Women's Day & Bhikkhunis

Today is International Women's Day and the theme for this year is "Be Bold for Change" so it seems appropriate to have a look at the current situation for Buddhist nuns or Bhikkhunis who in many traditions are denied the same level of ordination as male monks.

The excuse that is usually offered is that to be fully ordained as a nun you need, according to the Vinaya, the rules governing the monastic community within Buddhism, to be ordained by an existing ordained nun.

As the nun's lineage died out in all areas of the Theravada school, traditionally women's roles as renunciates were limited to taking eight or ten Precepts. Such women appear as maechi in Thai Buddhism, dasa sil mata in Sri Lanka, thilashin in Burma and siladharas at Amaravati and Chithurst Buddhist Monasteries in England.

However, back in October 2009, Sisters Vayama, Nirodha, Seri and Hassapañña were ordained as Theravada Bhikkhunis, or nuns, in a dual ordination ceremony held at Bodhinyana Buddhist Monastery in Perth, Western Australia. Ayya Tathaaloka, from the United States, was the Preceptor. Ajahn Brahm and Ajahn Sujato performed the certifying acariya chanting in the bhikkhu's (monks) part of the ceremony.

But, despite this, change has been very slow in traditional Theravada countries such as Thailand. King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand died at the age of 88, on 13 October 2016, after a long illness. A year-long period of mourning was subsequently announced.

As millions of people across Thailand mourned the passing of the widely beloved King and Thais flocked to pay their respects at Bangkok’s Grand Palace, where the late monarch lies in state, one segment of society in this Buddhist kingdom has been blocked from visiting the royal funeral ceremony — bhikkhunis, or fully ordained female monastics.

A recent commentary in the Bangkok Post notes that in December, a group of bhikkhunis from the central province of Nakhon Pathom were turned away from the Grand Palace and reprimanded for wearing the saffron robes of Theravada monks. In a similar incident in November, a party of bhikkhunis from the southern province of Songkhla were also denied entry. Both groups were confronted by officials from the National Office of Buddhism and Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya, a Buddhist university, who are in charge of screening monastic visitors.

It is still illegal for women to take full ordination as a Buddhist nun (Bhikkhuni) in Thailand because of a 1928 law created by the Supreme Patriarch of Thailand.

More Theravada Bhikkhunis Ordained, this time in Indonesia

At a ceremony held at Wisma Kusalayani in Lembang, Bandung on Sunday, June 21, nine prospective bhikkhunis, two from Indonesia and seven from other countries, underwent full ordination . The lineage of Theravada bhikkhunis had been dormant for over a thousand years after having died out in Indonesia in the 11th century.

 

This represents yet another step forward in the development of the International Bhikkhuni Sangha - despite the continued opposition of traditionalists.

A Great Day at Chithurst Buddhist Monastery

Yesterday we got together with the Newport Soto Zen group for a day out at Cittaviveka, the Thereavada Buddhist Monastery at Chithurst over on the North island.


We seem to have left the rain behind on the island and enjoyed a beautiful, bright sunny day only catching the rain when we came back home! The monastery was an oasis of calm and peace with the only sounds those of bird song and the occasional high flying aircraft.

We had a very good turnout from the West Wight and it was a real pleasure to see how much those Sangha members who had not been before enjoyed the experience. 

Ajahn Brahm Speech Banned

Ajahn Brahm, was invited to deliver a speech on Gender Equality at the UN Day of Vesak Convention in Vietnam in May 2014. His speech was banned by the conference organising committee the day before it was due to be given at the Convention. Although Gender Equality is one of the declared UN millennium goals and although Ajahn Brahm’s paper on Gender Equality had been officially accepted for the convention, he was told at the last moment while he was in Vietnam that he would not be allowed to present his paper.

This is Ajahn's response from the following Friday's talk at Dhammaloka (it's audio).............



And here's his banned speech in full.............. !!

Theravada Buddhism and MDG 3: 

Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women in Theravada Buddhism 

By Ajahn Brahm

Introduction 

On December1 1955, in Montgomery Alabama, an African-American woman refused to obey a bus driver’s order to give up her seat on the bus to a white passenger. That simple act of defiance for the cause of social justice became one of the most important symbols of the modern Civil Rights Movements in the USA. That woman was Rosa Parks. The United States Congress called her “the first lady of civil rights” and “the mother of the freedom movement”. December 1 is commemorated in the US states of California and Ohio as “Rosa Parks Day”. Rosa Parks became a Buddhist before she passed away in 2005 aged 92. One can speculate that this female icon against discrimination chose Buddhism because it is well suited to advancing social justice issues.

