Fourth lecture in our course on Asian Buddhist Women hosted by the Lumata Center for Buddhist Studies at the University of Hamburg in collaboration with the Damagram Institute of Liberal Arts in Taiwan.
And it is my great pleasure today to welcome Ayako Ito, who is going to speak to us on the topic of a nascent bikumisanga in northeast Thailand.
Ayako Ito did her Ph.D. at the École Pratique des hautes de tout de Paris, France, in the Department of Religious Science in 2013, under the title, The Emergence of the Bikunisang in Thailand, Context, Strategies and Challenges.
And it is precisely because of this, in my view, outstanding Ph.D. research that she has done, that we invited her here for this course to give us a summary of her experience and her fieldwork in Thailand, in northern Thailand, which takes us directly from the first three lectures we had on textual sources in Indian history.
It takes us today directly into modern day Thailand and into a situation which is very, very interesting and also very controversial, the issue of the revival of bikuni ordination, which we covered already two years ago.
And with that, I hand over to Ayako Ito.
Well, thank you, Venerable Bhikkhu Anandayo, for inviting me for this e-learning course. And so I am Ayako Ito, and nice to meet you all.
And as explained by Venerable Bhikkhu Anandayo today, in this lecture, I would like to talk about the main findings or essence of my thesis at the end of this lecture.
So I hope this is fine with you. And since this is my first time to give an online lecture, I hope everything goes smooth as we wish.
Okay, so my thesis was mainly about the community of Thai Buddhist monastic women who had gone through what commonly translated in English as lower and higher ordination,
called pavaja and upasampara in Bali, respectively, in an aim of becoming fully fortunate, called bhiksuni in Theravada tradition, where no official bhiksuni lineage had been acknowledged.
So my thesis does not argue whether the emerging bhiksuni's anger is legitimate or deviant from the canonical point of view.
I think we were caught up too much by this discussion on canonical legitimacy, and also to some extent by the discussion of the promotion of gender equality around movements.
And this, in my view, hindered us to pay more attention on what was actually going on and see who were really the actors and participants of the movement and their motives and their practice and so on for a while.
So instead, my study takes the existing phenomenon as an object of study, and I try to understand about these women who are seemingly in subversive path.
As some of you might know already, that it is officially bound for Thai women to go through pavaja and upasampara in Thailand by the decree issued by the Grom Luan Channel 1 city-wide, the former supreme patriarchy of Thailand, Thai Sangha in 1928.
And the decree is still in effect.
So I try to understand what it means for them to become bhiksuni, the fully-filtered Sangha, and how the de facto bhiksuni Sangha started to take root, and what the grounds for its social acceptance.
At the beginning, the movement of reinstallation of bhiksuni Sangha in Thailand was generally thought that it represented a very small portion of women, and it would not take root in Thai society, since there has been more widely and practiced traditional form of female Buddhist renunciation, such as that of white-robed renunciants who observed eight precepts called mechi.
But between 2008-2011, the number of bhiksuni increased from 6 to 30 or 31, and as far as I know, more than 300 women took temporary pavaja in Thailand altogether.
And I am sure that the number has increased since then.
So I believe, however, non-official, the acceptance of female taking both pavaja and upasampara by a certain segment of society deflects the existing dissonance over the identity of contemporary Thai tadavada tradition and the expansion of such phenomena concerns all stakeholders of tadavada Buddhism.
Okay, so my thesis had basically two large parts.
Historical study on female Buddhist monasticism in the Santh bhiksuni Sangha called Nirota Ram.
So Nirota is a cessation, and Adam is the resident, let's say.
And so it was the headman of the community wanted this place to be where the cessation of suffering takes place, and that's why it's called Nirota Ram.
Okay, so I will mainly speak of the findings from my fieldwork.
But before turning into speaking of what I found from the field, I would just like to stress that historical parts, historical study into female monasticism in Thailand was also very important to me.
And I dedicate a large part to the historical background of female Buddhist female monasticism in Thailand, as it was a part of my argument that the emergence of Dixni Sangha in Thailand or even in other tadavada countries is a needlepoint in time and space.
As the moment I generally thought or seen as a revolutionary and foreign imposition, it is often discussed that it was detached from the history and tradition to which these women belong to.
But I argue that no matter how significant a leap from the past is, the phenomenon that we observe today is not detached from the past, but on the contrary, it uses on the past with its contingencies and conditions.
So therefore, the development of the Korean Thai Dixni movement should be assessed, also taking into account the historical exists in accidents and diversity of practice and form of renunciation, common to female renunciation in Thailand.
Okay, so now I would like to turn to my esological part, the study and discuss the profile of women and focus of practice and the needle dance relationship with monks of the community when it first started, which is subject to any change or mutation in the future, and they can be different today already.
Oh, and I would like to discuss them by countering some Korean assumptions about the Dixni movement in Thailand, which presented some truth, but not entire truth, and which was, in my view, obscuring on understanding of the fuller picture of the phenomenon.
And these assumptions were as such, I don't know, I wanted to show this picture when I was talking about my research and my thoughts.
There you go. So the assumption about the emergence of Dixni in Thailand that I witnessed.
So first, women becoming Dixni are Western minded and movement is a Western position. That was the first assumption that I felt, and second Thai Buddhist monks are against women becoming Dixni in Thailand.
So they were the economy between monks and women who wants to become Dixni.
And third, the women becoming Dixni want to have higher social status and Buddhist community.
So those were the three strong, prevailing assumptions about women who wanted to become Dixni when I started.
However, after having done my fieldwork, I believe that any of these simplistic evaluations represent the reality.
And worse, as I said, it has the risk of preventing us to see the diversity of the vocation and identity and practice of the female and male Thai Buddhist monastics.
And I will try to show how so by sharing with you what I found from my fieldwork.
Okay, so now let me first introduce my field, the community of Nirotaram.
Okay, so that's the vocation of Nirotaram, where I circled in red.
So I conducted my fieldwork on one of the first Dixni community in Thailand, or it was certainly the largest at that time, from 2007 to 2008.
