundred female attendants The King had a separate nunnery bul called Bhkkhunepaseya This marked the establishment ofthe Bhikkbuni lineage in St Lanka which prospered alongside the Bhikkhu Sangha. Throughout theit hhisory in Sri Lana, och Sanghas received regular royal suppor. ‘he bukkhunis wre active in their Dharma sty, and thee nevi dence that they were alto involved in socal wellate activites, such as running 2 hospital 1433.6, a group of Chinese women requested help fiom the ‘ei Lankan Sangha in establishing 4 hikkhun Sangha. A group of| Si Lankan bhitkhuns, led by Bhikkhun Devasara, went to China and gave ordination wo three hundred Chinese women in Nanking, ‘sblshiag lineage that tlm exicence today“Tua Wow BuDowse ln Sui Lanka, however, the BhikKhuni Sangha survived for only a ‘thousand years after its establishment, afer which i disappeared to gether with the Bhlkhu Sangha, when the Cola dynasty of South India invaded and overtew the Sri Lankan kingdom. The Sti Lankan Sangha sulted gret loses during this violent encrosch- ment ffom the Hindu Chola, and many temples were destroyed. When the country wat restore, there was only one Buddhist now: ice lefton the whole land. The Si Lankans invited Bhs fom ‘Thailand to reestablish the monks’ order, but ae there were no ‘iki in Thailand, the nuns order wat never reestablished in Sei Lanka In 1880, Catherine de Amis, European Anglican woman fom Sri Lanka, became a Buddhist and later was ordinained in Burma at Sister Sudharma, She retuned to Sei Lanka in 1905, and extablished an axanaya (hermitage) which alo housed orphaned or abandoned ileen, and aged or destitute women. At fit, oly women over age forty wer allowed ordination, but after 1920 younger women were alo cepted, ‘Such nuns are called dasa slamata(ten-precept mother") o smoniyo The shave shir head and waar yellow ober, but without the patch-work characterise of monk’ robes Although they ob- serve ten precepts they ae ike Thailand’ mae i, not samaners but technically laypeople, avery ambiguous potion. “Today there are at least 2,50 silamatas throughout the island ‘The actual numer may be higher, but some refie to rege with the government for er they wil be punished in ome way They are generally very poor and live ia ssl aramays, sometimes only one ‘orto silamatas ina group In 1984, Sister Ayys Khema, a Getman ‘woman who became asilamata afer taking the precepts fom a Br Adis thera in Si Lanka, seated an Intemational Buddhist Womens (Center on Parappuduva land. Ayya Khema was influential among uppers SriLankan women and was wel supported by them, but political unrest has curtailed her activities on the island. Avya hema went ro Los Angeles and received bhikkhuni ordination fa 1988 along with ve other slamata from Sei Lanka. This might have been the beginning of restablshing the Set Lankan Bhikhunt Sangha. However the general atitede ofthe Sei Buddhist Ne Other Cannes Lankan people in regard tothe the bhikkhunt sue hasbeen as nea tive and unsupportive as in Thailand, Despite the fact that Sei Lankan bhikkhuns once gave ordination to Chinese women, Sti {Lankan bhikkhus stl object to the idea of receiving the lineage back from the Chinese Bhikhuni Sangha, which they consider to be Mahayana ‘The Sei Lankan government shows much more concer towards ‘he station of slsmaras than che Thai government has shown to- ward mae ji. They have atempted to et up a system of registering sllamtas and issuing idence cards. The Miner of Cultural Aas thas sent representatives to China to obtain information regarding the Chines lineage, anda representative wae sent to patcipate in and observe the fst conference of Buddhist nuns in India in 1987, Recently, there has also been an attempt to provide education for silamaras, and inthe log run, ne can expecta slow improvement of heir siuation. Society wil take heed when silamatas at able to prove themselves worthwhile and beneficial society. Boma Budi nuns in Burma ae called sashnorthachin. “Sil” means “moral incegrity's shin” means “posseston.” Therefore a silashin™ Isa posestor of moral inepity The silachin usally follows eight precepts, has her head shaved and wears a Tong-leeved pinkish Mouse and brown robe. At Daw Nya na Sie Kyawn Dai Nunnery, the silshinsfllow nine precept, the ninth being to spread loving” Kindness o everyone. In this particular nunnery, they accept only srs who have never been marie, hoping to maintain the high | standard of the nunnery school ‘The Saguing hills on the west bank of Irawaddy River neat Mandalay are famous for their multe of lathin untneries There are 145 nunneries with over 2000 silashins. tas been ecently re ported that che ondination ceremony is becoming more elaborate, and that the nuraber of parens who send their daughter to nunnery schools during holidys fe short periods (wven days ra month) ‘on the increase. However, in many nunneres the ceremony invalves only shaving one's head and changing into robes. Infact there ees tobe no real rules fo oxdination. In some cases, many monks (upto“Taal Wenn Buon ten) maybe invited, yt in other cases there may be only one monk present. The candidate ceites the precepe and i initiated by the ‘monk. Ie has been pointed out that although the ordination cer ‘mony ha lite relgiou significance, the