A bhikkhuni (Pāli) or bhikṣuṇī (Sanskrit) is a fully ordained female Buddhist monastic. Male monastics are called bhikkhus. Both bhikkhunis and bhikkhus live by the vinaya. Bhikkhuni lineages enjoy a broad basis in Mahayana countries like Korea, Vietnam, China, and Taiwan.
According to Buddhist scriptures, the order of bhikkhunis was first created by the Buddha at the specific request of his foster-mother Mahapajapati Gotami, who became the first ordained bhikkhuni, relayed via his attendant Ananda (who also urged for the Buddha's acceptance of it). The bhikkhuni order spread to many countries.
For a country or nation to be considered as truly Buddhist, the majority of the nation must be Buddhist and include at least a fourfold assembly of bhikkhus, bhikkhunis, upasakas and, upasikas.
Buddhism is unique among Indian Religions in that Buddha, as founder of a spiritual tradition, explicitly states in canonical literature that a woman is as capable of nirvana (enlightenment) as a man, and can fully attain all four stages of enlightenment in the Dhamma and Vinaya of the Buddha Sasana. There is no equivalent, in other traditions, of the Therigatha or Apadanas which record the high levels of spiritual attainment by women.
In a similar vein, major canonical Mahayana sutras such as the Lotus Sutra, chapter 12 , records 6000 bhikkhuni Arahants as receiving predictions of Bodhisatvahood and future Buddhahood by Sakyamuni Buddha. Eventually, his attendant and half-brother Ananda (Mahaprajapati Gotami's son) relayed a final request, which was granted—but only on condition that the women accept eight garudhammas, or eight heavy rules. The Buddha is quoted by Thannisaro Bhikkhu as saying: Ananda, if Mahaprajapati Gotami accepts eight vows of respect, that will be her full ordination (upasampada). Modern scholars have shown that this story abounds in textual problems, and cannot possibly be a factual account.
According to the scriptural accounts, the reason the Buddha gave for his actions was that admission of women to the sangha would weaken it and shorten its lifetime to 500 years. This prophecy occurs only once in the Canon and is the only prophecy involving time in the Canon.
Some modern Buddhist scholars explain the Buddha's reluctance by noting that 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 Vinaya. One example as told in the Vinaya in which a Brahmin calling the bhikkhunis "strumpets" (i.e., prostitutes), tries to set fire to the bhikkhunis' dwelling:
:Then that Brahmin . . . spread it about, saying: :These shaven headed strumpets are not true recluses. How can they :let a pot fall on my head? I will set fire to their dwelling, :Ó and having taken up a fire brand, he entered the dwelling.
In Young Chung noticed that society as recorded in the Vinaya always criticized the bhikkhunis more harshly using "shaven headed strumpets or whores", whereas the bhikkhus were simply called "shaven headed". This harsher treatment (which also included rape and assault) of bhikkhunis by society required greater protection. Within these social conditions, Gautama Buddha opened up new horizons for women by founding the bhikkhuni sangha. This social and spiritual advancement for women was ahead of the times and, therefore, drew many objections from men, including bhikkhus. He was probably well aware of the controversy that would be caused by the harassment of his female disciples."
Early Buddhism did not have monasteries and it was a requirement of the bhikkhus and early bhikkhunis to spend a lot of time in the forests alone, but due to the consequent rape and assault of some of the bhikkhunis by outsiders recorded in the Vinaya-- Buddha eventually forbade women from wandering in forests away from society. Bhikkhunis eventually resided in more fixed residences near populated areas than the bhikkhus.
According to some modern Buddhist apologists, most of the rules (including the more controversial 8 Garudhammas) of the Bhikkhuni Vinaya are more for the protection of the bhikkhunis by association with the more senior Sangha of the male bhikkhus and thus the homage for protection and teaching the newer Bhikkhuni Sangha and not "sexual discrimination". Dr. Chatsumarn Kabilsingh writes, "Nuns at the time of the Buddha had equal rights and an equal share in everything. In one case, eight robes were offered to both sanghas at a place where there was only one nun and four monks. The Buddha divided the robes in half, giving four to the nun and four to the monks, because the robes were for both sanghas and had to be divided equally however many were in each group. Because the nuns tended to receive fewer invitations to lay-people's homes, the Buddha had all offerings brought to the monastery and equally divided between the two sanghas. He protected the nuns and was fair to both parties. They are subordinate in the sense of being younger sisters and elder brothers, not in the sense of being masters and slaves." The Vinaya does not allow for any power-based relationship between the monks and nuns.
