[Buddha-l] women & , er, religion

[jkirk]

Ahhhhhh--finally some words of common sense and goodwill to all
:)
Thanks to Sally McAra.

Joanna K.
===================== 



Maybe I'll chip in here, I usually just lurk.
It looks to me like people are using up a lot of energy on
definitions and trying to be very specific and fixed about them.
To me, words (e.g. "ordination") are context dependent. If one
uses it in the context of the FWBO it means one thing, but in the
context of an organisation that has monks, nuns and laypeople, it
means something else.

The same with "sangha" - some western buddhists use this to refer
to all who try to practise Dharma, and others are horrified at
this usage, and say it's only for monastics ("ordained sangha.")

I tend to use the word "monastics" for monks and nuns. And am
happy for people to use "ordained" in whatever way that is
meaningful in their context - but we should also be aware that
others use it in other ways, so when talking to a broader
audience, use clarification now and then.

A few examples about context, altho this is labouring the point a
bit..... I've hung out with FPMT Buddhists a bit,for my PhD
research.
They refer to "Rinpoche" among themselves when talking about Lama
Zopa, but most of them realise they need to say "Lama Zopa" when
talking to people outside their movement. Likewise FWBOers refer
to Sangharakshita as "Bhante" inside, but by name outside. And I
refer to my Zen teacher as "Sensei" in one context but use her
name in other contexts. And so on.

Language is always going to be elastic and meanings will always
change according to context.
Buddha-L is a place where different usages of the same words will
often crop up, because members come from a whole range of
backgrounds.
So why not just acknowledge this, and try to develop an awareness
of each other's specific nuances and clarify one's own usage?

Ah, but then we'd have nothing to discuss.... so keep it up! I
usually end up learning something new, if I take the time to read
the posts....

Metta
Sally
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