women become real mins in che cous of everyday dicipline and sud. Daw Su Su Sein pave a diferent picture of the proceso odina- don inthe Sagsing aes She reported that ia woman wishes to be ‘ordained, she mst go through 3 preparatory period ofa least three ‘month’ probation practicing the eight preceps and engaging in reditation. The candidate herel i equited to render a promise that he will perform all the dies imped upon her ence ac ted, All nuns are expected to abide by at Teas eight precepts, with the option 1 undertake nie or en precept if they chooee® ‘Some nunneries ar eter than others in edcaton. Daw Nya na Sit Kyatra Das regarded a8 one of the best sunneries in Burnt because its students have been producing very good results inthe rational exams. In 1986, these were 200 silshine with fifteen ‘asin teachers a he nacional exams, For several yeas, the high «stseoring student inthe country has been from cis nunnery “The Ven, Dhatnadinna decibed a unser extablihed by Daw Panna as 2 schoo for slashins with approximately thie residents, some between the age of six and twelve, che majority teenagers be low the age of twenty-two. The schoo! fllows the eurculu di tated by the requirements ofthe exam, but Daw Panne seems to have the autonomy ose the tone and emphasis of her own an ney towards Darna dicoures andthe practice of mediation" ‘The dicpline othe more ognized nunneriesentailsattendance at moming and evening chanting. The slain sual ie at 5a, to attend the morsing chanting, cook and eat beaks, an then follow this either wth meditation or studying the texts. These may ‘be considered the principle activites of lashins Inthe late afternoon, afer clases, they attend ro manual work, for example, drawing water or changing the offetings of flowers. ‘Around 6 pam. they gather for evening chanting, and listen £0 Dharma tals, Before wposatha days, the ull moon confessional er femong; the grounds ofthe runnery are cleaned. The silashins are ‘vegetarians and ty to eemai helpfal vo others in allele tasks Budi Nuns Other Connies ‘Young gis who have let their homes to jin the nunnerks are un der the direct care of thei slash teachers. The reltnshi be- ‘ween them is ike that of paren and eh. The elder sishin will, not only each but ere for her students in many other was The life of « Burmese silashin includes an arly education in studying the teachings of the Buddha. As they grow older the silashins practice meditation and other devotional praci:es. They do not become involved in poitialsetvities or discussion. The religious life is one of recitation, Dharma talks, and stuies. The siloshins of Burma nurcue a wanqal fe apar from world Me. Nera Lumbini in Nepal is the historical bithplace of the Bua, but the history of Budhise in modem Nepal Began only sixty years g0 when a group of Nepalese men aceepted ordination from Burmese monks who were viting Nepal on chei way fom Kushinap, here the Buddha posed away. At that time, ive Nepalese women also ‘ame forwarl to receive the precepts. In Nepal the bistry of the Budde ordination of men end women i linked Buddhist nuns ie Nepal ae called enagarias, meaning thore who have lfc household lives. They are alo often respect dened as ganonas. “Guru” means "teacher," and "a" is an honor aul meaning "other thu the term gives the sente of caring mother wo also teaches Dhara. Anagaika follow the trait of the Burmese, wearing the sae longsleeved uses with brown robes ‘wally folded on det left shoulder They obeerve ten peeps, but replace the tational precept on "aot handling money” with the precept “to have loving-indnes forall ving beings.” Since women were not allowed access ro education dering the Rana avtocracy (1846-1950), most Nepalese nuns are uneducated and many ate elderly. Ven. Dhammawati (born 1927) reprted that icisonly inher generation that nuns have started tobe onained at nearly age. Dhammawati sa prominent un in Nepal, andthe fl: lowing sketch of her ife and aviv wl give picture ofthe site: ation of Nepalese nuns ‘Atte age of fourteen, Dharumawatltaveled to Burma in search ‘of Dharma education, 35 twas not available in Nepal. Because of‘Taw! WoMeN 1 BuDEHIS her young age, he parents esd to give her pemision to go 40 she ran av2y from home. She walked to Burma and she was anested for entering the counay legally Filly she at able to ge pass poet and to sty a pled Dhammawati spent fourteen years studying Dharma, specialising in the Abhharma. Returning to Nepal in 1935, she was determined to wotk for the propagation of Dharma and for he advancement of| ‘women: By 1966 she had acceded in establishing a manner eae Dhasmakrt Vihar in Kathmandu, where thee are now fourteen urs studying and practicing In addition to study and practic, the ‘nuns at Dharmakiet Vihar alto engage in teaching and various other Dharma activities. The via supported by lypecpe, and every ‘posit day, about nine hunted lay disciples, mostly women, st tend the Buddha pu (olering ceremony) ‘The main objectives of Dharmakiri Vihar are to preach ‘Theravada Buddhism to lay Buddhists, to elevate the status of ‘women through various ative, wo prove Buddhist education for children, and to encourage young people to ty Buddhism and pat Ic into practice in their diy lives. The activities of che center