And the first community was the Watsantham Kanyani. I conned to Bixni Damananda, the very first one, and who went through Pabaja and Sri Lanka in 2001.
So I saw him in Nikkaya lineage. And in 2003, she went through Pasampara and became Bixni.
Now the community of Nirotaram where I conducted my fieldwork was called Samna Pachibatam Nirotaram. It's a Nirotaram meditation center.
Nirotaram is a condense and also a meditation center at that time where people can come and practice meditation.
And it is found in the district of Chinatown, approximately 58 kilometers southwest of the city of Chiang Mai.
And in 2006, the 13 women, Demmechi, from Nirotaram community, led by the head man, tested Pabaja, or Demmechi.
I call Pixni Namthani the title of 2008 because it gets too complicated otherwise.
So they went to Sri Lanka and went through Pabaja under the precept of Ben Metananda of Amorabra, Nikkaya.
And she helped the Sangha, or western province of Sri Lanka.
And I lived with the community of Nirotaram straight for the first three months in 2007 and then stayed with them for 10 days each month for the following year and a half.
So the Nirotaram has been the largest community of all the Buddhist female monastics in Thailand since 2006 till when I was there, 2008.
However, the personality and religious views and practice against women and community were largely eluded to serious scholarly attention for quite some time.
Okay, so that's the district of Chinatown, how it looks like.
So the most re-inhabitants of Chinatown are farmers cultivating rice and longgown.
And that's the profile of earlier members of Nirotaram.
Well, I encountered a group towards the end of rain retreat in 2007, and the group was consisted of 10 seminary.
Well, three had defrocked since 2006.
And one farmer named Meichi and 12 Meichi staying temporarily for the rain retreat.
And most of the early ordained members are indeed from northern provinces, as you can see from the table.
And four of them spent more than 20 years in broke and as Meichi and two spent more than 10 years and one for eight years and one for four years and one for two years.
And in terms of education, almost half, the 50% of the members have university degree.
And I think it's considered that the level of education is higher than normal or other communities or other Meichi communities.
Okay, so those are the five big sunni of Nirotaram, the four in the front and the one in the second row.
And two of them in the second row are the Upacharya and the teacher from Sri Lanka.
So among the 10 seminary I first encountered in 2007, only five became big sunni at the Pasampara, which took place in 2008 in Sri Lanka.
And they were big sunni Nantarini, the head numb, and big sunni Paniagari, and big sunni Satasari, and big sunni Paniagari, and big sunni Waratina.
So as I said, I will use the title as of 2008 throughout this paper.
And this big sunni constitutes an important member of the community on a spiritual plane, as only those who have proven themselves and been confirmed by the community as ready on the basis of discipline and knowledge and practice could go through the Pasampara alternation.
The remaining five seminary from the first patch were seminary sunni Ata, and seminary Drayani, and seminary Watara Drayani, and seminary Machima.
And big sunni Satasapatra did become big sunni in 2008, but not as a member of Nirotan, as she left the group in the beginning of 2008.
And she went on her own with her monk teacher, I believe, and became big sunni, seppoli from the Nirotan group.
Okay, well, now I spoke about many Papaji happened in Thailand and also in Sri Lanka. So I would like to show you this map or picture, just to situate us with the different Papaji and Pasampara happened in the course of my research.
Well, 2006, I was not there, but that was the first time that the 13 Machi from Nirotan went through Papaji and Sri Lanka. And then, 2008, February 2008, the organized the Papaji in Chama and 12 Machi became seminary.
And in April, there was a new Pasampara and Papaji and Sri Lanka, and five seminary from Nirotan became big sunni, and two Machi from Nirotan became seminary.
And in the same year, in October, there was a Papaji in Chama, organized for seven Machi in Nirotan, and they became seminary.
So those are actually those three in 2008 that I could personally assist.
Okay, so in terms of Buddhist practice that community adopted in their Buddhist career, well, prior to the establishment of Nirotan in 1995.
Okay, so this is, okay, I just wanted to show you the nuns monastic sale here.
The five of the above 10 early members, including the head nun, practiced in monastery belonging to forest tradition, whose model practice and the life are centered on the practice of meditation and foster ascetic discipline and seclusion rather than on scriptural study and life and cities.
So big sunni Nantayeni has always practiced and precepts and vegetarianism and non use of shoes, since we're taking a rose as Machi.
And big sunni Nantayeni, and big sunni Panyaori, and Samaneh Tiraiyani met and practiced together in locally known forest monastery called Wat Tham Thong in Chama, where outside contact and speaking and readings are limited in favor for the practice of meditation.
And Samaneh Sanjato and Samaneh Saspatra practice in a hermitage called Samnak Song, the hermitage is doesn't have the status of what because it doesn't have the ordination hall.
What animals did the hermitage called Thudong, Satang, Yusuk, Cheren, ran by the forest monk in that province.
So as for Samaneh Nantayeni, she used to also focus on meditation practice in another meditation center, run by a locally famous Machi in the view of improving her health and the rest of three debuted in monastic life.
Okay, so that's the day to schedule at Minotanan.
So the day at Minotanan stats at 330, and that's when the wake up buildings, and it's actually earlier than the majority of monasteries, the monks monasteries, which usually the monks wake up around five o'clock.
And four to five, we have one hour of meditation already in Salah together. And we had half an hour Dharmatok, and then morning chanting followed by that.
And then from six, we have arms round. And those who do not participate in arms round, we do cleaning. And then from eight to nine, we had one meal.
And that was the only and that's the first and the last meal of the day in Minotanan.
And from nine to 9am to 130, we had the time of solitude and personal development, or basically the meditation, those who can, who has the time for meditation, sometimes the many nuns usually that they receive visitors, and so on so difficult to actually set aside the time for meditation practice.
So that goes on until four, and from four, we wash the body and do some personal chores. And then we have again, one hour and a half of the meditation in Salah together. And then we have evening chanting.
And we have one hour of Dharmatok. And basically, the head nun speaks in the morning and at night. And yes, she's really into giving a Dharmatok to her disciples.
And this is really something that everybody that's when we really learn about the teaching of the Buddha.
