The Jātakas are part of the mythological side of Buddhism and are drained with folk believes. Book after book has conditioned us to see the celibate and chaste Buddha as a kind of androgynous, asexual, gentle sage with a beatific smile. Yangon (AFP) A woman, like a man can attain to the same level as the founder of the religion of Buddhism and become fully enlightened, an Arahant. Monks who voluntarily submit to female charms are declared defeated (, In the tale of Sudinna, a young monk breaks his vows of celibacy after his old parents beg him to give his wife, whom he had abandoned, a child so that his family lineage may continue. Shankara was often called a Buddhist with Hindu packaging, by his critics. Buddhism did die out from its home country of India and it started to die out right at about 500 years after the death, paranibbana of Buddha. At this time there were no monasteries as such, monks lived in the forest or in parks on the outskirts of towns and cities. In Brahmanism, like Hinduism of today, only men could be priests. There are some suttas (discourses) of the Buddha that appear to be misogynistic. Abandoning sex, which effectively means abandoning women, for a “higher” purpose—be it enlightenment or spirituality or service to the nation—has since become a popular model, embraced by religious sects, as well political organisations such as the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. When asked by her husband if he found his wife unattractive, Mahatissa said he saw no woman, only a heap of bones. AFP. So are Christianity and Islam, Sikhism and Shinto, Jainism and Judaism. Ayya Khema was a German born fully ordained nun who wrote many bestselling books and was a master of the Dhamma and the Jhanas. Unlimited cpc Adspace ID1. As much as I like various of the notions of Buddhism, it is guilty of the typical organized religious sexism and misogyny, largely traceable to this notion: “From what I have heard in Bana preaching by Buddhist monks, a woman could become a Buddha if during her journey through Sansara she accrues sufficient merit to be born as a man and then attain Buddhahood.” There are very few teachings that are only mentioned once. She opened many monasteries and temples in Asia and Europe. A few excerpts are shown here below: “Do not believe in something because it is reported. The complete silence on the subject of misogyny so firmly entrenched in the Buddhist scriptures, and traced to the Buddha, is quite remarkable. Having said this, I recall that the Jātakas (stories on the Buddha’s previous lives) contain plenty of stories that contain plain misogyny. Issued on: 03/09/2020 - 06:54. ... Ketumala’s battle for recognition and respect for nuns in Buddhism runs parallel to the broader challenge for women’s rights in modern Myanmar. No doubt about it. Bhikkhu Dr. Analayo, a scholar monk has been a strong advocate for bhikkhuni ordination and in his research feels that the Buddha was misrepresented in the texts about being reluctant to ordain women. This is keeping in line with the Buddha's intentions for an Order of monks and an Order of nuns. YANGON, Myanmar (AFP) — In a society where a popular saying urges women to “regard her son as her master and her husband as her god,” Buddhist nun Ketumala is already an outlier. A famous Hindi king took back control of India and wanted the caste system back since he was a member of a high caste. This makes Buddhist writings the watershed of Indian literature, after which womanhood came to be seen as polluting, obstacles to the path of wisdom. There are verses in the suttas where the Buddha pointed out some bad monks to some nuns. Female hermaphrodites, women who dress like men, or those of deviant sexuality or simply those who do not look like women and are “man-like” women cannot be ordained as nuns. ... Buddhist nun Ketumala is already an outlier. Advertise Here for only $299 mo. Ven. Dr. Dhammananda (C. Kabilsingh) and Ven. Do not believe in something a teacher tells you to. Advertising. .” The Buddha was simply warning the monks of the danger in attachment to the senses and we must remember that the monks and nuns in Theravada Buddhism are monastic, celibate. He was credited, and later chastised by the First Council, for advocating for the ordination of the Buddha's maternal aunt and stepmother, Mahapajapati. They abandoned Buddhism, but fortunately, the teachings did survive in Sri Lanka and other Southeast Asian nations and then the Mahayana spread to Tibet, China, and the rest of Asia. There are three types of buddhas or enlightened ones. But this only at a very superficial first glance. Our emails are made to shine in your inbox, with something fresh every morning, afternoon, and weekend. 