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[justinm at ucr.edu]

Forwarded from Eisel Mazard.
Thanks,
justin

Women in Brown : A Short History of the Order of sīladharā, Nuns of
the English Forest Sangha, Part One
Jane Angell

Abstract

At Chithurst Buddhist Monastery, in the UK, in 1979, four women joined
the newly formed community of Theravāda monks. They lived initially as
novices, and
their wish to engage more fully with the life of renunciation,
combined with the support
and commitment of the community leader Ajahn Sumedho and other monks, led
to the formation of a unique order of Theravāda Buddhist nuns, who became known
as sīladharā. This paper will appear in two parts. This fi rst part
begins with a brief
contextual overview of Theravāda nuns, from the founding and decline
of the order of bhikkhunīs to the various forms of ordination
available for women in the Theravāda world today. It then gives a
history of the order of sīladharā from its inception until
approximately 2000, focusing on the development of their rule and
ordination procedures, the way the order has changed over the years
and issues and confl icts it has had to deal with, as well as a period
when some nuns lived in a women-only community. My research was
undertaken by personal interview with founding members of the order as
well as by e-mail, telephone and written communications with nuns past
and present and with a senior monk involved in the order’s early days.
The history until the present day and consideration of future
developments will form the second part of the paper.

http://www.equinoxjournals.com/ojs/index.php/BSR/article/view/453

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______________
Dr. Justin McDaniel
Dept. of Religious Studies
3046 INTN
University of California, Riverside
Riverside, CA 92521
951-827-4530
justinm at ucr.edu