tne «le organising meditation sessions and stranging tip to the places of Budhise intrest in Nepl and neighboring counties, ‘A Boha puja, consisting of prayer and offerings held atthe wihar ive timesa month, and theres aloa Dharma talk. Arhe end ofthe service lay Bui make offerings othe nuns. Ts women members of the vihar ate selected to tell tories fom the Jala to ‘heanaience. A quis contest Bed oa Buddhim i often held Every Sunday the vihar ran a eligius eat for young children. Prizes fom e donated fad are awarded a the end ofeach yar to three children selected on the has oftheir understanding o thei seudies Dharmakie Bauddha Adhyayan Goeth! ean organization for Buddhist seies stared by Dhamnawati in 1972. In adtion to the mediation sesions held a the vihar, mediation camps at vat ‘us places have been held under the guidance of Bune nan vis: ng Nepal © ‘At present there ate about sixty nunneies in Nepal, Most Nepalese nuns live alone or in small groupe. About haf ofthese ‘women are elderly the remainder are younger and working bad to Buddies in Other Caries ‘stabs the Dharma, The Ven. hammawat pointed outhat there ‘sa great need for an organization that wll unite coontinate nd strengthen the activities of Nepalese nuns. In February 1987, the Yen. Dhammawati participated in the Intemational Confrence on Buddhist Nuns in Indi, and in November 1988 she received higher ‘ordination aa hihi at HsiLal Temple neat Los Angles along with afew of her flowers. These women form the nucleus ofthe ‘hikkhuni Sangha in Nepal ousa Dr. Hema Goonatlke, a Sei Lankan Buddhist cholar who visited (China in 1984, reports that prio othe Caltural Revolution it was senerlly accepted chat chere were shout $00,000 teraples and three million monks and nuns in China" The sapresion of Fadia bea as early a6 1929, aul many temples al aunties were con verted into barracks, factories, warehouses, and public schools “Monks and nuns, expecially the younger one, wete forced ts distabe snd take jos in school, vegetarian restaurants athe ike Follow tng the fal ofthe Gang of Fout the pression of Buddhism has no ticeblylesened, and some Buddhist temples are being restored. Ds. Goonatilake vised 21 Xiu, ane ofthe largest nunneries i, Shanghai, which had heen recently opened to visitors forthe fie "ine in eighteen years. The nunnery was founded a century go, end four generation of uns have since lived there. Dung the alta Revolution, the nunnery was tue into a warehouse andthe nuns ‘sere compelled o work in factories or were rent tothe ceuneryside tofarm. The older ones, who restored the nunnery sid pred that they practiced the Dharma while ving in their countryside homes and growing thelr own food. A the time of Coonatlake’ vist the ‘olde of the fifteen who returned was eighty-six and te fragile heath. The aes was seventy-three and had heen a nun snce the ageofweny. The nun who warateacher and the head ofthe wane ing school was seventy nine OF the twenty-six nuns residing inthe nunnery eleven had en tered the order after the nunnery wat restoted i 1982. Tei ages ranged fom thiteen to twenty-eight. They all came fom ‘ming ‘or wotking-las amills, and had been stongty influereed byTras Won BuooHes Buddhas Other Carries deeply religous parents and grandparents. Three among them had close connections with the Buddhist clergy ome au aunt was a ‘nu another had wo brothers who were monks; the thind had been ‘ought up by @ aun. ‘The nuns tthe school are given a two-year tang course, con siting primarily of the study of Buds texts, Chinese language, Chinese history, and meditation. De Goonatlake aio observed the runs relgious acviies and thei interatons withthe lay comma nity. Occasional, Iypeope come othe temple to chant, aad speak with she nuns. The temple s very crowded on holiday Besides this nunnery, Dr: Goonatilake visited two others in [Nanjing and Beijing, Both nunneris are in the proces of bring re stored, with nineteen nuns in residence in the former end oly si ‘in he later. The aes in each place is inher seventies. Religious activities are simular in bah nannies. Dr, Goonatilakenociced deep enthusiasm in the monks and mans she encountered at Chinese temples and aunneries. Although the temples run by monks appeared to be better patonied anor sie some Buddhist erples she visited in Bing, Nanjing, Shang hai and Canton held religious ceremonies that were well send bbyhoth men and women. What wa ofignfcant concer, howeves, ws the low participation of young devotees. Chinese people horn afer the Cultural Revolution seem to have les commitient to eli: sion and lack appreciation of tligios values. The Chinese Bad dies are avar ofthis, and are trying to erat young people The reintroduction of Buddhist nuns in China was dacs ina brief atc by Pro. Jan Yon-hua Originally fom Souchuan Po Yar~hua vised China is 198] and 1983, He reported tha in 1983, 4 trsning center for Buddhist women had ben founded at Cheng 'w Temple in Fuchow. Thicy-three women were recruited fom ani ‘ous provinces for traning. The age ofthe trainees was between ‘wenty and thir, all had completed high school and each pased an entrance examination forthe Buddhist education prog “Another schoo for Buddhist mane was established in Seuchuan in 1083. Admission wo chis schoo resected to