Rules for nuns in Buddhism:
:1) A nun who has been ordained even for a hundred years must greet respectfully, rise up from her seat, salute with joined palms, do proper homage to a monk ordained but that day.
:*clarification: The Vinaya recounts the story of six monks who lifted up their robes to show their thighs to the nuns. When the Buddha learned about this, he made an exception to that rule and told the nuns not to pay respect to these monks. A nun, then, does not have to bow to every monk, but only to a monk who is worthy of respect.
:*Pajapati's later request: "I would ask one thing of the Blessed One, Ananda. It would be good if the Blessed One would allow making salutations, standing up in the presence of another, paying reverence and the proper performance of duties, to take place equally between both bhikkhus and bhikkhunis according to seniority."
:2) A nun must not spend the rains in a residence where there are no monks.
:3) Every half month a nun should desire two things from the Order of Monks : the asking as to the date of the Observance [ uposatha ] day, and the coming for the exhortation [ bhikkhunovada ].
:4) After the rains a nun must 'invite' [ pavarana ] before both orders in respect of three matters, namely what was seen, what was heard, what was suspected.
:*amended: However, practical considerations soon necessitated amendments to these and we see in the revised version of these conditions the sanction given to the bhikkhunis to perform these acts, in the first instance, by themselves.
:5) A nun, offending against an important rule, must undergo manatta discipline for half a month before both orders.
:*another translation: "(5) A bhikkhuni who has broken any of the vows of respect must undergo penance for half a month under both Sanghas... (by Thanissaro Bhikkhu)
:6) When, as a probationer, she has trained in the six rules [ cha dhamma ] for two years, she should seek higher ordination from both orders.
:*note contradiction: One of the gurudhamma mentions sikkhamanas, probationary nuns who train for two years in preparation to become bhikkhunis. It says that after a probationary nun has trained with a bhikkhuni for two years, that bhikkhuni preceptor has the responsibility to fully ordain her. However, when the Buddha ordained Mahapajapati, there were no probationary nuns. He ordained her directly as a bhikkhuni. So how do we explain that within the eight important rules, one of them states that before becoming a bhikkhuni, a woman must be a probationary nun? Edit: That's easy, in order for there to be seniority verses probationary, one must first have seniority. So Mahapajapati was ordained in order to set up the probationary system, and allow women to learn under another woman, rather than the men who may refuse to teach them or subject them to, as stated above, sexual harassment and other forms of assault that were stated above. " :These eight qualities were: the teacher of nuns must be virtuous; second, have comprehensive knowledge of the Dhamma; third he must be well acquainted with the Vinaya, especially the rules for nuns; fourth, he must be a good speaker with a pleasant and fluent delivery, faultless in pronunciation, and intelligibly convey the meaning; fifth, he should be able to teach Dhamma to the nuns in an elevating, stimulating, and encouraging way; sixth, he must always be welcome to the nuns and liked by them—that is, they must be able to respect and esteem him not only when he praises them but especially when there is an occasion for reproach; seventh, he must never have committed sexual misconduct with a nun; eighth, he must have been a fully ordained Buddhist monk for at least 20 years (AN 8.52).
Some scholars argue that these 8 rules were added later since: :1) there is a discrepancy between the Pali bhikkhuni Vinaya :2) the fact that these same rules are treated only as a minor offense (requiring only confession as expiation) in the bhikkhuni Payantika Dharmas.
In Young Chung clarifies, "Hae-ju Chun, a bhikùni and assistant professor at Tongguk University in Seoul, Korea, argues that six of the Eight Rules (#1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8) belong to the Bhikùni Pàyantika Dharmas, as they are the same as or similar to rules found there. We may compare the differences in the punishment for any offense of the Eight Rules with that for an offense of the pàyantika dharmas. Violation of any of the Eight Rules means that women cannot be ordained. The Eight Rules must be observed throughout the bhikùuõãs lives. However, the pàyantika dharmas (#175, 145, 124 or 126, 141, 143, 142) require only confession, as there offenses of bhikunis are considered to be violations of minor rules. Based on the differences in the gravity of offenses between the Eight Rules and the pàyantika dharmas, she also asserts the probability that the Eight Rules might have been added later. The first of the Eight Rules does not appear in the Pàli Bhikùni Vinaya.
