BRIDGING WORLDS Buddhist Women’s Voices Across Generations EDITED BY Karma Lekshe Tsomo First Edition: Yuan Chuan Press 2004 Second Edition: Sakyadhita 2018 Copyright © 2018 Karma Lekshe Tsomo All rights reserved No part of this book may not be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, or by any information storage or retreival system, without the prior written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations. Cover Illustration, "Woman on Bridge" © 1982 Shig Hiu Wan. All rights reserved. "Buddha" calligraphy ©1978 Il Ta Sunim. All rights reserved. Chapter Illustrations © 2012 Dr. Helen H. Hu. All rights reserved. Book design and layout by Lillian Barnes Bridging Worlds Buddhist Women’s Voices Across Generations EDITED BY Karma Lekshe Tsomo 7th Sakyadhita International Conference on Buddhist Women With a Message from His Holiness the XIVth Dalai Lama SAKYADHITA | HONOLULU, HAWAI‘I iv | Bridging Worlds Contents | v CONTENTS MESSAGE His Holiness the XIVth Dalai Lama xi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xiii INTRODUCTION 1 Karma Lekshe Tsomo UNDERSTANDING BUDDHIST WOMEN AROUND THE WORLD Thus Have I Heard: The Emerging Female Voice in Buddhism Tenzin Palmo 21 Sakyadhita: Empowering the Daughters of the Buddha Thea Mohr 27 Buddhist Women of Bhutan Tenzin Dadon (Sonam Wangmo) 43 Buddhist Laywomen of Nepal Nivedita Kumari Mishra 45 Himalayan Buddhist Nuns Pacha Lobzang Chhodon 59 Great Women Practitioners of Buddhadharma: Inspiration in Modern Times Sherab Sangmo 63 Buddhist Nuns of Vietnam Thich Nu Dien Van Hue 67 A Survey of the Bhikkhunī Saṅgha in Vietnam Thich Nu Dong Anh (Nguyen Thi Kim Loan) 71 Nuns of the Mendicant Tradition in Vietnam Thich Nu Tri Lien (Nguyen Thi Tuyet) 77 vi | Bridging Worlds UNDERSTANDING BUDDHIST WOMEN OF TAIWAN Buddhist Women in Taiwan Chuandao Shih 85 A Perspective on Buddhist Women in Taiwan Yikong Shi 91 The Inspiration ofVen. Shig Hiu Wan Xiuci Shi 95 Buddhism and Soft Power Hsiu-lien Annette Lu 99 The Development of the Bhikṣuṇī Order Tzu Jung Shih 103 The Future of Buddhism inTaiwan: The Perspective of a Senior Female Volunteer Rong-Zhi Lin 113 Miaoqing and Yuantong Chan Nunnery: A New Beginning for Monastic Women in Taiwan Stefania Travagnin 119 Religiosity and Leadership Among Taiwanese Buddhist Nuns Yuchen Li 137 BRIDGING THE GENDER GAP, TRANSFORMING INSTITUTIONS The Nature and Status of Women in the Teachings of the Buddha Thich Nu Minh Hue (Hong Nga) 153 Sexuality in Theravāda Buddhism: Wives, Widows, and Divorcees Hema Goonatilake 161 New Beginnings: The Bhikkhunī Movement in Contemporary Thailand Tomomi Ito 173 Contents | vii From Anonymity to Self-Reinvention: Korean Buddhist Nuns in the Twentieth Century Eunsu Cho 181 Guanyin’s Gender Transformation in Medieval Japanese Buddhism: Bridging Sexuality and Motherhood Mariko Namba Walter 191 BRIDGING THE WORLD’S RELIGIONS Love in Any Language Malia Dominica Wong 201 Building Bridges: A Muslim Woman’s Perspective Hawwa Morales Soto 213 Bridging the Gap with Interreligious Dialogue Karuna Dharma 221 Bridging World Religions from Within: On Being a Buddhist Christian Woman Maria Reis Habito 227 BRIDGING THE BUDDHIST TRADITIONS Comparing the First Buddhist Women in Early Chinese and Ancient Indian Buddhism Sukdham Sunim (Inyoung Chung) 235 Forging Friendships: Three Traditions of Vietnamese Buddhism Thich Nu Lieu Phap (Duong Thi Thanh Huong) 245 Sexuality, Discipline, and Ethics Elisa Nesossi 249 viii | Bridging Worlds BRIDGING THE VINAYA TRADITIONS Almost Equal: Obstacles on the Way to an International Bhikṣuṇī Saṅgha Karma Lekshe Tsomo 261 The Application of Feminist Theory to the Spiritual Practice of Buddhist Nuns: the Case of the Eight Special Rules Wei-Yi Cheng 271 Tracing the Roots of the Bhikṣuṇī Tradition Roseanne Freese 279 Lineage and Transmission: Integrating the Chinese and Tibetan Orders of Buddhist Nuns Heng-ching Shih 307 Precepts at Enshoji: The Rules of a Seventeenth-Century Japanese Amadera Gina Cogan 339 BRIDGING GENERATIONS Elder Care Programs Unifying Generations: The Case of Ilsan Elder Welfare Center in Korea Neungin Sunim 349 Reaching All Generations: Buddhist Outreach in Taiwan Elise Anne DeVido 355 Betwixt and Between: Communicating the Dharma Across Generations Renlang Shih 363 Bridging Contemplation and Social Activism Bhikkhuni Molini 367 Contents | ix BRIDGING VALUE SYSTEMS: ANCIENT & MODERN Maintaining Inner Peace Bhikkhuni Dhammananda (Chatsumarn Kabilsingh) 375 Bridging Ancient & Modern Value Systems in Nepal Bhikkhuni Dhammavijaya 377 A Palm Tree in the Pure Land Yi-hsun Huang 381 Overcoming Tradition: Reconstructing and Transforming the Role of Korean Buddhist Nuns through Education Bongak Sunim 385 Transforming Instead of Slaying the ‘Red Dragon’ Yeshe Chökyi Lhamo 391 From Home to Buddhist Monastery: Links Between Female Lay Buddhists and Buddhist Nuns Chang-Huey Yang and Chang-Yi Chang 397 LIST OF CONTRIBUTORS 407 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 413 x | Bridging Worlds Image Copyright © Helen H. Hu. 2012. All Rights Reserved No use without prior written permission of copyright