And this is not about anecdote, but she really gives a serious explanation about the consciousness from Abhidharma and all those things.
Okay, and from eight to nine, from nine to 10, so we have another solitude time. But this is when actually many nuns, sometimes they do have to get together and do some administrative meetings.
And especially before they're taking power out, for example, that they have many administrative meetings to do. So the late was really, we wake up very early morning, but the night was always late.
Okay.
So that's the community of Nino Taran in February 2008. Remember expanded.
Okay, but now, I would like to speak about the motivation for women to join in the community.
The motivation, or the most cases, motivations of Thai women who live in the household to become Mechi have been already explored by the labor folk already cliff and Takahashi.
And the diverse motivations found in aforementioned works regarding Mechi also found among the nuns in Nino Taran, together with some other themes that are less explored by these works.
So most of the parliament members of Nino Taran that I encountered during my fieldwork period from 2007 to 2008 joined the community to become Mechi.
So that's the
So the early Odean members did not join the community to become Odean monastics, but I would like to discuss their motives for joining the community since they are related to how and why they were brought to the decision of going through Papaja and Upasanpada.
For the most nuns in Nino Taran, their motivation to become nuns shared the same futures with those of the Mechi portrayed in the previous studies with three particularities which characterize the general motivations of the group of disciples in Nino Taran.
So the inclination for four-smoke style practice, such as vegetarian diet and eating once a day and wearing no shoes, using no money and meditating seriously.
And the charisma of Henan, both for teaching and personalities. And finally, some newcomers joined the community and pursued becoming seminary and big Sunni from 2006 on.
So maybe I should say just one word about the four-smokes. Who are the four-smokes?
When I said about the four-smokes style practice, the four-smokes are traditionally the four-dwellers or those who temporarily took up a fixed residence in order to cultivate spirituality based on meditation.
But in reality, so there's this duality or dichotomy of four-smokes and city-monks practice as city-monks attempt to focus on scripture studies.
But those practices are not exclusive. And of course, in reality, the four-smokes do also study and the city-monks also do practice meditation.
But it's a personal inclination. But a bit more than that, the four-smokes do have their masters and the lineage of the four-smoke communities.
Okay, so the one of the characteristics of the motivation or the motives for the women who joined in any kind of was the appeal of the first practice.
And the meditation skills and austere asceticism or big Sunni non-theorism demonstrated by the practice of eating only one vegetarian meal a day and wearing nourish.
And she excelled in meditation, the motivated many members who joined the community. And this type of practice can be identified as the part of the first tradition.
As it puts emphasis on meditation and rigorous astetism, first from the first tradition, in that by the time a new phenomenon was founded, the
women expressed quite a lot of time learning Pāli Buddhist kānans, Śrīpīdaka, from her teachers through her sermons. That's one of the reasons why she was giving Dharma talk of a long time, twice a day, every day.
But by and large from the interviews with the nuns expressed the inclination for the first type of practice as the Buddhist vocation.
And here I should probably say something about the education and studying Enniro Thana, big Sunni non-theorism and view of higher education of her disciples.
And she maintains that leading a monastic life according to the Buddha's teaching is the best education that one can obtain.
At the same time, she thinks that those with a higher education tend to understand her teaching better. And she thinks that those with a higher education, the educational background, she also emphasized the educational background of disciples who have attained a degree when introducing them to monks.
So choosing a monastic life after they have accomplished higher level of education, so it look eloquently conveying the idea of how much more the noble and rewarding life of the Buddhist monasteries can be compared to their life with fame and wealth.
So this impress many among the Thai people and inspire respect.
So regarding the monastic educational level, a big Sunni non-theorist did not provide any formal education or prepare her disciple for government.
Buddhist exams such as Dhammasuksa or Opari exam on Abhidhamma until 2008.
But this may be a very different future of the community compared to other samnak that are affiliated with Thai Meiji Institute,
which focuses on education and encourages Meiji residents to hold formal educational degree, both Buddhist and secular.
However, it just does not mean that the middle-theorist nuns are not engaged in paia ji pa, they are just studying.
The big Sunni non-theorist gives the daily lessons and Dhamma talks and heavily drawn from the Dhammasuksa of mental phenomena and Abhidhamma using numerous Pali terms, but she teaches at least two hours a day.
And her disciples are also signed up to learn up to chanting and meditation sessions at the individual homework by the Sunni non-theorist and really to learn those terms.
But the situation of living in the community has changed over time.
And when I was there, she did not prepare her disciples for the exams.
But the educational policy in New York did not change in 2009. And after I finished my field research, Bikni not only decided to give proper Pali lessons, inviting monks in Pali to teach her disciples and encourage them to take those national Dhamma and Pali exams.
So I heard, and it's partly because they became seminary and big Sunni and many public followers, more trying to check if they really know what they should not know as a program of monastics.
So apparently, the educational policy changed in New York.
Okay, so this is the picture of the big Sunni non-theorist, and I come with the third characteristic of the women and how wide the women joined in the New York community is the charisma of the head man, the big Sunni non-theorist.
So the many accounts by the early members of the community relate the decision of taking roles to the personal attributes of big Sunni non-theorist and her personality and her strict practice and her ability to clearly explain complicated Buddhist teachings.
So Saman, Saman utilitarian stated most clearly that, quote, if I had not met Prachan, Prachan is an analytic program, and Prachan is teacher, and I would not have become Meechi, the court finished.
The big Sunni familiarity and big Sunni satacity and big Sunni waratina and big Sunni anapholy also all tie their Meechi ordination to their faith and big Sunni non-theorist.
So this type of strong Muslim disciple relationship, it's not rare in Thai Buddhist tradition among monks, and it also explains why her disciple would follow her decisions when big Sunni non-theorist thinks it is the right thing to become big Sunni.
They would also think it is the right thing to do.
Well, Thambia has already explored the source of this charismatic leadership in his through meditation.
And he saw the charisma of Buddhist saints, many of whom were who smokes, as something earned but volatile and unstable compared to that of the more institutionalized charisma, for example, of Christian saints.
