Women In Buddhism

2590 Words6 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Women in Buddhism essay

American women exercise buddha tradition daily in their life. Some women become buddhist monks (bhikshunis), shaving off their hair and wearing orange clothing, or a certified teacher in the communities. In the late 1900s, members were made up of more women than men. They also obtained dharma transmission, a tradition where it is passed down by family in order to become a teacher in the centers. Many religion sees women as a wife who cleans and cook for the family. Never to have a woman become something more. Buddhism see both genders, male and female equal. No one is higher than the other and should have more power. Throughout the years, women’s role in Buddhism has evolved over time. Lots of American Women have proven their leadership to the world.
There are different ways women practice Buddhism. Before sleeping, they read their Dharma book which is always by their bed, this is the “night stand Buddhist.” The person has to read ten pages of the Dharma book, so that it can improve their understanding and teaching of Buddhism. Many other women Buddhist go to retreats and meditate to calm their mind and body.
A scholar named Rita Gross had said that American women started getting interested in Buddhism because of the foundation of ideas, there were no sexism and everything was equal between men and women. Gross also said that women and Buddhism go hand in hand, Buddhism wasn’t just for males, but for females too. When they studied the scripture more they have found that “traditional texts revealed misogynistic passages as well as a strong overall tendency to favor men over women in matters of study and practice…[Women] were told that the dharma is beyond gender and that women were being overly sensitive and divisive when they...

... middle of paper ...

...mistreated when it came to power in the religion. Loundon wrote the book, The Buddha’s Apprentice, have some stories of older Buddhist women and their views on Buddhist traditions.
American women has evolved Buddhism ever since it came to America. Women like Ruth Fuller, Sharon Kornfield, Jan Willis, and Abbess Khenmo Drolmo helped many young women Buddhist with retreats, teaching and becoming Buddhist monks. Many of them are obtaining Dharma. Long time ago in India, women were just known to be housewives and never to be monks. Both genders are equal to each other, no male is better than females. Now, American women have opened centers for retreats and creating new meditation style. These women fell in love with Buddhism and have traveled to the Asian continent to understand it better. Encouraging young Buddhist to become leaders and taking control of their body.

Show More
Related

  • Carol Berkin: A Journey through American History

    1254 Words  | 3 Pages

    For a long time ago, women just did anything at home: clean the house, wash clothes, cook the meals, and work outside the house and nutrient their children. Then they followed to order from their husband at home, and listen to the words of their husband. In addition, they made many little things in the military: wash clothes, serve the meals, and fix the clothes. The next things that it was convinced me when women had their own value in society. They began to raise their own worth and sense of themselves to build their country even though no one explained to them. People can consider that they endured very much but they did not still accept

    Read More

  • Empress Wu and Buddhism: A Symbiotic Relationship

    2294 Words  | 5 Pages

    Wu Zhao, the first female emperor of China, rose to power during the Tang Dynasty and her active role with Buddhism fabricated a perpetual impact in the Chinese society as a whole. There is no doubt that Buddhism and the Tang administration, under Wu’s reign, formed a symbiotic relationship with one another. She is considered to be one of the most prominent advocators of the religion during the era. Her efforts to spread of Buddhism and the monetary support help Buddhism to expand throughout the people significantly, which provide the religion another source of financial income to spread even further. Regardless of Empress Wu’s intention, she has furnished the religion in numerous ways, but what did she receive in return? This proposes the question: To what extent did Empress Wu’s support of Buddhism, politically and financially, help Wu and better her empire overall?

    Read More

  • The Journey Of One Buddhist Nun Analysis

    876 Words  | 2 Pages

    Buddhism is considered as one of the leading religions throughout the world today. In order for a Buddhist to follow the religion, there are certain set of guidelines that one has to follow to gain a better life, but most people have other factors that they have to face along this path. The story, “The Journey of One Buddhist Nun” by Sid Brown, is an account of a Thai woman, Maechi Wabi, who entered a spiritual life along with life struggles and outside influences. According to Brown, Wabi faced many challenges along the way to liberation and two challenges she faced most are the gender and socioeconomic issues which she overcame during her spiritual journey.