high school graduates becween the ages of eighteen and eweny-five. The sty progam takes two years, with a certificate and unk in the religous profes. son being anarded 1 hose who pas final examination. ‘Ac the Ch'eng-a taining center, the fist group of tines cane sisted of fity women ranging in age between eighteen and for ‘Addison ito the taining center requires high sche diploma, «recommendation ftom 3 local Buddhist ssociation, and sen ‘tance examination. The subjects covered in the exam include gen «ral knowledge of Buddhism and Chinese culture, plus the ability 0 read and write Chinese. Those who wich ta became profesional runs must obain the consent of thee fale in advance. Thee have also ben atempys to revive the Chinese odintion lineage: In 1982, twenty-one new nuns were ordained at Ch'eng- “eple. The ceremony was conducted according tothe ational regulations in which the nuns received oadination firs om the bnhunis and then from the Bho. This the ist now dination of runs in China in the las ity eas. 1983 there was large dination of Buddhist monks and nuns at Nar-hua Temple in Kwangrang grovine. There were 250 monks and nuns from Shensi Honan, Ksangsi, Hunan, and Keang tung provinces who received fll ordination before the Tipe Assembly the novice precepts the bhkhu and bhikkhunt precept, and the lbodhissttvapreceps Ii generaly Believed that in 1982 the num: ber of Buddhist monks and nurs in China, inclading Tetan and Mongolian lamas (master), was atound 25,000, Most ofthese were ‘elderly men and women. Ondnations aver the last few yeaty are probably fever than 1,000. The number of Buddhist profesional Cina inthe fare wil be subsea fewer than today Taman “Taiwan, another unique country in the history of Budi: nuns, s ‘now a stronghold of che Bhikkhuni Sangha. Taiwan isthe only «country inthe Bais world where the Bhihuni Sangh is larger than the Bhlkhu Sangha. One of Taiwan's most prominew senior ‘monks once declared publicly shat Buddhist eduction invalwan it inthe ands ofthe bhikkbuns ‘Budhism was intodoced into Tawan a caly asthe twelfth cen tury, ut in the absence of writen records not much car be said about the developmen of Taiwanese Buddhism in seals perio,“Tua Woven BuO According othe Ven. Bhikkhuni Shi Yung Ka, Bhism sured ‘considerably daring the Japanese occupation of 1895-1945." Inthe (Chinese Baldhis tation, ranks and nuns observe set vegeta anism and celibacy, but under Japanese influence these rules were suspended, ‘Alier the Second World War, Taiwan became the seat ofthe na- tional Chinese government when the Communist Paty took pomet fon the mainland. Many senior monks settled in Talvan, andthe pretence of there monk revived and enriched Buddhism there and helped lear away the confsion crested bythe Janse occupation ‘tthe sae tine, the renewed leadership ofthe Sangha encouraged Buddhists ro participate in Sota work with a postive atiude ‘The Buddhist Astociation ofthe Republic of China (BAROC) was formed in Tlvan in 1950, a continuation ofan earlier assoc tion in Mainland Chine, Ar presen, there ae 2,000 temples and ‘ougznizations, most of which were buile ater 1950. Thirty-four of| ‘these temples hae afl insiutes for Sanghi taining and over temo them have Budihist college, all of which provide education for both monks and nuns. Other institutions of higher education, such as ordinary colleges and universities do not place any reste ‘ons on the admission of monks and nuns. There are examples of runs who have succesfully completed tudes im medial colleges and law school. ln 1952, the fis “Teple Altar Ordination” was initiated by the BAROC. Thetis of thre levels of ordination ithe ramanera nd saameri (Pali samanera and samane) ordination which us ally given after two weeks of taining. A week laces, the bik o "hibhuntoedination sven. The bodhisatvn ordinaton is given during the las wo days of che proceedings. The hodhisattva pe ‘eps are contaned in the BrafmgelaSua From this beginning, ovr 10,000 monks and nuns have been o- Gained in Taiwan, 67,000 of whom ar ns Of these half ate be tween twenty and forty yes of age, Presently, nuns in Taiwan have the same opportunities and responsibilities a monks in terms of studying and reaching Dharma. The population of mane i dst uted among the 2,000 temples ia most there are twenty to thirty ‘uns, and like number of monks. There are only a few large Buddhist Nis in Other Couns temples with more than 200 monks and nuns in eden. There ae two modes of ling for nuns in a temple. Te fist in volves study ina Buddhis college afilated withthe emple. Sts. ents are usualy novices of newly ordained monks and nuns: The ‘educational program nomally takes three yeats and inches Bud dis history and philosophy, a well a foreign language sty aad ‘other non-Budthist subjects. Others who do not choose w study university lead a monastic life in the temple oftheir choke. Active ties and practices fle fom temple to temple ‘The most immediate concern ofthe monks and nuns in all temples is economic stability, and there ate diferent means of achieving this. Some temple communities are completly ef reli- ant, supporting themselves by growing thee own food ard provid- ing their own daily necessities, while others perform payers and chanting for devotees who make