However, Thambia stated that the originalization of charisma of where smokes is possible and to a certain extent, and if the disciple of the masters can coordinate themselves systematically, the network can lead to an alternative grid of power and mode of mobilization to established systems such as Sangha.
So Samanali Walayani once told me that when she saw big Sunni non-theorist who seemed to be intelligent and confident and explaining Dhammar so quickly to the large audience during the Buddhist camps, she wanted to become like her.
And she believed that the big Sunni non-theorist's practice and faith in Buddhism made her intelligent and confident.
And Samanali Thilayani was also impressed by the young, the big Sunni non-theorist, Dhanamichi, as she was intelligent and adhering to a very strict practice.
So many others also expressed that they were impressed with her first monk-like practice and her ability to speak and teach so well.
So the big Sunni non-theorist seems to be admired for her spiritual achievements through years of practice, morality and meditation, just like for us monks.
But again, she is not a saint, meaning that her salvation of status as Arahant is not yet completed nor acknowledged as such by the public.
However, she certainly does exude a charisma based on her spiritual achievements through years of practice and morality and meditation, just like for us monks.
So the austere forest monk-style tradition that big Sunni non-theorist has practiced since her early days in Wathongtong has brought her veneration and elevated her from Meche to the Meche forest tradition.
And the reverse advancements of worldly attachments observed by forest monk is admired by many followers as seen in the work of Thambia and Tyler.
And this source of charisma moreover seems gendered.
So big Sunni non-theorist has been admired all the more for being a woman, especially a young Meche than when she was at Wathongtong who practiced in the forest tradition and who can teach Dharma so well.
Precisely because the society previously had the image of Meche as spiritually inferior and loose in practice and austerity of the practice of big Sunni non-theorist and her ability to deliver clear Dharma sermons in public stands out as a unique case.
And the last motives quite particular for the Mirotaran, the motivation for women to join the Mirotaran community was the opportunity for going through Papajan and Pasantaran.
So during my fieldwork I was able to identify six nuns who joined Mirotaran primarily because of their aspiration to undergo Papajan and Pasantaran ordination.
In general these nuns already had years of experience as Meche and other monasteries before coming to Mirotaran and they learned about the possibility of going to ordination and Mirotaran, be it the network of the old monasteries.
So most nuns concerned here are from the North East region, the East side of Thailand with the exception of two who are from Bangkok and they come from a modest family background, except those of the one man kokhian whose family was running a company.
And they were all quite young, average of 47 years old and the four came from monasteries affiliated with the forest traditions.
So another commonality of note is that most of them did not previously seek the opportunity to undergo Papajan and Pasantaran ordination, but the decision was rather circumstantial and in large part due to the encouragement and support of their monk teachers.
And the case of two seminaries from Wappa Panlan who were convinced by the abbot's monk to go through Papajan ordination was quite exemplary.
And Wappa Panlan is actually affiliated to a group of four monks who used to give a 10% to Meche.
And I would also believe that going through Papajan and Pasantaran would help women to practice better and that's why he gave advice to his female disciple to go through Papajan and Pasantaran and they came to Nino Kala.
So when we see the profile of these women in the motivation for joining the group, the community of Nino Kala, they cannot be best described as Western minded or those of the reason why that they seek or they became a big soon.
Some may be well educated, but that could be true.
But the assumption that the women become a big soon or Western minded was not entirely correct.
And the second assumption about monks against women, and I think you probably started to see already from the people coming to Nino Kala ordinations and who support women in Nino Kala to go through Papajan and Pasantaran, that this may not be also entirely true.
And for the taking of Papajan and Pasantaran women in Nino Kala, the support and approval of local monks, especially of the high venerated monks, such as Lam Pho, was indispensable.
So that's the photo of Lam Pho Thong in Wat Chong Thong.
So Lam Pho Thong, Lam Pho means venerable father, is an advisor to the ecclesiastic chief of the Chiang Mai region, and he is a much venerated monk whose reputation goes well beyond the northern region and is annually invited by the king to participate in his birthday ceremony in Bangkok, at least when I was there when I was the king.
And the master and disciple relationship between Bixi Nino Thieni and Lam Pho Thong goes back to when Bixi Nino Thieni was practicing meditation up until 17 hours a day in forest monastery, Wat Thong Thong, where Lam Pho Thong also taught meditation from time to time.
So before taking on Papajan and Sri Lanka, Bixi Nino Thieni then met she went to speak with Bong Pho Thong in order to ask for advice on the matter, and she was giving permission and encouragement for going forth through Papajan by him, and subsequently she also received favorable opinion from other monks in the local area.
Lam Pho Thong also celebrated and gave blessings for women in Nino Thieni when Nino Thieni nuns organized Papajan and Chiang Mai in 2008, helped by Sri Lankan Bikru and Bixi who came to Thailand.
Another local monk who played an important role in the development of the community of ordained women in Nino Thieni is Kruba Ei.
So Kruba Ei is the Exiliastic chief of the district of Chiang Mai and respected monk.
And Kruba is the title given to a Northern Thai monk.
And this is the title.
The title is popularly and unofficially assigned by merit.
But it used to be a proper title in Buddhism practice in the region, but not the case today.
And this Kruba is some years younger than Bixi Nino Thieni, and it is unclear since when they know each other.
But Kruba knows Bixi Nino Thieni since when she was Meichi, and he respects Bixi Nino Thieni by calling her a man, like a mother.
And Kruba participated in the Papajan ceremony in 2008, the February one, organized by Nino Thienan in Thailand.
And introduced to the audience, he was introduced to the audience as the longtime supporter of the community.
And he gave speech to the audience that he, that he, he openly supports the re-insulation of Bixi Nino Thieni if they practice well.
And we should also not forget that the abbot of a very well-known monastery in Chiang Mai, whose name I will not openly discuss today,
but who agreed to become the preceptor for the women at the second Papaja ceremony in 2008 on October in Chiang Mai.
And at that time, he was a next in line of ecclesiastic chief of problems of Chiang Mai, and being a preceptor of these women could jeopardize his career.
