Buddhist Nuns in Taiwan and Sri Lanka: A Critique of the Feminist Perspective

This book is a comparative study of Buddhist nuns in contemporary Taiwan and Sri Lanka. The author explores the postcolonial background and its influence on the contemporary situation, as well as surveying the main historical, economic, social and other factors bearing upon the position of nuns in society. Based on original research, in which nuns were questioned about their perspective, various controversial issues concerning the status of women in Buddhism are exposed. These include allegedly misogynist teachings relating to women's inferior karma, that they cannot become Buddhas, and that nuns have to follow additional rules which monks do not. This book makes an important contribution to the study of women in Buddhism by focusing both on nuns from both of the main wings of Buddhism (Theravada and Mahayana) and from different Asian countries.

Wei-Yi Cheng is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Religious Studies, Hsuan Chuang University, Taiwan.