I heard that you wanted to be a catholic nun when you were a little girl. The struggle for enlightenment in the himalayas by kim gutschow isbn. Foreigners most of the times face more difficulties because the lack of knowledge about what is a buddhist nun. The struggle for enlightenment in the himalayas kindle edition by gutschow, kim. Pema chodron born deirdre blomfieldbrown, july 14, 1936 is an american tibetan buddhist.
Monks must be at least 21 years old before agreeing to take a vow to follow the 36 rules of conduct for a novice monk. The book contains many vignettes of the lives of nuns that are at once extraordinary and humanizing, like when the author asks a young tibetan refugee in a nunnery near dharamsala, india where the dalai lama lives, how she feels about being a nun. The poetry of zen translated and edited by sam hamill and j. Gutschows observations and research in zangskar, the book describes a rigid hierarchy in which monks rule, enjoying power and prestige and conducting important ceremonies and rituals, read more. Being a buddhist nun kim gutschow harvard university press.
Being upright by reb anderson introduces the fundamental concepts of zen buddhism and explores its ten basic precepts, including not killing, not stealing and not lying. I started to do meditationat least once a week for one hourand made connections with the community there. This book is based on fourteen years of fieldwork in zangskar, which is in the western himalayas near kashmir and ladakh. Of the two books, being a buddhist nun is the more heartbreaking because the nuns studied in this account face such unrelieved difficulties in their pursuit of the religious life.
Being a buddhist nun kindle edition by kim gutschow. A tale for the time being is a 20 work of literary fiction written by japaneseamerican novelist ruth ozeki. She is the awardwinning author of three novels, my year of meats, all over creation, and a tale for the time being, which was shortlisted for the booker prize and the national book critics circle award. Being a buddhist nun details the life of a group of women devoted to the buddhist traditions and religious practices, which includes not only the attainment of insight but also the far more worldly acquisition of social, symbolic, and economic power. While people may call nuns sister, sisters and nuns in a convent or an abbey are two completely different roles. The struggle for enlightenment in the himalayas 9780674012875.
It is true that buddhist resources are now easily attainable at bookstores and on the web. Gutschow, a visiting assistant professor in religion. The book being a buddhist nun reveals contradictions in. It said that even the most senior nun had to sit behind the most novice monk because, although her ordination was superior, the basis of that ordination, her body, was inferior. Being a buddhist nun by kim gutschow nook book ebook. Being nobody, going nowhere is the winner of the christmas humphreys award for best introductory buddhist book. American tibetan buddhist monk thubten pende gave his views. Being a buddhist nun american ethnological society. They may shave their heads, don simple robes, and renounce mate. Told in four parts, the book goes back and forth between the stories of two protagonists. In many religions, such as christianity, judaism, and hinduism, women are considered spiritually inferior to men and often suffer inequitable treatment in the wider society. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. In the first chapter, gutschow introduces the topic of monasticism for women in the tibetan buddhist tradition.
Being a buddhist nun is a valuable account of the life of nuns in the himalayan valley of zanskar, a region of ladakh in northwest india. She is a resident teacher at vajradhara meditation center on adelphi street in new york. This book is based on fourteen years of fieldwork in zangskar, which. In her attempt to seek enlightenment, she endured 12 years in solitary isolation in a barren cave in the karakoram mountains. Usually it is easier for women coming from buddhist countries, but still many times the family and friends are not ready for this. There are expectations about your life, and the close relationships make the separation difficult. Ruth ozeki is a novelist, filmmaker, and zen buddhist priest. Some people might find it interesting to know how somebody who grew up in america ended up with a hairdo like this. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading being a buddhist nun. Her book offers the first comprehensive ethnography of. Wendy doniger, mircea eliade professor of the history of religions, university of chicago.
This 2007 photograph taken by jenny jozwiak, shows a picture of a western buddhist nun by the name of kelsang demo. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. For me, the book was the miracle of mindfulness by thich nhat hahn. Despite the obstacles of being considered impure and inferior, nuns engage in everyday forms of resistance to pursue their ascetic and personal goals. Her critically acclaimed independent films, including halving the bones, have been screened at sundance and aired on pbs. Life as a buddhist nun by ven thubten chodron i would like to start by briefly describing the history of buddhist monasticism and then relate my own experience as a nun. A richly textured picture of the little known culture of a buddhist nunnery, the book offers moving narratives of nuns struggling with the buddhist discipline of detachment. Chodron has written several dozen books and audiobooks, and is principal.