But with the encouragement of the Kruba also that he not less agreed and performed Papaja for these women in monastery.
And here I should mention that some monks in Chiang Mai consider themselves belonging to northern Buddhist tradition that is distinct and distant from that of centralized Buddhist Sangha for its history and geographical distance from Bangkok.
And it can partly explain why some Lana monks can take bold actions.
And the northern part of Thailand, where Chiang Mai was found, used to be called Lana, and it literally meant a million ways fields.
And it is the name of the kingdom which emerged in the 13th century and was built around 15th century centering Chiang Mai city and extended its territory from Mekong River to its east and the southern river on the west and from the top of the Sukkotai kingdom at its south up to Chiang Mai city in the north.
So from the end of the 19th century, the King Echelon Gonsayam started to implement a series of reform programs of the national administration system and centralized all the variants of Theravada Buddhists into a single national Thai Sangha.
And Thai government official replaced the local nobility in Lana and Buddhist monks in the north were incorporated into the central Sangha hierarchy system.
And the national Buddhist educational system.
But as you can imagine, this was not done without contestation between Lana monks and monks from Bangkok.
And there are many legends of how locally venerated Kruva rebelled against the centralization and these legends are still very much part of the memory of the monks in Lana.
And one of the high ranking monks in Chiang Mai that I interviewed openly expressed in one of my at that time in 2008 that the monks in other regions may be afraid of the central Thai Sangha but Lana monks or monks.
And Bixini Ramananda, whose monastery is found near Bangkok also said to me once that the situation of Bixini in north is somewhat different from to central and the monks are more enthusiastic about the emerging Bixini Sangha there compared to the monks in Bangkok.
Having said it, the same cooperative relationship can be observed in Bixini Ramananda's community and what Santhama Karyani.
And Penerable Ramananda's taking of Prabhuja was in 2001 and she founded her Sangha.
So the community is the oldest and it is found near Bangkok area, Nakompatan.
And in 2002, a year after the Prabhuja of Bixini Ramananda, Ben Tamarakita, a highly educated and experienced Meechi, received Prabhuja with the support of Thai monk Lompo Khosin Paripuno and Bixini Ramananda.
And Lompo Khosin belonged to a progressive Buddhist NGO called Sekyatan.
And Sekyatan is a group which consists of both laypersons and monks who aim to apply Buddhist principles to the development of the individual as well as Thai society.
And Sekyatan was officially established in 1991, although it was originally created by a well-known lay Buddhist called a Buddhist reformer, Slak Sivaraksa, in 1989.
And according to some study, it is an offshoot of Slak's larger group and Thai Interreligion's Commission for Development, which was also established in 1989.
So other than these cases, there are many other monks, among so-called forest monks and socially engaged monks, who encouraged and supported women to take up 10% regardless of the degree.
Or encouraged them to go through Prabhuja and Pasampada as a religious soul.
And some might support particular women whom they judge worthy of a proper monastic environment to take on Pasampada.
And while others might support the Bixini Sangha in general, as they judge that it is part of their socially engaged or progressive reform Buddhist ideal.
And for many monks and nuns, and the establishment of a Bixini Sangha, it's not just about helping a small sector of women desiring to become fully-fledged nuns, but also about changing the larger picture of what contemporary Telabuddha Buddhism should be, that it can continue to be relevant to the society around us.
And the last point about the supporting role of monks is that, as also discussed in the Venerable Bhikkhu Analayu's paper, the going forth of Mahatma Gautami in T60.
In order for Bixini to be able to properly remain as a Bixini, there are rituals which requires participation of Bhikkhu, such as Pavarana, one of the Sangha Kama, which is organized after the rain retreat to confess any wrongdoings that was thought.
Singing and having heart, and members of Sangha, or it requires five members for Pavarana, should hold Pavarana on the first full moon day right after the rain retreat, and Bhikkhuni organized Pavarana separately from Bhikkhu, but after their own session, they should hold another ceremony on Pavarana in the presence of Bhikkhu.
So that's what they did, and the picture shows this moment.
They hold the Pavarana ceremony in Pausata Hall, and the nouns say this place is forbidden for women, but in Chantong, those group of women, ordained women, could go in and practice Pavarana in presence of the Bhikkhu.
So not just Pavarana or Pausata, but in order for those newly became Bixini to remain Bixini, they need cooperation with Bhikkhu, and they do have cooperation until now, at least.
So that's actually the picture inside. There are actually two more Bhikkhu that cannot be seen. I don't know if you can see their faces, but they're all smiling, and they seem to be quite happy to have those women in this hall.
So the third assumption that women become in Bixini is in Bhikkhu's community.
For this fall, I'd like to explain what I can about this assumption, since I investigated that what it means to be Bhikkhu for women who are actually going through Pavarana or Pausata.
And the question of what it means to be Bixini is highly subjective, and it might very well depend on how advanced ones practice also.
But as long as this course is put forward by Bixini Nandayani and the women in Nirodhara, it is safe to say that there are at least other motives that are more important to consider do exist for women to aspire to become Bixini.
For Bixini Nandayani, being in Bixini represents a way of practice, a way of life, and I'll explain now what does this mean.
Well, first of all, I would like to introduce to you how Bixini is defined.
The Bixini-Vivanga section in Vinaya defines Bikini as she is a nun because she is a beggar for alms, she is a nun because she is a mist walking for alms,
and she is a nun because she is the one who wears the patchwork robes, and she is a nun by the designation of others, a nun because of her acknowledgement, a nun to whom it was said, can a nun, a nun is one ordained by the three goings to refugees,
a nun is an adept, and a nun is ordained by both complete orders by means of a formal act at which the motion is put and followed by the three block formations, it is very civil and fit to stand.
In this way, is this nun one who is ordained by both complete orders by means of a formal act at which the motion was put and followed by his three block formations, it is received and fit to stand, and this is how nun is to be understood in this case.
So now, the Bixini Nanthayani is fully aware of this definition and says that little Bixini is essentially the one who asks.
And she also thinks that the Bixini is one who sees danger in the circle of birth and death by adapting the notion of biku from Vishuddhi Maga by Virabhasa, which defines biku as he sees fear.
