Women Living Zen: Japanese Sōtō Buddhist Nuns
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Description
In this study, based on both historical evidence and ethnographic data, Paula Arai shows that nuns were central agents in the foundation of Buddhism in Japan in the sixth century. They were active participants in the Soto Zen sect, and have continued to contribute to the advancement of the sect to the present day. Drawing on her fieldwork among the Soto nuns, Arai demonstrates that the lives of many of these women embody classical Buddhist ideals. They have chosen to lead a strictly disciplined monastic life over against successful careers and the unconstrained contemporary secular lifestyle. In this, and other respects, they can be shown to stand in stark contrast to their male counterparts.
Link to Catalog
ISBN
9780195344158
Publication Date
2012
Department
Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies
Publisher
Oxford University Press
City
Oxford University Press
Recommended Citation
Arai, Paula Kane Robinson, "Women Living Zen: Japanese Sōtō Buddhist Nuns" (2012).