offering in exchange fer this set- ce, sual in the form of money. Going for ans i not generally accepted in Chineie ocr. ianese nuns engage in Vaious types of Dharma work— giving public lectures on Buddhism, cial work, operating Kindegarens, ‘organising retreats, and teaching in high schools, Buddhist colleges, and universities. Some at also involved in cultural activities such as editing and publishing Buddhist books and magasines, Tei prin «pal suppor comes ro pivate donations rom devotes. The mai served and both the bhkkhw and bhikehuni lineages hae survived. In 1881, the Chogye Order, the leading monasie order in Korea, ‘elnuoduced the dal ordination procedure Jaran Japan received Buthism fom China in the sxth century. There are ‘many schools of Buddhism in Japan, but the two most prevalent‘Tal Wows 1 Buse sects are Zen, which emphasizes meditation practice, and Pure Land, ‘which emphasizes devotional practices and faith in Amitabha Boddha The Re. Testo Kondo reporced that there are about 2000 Zen nuns in half as many terples: In the Pure Land sec, there ate 700 nuns in 500 temples. Most nun ive alone end car ful respon sibility he hea pres of temples. Many rns are over sixty year old, and young sccesos ae very few Because of mallee families in ‘moder society, parents tend 0 allow only sons to fellow the path ‘And 0 answer to hereditary requirement, monks ae allowed t0 ‘marry and have family, while quns must malocan celibacy and hus donot pas on the family lineage, ‘A point of distinction in Japanese Buddhist that Japanese “nuns and “monks” are not the sme as those in ther Buddhist ee tions: ba ae lose o pret "ministers of eligi." The mans ‘maintain che bodhisaitea precepts. Historically, Japanese women ‘received bhldhunioninaion in Korea a early asthe yar 590, but there were onl cree hikthunis present, which did noc meet the ‘minim numberof five reauited by eration. Thus the Baik lineage was not exablshed. In 734, three Chinese nuns came oJ pan but could not transmit the Hneage due o the lack of [Bhikkhuni Sangha, with the reule tht» proper BikEhunt Sangha hasmever been extablished in Jpan.* ‘Many courses ate offered in the formal trining schools, with the primacy focus placed on each particular sect’ way to enlightenment: rembuts (reiaton ofthe name of Amitabha Buddha) Inthe Pure Land schools and tare (sitting meditation) in the Zen schools. Othe subjects may include Buddhist history and phileophy, sutra study instruction and practice in ceremonies, sewing of pests robes, and intracton in the Zen-telated ats ofthe tes ceremony Mower arrangement, and ealliaph. ‘Upon completion of raining nun i certified to perform al she ceremonies af her tradition ata become head priest of x trp. Each temple is an independent legal entity. The livelihood ofthe Ina priest depends om the temples supporters. This means that the mary duties ofthe head pies re chose reqled by the Lapeople ‘tho suppor the temple Inti reg les ley defined but of fenmore time-consuming duy i counseling the ay supporters ofthe Baath Nuns in Other Comes temple, fering advice ad guidance with the many problems ofe cexyay life. The life of Japanese nu ids very bay ad fulfil lng ane, a she very close o the community of which she bs 8 par even chowgh she wally lives separately om ber fellow nuns Teer ‘As reporced by Ven. Lobsang Dechen, Budhism reached Tike in the seventh century during the reign of King Songtsen Gampe.”" ‘The fst monastery for monks only, was Founded in the eighth cen- tury, and the first unnery was established in Phenpo, north of nase the capital of Tbe ‘Among the many celebrate female proctitoners of ibe were a large numberof runs. The lated settings ofthe munnerespro- vided an environmenccondcive to intensive religious practice, and the earestass af dhe nuns in their prital endeavors ws greatiy appreciated by the lay community Prior 1959, when China invaded and occupied the county. Ti bee was home to one ofthe largest communities of Buddhas in the world. There were 618 nunneries with 7,141 nuns in the lags sets 6831 nuns of dhe Gel nec 3697 Kagyu mins and 1,159 ofthe Saya set fora total of 12398 Buddhist nunsin Tbe. Forty-four runneries were quite larg, housing mote than 10 nuns ‘ach. During the petod of Chinese ale n Tibet, the Budi com: ‘munity as suffered greatly and most monastic ineitaticns have been totally destoye. During the 1960s, nota single robe Figure ould be seen anywhere in Tbe. Fortunately prior tothe decimation of Tibet by Chins the Ty ‘etan tradition had spread widely in neighboring Asian counties. In India there ae approximately 339 Tibetan nuns in Lakh, 250 in Zanskat, 100 in Laheul, 103 in Spit, and 106 in Kinsaue. In Bhutan, there are 600 Titetan nuns. Many other young women wish to become nuns and join nunneris, but they are unable to dow be: «sue of limited accommodations More recently the Tibetan tradition has taken oot in many Wes ‘mm counties. There is one Ttetan nunneryin Franc, called Doge Pamo, wth ive mine. There are another 240 Western women or dained in che Tibetan tradition settled in various countries. The“Ta Wows Bobo resent Tibetan runs are not ally ordained, however, having re ‘ved onl the somanerita rnin In 1984, four Tibetan nuns tected ill onda in HongKong. In 1988, more Wester us