1. It is frankly impossible that these attitudes should simply disappear from Buddhist culture, which prides itself on its continuity with tradition. For example, a nun was raped when walking through a forest by herself. The famous Theravada teacher Dipa Ma, was sitting quietly in her room one day while her teacher and another teacher were talking. Monks are advised to sleep indoors, not outdoors, after an incident where women had sex with a monk while he, apparently, was sleeping under a tree. There are a few suttas which mention the 32 marks of a great man and how the Buddha possesses these marks. The Buddhist scriptures, the Tipitaka were oral teachings memorized for hundreds of years before being committed to writing in the first century BCE. There was no Vinaya Pitaka. Although the position of women in Indian society was much higher that it later became, a lone woman still stood a good chance of being thought of as loose and being open to harassment or worse. The first nuns did not have senior nuns to seek full ordination to after a probationary period (no. ... Ketumala's battle for recognition and respect for nuns in Buddhism runs parallel to the broader challenge for women's rights in modern Myanmar. But Buddhism? Ketumala’s battle for recognition and respect for nuns in Buddhism runs parallel to the broader challenge for women’s rights in modern Myanmar. ; and He who explains a discourse whose meaning has already been fully drawn out as one whose meaning needs to be inferred.” (Shows that the Buddha did not support literalism, at least not in all cases.) Initially, none of these strictures were codified. Buddhist monks, unlike other monks of that period, are not allowed to wander naked for fear they would attract women with their charms, believed to be enhanced because of their chastity and celibacy. One day, his wife and son come to him and beg him to come back but he does not respond, and shows no sign of husbandly or fatherly instincts and so is praised by Buddha of achieving true detachment and enlightenment. He brought the caste system back and then there was the acceptance of Buddha as an incarnation of Vishnu. It has been glamorised and valorised as the ultimate indicator of masculinity and purity. 6 of the 8 heavy rules). In one passage the Buddha specifically mentions that he only creates a rule for the Vinaya when the time is right and the time calls for it (Vinaya, Suttavibhanga 3.9). 3. In addition, any other rules that might suggest inequality should be let go and those women who have fully ordained should be fully accepted by all Buddhists as there have been ordinations with monks and nuns present and they need not all be from one tradition at the start of the reinstatement. A woman, like a man can attain to the same level as the founder of the religion of Buddhism and become fully enlightened, an Arahant. In a society where a popular saying urges women to “regard her son as her master and her husband as her god”, Buddhist nun Ketumala is already an outlier. Kick off each morning with coffee and the Daily Brief (BYO coffee). There was no Vinaya Pitaka. What is the origin of this idea that only a man can become a samma-sam-buddha? The Classical Theravada places all of the later writings, including the Commentaries in very high esteem. Enjoy! Because the list is that of a great “man” and includes the penis encased in a sheath, it obviously excludes women. We can insist that Vedas and only the Vedas, are the source of misogyny. The myth of misogynistic suttas is easily dispelled when you look at the context of the teachings. If you see the list of these so-called great marks, you will see that they are truly mythological and completely legendary; certainly nothing to be taken seriously or to justify sexism. (See: Chronology of Pali Canon) It could be from the 32 marks of a great man. Ketumala’s battle for recognition and respect for nuns in Buddhism runs parallel to the broader challenge for women’s rights in modern Myanmar. In the story of Sundarasammudha, who leaves his wife to become a monk, the wife approaches the husband and tells him, in what is an allusion to the, The texts repeatedly describe celibate monks as embodiments of, Sangamaji left his wife and son to become a monk. There is Buddhism after Patriarchy by Rita Gross and Bull of a Man’ by John Powers, for example. The Buddhist nun challenging misogyny in Myanmar . It involves the deeply held belief that Ananda played an instrumental role in the founding of the bhikkhuni sangha. Research on this topic