In this paper, I will discuss how Buddhism may advance the particular social justice issue of Millennium Development Goal No. 3: Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. I will focus on the need for Theravada Buddhism’s current male leadership to clearly demonstrate its own commitment to MDG 3 through acceptance of the bhikkhuni ordination. Only then can it use its considerable influence to make our world more fair, one where people are judged on their character and not on their gender.

Happy Macha Bucha (& Valentine's Day)

Every year Buddhist countries celebrate Sangha Day. Sangha Day is the second most important Buddhist festival and is a celebration in honour of the Sangha, or the Buddhist community.

Sangha Day commemorates the spontaneous gathering of 1,250 enlightened monks (arahants) to hear the Buddha preach at Veluvana Vihara.

At this gathering, the Buddha gave his first sermon, or recitation of the Patimokkha (the rules and regulations of the monastic order).

It is celebrated on the full moon day of Māgha (the third lunar month) in Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar where the month is called Phālguna, from the Hindu calendar. The spiritual aims of the day are: not to commit any kind of sins; do only good; purify one's mind. Māgha Pūjā is a public holiday in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand.

Celebrations vary, but can include chanting, meditation, the lighting of oil lamps, and the reaffirmation of people's commitment to Buddhist practice.

Oh, and this year it coincides with Valentine's day............... so love all around!

The Rapidly Developing Bhikkhuni Sangha

Regular readers will know that we have been committed supporters of full female ordination within all Buddhist traditions and have had a particular interest in supporting full Bhikkhuni ordination within the Thai forest tradition of Ajahn Chah. The nearest monastery to the West Wight is Cittaviveka - Chithurst Buddhist Monastery which is part of the network of Thai forest tradition monasteries in the West and we regularly join up with the Newport Soto Zen group to travel over to the mainland and visit the monastery.

I recently received an email from the Alliance for Bhikkhunis and they mention their new website http://www.bhikkhuni.net/ which is well worth a visit (especially the library). Also on the site they catalogue all the Nunneries for fully ordained Bhikkhuni that are now available since that first "controversial" ordination in Perth. It has become an impressive list so I've reproduced it here......... (guess where's missing!) ...................................

Australia

Bodhinyana Monastery
Ven. Brahmavamso Bhikkhu, Abbot
216 Kingsbury Drive
Serpentine, Western Australia
6125 Australia
Dhammasara Monastery
203 Reen Road
Gidgegannup, Western Australia
6083 Australia
Sanghamittarama
40 Chesterville Drive
East Bentleigh, Victoria
3165 Australia
Santi Forest Monastery
Ven. Sujato Bhikkhu, Abbot
100 Coalmines Rd
Bundanoon, New South Wales
2578 Australia

Cambodia

Panna Vihara
Phum Samroun Teav, Abbess
Sangkat Krang Tnuoung, Khan Dangkor
Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Canada

Sati Saraniya Hermitage
Ven. Medhanandi Bhikkhuni, Abbess
1702 McVeigh Rd. RR #7
Perth, Ontario K7H 3C9
Canada

Czech Republic

Karuna Sevena
Ven. Visuddhi Bhikkhuni
Slezská 3
796 01 Prostejov
Czech Republic
Find us on Facebook

Germany

Anenja Vihara
Ven. Sucinta Bhikkhuni, Abbess
Morgen 6, Rettenberg
87549 Germany

India

Bhikkhuni Viharas in Maharashtra

Indonesia

Ven. Santini Bhikkhuni
1. Dharma Rt 1/RW1 Kp. Cigalukguk
Ds. Cobodas, Maribaya,
Lembang Bandung, Indonesia

Nepal

Dhammamoli Project
Ven. Dhammavijaya Bhikkhuni
c/o Friends of Dhamma Moli
P.O. Box 628
Yellow Springs, OH
USA 45387

New Zealand

Sati Arama Buddhist Centre
262 Otaha Rd
RD 2
Kerikeri 0295
New Zealand
NZ Bhikkhuni Trust
(in process of establishment)
Adhimutta Bhikkhuni,
J. Hill, S. Weerasinghe, A. Hoffmann
c/o nz.bhikkhunitrust@gmail.com

