[Buddha-l] women & , er, religion

[Margaret Gouin]

Sorry, this is a bit late but before the FWBO discussion jkirk mentioned
about Tibetan nuns working in the fields etc...
*
Studies on Tibetan nunneries have found that they do all the work for nearby
 monks, and are given minimal spiritual guidance. In Ladakh, they also must
continue to work in their family's fields. (see Gutschow, Being a Buddhist
Nun: The Struggle for Enlightenment in the Himalayas, 2004.)*

The fully-ordained female sangha was never established in Tibet. I don't
know why, but it would be interesting to try to find out the reason. I
haven't had the privilege of reading Gutschow's study, which may have some
information on this. The 'nuns' in Tibet have only received novice vows;
something like the 'ten-precept nuns' of Theravadan countries, who also are
technically novices, not nuns. Tibetan 'nuns' are called 'Ani', which means
Auntie. Some (e.g. Jetsunma Tenzin Palmo) have obtained full ordination from
female Mahayana lineages outside of Tibetan Buddhism.

Margaret