Women and Nuns in Thailand Flashcards
Overall roles of Bhikkhunis in Thailand
contribute to the religious, social, and cultural fabric of Thai society in several key ways:
- Spiritual Practice
- Thai nuns follow a similar path to that of monks in terms of meditation, prayer, and studying Buddhist teachings.
- dedicate their lives to spiritual development, often living in monasteries or nunneries, where they engage in communal rituals and self-discipline. - Teaching and Guiding:
- traditionally, monks have taken on the primary role of teaching, but some nuns also serve as spiritual guides
- often teach other women and children about Buddhism, meditation, and moral conduct, though this role has historically been less formalized than that of male monks. - Social Service and Charity
- Nuns in Thailand are often involved in charitable works, providing support to the poor, elderly, or sick
- may run or support orphanages, schools, or health clinics, especially in rural areas
- embody the Buddhist virtue of compassion through these services.
Roles of Bhikkhunis as part of the sangha
Ceremonial Roles
- Nuns participate in religious ceremonies, although their roles are generally more limited compared to male monks
- They may lead smaller rituals or offer prayers for the community, particularly for women or other nuns
- some Buddhist sects or temples may have more inclusive practices where nuns take on larger responsibilities in ceremonies.
Cultural Preservation
- Nuns help preserve and pass on traditional Thai Buddhist culture and practices
- may take part in religious festivals, teach folk Buddhist rituals, and maintain monastic traditions that connect the community with their cultural heritage.
Role in Monastic Life
- Traditionally, nuns in Thailand lived more restricted lives than monks, with fewer privileges and opportunities
- However, in recent decades, there has been a push for more recognition and rights for female monastics
- have been efforts to formalize the status of nuns, which has led to an increase in their involvement in monastic life, though they still lack the full ordination (as bhikkhunis) that male monks receive in Thailand.
Gender disparity in the Thai Sangha
- there is still a noticeable gender disparity in Thai Buddhism, with monks having more authority, educational opportunities, and societal recognition.
- However, the role of nuns in Thai Buddhism is evolving, with growing efforts to ensure that women have greater access to full ordination and leadership opportunities within the Buddhist monastic community
Venerable Dhammananda Bhikkhuni
- She was the first to become ordained and worked tirelessly for over 40 yrs to establish the Theravada bhikkhuni lineage in Thailand so that women may become fully ordained
- Spiritual leader of Songdhammakalyani Temple (all-female monastery in Thailand)
- Emphasises the importance of the Bhikkhunī Sangha over the individual
- it’s not enough for a woman to ordain and then lead a solitary practice, as a thriving Saṅgha ensures that Buddhism will survive through the ages
- “You could say in my country that one leg of the chair—the fully ordained nuns—was missing. I needed to bring back this fourth leg.”
- She did claim that the Buddha was the first feminist, as he recognised women & men as spiritual equals
Declining order of Theravadin Nuns
- MAIN AIM: Theravada tradition had seen Bhikkhuni lineage disappear for centuries - recent efforts aim to restore this order by ordinating women & restore gender equality
- “Bhikkhuni Sangha”- founded when Mahapajapati requested ordination from the Buddha- Buddha eventually with the agreement that Bhikkhunis would have to follow 8 rulings
- The first group of Bhikkhunis was ordained by the Buddha, they were expected to follow the Vinaya
Theravadin countries and their order of nuns
- To this day, the bhikkhuni ordination ceremony is prohibited in Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, and Myanmar, where violators could face imprisonment- Dhammananda believes the prohibition of full ordination for nuns is a misunderstanding of the religion’s beliefs.
Thailand
- Buddhist authorities have not officially recognised Bhikkhuni ordination, but women such as Dhammananda have taken ordination abroad and established Bhikkhuni communities
- In Thailand, bhikkhunis are in a gray zone. They cannot be fully ordained in the country but don’t face imprisonment if they do so abroad.
- Over 94% of Thais are Theravada Buddhists.
revival of T nuns in Sri lanka
- Revival began in the late 20th century, with support from Korea and Taiwan, where the Bhikkhunī lineage from the Mahayana tradition had been preserved
- Sri Lanka is the first and only Theravada Buddhist country that allows the full ordination of women.