    Read More

  • Essay On Women Bound By Religion

    660 Words  | 2 Pages

    "Women have a much better time than men in this world; there are far more things forbidden to them" (Oscar Wilde). As stated in this quote, all over the world women are restricted by their religions, from doing many things that men can do freely. An example would be to wear anything they want (pants), or pursue a career. Such situations are portrayed in various mediums including: Hillary Jordan's book When She Woke, Roland Joffé's film The Scarlet Letter, and Ida Lichter's article "Misogyny in the Muslim World: Bound by Culture or Religion?". In all three sources, religion is such a practice that imposes many restrictions on females, which results in women having to sacrifice their rights and face humiliation in front of society.

    Read More

  • Women In Buddhism Essay

    1720 Words  | 4 Pages

    The teachings of the Buddha do not only benefit men but also women. However, when trying to be ordained, women meet more problems than men do. According to the difference in precepts for monks and nuns, nuns are inferior to monks in all circumstances. (Walsh 2016) These differences combined with the low social status of women during the time of the Buddha have formed a popular view about Buddhism that discriminates against women. However although there is evidence that emphasize the difference in treating women and men in Buddhism, it is Buddhism that propose the equality between women and men, thus further raising the status of women in social circumstances. In this paper, I will focus on the traditional view of women

    Read More

  • South Asian Women

    2220 Words  | 5 Pages

    South Asian women engage in patriarchal values and normative structure established more than two thousands years ago, continue to be oppressed by a dominant group of men. These women suffer further oppression through the strict adherence to cultural garb. Still today, media and educational system portray South Asian women as self-sacrificing, faithful to the family, and submissive to men.

    Read More

  • Buddhism versus Bartleby the Scrivener

    1769 Words  | 4 Pages

    Buddhism is currently the fourth most popular religion in our society today, following Christianity, Islam, and Hinduism. Its major ideologies are based on the philosophies of Siddhartha Guatama, also known as “Buddha”, who began his teachings in 598 BCE at the age of 35, according to Buddhist texts. A Buddhist’s foremost aspiration is the obtainment of Bodhi, or enlightenment through meditation and Anapana-sati (awareness of the breath). Buddhism shares many ideologies with India’s Hinduism and Yoga such as non-harming, non-violence, and self-awareness. In many instances, people regard Buddhism as a way of life rather than a religion, for it has no clear belief in the idea of a God or Gods. Its structure is built upon a hierarchy much like Christianity where superior orders such as Lamas or the Dalai Lama are said to be chosen by nature through the process of reincarnation rather than by a council like Christianity’s Pope. Though these “higher level” Buddhists are rare (not everyone is a reincarnation of an ancient Buddhist “priest”), all are permitted to follow “The Middle Way” either as a Buddhist monk or the simple attendance of a weekly teaching session from time to time. Throughout the last few hundred years the Buddhist population has blossomed into a healthy 381,611,000 and over fifteen different sects including Zen, Mahayana, and Theravada.

    Read More

  • Buddhism and Modern Psychology Final Exam Essay

    702 Words  | 2 Pages

    Meditation is logical in not only the minds of Buddhist practitioners, but also in those of scientific standpoints. Meditation, however, is not exclusive to Buddhism alone. These brain scan studies showed that Franciscan nuns that spend tim... ... middle of paper ... ... point of view, I do not mind or wish to impose Buddhism on them.

    Read More

  • The Role of Women in Tibetan Buddhism

    4429 Words  | 9 Pages

    “In Tantric Buddhism, we are dealing with a misogynist, destructive, masculine philosophy and religion which is hostile to life – i.e. the precise opposite of that for which it is trustingly and magnanimously welcomed in the figure of the Dalai Lama.”[1] Within Tibetan Buddhism, there is an inherent contradiction regarding the status of women. Although in many aspects women are seen and treated as inferior to men, several of the ancient and fundamental values of Tibetan Buddhism, and more specifically Tantric Buddhism, emphasize equality of the sexes, universal compassion, and most importantly the significant and essential role of the woman. Tibetan Buddhist nuns have been trying to correct this contradiction for years to remove the inferior and degrading stereotype that defines them and to be seen as equal to men. Beginning with the emergence of Tibetan Buddhism from India until today, the status of women, both physically and symbolically has declined due to the patriarchal system adopted by Tibet. “The mystery of Tantric Buddhism consists in the sacrifice of the feminine principle and the manipulation of erotic love in order to attain universal androcentric power.”[2] In their patriarchal society, the symbol of the woman is used by men now as an instrument; manipulated by men in order to acquire control and power.