So the Bixini Nanthayani said once that the meaning of Bixini inspired her deeply as the Bixini has to ask and depend on teaching of the Buddha, ryasanga, and lay community, and thus this understanding of the word encourage her to be patient, calm, and practice diligently.
She also said in one of my interviews this,
At this stage, the five Bixini at the Nino Tala Meditation Center are simply women who sees danger in the circle of birth and death, who try to practice according to the Dhamma and the Vinaya that was laid down by the Lord Buddha.
That is, women who try to maintain Chuddha-siddha, Mahajima-siddha, and Mahasiddha, who try to exercise and restraint with regard to the Bixini Patimoka and the Aikaridhana, who try to progress down the Noble Eightfold Path in order to realize the total cessation of suffering. We are only doubts, nothing more.
So therefore, the Bixini Nanthayani, to be a Bixini, is foremost for all essentially to engage in the life and practice assigned for Bixini by the Buddha.
And for Bixini Nanthayani, going through Upasampada, and wearing Upachwa robes, and going for arms round, adhering to Patimoka, and respecting Garudama, and all represents a great value.
And she certainly thinks that behind all these rules and regulations set by the Buddha for ordained monastic, everything that comes with the Ojination is in order to facilitate your developments of monastic and harmonious well-being of Sangha.
Well, let me explain further why she thinks rituals and wearing monastic robes and going on arms round importance when these can be regarded as minor compared to scriptural study or meditational practice.
For example, monastic robes, the five requisites needed to be of a particular color, size, design, and maybe more particularity, and diet and more.
A monastic robe is the symbol of monasticism that is taken on the form and that's narrated surrounding the Bixini Sangha.
However, we should recall that the mother of Bixini Nanthayani was charged with impersonating a monk wearing a light-year robe some three decades ago.
In the words of Pachancha, the famous word for a monk in Thailand, it is even the banner of the noble ones, the Buddha and the Arahant.
Therefore, the importance of the symbol or banner of the purity and dharma that the monastic robe express for its wear and its perceived to express by society is indeed real and significant.
And the symbolism of the monastic robes was indeed intended by the Buddha as he established regulations and regarding monastic robes precisely for the reason of preserving their distinctiveness.
When many people saw the first bhikkhu wearing ivory robe on a torn cloth, just like those of many people, they were annoyed and said so.
In response to this criticism, the Buddha denied, decided that a bhikkhu's robe be made of torn pieces and sewn together to form a complex pattern of things which his enemies cannot covet.
So the Buddha also told monks not to wear a garment of grass, bark, hair, or not to clap in the skin of a wild animal, feathers of an ole, an antelope skin that are a symbol of the tityans, meaning adherance of the other sex.
Therefore, the Buddha intended that the monastic robe serve as a means to differentiate members of sangha from laypeople and adherance of other sex, an example of the importance of form conceived by the Buddha.
And Nikodadele reports that the bhikkhusi nirantayani had said to have argued that if the monastic robes were genes, one would respect or offer arms to them, or would not respect or offer arms to them, and bhikkhusi nirantayani praised the insight of the Buddha.
As from her report, I quote,
The comments of bhikkhusi nirantayani made in regard to robes also demonstrate that she is considering monastic life in its totality and acknowledge that the renunciants have to live with others in society.
And therefore, she sees monastic robe as serving an important function because of its society, just as the Buddha intended to.
And apart from the social function of the monastic robes, bhikkhusi nirantayani also believes that wearing a monastic robe helps one practice.
She believes that wearing the monastic robe makes you aware of your monastic status in practice and thereby helping you be more attentive and thus improving your practice.
From seminary and bhikkhusi nirantayani, the robes also make them aware of the practice and precepts, but the important difference is that the Siddha are higher and subtler compared to those of Mechi,
when robes would facilitate seminary in being attentive and aware of the fact that they should also serve 10% and are the official representatives of them for society.
And society would also be watchful of their contact based on observers of 10% required of seminary and bhikkhusi nirantayani therefore seems to see at least these two benefits and wearing monastic robes.
Bhikkhusi nirantayani also perceives asking for alms to be also very important and integral part of practice that one can legitimately perform at seminary or bhikkhusi practice.
And Bhikkhusi nirantayani once said,
So as already stated, going on alms round daily remind dependence between the monastic and the lay and this realization makes monastic feel humble and responsible for people giver of metal off of hood.
And many tsekiya rules, less than a patimoka, are concerned with how to receive alms from the lay people and they must receive alms attentively contemplating the alms ball and include the right proportion of curry and only fill the ball up to the women.
And it is in part a bit round or on display in the most accentuated manner and therefore need to act flawlessly.
So bodily behavior is again an outward sign of their correct mental state of detachment towards what is given and how popular they consider food and one of the requisites.
So therefore this is also when they can actually practice virtue of concerning requisites and develop their minds to not fall into craving or attachment towards the food and avoid ill will or anger towards the lay community and cultivate patience.
And there is a narrative from Atempo Risamone and Nirothara who went on alms round and who realized what the lay life really entails by seeing it from the other side, the side of the receiver.
And the narrative is revealing that the going on alms round has an important psychological effect as a practice on alms goal.
So however Moochis in Thailand are not systematically entitled to go on an alms round for their January 8th precept holders and as already explained as considered belonging to the lay people and not a proper field of merit by many.
And as well the members did not go on an alms round prior to their taking up in a reshape that would become a seminary, even though they were machi and had a precept.
So according to Vixeninantayani who says,
quote,
Moochis who keep a precepts are allowed to have money and can even perform activities to sustain daily life. So I don't know how they do it to justify receiving money from the lay community or food from the lay community.
But I won't complain about those who give and those who receive, quote,
finish.
So this seems to be what Samaneriyorayani means when she says she feels that she really began abided by the Vinaya laid out by the Buddha when she became Samaneri.
She can practice.
All that a Samaneri is entitled to do according to Vinaya and she feels more straight and correct.