tr the Titan dition esivedbildhunt odin x Ht La Tele in Lor Angee “There evidence that, Begining in the twelth century, a ew src Ima dd give the thik vows wo Tibetan women but ‘Thou he astoesof hk, andthe ality ofthe ens Inision is thes dapued, Prom the Theravada sandpont, which Folds that the xinton of + Bhikthun egies the preence of beth Sangh che Tibetan Bik orton ot val Nev- entices th fact eins tha in Testor. cere were Theta ime who give ll oinnton to women. “heat a nanny Tie il prove beer uderanding of hen ms Thre were many suet fecha bi Cloyd recognition and where many foros nara ached igh {evel of etaon, These women lected he ves of many oer through their advanced pal development. ‘Neehung Ri Nnney dete tack to the carl ent centr. It was bail the ada Teta ste ith dhe mata temple in the mallee the orp ound ying and aise tive quarters The whole unnery weet na er, pacfl ot “Train nthe nunnery Regan wi che senior nus teaching neolyorained wore oe and woe Thi wa lowed by sea Sch the memertton of peers anced cans ring the cleanse eli ceresonin nd in lying ch > Sruenes a cymbal ups, and drm, which were wed uring Ceremonies, Lames we vied gv septal echings the “The nuns aio peor ceremonies athe eq of the com- out a hd a speci eptaton fr thet Tara uals. Al the ‘or, thin the int of tel able, ook tr balding the “row ofc fm hnckepr to hel un hat nde oe ‘ret olthem ad ne n everthing nee tun a NUN}. “Given te ple dasubance in Tibet, any pope erent pl tre of Meta nun cannot be nied Tibet lone Tes wor ‘theo ek some ening Than nner in the couels Bude Nes Oe Comes ‘The Ven. Kangs reported that His Hines the Gyava Krmapa of the Kagysectestablahed a nunnery called Karma Choke Dechen at Rurtek monastery in ikki, India. This projec, begin in 1983, ‘ow house eighteen nuns ranging in age from ten to ity five. At present, the young ordaines learn to read the tligious texts and perfor all he ils necessary for her daily meditation and devo- tions as well as for offering prayer for patons Fate plan ince constructing fies fr the nuns tostuy Buddhist philwphy and quarters fr undertaking extended meditation rezeat ‘Ven. Karina Lelahe Tomo has pointed ut that Geden Chaling, ‘Dharamsala, Indi, probly the largest functioning mannery of the Tibctantadsion inthe worl, since most ofthe nunneies in “Tiber itself have heen destroyed. Neary eighty muns along to eden Choling, but due to lack of adequate aecommodsion, only sist live in the nunnery fae The rest lve with relatives in the surrounding villages and join the thet for puja and teaching The majory of uns at Geden Choling are Tibetan, though not necessarily from Tibet. With the excellent study program at this ‘unnery and its proximity to His Holiness the Dalai Lama’ ese dence and access ois teachings and Mesrngs, doves of mun fo neighboring ares ate anxious 0 gain admission but sre prevented due tothe lied faites ‘The residents of Geden Choling ae mostly under thin: Du 12 lock of accommodation, admission bas been limited to those inthe lower age Bracke in onder to see them though the educational pro- css The nuns began tore a ative inert in pursinga monas- tic curriculum about three yeas ago. They tok the initiative 9 {nite someone to teach them the base lye texts. Thowgh these text are very technical and profound, and generally del suly has been dered the prerogative of male scholar, the uns have shown, tremendous atte and great enthusiasm n this il of aming. ‘Another Tibetan nunnery, Jangehub Chéling, was founded in 1985 in Mundgod, town in South edi. The Ven. Jape Tedroen (Carola Rolf reported tha during he visit the payer al forthe nunnery was alteady completed Aout twenty stamanerk from dierent schools ofthe Ttetan tradition an wenty youngnovices, tmottof whom reclved the tonsre from His Holiness the Dalal‘THALWowen 1s Buccs Lama, mee there regulary for pus. The nunnery i headed by the Ven. Thubsen Lhatso (in 1987, age fory-ive) who had recently come fom Tibet. The senior nana ae very enthusiastic and welcome the many important changes that ate envisioned. They are eager to sve ther suppor for anew generation of aun, ato improve ed cational opportunities, and they anticipate the establishment ofthe Bhikkhun Sangha. The nunnery i eclving active suppor from the Tibetan Women's Association and the Tibetan movement ep- resentatves in Mango “Tike Buds Nurs, by Hanna Hasmevik published bythe Nor- vegan University ress, provides much more detail about Tibetan ‘runs. eis the most complete esearch wark on this topic to date ‘Viersat Las, AnD CAMBODIA Due to prolonged plitical diurbances in Vietnam, Loe and Cath boa, noe much recent information is avalable on Bhi com ‘munities in these countries. Five Cambodian women have been sponsored to attend the 1991 conference on Buddhist nuns in Bangkok. To are mins, and we hope to learn more fromm these ‘women about the situation in Cambodia. The Cambodian nuns swear white robes, and ae similar co Thal eae ji ‘wasters CounTRS “The number of Westem Buddhist women asking for ordination has been om the increase. the past two decades many Western Bu his runs have appeared in varius ditions throughout the world ‘The spread of Buddhiso in the West has opened up anew era for women’ spiritual development. A ramber of Wester wornen who have accepted