    Read More

  • Analysis of Buddhism Plain and Simple by Steve Hagen

    774 Words  | 2 Pages

    Bibliography: Religious Persons and Traditions Buddhism- Plain and Simple

    Read More

  • Gender Roles Essay

    1109 Words  | 3 Pages

    There is clearly an opportunity for those expectations to affect our behavior toward men and women so that they produce the stereotypes we hold” (2012, p. 67). She came to this conclusion based on her critical review of a study of college men and women from 1977 by Snyder, Tanke, and Berscheid. In the study, men were told to talk to a woman on the phone and half were shown a picture of an attractive woman and the other half were shown a picture of an unattractive woman before talking on the phone. However, all of the men were talking to the same woman. The woman also provided self-fulfilling prophecy for she began to behave differently based on whether the men were shown a picture of an attractive or an unattractive woman. If she was attractive, the men were nicer and the woman, herself, acted “more likeable.” This study demonstrates “that our expectations influence our own behavior, but they also influence the behavior of others so that they confirm our expectancy” (Helgeson, 2012, p. 67). Within cultural differences of gender role attitudes, Asian cultures perpetuate a traditional gender role ideology based on Confucian doctrine (Newton, 2016). The doctrine emphasizes the lesser status of women and how they must lie their obedience in line with men, such as their fathers or husbands. Men are also not expected to show emotions, men are the

    Read More

  • The Role of Women in Buddhism

    2968 Words  | 6 Pages

    was, and still is. sexual stereotypes present in the culture of Buddhist communities. By contrast to such bigoted practices that hinder spiritual development, Buddhism can be claimed. to be the least discriminatory in attitudes towards women. There is no doubt at all that the Buddha was the first religious teacher who gave women equal and unfettered opportunities in the field of spiritual development and development.

    Read More

  • An Analysis Of Feminism And Peace, And Persepolis

    1053 Words  | 3 Pages

    Satrapi, does not think that those are a solution for gender enequallity. the rest of the world, compared to middle Easter woman 's role, was defined by class. there were who needed to work, who did not. during WWI, thanks to the quantity of man who were sent to war, mutilated, or killed. therefore, to cover those spots in society woman were getting more into "male roles." those who need money were force to work. Before that, women were considering mostly baby makers, and the house was their place. At that time, women were starting working and assimilating bigger roles in society. Huda Sha 'rawi, in chapter ten "Feminism And The Peace," makes a call for peace reaching western woman. He does it by proposing liberalistic ideas such as a government that is elected by woman as well as man sharing the responsibility of not crying the rights without participation to the process of it. Miyako Shinohara calls the world woman and man to stop the tension of a possible nuclear war. She tells the story of how radiation, from Hiroshima, treats her and the consequences of it. She to find support, she went into Buddhism. Religion in Iran and others countries, plays the role of antagonist. However in the ideals of liberalism call for religious tolerance. It is important to mention that Shinohara and Satrapi find religious as a salvation from the

    Read More

  • Theravada Buddhism Religion

    1158 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Theravada school of Buddhism known to be the most conservative, or orthodox, branch of Buddhism, is practiced throughout south Asia (Whittemore, “The Branches of Buddhism”). This includes Thailand, where Theravada Buddhism has a direct influence of on government. Theravada Buddhist views on gender roles and women have shaped their legal status in ways that hinder the enforcement of both international human rights law and domestic laws prohibiting trafficking and the sex trade (Peach, 220). The denigration of women in Buddhist teachings facilitates women’s involvement in the sex trade by conveying attitudes that through prostitution women fulfill their role expectations as sexual and inferior beings (Peach, 218). In Theravada Buddhism, Women are

    Read More

  • The Life of Buddhist Monks

    2048 Words  | 5 Pages

    Understanding the Buddhist lifestyle requires learning about the background of the religion and the monks. Buddha set the teachings of Buddhism, also called the Dhamma-Vinaya. The code of conduct, called the Vinaya, teaches people aspiring to gain the monastic life of a monk to gain wisdom and mindfulness. Buddha set these rules for the well-being of the Bhikkus, or the monk. He set these rules to help create a peaceful atmosphere for the Buddhist community and to avoid corruption in the Buddhist community. All monks and/or nuns must not only follow these rules, but also many other rules and principles.

    Read More

More about Women In Buddhism

Open Document