So without having the status of Samaneri and Vixenin wearing monastic robes and going on alms round, it would be extremely difficult and socially awkward for one to follow her.
For the ten precepts of Samaneri and 311 precepts for Vixenin.
For the nuns and Nirotanang, therefore, the ordination seems to mean those observing garudama and having a povatini, their preceptor, and holding pabajan upasampada and going on alms round.
They had 11 precepts and holding patimoka and etc.
So in short, it means being able to execute all the rituals and practice beginning by the Buddha and at the same time trying to confirm with what they practice and what they represent to the outside world,
which they believe provides practicing women more power to demonstrate than for society.
This is a painting of Tenmichi Vixenin on the wall of a local monastery.
And actually other paintings on the wall are all the monks, the very famous monks in Thailand.
So this really means that when she was a michi, she was already respected and also by the monks in the vicinity.
But I should say that she also donated some money for the construction of the salon, which is one of the reasons why she made it up and her painting made it to this wall.
But this is really significant because all the other paintings on the wall are all famous monks.
Okay, well, I do believe that the bixenin non-tenin was not keen on obtaining higher social status by becoming bixenin.
And I doubt that being a bixenin alone can bestow someone high social status and their society.
And the narrative of her disciple show that the charisma and respect that she commands from society and fellow female practitioners were already in place before her taking of pabozha and passangada.
And therefore it was not the famous status which comes with becoming bixenin that founded the charismatic leadership of bixenin non-tenin to show that there is support for bixenin non-tenin meditating in the cave when she was michi.
Well, therefore, the other than use of respectful and cooperative relationship between bixenin non-tenin and monks in a vision, it is precisely for the focus on good practice.
And Nakhlava writes a related discourse on having an equal status or higher status and screening of social support.
And now I think I have challenged all the assumptions stated at the beginning about the women becoming bixenin or about the monks' attitudes toward them.
I hope that I could help understand more about the reality of these women of the emergence of Sangha in Thailand.
Well, approaching this phenomenon of the, to conclude, approaching this phenomenon of the emergence of bixenin communities through women's right discourse or through in-depth humility discussion of parikhanu
and just to find women's proper place in Theravada tradition would provide us with little benefits in understanding the why's and how's of women becoming savannary or bixenin
and there are more movements that are beginning to take root in Thailand.
As we saw the majority of women in Thailand who are becoming bixenin and savannary have little or no notion at all of Western feminist discourses or little connection with international movements and do not hold the aim to obtain rights equal to men.
In most cases, as with their brothers, they do not systematically engage in any humoristic discussions based on solid scholarly study of parikhanu or text of other British tradition to justify their pursuit for fully fledged nafood or acquired status.
My research aimed to show that if today we see an increase in the number of women taking parikhanu and passanpada, the phenomenon should not be understood as a trim of Western concepts of equality in Thai culture or only because women's place and rights have increasingly been recognized in Thai society.
And some might have erroneously perceived the bixenin movements as only a women's issue and dismiss the importance of the impact it has on Thai Buddhism.
However, I cannot stress enough the point that this phenomenon is not only about a small sector of women in Thai Buddhism, but that it is indeed an expression or a part of what Peter Jackson calls a continual process of reappraisal and restructuring of Thai Buddhism.
A process which has become dynamic over the past 50 years with the rise of the urban middle class and a time when we observe a significant decline in the number of monks accompanied by the fragmentation of Thai Theravada Buddhism due to the withering authority of the central Thai Sangha.
It manifested concerns among monks regarding their ability to address the female devotees who generally outnumber men in attending Buddhist ceremonies and meditation practice.
So there has been a number of monks behind the scenes supporting this woman to undertake full fledged namvud and the monk proponents of the movements are more prone to a progressive interpretation of Japitaka for their attempts to accommodate the expectation of the immediate accounting for a society.
However, no matter how much the concerns of the proponents are real and grounded on the local as well as the international level, this attitude can only be acted out by divorcing themselves from the tradition of rigorously adhering to the scriptures, the principle on which the level of tradition has been faced since the first rehearsal.
But this attitude adapted by numerous Theravada monks certainly accompany the Korean bhiksuni movement in Thailand and this phenomenon thus mirrors the heart of the debate on the identity of today and tomorrow's entire Theravada Buddhism and its ongoing dialogue and negotiation
of the ways in which it strives to stay relevant to accounting for the unable to globalize in society.
And to the very end, to all of you, I would like to say that if you're interested in the subject, please do read my thesis and it is not to promote my thesis or say that it's great.
No, but since I stopped doing research on the subject, but I know there's still so much to study and one needs to follow up the development or evolution of the communities.
So, as they have not been engaged ethnographical study on the community of versions emerging bhiksuni Sangha in Thailand at that time of my fieldwork, my work contains an ample ethnographical data and description of the community and biography of bhiksuni.
Oh, in this case, I would also like to invite you to read the master thesis after the Niko Lab, the data, because it has also lots and lots of insight and ethnographical data.
And then I also paid attention to the historical aspect of the female monasticity of the entire Theravada context and then referred to some textual sources when I just read events.
So I hope that the research that I did, I will be able to serve as a guide or at least as a tool for future researchers who might further investigate in the development of the communities of the Odin Buddhist women in Thailand.
Thank you.
And now, if there are any questions, I guess now it's time for me to take questions and answer.
Oh, thank you.
Thank you.
Okay, so I have this question of Abhinavosamone Nia Nika, saying that if the experience for the bhiksuni nation at Nyotan still mostly from those with years of major training, or are they now coming more directly from late life, how is this impacting the environmental focus of training at Nyotan?
Okay, to be very honest, as I said, I have not followed this up these days, so I cannot really tell you what's happening right now.
But until the very end of my research, about 2008, but also I was getting some information until 2011-ish, that I still had the impression that the people who are coming to be ordained in the Nyotaran community were
from Meiji backgrounds, and still not that many coming directly from late to be for the purpose of becoming bhiksuni in the community.
That being said, for the rain retreat, as you saw in the last picture, this is Pabaja ceremony during the rain retreat, and all those laywomen from the local, as well as maybe coming from Bangkok, they know, they must know that they can be ordained as seminary.
