Buddhism arose as a reform movement within Hinduism. In Hinduism, Indian people were divided into social castes. The Bhamanic caste system reduced the status of women in society. According to this system, the purpose of women is exclusively to serve men and produce male offspring. They are denied of any role in formal religious practice. They are denied access to sacred texts (including Vedas which is believed to be written by women) or religious leadership. In fact, none of the three major Hindu gods are female figures. In Hinduism, salvation for females is determined by their devotion to their husbands. Hinduism proclaims that God created females as the weaker sex and that men possess the rationale necessary to defend and protect females. In different stages of their lives, women are subordinated by male relatives including fathers, husbands and sons. Women have no mobility outside their home and are restricted to practice religious rituals in their households. They are suppressed by patriarchal beliefs.
Buddhism emerged to reform Hinduism’s view of individuals within society. Buddha’s idea was to shift the focus away from measuring one’s worth with respect to society and towards one’s inner self. Buddhism believes that Nirvana or complete enlightenment possible to achieve by anyone and independent from gender, caste or race. Women’s spiritual achievement came from her actions alone, not from Gods. In Buddhism, there is no godhead of any gender. Buddha was the first to state that men and women are on a spiritual level equal. Many Bhikshunis (nuns) achieved nirvana during Buddha’s lifetime and afterlife. He stated that anyone who adheres to gender identity is burdened. In order not to contradict with his teachings regarding salvation, gender inequality had to be addressed. Thus, Sangha was first in including women in religious order. However like in Hinduism, that recording of Buddah’s teachings was made by monks who were Indian men from different castes. They had in them the patriarchal norms and the recordings were biased, carried with Indian patriarchal social values. Many Hindu practices were incorporated in Buddhism. So the attitude towards women was not changed. Monks continue to use teachings as tools for repression. They understood that the role of women in religion was only for their spiritual growth but not for scholar and institutional leadership. Tradition states that Buddha himself hesitated to ordain women. His implementation of the eight rules on the female order implicated that Buddhism women were permanently inferior to men. Some also argue that these rules were viewed as a price paid by women for the opening of female order. It is interesting though to read that the nuns in that time did not think that the subordination to these rules made them inferior or that they were offensive. Thus, these rules show that patriarchal views were also very much infused in how women viewed themselves. Monks perceived themselves as the significant part of the community. Their understanding of gender was that men and women were almost equal. Nuns could receive instruction from monks and other nuns but monks could not be taught by nuns. Another problem faced by nuns was their effect on the celibacy of monks. In Buddhism the concept of sexual purity was very important. Monks believe that the female body is a distraction in their journey towards enlightenment. This patriarchal concept that women can be portrayed as wicked or tainted is perhaps the most comparable to Hindu religious norms. Women in religious roles were not easily accepted by lay men and women, Buddhist nuns had trouble finding economic support in form of donations. With time the competition between various religions and the increase in Hindu following, led to the demise of Buddhism in India.
Today, the increase in education is allowing Hindu and Buddhist women to look at sacred text and question all these patriarchal interpretations. Feminists in both are emerging and calling for civil equality for women. Many women in the west are becoming adherents of Buddhism because of its feminist model. Hindu and Buddhist women leaders are engaged in various social issues including calling for world peace, education for the poor and justice for women and children.
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