is well known but restricted to academic circles. These codes were compiled orally and narrated by Upali (a barber before he became one of Buddha’s 10 chief disciples) in the first Buddhist council, a year after Buddha’s death. This happened 2,600 years ago. The Buddha was very reluctant to do this but Ananda interceded on Gotami's behalf. Ven. So to protect the reputation of the dhamma and the sangha, Buddha began putting down these rules. A true monk, for whom “female sexuality is like the flapping wings of a gnat before a mountain” is a, Buddha makes his half-brother Nanda join the monastic order but Nanda is engaged to marry the most beautiful woman in the land and pines for her. 4 min. There were more rules for nuns than the rules for monks, but they primarily dealt with the protection of the nuns. Dr. Kusuma are fully ordained bhikkhunis, both with a Ph.D. and are continuing in Sri Lanka and Thailand where Ayya Khema left off and have written on the subject of women's status. Once a woman laughed and showed her charms to Mahatissa, but he remained unmoved. Manu Smriti and other dharmashastras were written in the Gupta era when Brahmins played a key role in legitimising kingship in much of peninsular India. The Buddha told the nuns not to respect these bad monks. Monks who do not wake up, or do not yield to temptation despite being accosted by women for sexual pleasure, are seen as innocent and not expelled from the monastic order. Of all the tastes that can enslave, none is more lethal than that of a woman. It was the later Svetembara sect of Jainism which stated that women could attain enlightenment. As people progressed, at a later date the ordination would be better. There is Buddhism after Patriarchy by Rita Gross and Bull of a Man’ by John Powers, for example. Hinduism is patriarchal. It helps to convert the uneducated masses, but does nothing to shed more light on the wonderful teachings of the man who became a buddha. If we look at history, the Buddha was correct (if he did say that). This passage is mentioned in the rules for the monks in the Vinaya and is not mentioned in any other place. Do not believe in something because a scripture says it is so. The “sacrifice of the feminine principle” is from the outset a fundamental event in the teachings of Buddha . The Buddhist Nun Challenging Misogyny in Myanmar In a so ciety where a popular saying urges women to “regard her son as her master and her husband as her god”, Buddhist nun Ketumala is … After Siddhattha became the Buddha, Maha Pajapati Gotami approached him and asked if he would allow her and other women to renounce the world, thus becoming nuns. People also started making fun of the Buddhist way. This situation is not limited to the Theravada and in fact Zen and Vajrayana have an even more patriarchal line with all of the Zen leaders of the past being male and the re-births of all Dalai Lamas have been male as the search committee only looks for recently born boys after the passing of a previous Dalai Lama. Dr. Analayo writes, "There are many problems chronologically, however, in the traditional account of Mahaprajapati (from the Commentaries). Most discourses involve the Buddha giving a talk to the monks and begin with the very familiar, “O Bhikkhus . If we are not satisfied that this may have been added later and not a saying of the Buddha, there is still another non-misogynistic possibility, by considering the context and degree of sexism in India during the time of Buddha still through today. The complete silence on the subject of misogyny so firmly entrenched in the Buddhist scriptures, and traced to the Buddha, is quite remarkable. In the Suttas it is reported that previous Buddhas (fully enlightened teachers of the masses) also had a bhikkhuni order. Because these women (many who were mothers, daughters, wives, sisters, cousins of many of the bhikkhus) might be subjected to rape, assault, sexual harassment and being termed "prostitutes and thieves", which in fact, did later occur as recorded in the. The fact that this reported 500 years statement is only mentioned once, already raises some questions. It is interesting that in all writings of patriarchy and misogyny related to India, scholars quote the Ramayana and the Manu Smriti, yet historically these were composed after the Vinaya Pitaka. The Buddhist nun challenging misogyny in Myanmar 2 months ago Vegas News . This seer named Asita, checked the baby Buddha and found the 32 marks of a great man present on Buddha. . It is not the first religion that comes to mind when we talk about misogyny. 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