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University of Tulsa

Publication Date

Spring 2013

Program Name

Nepal: Tibetan and Himalayan Peoples

Abstract

My research focuses on the recent changes in ideology and policy that have taken place in regards to the status of Tibetan Buddhist nuns and their monastic lives. I chose to focus on the nuns at Dolma Ling nunnery in Dharamsala, India who will be sitting for their geshema degree examinations in a few weeks time. These women are among the first nuns to be taking this examination because it was, until very recently, open only to Buddhist monks. This revolutionary change was accomplished in part by the efforts of the leaders of the Tibetan Nuns Project, who have also had a hand in several other changes concerning the status of nuns, including incorporating debate into the nuns’ studies and striving toward the controversial issue of full ordination for Tibetan Buddhist women. Using data collected at Dolma Ling and interviews conducted with co-directors of the Tibetan nuns project, an official at the Department of Religion and Culture of the CTA, and several of the nuns themselves, I will be discussing the significance of the recent changes for women in monastic life and the role that the Tibetan Nuns Project has played in these changes.

Disciplines

Religious Thought, Theology and Philosophy of Religion | Women's Studies

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