Ian Astley argues that under the conditions of society where there is such great discrimination and threat to women, Buddha could not be blamed for the steps he took in trying to secure the Sangha from negative public opinion: :In those days (and this still applies to much of present Indian society) a woman who had left the life of the household would otherwise have been regarded more or less as a harlot and subjected to the appropriate harassment. By being formally associated with the monks, the nuns were able to enjoy the benefits of leaving the household life without incurring immediate :harm. Whilst it is one thing to abhor, as any civilized person must do, the attitudes and behavior towards women which underlie the necessity for such protection, it is surely misplaced to criticize the Buddha and his community for adopting this particular policy. So she cannot be a buddhist nun again.
In an interview, a Vietnamese nun named Chan Khong described Nhat Hanh's approach:
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In the Theravada tradition, some scholars believe that the bhikkhuni lineage became extinct in the 11th to 13th centuries, and that no new bhikkhunis could be ordained since there were no bhikkhunis left to give ordination. For this reason, the leadership of the Theravada bhikkhu Sangha in Burma and Thailand deem fully ordained bhikkhunis as "untrue." Based on the spread of the bhikkhuni lineage to countries like China, Taiwan, Korea, Vietnam, Japan and Sri Lanka, other scholars support ordination of Theravadan bhikkhunis.
Dr.Chatsumarn Kabilsingh, now known as Dhammananda Bhikkhuni, is a Thai scholar who took bhikkhuni ordination in Sri Lanka and returned to Thailand, where bhikkhuni ordination is forbidden and can result in arrest or imprisonment for a woman. She is considered a pioneer by many in Thailand and a "devil" by others.
The first Theravadan bhikkhuni ordination in Australia was held in Perth, October 22, 2009, at Bodhinyana Monastery. Four nuns from Dhammasara Nun's Monastery, Venerable Ajahn Vayama (Abbess), and Venerables Nirodha, Seri and Hasapanna, were ordained as bhikkhunis by a dual sangha act of bhikkhus and bhikkhunis, in full accordance with the Pali vinaya.
The aim of the congress has been rated by the organizers of utmost importance for equality and liberation of Buddhist women (nuns). "The re-establishment of nuns’ ordination in Tibet via H. H. XIVth Dalai Lama and the international monks and nuns sanghas will lead to further equality and liberation of Buddhist women. This is a congress of historical significance which will give women the possibility to teach Buddha’s doctrines worldwide."
To help establish the Bhikshuni Sangha (community of fully-ordained nuns) where it does not currently exist has also been declared one of the objectives of Sakyadhita , as expressed at its founding meeting in 1987 in Bodhgaya, India.
In Part Four of Alexander Berzin's Summary Report: Day Three and Final Comments by His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama it is said: "But Buddha gave the basic rights equally to both sangha groups. There is no point in discussing whether or not to revive the bhikshuni ordination; the question is merely how to do so properly within the context of the Vinaya."
The Eight Garudhammas belong to the context of the Vinaya. Bhikkhuni Kusuma writes: "In the Pali, the eight garudhammas appear in the tenth khandhaka of the Cullavagga." It is not said where they are to be found in actual ordination process for Bhikkhunis.
The text is not allowed to be studied before ordination. "The traditional custom is that one is only allowed to study the bhikshu or bhikshuni vows after having taken them.", Bhikshuni Prof. Dr. Karma Lekshe Tsomo stated during congress while talking about Gender Equality and Human Rights: "It would be helpful if Tibetan nuns could study the bhikshuni vows before the ordination is established. The traditional custom is that one is only allowed to study the bhikshu or bhikshuni vows after having taken them. Ven. Tenzin Palmo is quoted with saying: "To raise the status of Tibetan nuns, it is important not only to re-establish the Mulasarvastivada bhikshuni ordination, but also for the new bhikshunis to ignore the eight gurudharmas that have regulated their lower status. These eight, after all, were formulated for the sole purpose of avoiding censure by the lay society. In the modern world, disallowing the re-establishment of the Mulasarvastivada bhikshuni ordination and honoring these eight risk that very censure."
According to Summary Report as well as according to the other texts available from the congress there has not been a discussion on how and which of the eight gurudharmas discriminate against buddhist nuns and how this can be changed in detail in the process of re-establishing the Mulasarvastivada bhikshuni ordination.
