Women in Buddhism

Women in Buddhism is a topic that can be approached from varied perspectives including those of theology, history, anthropology and feminism. Topical interests include the theological status of women, the treatment of women in Buddhist societies at home and in public, the history of women in Buddhism, and a comparison of the experiences of women across different forms of Buddhism. As in other religions, the experiences of Buddhist women have varied considerably.

Although Buddha taught that wives should be obedient to their husbands (AN 5:33), he also taught that husbands should respect their wives – something that was revolutionary at the time.

Scholars such as Bernard Faure and Miranda Shaw are in agreement that Buddhist studies is in its infancy in terms of addressing gender issues. Shaw gave an overview of the situation in 1994:

In the case of Indo-Tibetan Buddhism some progress has been made in the areas of women in early Buddhism, monasticism and Mahayana Buddhism. Two articles have seriously broached the subject of women in Indian tantric Buddhism, while somewhat more attention has been paid to Tibetan nuns and lay yoginis.

Women in (E)motion (Odetta album)

Women in (E)motion is an album by American folk singer Odetta, released in 2002. It was recorded live for the Women In (E)motion Festival in Bremen, Germany in 1990.

Track listing

All songs Traditional unless otherwise noted.

Personnel

Production notes

References

Women's rights in 2014

2014 was described as a watershed year for women's rights, by newspapers such as The Guardian. It was described as a year in which women's voices acquired greater legitimacy and authority.Time magazine said 2014 "may have been the best year for women since the dawn of time". However, The Huffington Post called it "a bad year for women, but a good year for feminism". San Francisco writer Rebecca Solnit argued that it was "a year of feminist insurrection against male violence" and a "lurch forward" in the history of feminism, and the The Guardian said the "globalisation of protest" at violence against women was "groundbreaking," and that social media had enabled a "new version of feminist solidarity."

Denise Balkissoon, writing in The Globe and Mail, disagreed with and criticized the view that 2014 marked a "watershed" moment and that "some collective 'we' has finally had enough", citing her ongoing concerns regarding a "broken system" with respect to violence against women.United Nations' Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, Rashida Manjoo, said that violence against women "is acknowledged as a pervasive and widespread human rights violation" and that as of 2014, "no single country can claim that there is progressive elimination occurring".