April 1 -- Even as women across South Asia and Southeast Asia make headways into male-dominated social and cultural circles, they still face an uphill struggle to claim their rights in religious practice. While a rigorous survey of female demographics in Buddhism as still needs to be done in the regions, sporadic glimpses of developments can be pieced together.
Bangladeshi women going forth to ordain. Photo Source: Bangladesh Shramoni Sangha Facebook
“Compared to the reactions of the senior monks in Myanmar and Thailand, Sri Lanka monks are indeed holding a more open attitude towards the raising of bhikkhunis. Thus, it also provides the public a chance to get in touch with the bhikkhunis,” a nun said confidentially in 2010 while practicing in the Sakyadhita Training and Meditation Centre in Gorakana, Sri Lanka. Thanks to education, feminism, and principles of equality and freedom, women reclaimed the privilege of monastic ordination in the 20th century. After many centuries of silence, the Theravada Order of nuns was revived in 1996 with the ordination of 11 Sri Lankan women at Sarnath in India.
“In our village, there are three monks’ temples but we have no problem with them or the villagers though we are bhikkhunis arama. Every year after vassa season, we have Kaṭhina and many people support such religious ceremony. No complaints from the monks nearby us. Our nuns even went to monks' temples to preach Dhamma on every poya day,” the nun at Sakyadhita further observes. Today there are more than 1000 nuns in Sri Lanka, but the island’s government and chief monks have not given official recognition. On October 30, 2013, a group of nuns handed in a petition to the Human Rights Commission demanding recognition of their community as part of the Buddhist dispensation. The petition was filed by Venerable Inamaluwa Sumangala Thera and Venerable Sheelapriya Mahinda Therani. The bhikkhunis requested that ordained female Buddhist monks who are part of the Order be accepted and given the same recognition as their male counterparts, be registered with the temples, issued identity cards, and accorded all the privileges of the Order.
Theravada countries such as Thailand and Myanmar face a strong resistance to revival of the bhikkhuni sangha. In those countries, the elder monks think the revival of the bhikkhuni sangha is contrary to the Vinaya and a threat to the longevity of Buddhism. Dr. Siriwan Ratanakar from the University of Bangkok says, “Women have helped to shape Thai culture, customs, and traditions either as regents themselves or as direct advisors to their kings. Although women were given their right to vote back on 1932, they were never given the right to be ordained. There is nothing in the Thai constitution forbidding women becoming monks. However, the Sangha council, which governs the monkhood, continues to maintain that only men can enter the monkhood.” She believes that the time has come to recognize the contribution of women to the life of religion by permitting full ordination.
Recently, the Supreme Sangha Council of Bangladesh also imposed a form of punishment called brahmdanda on Venerable Dr. Varasambodhi for giving ordination to women in Bangladesh. Brahmdanda censures an individual by demanding that other monks, be they junior or senior, refuse him contact and connections. Nevertheless, the nuns have not given up in their struggle for their rights in spiritual practice.
Despite heavy resistance by those in positions of privilege, it is likely that the Bhikkhuni Order soon can be revived in Theravada Buddhist countries. The fruit of institutional support for the pursuit of Nibbana has never been so close.
Women’s issues are gathering momentum and moving from strength to strength in the face of immense opposition. While discrimination against women remains common in many countries, in Buddhism, women theoretically enjoy equality of opportunity. It is clear that the Buddha allowed full participation of women by ordaining them. During the Buddha's time, the Order of Nuns produced a remarkable number of brilliant preachers and promoters of Dhamma, from Mahapajapati to Khema, Patacara and more.
Nevertheless, the admission of women into the Order was short-lived, and the Theravada nuns’ order fell into decline in 1017 CE in Sri Lanka. But the nuns’ Order still exists in traditions that use the Dharmaguptaka Vinaya.
Additional Reporting by BD Dipananda
See Also
Emergence Of Bhikkhuni Sangha (Monkhood For Women)
Lanka's female Buddhist monks petition HRC demanding recognition
Sri Lanka Buddhist nuns long for equality - The New India