"American Tibetan Buddhist monk Thubten Pende gave his views: "When I translated the texts concerning the ordination ceremony I got such a shock. It said that even the most senior nun had to sit behind the most novice monk because, although her ordination was superior, the basis of that ordination, her body, was inferior. I thought, "There it is." I'd heard about this belief but I'd never found evidence of it. I had to recite this text at the ceremony. I was embarrassed to say it and ashamed of the institution I was representing. I wondered, "Why doesn't she get up and leave?" I would.'
The English Theravadan monk Ven. Ajahn Amaro also spoke up: 'Seeing the nuns not receiving the respect given to the monks is very painful. It is like having a spear in your heart,' he said." .
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| Background | #FFD068 | color = black |
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| Name | Thubten Chödron |
She is founder and Abbess of Sravasti Abbey, a Buddhist monastery near Newport, Washington.
Category:Tibetan Buddhist nuns Category:Tibetan Buddhist teachers Category:American Buddhist nuns Category:Mahayanan Buddhist monks Category:1950 births Category:Living people Category:Tibetan Buddhists from the United States Category:20th-century Lamas Category:Buddhist abbesses
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Vicki Mackenzie, who wrote Cave in the Snow about her, relates that what inspired the writing of the book was reading Tenzin Palmo's statement to a Buddhist magazine that "I have made a vow to attain Enlightenment in the female form - no matter how many lifetimes it takes".
Living at Khamtrul Rinpoche's monastery as the sole nun among 100 monks provided Tenzin Palmo with first-hand experience of the discrimination that restricted women’s access to information that was imparted freely to men. Eager for instruction, she felt frustrated by the fact that she was kept out of most monastic activities because of misogynistic prejudices. This phase lasted for six years. Then Tenzin Palmo left the monastery at her teacher’s suggestion to go to Lahul in the higher reaches of the Indian Himalayas, where she would eventually enter the cave and launch herself into uninterrupted, intense spiritual practice.
In 1976 Tenzin Palmo commenced living in a cave in the Himalayas measuring 10 feet wide and six feet deep and remained there for 12 years, for three of which she was in full retreat. The cave was high in the remote Lahul area of the Indian Himalayas, on the border of Himachal Pradesh and Tibet. In the course of the retreat she grew her own food and practiced deep meditation based on ancient Buddhist beliefs. In accordance with protocol, she never lay down, sleeping in a traditional wooden meditation box in a meditative posture for just three hours a night. The last three years were spent in complete isolation. She survived temperatures of below −30° Fahrenheit (−35°C) and snow for six to eight months of the year.
Tenzin Palmo emerged from the cave in 1988 and travelled to Italy as visa problems meant she needed to leave India. Since her retreat Tenzin Palmo has taken on the cause of equal rights and opportunities for Buddhist nuns. In support of this, she spent several years travelling the world fund raising for a new Buddhist nunnery, as her root lama had asked her to do. In 2000, the Dongyu Gatsal Ling Nunnery was opened with the purpose of giving education and training to women from Tibet and the Himalayan border regions. At this nunnery, Tenzin Palmo also plans to re-establish the extinct lineage of togdenmas, a Drukpa Kagyu yogini order. within the Drukpa Kagyu tradition.
Tenzin Palmo is a member of the six member 'Committee of Western Bhikshunis', an organisation of senior Western nuns supported by two Advisors from Taiwan (Ven. Bhiksuni Heng-ching Shih, Professor of Philosophy at Taiwan National University [Gelongma ordination 1975 in San Francisco] and Ven. Bhikshuni Wu-yin, Vinaya Master). It was formed in the autumn of 2005, after His Holiness the Dalai Lama told Bhikshuni Jampa Tsedroen that the Western bhikshunis should be more involved in helping to establish the bhikshuni ordination in the Tibetan tradition.
On 16 February 2008, Tenzin Palmo was conferred as Jetsunma (reverend lady) in recognition of her spiritual achievements as a nun and her efforts in promoting the status of female practitioners in Tibetan Buddhism by the supreme head of the Drukpa Lineage, His Holiness the Twelfth Gyalwang Drukpa /Gyalwang Drukpa the XIIth - Gyalwang Drukpa,.
Category:Modern Buddhist writers Category:1943 births Category:Tibetan Buddhist nuns Category:Living people Category:British Buddhist nuns Category:Tibetan Buddhist teachers Category:Tibetan Buddhists from England Category:Converts to Buddhism Category:Tibetan Buddhist yogis Category:20th-century Lamas Category:Buddhist nuns
This text is licensed under the Creative Commons CC-BY-SA License. This text was originally published on Wikipedia and was developed by the Wikipedia community.