- Since 1998, the government has allowed local and foreign nuns to receive the ceremony on its soil.
what is the Sakyadhita organisation
- Instrumental in advocating for the welfare of women in Buddhism supporting their education and publishing research on the role of women in the dharma, present day sand historical
- It has jump-started a movement to reintroduce full ordination for nuns in all Buddhist traditions
Objectives of the Sakyadhita organisation
Objectives:
- International alliance of buddhist women
Advance spiritual and secular welfare of women
- Gender equity in buddhist education, training and ordination
- Promote harmony and dialogue among the buddhist traditions and other religions
- Encourage research and publications on topics of interest to buddhist women
- Foster compassionate social action for the benefit of humanity
- Promote world peace through buddha teachings
Sakyadhita organisation and modern Buddhism
- Inspires Buddhists to look beyond gender or nationality to essential Buddhist values they hold in common
- Recent conference in Australia discussed ‘New Horizons in Buddhism’.
- This included discussing issues like racism, sexism, sexual harassment and practical methods to achieve peace and reconciliation
- Recognises how Buddhism must adapt to modern society to connect with younger generations and pass on the Dharma
critics of the sakyadhita organisation
However:
Critics dismiss gender equality as an imposition of Western values on Buddhist societies → argue that Feminism is incompatible with Buddhist values
positive treatment of women in thailand
- Article 38 of Thai constitution states that all citizens have equal protection from the law
- Women are the “hind legs of the elephant“: they play a big role in society
- Blurred gender roles: Thai men show less overt masculine behaviour and appear more caring
- Education is permitted
Negative treatment of women in thailand
- sometimes expected to be virgins upon marriage
- the code of Kulasatrii (virtuous woman) contains guidance for a proper woman
look up to the role of being a mother as ideal: young female children are endearingly called mother also - there is a reverence towards mothers
- animosity surrounding female genitalia and menstrual blood
- sacrilegious and harmful to men
- folklore of men losing powers because he walked below a woman
- Banned from being police or military
- small percentage of women in parliament but improving
- women used to be given as prizes/ tributes or for alliances
Bhikkuni movement for women in thailand
- Female ordination is difficult, they become Mae Chi, not authorized to receive an education in Thai Buddhism according to the Department of Religion
- Controversy surrounding female ordination: vague history of whether female ordination was a practice in Thai Buddhism
- official position of Thai Sangha: Bhikkhuni can’t be involved in religious circle as it goes against original Theravada teachings
- Thailand undergoing slow societal change, women resisting traditional roles of mother and wife
- Bhikkhuni revival used to reach same societal respect as men, considered “religious feminism” in Thailand
social change and women in thailand
- Educational opportunities improving, still less girls than boys attending primary school, the gender gap has decreased from 1971 to 2009
- Female secondary school enrollment ratios exceeded that of male by slightly more than six percent from 2007-2009
- Prior to the 1997 Constitution, women were unable to hold seats in the Thai Parliament, 1997 women held 6% of the seats, 2010 women voted into 13.3% of seats
- Women dominate rural-urban migration, looking for jobs, rising expectations to provide for their families, more jobs being offered to these women
- Participation rate of women in the Thai workforce is higher than the average Asian participation rate of women
how is labour divided between thai women and men
- Both do agricultural work, some specific tasks are assigned to men or women but not adhered to rigidly - variation between regions
- Domestic work done mostly by women
Religious specialist and traditional healers generally are male - In the modern professions, women work mainly in teaching and nursing
inequality and oppression against that women
- Inequality shown: violence against women, societal discrimination against women and trafficking women for prostitution
- Efforts to improve status of women have increased, 1997 constitution provided women with equal rights and protections but some inequalities in the law remain
- Domestic abuse affects women in all social classes - specific laws to combat this haven’t been enacted - prosecution challenging, viewed as a private matter and not reported
- Sexual harassment in workplace made illegal in 1998 but only in the private sector - no cases have been prosecuted
- Thailand is a source, place of transit and destination for trafficking women into prostitution - rare to be prosecuted
Gap in average salaries of men and women - placed in lower-paying jobs
thai working women
- Women make up 44% of the labour force - laws to require equal wages and benefits, no legal restriction on owning businesses
- Increasing number of women with professional positions and access to higher education
sex industry and Buddhist women
- As women are seen as karmically inferior to men, some women turn to the sex trade to send money back to family for alms for karmic merit.
- However, there are issues with sex work contrasting the third precept.
- There have been cases of temples actively involved with this and using the money. E.g. there is a 7 story building on monastery grounds entirely funded through sex trade money.
- A way to combat it that has been suggested is policy recommendations including:
- Regulating temple financing
- Introducing socially engaged buddhism: social justice through a Buddhist point of view. So that people don’t need to use sex money.