This work is an ethnography, where the author, kim gutschow, did her work throughout a 14year period. Some of the women toomey met had decided to become nuns at a very. When i translated the texts concerning the ordination ceremony i got such a shock. The struggle for enlightenment in the himalayas author. The book offers a new kind of ethics based in compassion. This book is the first ethnography of tibetan buddhist society from the perspective of its nuns. The lived experience is wonderfully captured in both verbal and visual thick descriptions of foods, tasks, conversations, all the evocative phenomena of the everyday, while the book raises questions that are significant far beyond the himalayas, ranging from the usual questions of gender. Jeong kwan, of chefs table fame, recently served korean temple food in new york. In this new edition of her classic bestselling book, ayya khema gives clear, practical instruction on meditation and techniques for overcoming counterproductive mental. Her autobiography i give you my life 1997, completed just before her death, tells the story of the development of her commitment to buddhism and spirituality and of her decision at age 55 to become a buddhist nun. She was ordained as a buddhist nun in 1977 by kyabje ling rinpoche in dharamsala, india, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni full ordination in taiwan.
I got serious about being buddhist and started actually learning what it was all about. To download the free meditators guide book the golden path part 1, go here. There are eventually 227 rules of conduct for male monks. Being a nun for instance means that you are cloistered, separated from society, and live your whole life on the grounds of an abbey except for when you need to go to the hospital of course. Her book offers the first ethnography of tibetan buddhist society from the perspective of its nuns. The work is driven by a deep sense of injustice and a compelling focus on a remote society still medieval in character. Cave in the snow is the biography of tenzin palmo, a british woman, who became a tibetan buddhist nun at an early age. The statement that no buddhist in her right mind desires a female body 17 ignores numerous examples of women today who prefer a female body, yet are still of sound mind.
Experimenting with the academic method of autoethnography, chang shen explored. In south korea, buddhist temple food is viewed the way spa food is in the u. Unni wikan, university of oslo being a buddhist nun is a persuasive and moving combination of vivid writing and sophisticated scholarship. A buddhist nun from taiwan talks about her journey to. The fastest lesbian buddhist nun in the west curve. There is no guidebook being a sayalay here at pa auk. Robina courtin from radical lesbian separatist politics to becoming a buddhist nun and teaching in dharamsala. Kim gutschow kim gutschow has lived for three years among a group of nuns in the indian himalayas, collecting their stories and studying their lives. She is an ordained nun, former acharya of shambhala buddhism and disciple. Being a buddhist nun is a persuasive and moving combination of vivid writing and sophisticated scholarship. Instead, the book leaves one wondering why any woman in her right mind would become a buddhist nun. The lived experience is wonderfully captured in both verbal and visual thick descriptions of foods, tasks, conversations, all the evocative phenomena of the everyday, while the book raises questions that are significant far beyond the himalayas, ranging from the usual questions of.
Ayya khema 19231997played an important role in the ongoing revival of western interest in buddhism. I dont claim to know what the best beginner buddhist book might be, because i think that is an individual matter. She is an ordained nun, former acharya of shambhala buddhism and disciple of chogyam trungpa rinpoche. A journey with buddhas daughters in 2015 by portobello books. Chodron has written several dozen books and audiobooks, and is principal teacher at gampo abbey in nova scotia, canada. Being nobody, going nowhere, revised book by ayya khema. The struggle for enlightenment in the himalayas by gutschow, kim isbn. A richly textured picture of the little known culture of a buddhist nunnery, the book offers moving narratives of. Set in those beliefs, a buddhist monks life is one of simplicity and monastic dedication to the religion and its tenets. It makes me feel as if im standing on a tall mountain, she says.
Being a buddhist nun the struggle for enlightenment in. On november 9th, cswr resident chingning wang chang shen, a research fellow and visiting faculty of the womens studies in religion program and a buddhist nun from taiwan, gave a talk about her journey to become a nun, and she also discussed training in her monastery in relationship to her book project. The most popular buddhist nun cook in manhattan the. Sometimes a particular book will touch one person deeply but entirely miss another person. The revival of a dual ordination for korean buddhist nuns in the modern periodinyoung chung bhiksuni sukdham biography of inyoung chung bhiksuni sukdham inyoung chung is a korean buddhist nun sukdham and ph.
1446 679 151 697 328 1517 440 275 1112 109 1321 563 83 298 1113 141 218 226 1017 881 1224 1168 1650 1045 223 171 199 1276 1154 565 841 733 418 1030 32 992 1009