So now there are many actually, I suppose, come, especially for the rain retreat to be ordained as a seminary rather than Meiji, and how that impacts the training of Nyotaran.
As I said, the latest change was that before they were not, they had now was not preparing their disciples for the government exams, or pari, or tamasu exam, but now they do, they have to really study pari, and they have to pass exams.
So that's the latest change that I can tell you.
Okay, the question from Venerable Bhiksuni Dhamma Dina, okay, if the modern Thai tradition is unique independence, and even after tamasu, after the decentralized tradition, is it possible that emphasis on non-Westernization affects the typical Thai construct of having resisted?
I'm not so sure if I understood the question.
Let me get back to this. I'm sorry.
Later on, there's another question from Takhla.
I'm not cool. So when I have this kind of question, should I read this and give back to you? There's a link.
It's nice if you can read out.
Sorry, I could not. You're saying something, Venerable.
It is helpful if you can read out the question and then say what you have now at the moment.
Okay, this is also the question from Venerable Bhiksuni at Ataloka.
Hello. Okay, so she says it may be a disumption. Bhiksuni, a Western-minded, comes in part from most of the first bhiksuni appearing in Thailand and contemporary times being American.
Yes, being bhiksuni in Ataloka herself and from the same UK and Tibetan Buddhism. However, I can attest to my personal experience being in Thailand from 2002 to 2003 when most people had never seen bhiksuni before.
It was that many Thai women immediately responded for their own ends with interest to ordain as bhiksuni if possible for them in order to advance their practice in accordance with traditional Thai cultural views.
Bhiksuni teachers also responded in this way, recommending their exemplary female student studying.
And this response to meeting bhiksuni is very different, almost polar opposites to that experience published by foreign researchers when asking Thai women to announce their interest in bhiksuni ordination.
Yes, I do agree with Venerable Bhiksuni at Ataloka and I think there was this overattention to maybe the taking of bhiksuni of maybe American nuns and also a bhiksuni dhamananda
who is Thai but who is exceptionally an international figure and who is very by excellency as an elite.
And there was too much focus on bhiksuni dhamananda and also because she is a prolific writer she also sends out information and many foreign scholars, western scholars could get the information easily so that there was maybe too much focus on that.
And that sort of help to form this kind of assumption and which is not completely wrong, there is some truth in it but that sort of prevented us to see what's really happening in Thailand and what Thai monks are really thinking and what are the supporters, Thai supporters who helped those women
to take bhiksuni ordination and bhiksuni dhamananda.
Okay, and there is a question from Venerable Samaneri, oh yes sorry, it's the second question.
Well, okay, were all most of the neo-dhaman bhiksuni who came from years has made too well practice in meditation? Oh, it seems the daily schedule includes but does not emphasis meditation.
Okay, yes, I think the many who came from forest monastery did come and join a neo-dhaman community with a very strong background on meditation.
And so, the same thing for the bhiksuni and namthayani, I mean she practice really prolonged years of meditation when she was in Wat Pham Pham, but then when she founded the neo-dhaman meditation center, they practice meditation and she was good in guiding and teaching, instructing meditation to her disciples.
But she also wanted them to study, not study for the exams but to listen to her sermons and understand the teaching of Buddha correctly.
So, since the first groups were already a strong meditation practitioner, that in her daily schedule, she more or less emphasized the Chupitaka study like sermons.
That's why she was given like two hours of teaching every day and two hours where there is quite heavy for her to learn, but she was doing that every day.
So, maybe that's one of the reason why even in a daily schedule, it doesn't emphasize too much meditation, but let's say for the full moon day, there were nuns who stay up all night meditating because for them meditation is something that they adore and they're really good at practicing.
But in neo-dhaman, when he was founded, the headman wanted her disciple to have a correct view, have a correct understanding of the teaching of the Buddha, so stressed maybe more on learning from Chupitaka on that part.
Before the callers, I have to read this article that you said, so thank you for the great information and study and given recent events in Thailand and this article it seems that the situation for beginning Thailand is becoming more tenuous over time and not more comfortable.
Did you notice this? Do you think it would be a problem for beginning in the future and would it affect north and central equality?
Okay, so for this, let me just click on this article because I haven't read it.
Now...
Okay.
All right.
Okay.
Sorry, I did something wrong.
For the...
Sorry, yes.
No, no, I looked on the article of what Cara says.
I'm not so sure if it would have immediate impact on vixenin status because in a sense, the core of the problem still remains the same and I think it really depends on how vixenin will be in the future or in the present time.
And if they can really have a cooperative relationship with monks and be something that's the beneficial for the society or not.
And I think if they can do this, I think the Thai society would find a way to accommodate the vixenin sangha in many ways.
So, yes, it is threatening this new chapter that they can't maybe take out the freedom of the religions.
But, well, let's see. And if they do actually do this, it has a ramification for much larger ramification than vixenin sangha's emergence of vixenin sangha.
So, yes, I'm not so sure if I can say something definitive and I don't think it would have the immediate effects, negative effects on vixenin activity, vixenin sangha in Thailand.
No.
Okay.
And, okay, so the one last question is okay. Sorry, I might imply it's not entirely satisfactory.
The question from Venerable Bixenin da Madina, please maybe I'll have to get back to you on this, that you said, even if the Northern Thailand tradition is quite independent and even at the times opposite to the Central Siam Thai tradition, is it possible that the emphasis on non-Westernization
reflects a typical Thai construct of having resisted foreign conflicts and influence, which is, of course, historically not the case given the influence of Western culture.
For example, in the formative years of King Mokut.
Yes, maybe I'll get back to you on this to answer, since I'm not so sure if I understood very well your question.
Okay. Okay, well, thank you very much.
And I think that's all for the question that has been given.
Thank you.
Okay.
Okay. Thank you very much, Venerable Bixenin da Madina, really for inviting me for this e-learning course. And I was happy to share the findings for my research.
I would love to share more, but I could really organize my arguments in such a short time for this. So, yes.
Thank you very much for listening.
Recording is off now.