holder Message | xi MESSAGE from IS OLINESS H H the XIVth DALAI LAMA am happy to know that the Seventh Sakyadhita International Conference on Buddhist Women is being held in Taiwan and that it is to be addressed by a wide range of speakers from across the Buddhist world. It is my firm beliefI that we Buddhists have a significant contribution to make to the welfare of humanity according to our Buddhist tradition and philosophy. I am encouraged to know that practical steps are being taken to train women teachers, to improve educational prospects for women and create a communications network among Buddhist women, whatever tradition they belong to. Within the Tibetan community, unlike in past Tibet, we have introduced programs for serious study of Buddhist philosophy in some of our nunneries here in India over the past two decades or so. In this context I know that many people attending your conference have a great interest in the propagation of the bhikṣuṇī ordination. A great deal of research has already been done on this, which in turn has raised a lot of issues that remain to be resolved by an assembly of Vinaya experts. Vinaya issues are and always have been complex. If we look back at the historical early Buddhist assemblies, even then questions of Vinaya were central to discussions. I have felt that the reinstitution of the bhikṣuṇī ordination is very important. After all, the Buddha confirmed that both women and men have equal opportunity and potential to practice the Dharma and to achieve its goals. I believe we have an obligation to uphold this view. xii | Bridging Worlds Now, as to how the re-institution of the bhikṣuṇī ordination should be done, this is a matter for the Saṅgha to decide. No single person has any authority to take such a decision. Some of my friends and colleagues have suggested that as the Dalai Lama I could issue a decree or make a decision, but this is not a matter on which any individual, whoever he or she is, can decide. It is a matter for the Saṅgha community. It would be helpful if this matter were discussed at an international assembly of the Saṅgha. Representatives of all the major Vinaya traditions should be present. The issue should be dealt with on the basis of thorough research and discussion. If we can assemble some genuine scholars as well as good practitioners, who have more open minds and are respected, to discuss this issue thoroughly, I believe we can achieve a positive result. I offer my greetings to all the participants, as well as my sincere prayers that your conference may be successful in realizing practical ways of supporting women who seek inner peace and, through that, greater peace in the world. Acknowledgments | xiii Acknowledgements his volume emerged from the 7th Sakyadhita International Conference on Buddhist Women in Taiwan, an international collaborative effort involving more than 100 dedicated volunteers and benefactors. AlthoughT it is not possible to acknowledge the organizational skills and financial support of each person individually, Sakyadhita: International Association of Buddhist Women is deeply grateful for the generosity, good will, and hard work of each and every one of them. First and foremost, we would like to express our sincere appreciation to Ven. Shig Hiu Wan, a guiding light for Buddhist women, who kindly hosted the 7th Sakyadhita International Conference on Buddhist Women at Huafan University. Dr. Sun Ma, the president of Huafan University, and her conscientious faculty and staff worked tirelessly to make the conference a success. Huafan University was the ideal setting for the conference, with a newly completed Illumination Hall for the plenary sessions, student dormitories to accommodate participants from around the world, a vegetarian restaurant where volunteer chefs provided sumptuous meals, and a sparkling new Buddha hall for daily chanting and meditation. We are most grateful for having the ideal facilities for this historic gathering. The success of the 7th Sakyadhita International Conference on Buddhist Women was due to the cooperation of Sakyadhita International Association of Buddhist Women, Huafan University, National Taiwan University Center for Buddhist Studies, Huafan Cultural Foundation, Bodhi Foundation, Lotus Buddhist Ashram, and the Chinese Young Buddhist Association. The conference organizers are deeply grateful for the generous support of the Chinese Bhiksuni Association, Ocean of Wisdom Buddhist Cultural Foundation Yuanzhao Temple, Haiming Temple, Xiangguang Temple, Baiyun Temple, Foguang Cultural Foundation, the Ministry of Education, and the xiv | Bridging Worlds Ministry of Cultural Affairs of the Republic of China. Thanks also go to Lu Coral Company and Mr. Qiu. The Conference Organizing Committee was a model of international cooperation. I was privileged to coordinate the event with Ven. Shig Hiu Wan (Honorary President, Founder of Huafan University), Dr. Sun Ma (Conference Vice President, President of Huafan University), Ven. Heng-ching Shih (Conference Advisor, National Taiwan University), Ven. Renlang Shi (Executive General, Huafan University), Dr.