Sri Lanka

Ayya Khema International Meditation Centre 
Ven. Kusuma Bhikkhuni, Abbess
82/1A Stratford Avenue, Krullapona,
Colombo 6, Sri Lanka

Sakyadhita Training Center
President Ranjani de Silva
No. 50, Alwis Perera Mawatha
Katubedda, Moratuwa, Sri Lanka

Dambulla – The Golden Temple
(bhikkhuni training, education & ordination facility)
Bhante Sumangala Sangha Nayaka, Thera
No. 130 Kandy Road, Dambulla,
Sri Lanka

Thailand

Wat Songdhammakalyani Temple
Ven. Dhammananda Bhikkhuni, Abbess
195 Petkasem Hwy
Muang District
Nakhon Pathom 50160
Thailand
Nirodharam Bhikkhuni Arama
Ven. Nandayani Bhikkhuni, Abbess
127 Mu 6
Tambol Doi Kaew, Amphoe Jomtong
Chiang Mai 50160
Thailand
Suan Siridhamma Center
Ven. Poonsirivara Bhikkhuni, Abbess
109/1 Mu 10
Ban Paewn, Amper Ban Paew
Samut Sakorn 74120
Thailand

United States

Aloka Vihara
Ven. Anandabodhi Bhikkhuni & Ven. Santacitta Bhikkhuni
1632 48th Avenue
San Francisco, California
USA 94122
Aranya Bodhi Hermitage
Ven. Sobhana Bhikkhuni, Prioress
PO Box 16
Jenner, California
USA 95450
Awakening Truth and Shakti Vihara
Amma Thanasanti Bhikkhuni
15 Columbia Road
Colorado Springs, Colorado
USA 80904
Dhammadharini Vihara ”Women Upholding the Dhamma”
Ven. Tathaaloka Bhikkhuni, Abbess
5010 Grange Rd
Santa Rosa CA 95404
Tel: (707) 583-9522
Email: santarosa.vihara@gmail.com
Dhamma Cetiya Buddhist Vihara
Ven. Gotami Bhikkhuni, Spiritual Director
91 De Soto Road
Boston, Massachusetts
USA 02132-6005
Great Determination Hermitage
Ven. Madika Bhikkhuni, Abbess
P.O. Box 204
Stewart, Ohio
USA 45778
Karuna Buddhist Vihara
Ayya Santussika
279 Aviador Ave.,
Millbrae, CA 94030
Lotus Meditation and Education Center
1446 Summitridge Drive
Diamond Bar, California
USA 91765
909-861-1582
Mahapajapati Women’s Monastery
Ven. Gunasari Bhikkhuni, Abbess
P.O. Box 587
Pioneertown, California
USA 92268-1738
Minnesota Buddhist Vihara
3401 N 4th Street
Minneapolis, Minnesota
USA 55412-2617
Samadhi Buddhist Meditation Center
Ven. Bhikkhuni Sudarshana
5908 67th Avenue
Pinellas Park, Florida
USA 33781

Vietnam

Khemārāma (Tịnh An Lan Nhã)
Abbess: Bhikkhuni Susanta (Như Liên)
Add. Thon Quang Thanh, Xa Nghia Thanh, Huyen Chau Duc, Tinh Ba Ria Vung
Tau, Vietnam
Email: nhulienbl@gmail.com
Suññatārāma (Ni Viện Viên Không)
Abbess: Bhikkhuni Viditadhamma (Liêu Phap)
Add. Xa Toc Tiên, Huyên Tan Thanh, Tinh Ba Ria Vung Tau, Vietnam
Email: lieuphap@gmail.com

Through the Stained Glass Ceiling, or Not?

Firstly, a happy and secure 2013 to everyone.

Talking of the new year, some things are moving towards change whilst others are struggling to stay the same (the latter an impossibility, according to the Buddha).

So, what's changing. As regular readers of this site will know we have been supportive of the moves towards gender equality within the Buddhist monastic community, particularly as regards the Theravada tradition, but that's not to ignore the wider diminishing of the role, value and status of women across the board when it comes to religion.