Bukthism are more committed join the onder and lead the ives of amaners and bikinis than some who were born intoa Buddhist raion. ln the United States, most Bhs editions ate repreented, including Tibetan, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, St Lankan, Tha, Cambs, and Laotian, With the exception of the las thee, there are Western mun in al ofthese traditions In the “Theta ration onl stamaneria ordination is avalable, so West Buddhin Nuns i Other Caries ‘ro nuns who have received this ordination wll have to mit ein sumo 0 years efore they can apply for higher oninaton, which sully takes place in Taiwan. Thereafe, they continue w practice ana fllow their Tibetan teaches inatretion. Thi pany due 19 the tong teacherstudentrlaionship characteristic of the Tibetan ‘tedtion, and partly due wo language Batis with thelr Chinese pre ceptor and teachers There are also cases of Wester women who fook lower oni ‘om in Se Lanka and later became Bikinis in the Chines lin cage, Ven. Miao Kwang Sudherma, an American woman who ‘received ul ordination in Taian in 1984, maintains het ordained ‘ames from both traditions. Ven. Arya Khems, a German woman who received fll ordiation at Hel Lai Temple in Lon Angeles i 1988, refers her Theravadin mame, and wears the brow tobe of| ‘Thersvadin eration, Chinese ordination the most authentic lineage available this time, and Taiwan is its stronghold. Many more women than men steed the annual ordination ceremony. Women with lower ovina ion fom other erations sek higher ordination in Talwan. Prev. ‘ously, Western nuns had to travel to Taiwan t receive oninaion ‘nthe Chinese lineage Westen aun seeking higher ordination can "now go to Hsi Lai Temple, a branch of Fo Kwang Shan in Tala in Hacienda Heights, neat Low Angeles, California, 4 1988, an international ordination was onganzed at Hsi Lal Temple and mere than 209 women recived the Bhikkhunl ondina- ‘on. This is the fist time in Budde history that such orintion Ins been provided on such a large scale ia + on-Buddhis county. ‘Women fom the US., Canada, England, Thailand Sri ska, and ‘Nepal participated inthis auspicious event, ordining inthe T- bean, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese, and Chinese traditions, ‘Anyone mho has stuied Wester Baddhem cannot ely but 0 tice the uniqueness of women’ participation in American Bt. dis. American Budthise women are no only supportive, but aso asertve inthe roe they play in Buddhism. The leadership of ay Buddhist radition puting down rots in North Amerlea tac ‘knowledge the srong participation af women. Coming fom elative isolation in their home counties, the monks of all traions are“Twat Wows Buposse forced to he mote realistic about the splrtual needs of Buddhist, women in the Western context “Theravadin monks ae slowly coming around to this realization. Sit Lankan monk, though sil not amity, are now beginning to offer samaneri ordination with the help of foreign Mhikkhuas to Asian women, This proces will esd slowly tothe ordination of ‘kun inthe Thersvadin tradition and evenualy bring about ‘the revival ofthe Bhiktiuni Sangha inthe Theravadin lineage ‘Gampa Abbey in Nova Scotia i a Vinaya traning center for monks and nuns inthe Ttstan tation, headed by an Amescan bhikkhuni, the Ven. Ane Pema Chodtoa. There are many other Buddhist ditions ative in Canada, particulary in the Toronto tues, where the Buddhist population doubled in 1988, Bhikkhunisandsamanesican now be fund all ver Europe. Ba hist une may even be found in Poland, where the Ver. Nitta, 4 Swedish bhi, cries outa epular Dharma program of chant ing and meditation inher small apartment. In South AMica and tren in the USSR. small groups of Baddht men and women ae forming and organising Dharma meetings on a regular bass, a: ‘hough these groupe do no et have Bucher. In West Germany,the Ven. Japa Tedroen, a German bikkhunt inthe Tibetan eration, is active in running 3 Tibetan meditation center She helped to organize the 1987 international conference on Buddhist nuns and is currently working towards the 1991 interna sional conference on Budihist women toe held in Thalland. “The Ven. Bhikihunt Arya Khema ha stared mediation centers both in Atala and West Germany, and travel tally betwen ‘West Germany, Sei Laks and Australia co lead eats and give Dismal In England, che Ven. Sumedho, an American monk ordained in Thailand as exablhed two Buddhist meditation centers." He as also been giving orinaion vo hown-rbed Wester nun following the ten precept. Alo in England the Fiend of Western Baldi (Oder (FWBO) ld by the Ven. Sangharalshia, provides a separate sup for Budhint women called dharmacarns, who are active in Forming their own center of Buldhist practice and meditation. ‘Sakyadhit, the Intentional Associaton of Bnddhiee Women, also has members in England Sakyadita England had tft met adi Nan in Other Cones ing in Sepember 1989 ani planning Ie tied annual meting ln Australia, the Ven, Khantipalo, an English monk caine in ‘the Tha radiion, is giving the ten precepts to Buddhist uns at his ‘monastery at Wat Buddha Dharma. There ae aso ane oreo Te betan Buddhist centers in Australia, where Western Bahist nuns ae active with Dharma engagements ‘One hundred ewenty Buddhist nuns, monks, ara aywonen fom allover