Here in the UK the General Synod of the Church of England rejected a revision of canon law which—coming after years of deliberations, defections, redraftings, and often ugly debates—would finally have allowed the appointment of women bishops. Curiously, while this act of potential cultural suicide was taking place in Britain the Anglican Church of Australia had just appointed its fourth female bishop (you might recall that it was also in Australia that Ajahn Brahm facilitated first full bhikkhuni ordination of women in the Forest sangha of Thailand’s most famous meditation master, Ajahn Chah, back in October, 2009).

Elsewhere; Amid outrage across the Jewish diaspora over a flurry of recent arrests of women seeking to pray at the Western Wall with ritual garments in defiance of Israeli law, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has asked Natan Sharansky, the chairman of the Jewish Agency, to study the issue and suggest ways to make the site more accommodating to all Jews.

A call for Mormon women to wear trousers to church, begun this month by a small group of women, has stretched across the globe, but not before creating a backlash and even generating death threats.

“Wear Pants (yes, I know it sounds kinky but Americans insist on calling trousers pants) to Church,” an event on Sunday, was meant to draw attention to the role of women in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, using attire as a symbolic first salvo in a larger struggle over gender inequalities.

Though the Mormon Church has no official policy against women wearing trousers to church, many say they feel peer pressure to wear a dress, particularly in the Western United States, organisers said. So on Sunday, thousands of Mormon women arrived at church in trousers in places like Cambridge, England; Heidelberg, Germany; Austin, Tex.; the Marshall Islands; and Kotzebue, Alaska. A number of the women posted their photos on Facebook and other Web sites. Others said they could not participate because they were fearful of ridicule or reprimand.

I've nothing topical to add to the sad litany of denigrations against women re: the third of the Abrahamic faiths but dogma and culture, as always, seem to have far more influence than anything actually taught by any of these religions' founders.

Annual International Bhikkhuni Day 2012

Today is the 2nd Annual International Bhikkhuni Day. The date is chosen because the first bhikkhuni, Bhikkhuni Maha Pajapati Theri, the Buddha’s stepmother and aunt, ordained during a full moon in September, the occasion marking the start of the Bhikkhuni Sangha.

It is a day on which we pay respect to the Bhikkhuni Sangha and acknowledge its essential role in preserving and spreading the Dhamma. We remember prominent bhikkhunis and their unique achievements and contributions.

It is a time to re-dedicate ourselves to becoming the skilled, adept, learned, and purified disciples the Buddha intended us to be.

For more information visit Alliance for Bhikkhunis

New Video

I've just come across this delightfull film, Dhamma Dana by Lowpressurefilms


Best Domestic Documentary, Queens International Film Festival, New York City.

Official Selection: Tel Aviv SPIRIT Film Festival, Israel.

Official Selection: Wesak International Film Festival, Kuala Lampur, Malaysia.

You can watch it on our Video Section by following this link.............  Dhamma Dana

Today is the 1st Annual International Bhikkhuni Day

What is International Bhikkhuni Day?

It is a day on which we pay respect to the Bhikkhuni Sangha and acknowledge its essential role in preserving and spreading the Dhamma. We remember prominent bhikkhunis and their unique achievements and contributions.

When is International Bhikkhuni Day?

The 1st International Bhikkhuni Day is today, Saturday, September the 17th. In the future, the celebration will take place on the full moon Saturday in September or on the first Saturday immediately following the full moon.

Why this date?

The first bhikkhuni, Bhikkhuni Maha Pajapati Theri, the Buddha’s stepmother and aunt, ordained during a full moon in September, the occasion marking the start of the Bhikkhuni Sangha.

What do we do on International Bhikkhuni Day?

We honour bhikkhunis and the women who have guided us, beginning with Bhikkhuni Maha Pajapati Theri, as well as rejoice in the continuance of the Bhikkhuni Sangha. Sharing stories about bhikkhunis and laywomen will help us recall that we are all a vital part of the Fourfold Assembly created by the Buddha.

It is a time to raise funds to support ordained
women.

It is a time to meditate and study the
Dhamma.

It is a time to honour women and their spiritual
accomplishments.

It is a time to protect the history and spiritual
legacy of bhikkhunis and laywomen.

It is a time to send love and compassion to heal conflicts in our families, communities, and the world.

It is time to re-dedicate ourselves to becoming the skilled, adept, learned, and purified disciples the Buddha intended us to be.

See Present | Winter 2011