the world participated i the 1937 Intemational Conference ‘on Badhist Nunsat Bodh Gaya, Ini. Te result of thisconference was the formation of Sakyadhit, an Intemational Association of| Buddhist Wornen. The conference was coordinated by Sister Ayya hema, Bhithuni Karma Lekshe Tot, and myself The fellow: ing resolutions wetefrmaate ‘Whereas although our pce practices and lineage nt rh we ae all ers on tothe in he Bade Chara sndshare x common oe, sed ‘Whereas Baie women wih to improve dhemelves take theirs and el eppetanity td espoieyin vecity a ‘Whereas ther conn at Bodh Gas Ina the plac of Lond Basha’ enlightenment, «Conference on Buhiat "Nass rom many cous andthe werd, We, therefore res that on hi 1th df Febscy 1987, we esthlsh SAKYADHITA, World-wide Balch ‘omen, an inerationalegnintion formed toast Bade women sound the world leis farther resolved ea a nein executive committee begin eecrng she ealhnent of sch sn cgsteton, ot Tes farther rete that he gos of hit ogniatin shall ete 1 Fer wrk peace fal een beings 2. Workin mony wih ll Bait Sangha, ations sand commas 3. Esublsh and promote harmonious understanding with er egw communities 4: Hol onftnces and seminaron Baths women’ es“Tual Wows BuooHSM 5. Enblah amen of communication betwen Buddhie ‘women all over the werd 6. Research nto womens oe inthe Baha Dams. Llmprove ehcston for Baldi women general and Dharma) 8. Encourage and iprove Bhi practice for aun and Inyworen 9. Educate and rain women a teaches of Baths Dharma 10. Preserve he teaching and make i availble throughout ‘he wel. 11 Research in the Vinay ofthe deen ations 12, Entblah an international Bian Seng oni 13. eedac samanetfeale novice), sihamana(emale practioner) and hint oration whee they ently do noe ei. 1. Provide help and atance to Baths rane ad howe ‘tho with wo cele odinaion. 15. Bablsh commie to cary ut the oraistion's pale 16. Seeup bla, contin, nd ec repitation of the oration As it stands, the administrative body af the Asocation has not yet Ben very elective due to the act thatthe committee eembers live far apart. Ar the 1991 conference on Buddhist women men- tioned previous, members will mee to develop strategies o over come this peoblet ‘An international organization such as Sakyadhita can bean im portant syabol of Bali women’ unity and forum fr achiew- Ing creative and constructive goals In the long run thiseganzation lms at helping to support recently formed nuns communities all fver the warld. The oraniarion can be tapped to provide human resources to fil dhe gap in various counties, especaly a the eat formative stages of Buddhist women's communities, and can also help to provide waning for Buddhist nuns, so chat they become strong in their spiritual development and provide effective spiiual _uidance to society Baddhi N Other Cons “Tiss che conclusion ofthe hook, but definitely not the en ofthe sue. Changes nd improvements can be expected The purpose of this book har been to fou the reader and to encourage concezned scholar and engaged Budi o puroe fu ther stuly and action. [hope thatthe publication of this book will mark the end af the “closed doo” attitude towards women’ fal pt tiiption in Buddhism in Thailand and elsewhere, Using the mate- tials presented here, women should take a positive sand egading ‘heir own attitudes tomas themselves and the wodd. ‘adie sa beautiful, vital religion. Its teaching liberates and accommodates everyone. Buddhist women should take fll advan tage ofthis spit and not get bogged dawn inthe negative attitudes sul manifested among some ignorant Budshist authors and or finizations, We must realize the deep-rooted nature of ignorance and counter it only with education, compassion, and undentanding. ‘As more and wore Buddhist wornen come together and prove tele efficacy and value ro society, the ies described in this Fook will become obsolete. Buddhist women must realize tht the tsk of| breaking collective misinterpretations and prejudices sled into sacred cradition over centuries requires tong commitment al deep compassion. With peneverance and intelligence, we can tec ty che problems and reclaim our situa heritage " pamela annette nfm i (Geteck Sau Dafne ds dey kam lsc Hae ioc Se Lo licens 180, Th eam het he fie Eine of a ts di oh Ga eT nde oo ‘cope an ar fret on at ham le tne {Colonie Colon Gover llemation Depts, 1953) 42 6, "hot C Sas Th Th Ag es Sabi 50 * Hpk Kwan "tht Na in ams" nA no 9, Oo Deceit * Dy Suu Se "Mus arin adi: Dake of he Bala 9 108 * Konan Op Ci " e Dammasin Nn Bra NWA wo 18 Ap un 198was Woe 18 BUODHN * Dy SoSeSein.Op Ce * Aap gma," Dg "Rego a Dhaai Vihar Nae Nepal” a NIBWA os. 9, Cte Deen oon "Nuef Chin Pat —The nnd: Dag: vel basher iz "Jan Yaa "New Orton of Bie Nae Chia inNIBWA 9 6 Fina 8 hou Sh eg Ka NaC aun Ssge:Dnghre ‘feeb p 1 " Bus Kar se Tomo, "Niw of Kee ia Sha: gn fe Balin 3S "Red Teo Kondo, Nac Jp at inSain: Dh of Bain * Bh ams ese Tl Nop Fin Saad: Dah of Seep DS * SeapesatarDcen Snes Dg fa "Achat Nn ie The i Clog Va ‘tle BWA exer ce "Ach RA Noy Ti” foe Maney use hae Rayo MBA 7A hee ° ep Kona Cor Deke A Nutra Si aie NBA. 5 Guedes ne Yen, Karm Le Tomo “A. i ginse Thean Re Nene” a NIbWA way Sepenber ° ang ten Care Rei) Nw Nanri Meni NIWA Ione 1 The ala ene ae. 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