Women in Buddhism: Images of the Feminine in the Mahayana Tradition

by Diana Y. Paul

"In seeking to explore the interrelationships between, and mutual influence of, varieties of sexual stereotypes and religious views of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, Women in Buddhism succeeds in drawing our attention to matters of philosophical importance. Paul examines the 'image' of women which arise in a number of Buddhist texts associated with Mahayana and finds that, while ideally the tradition purports to be egalitarian, in actual practice it often betrayed a strong misogynist prejudice. Sanskrit and Chinese texts are organized by theme and type, progressing from those which treat the traditionally orthodox and negative to those which set forth a positive consideration of soteriological paths for women. . . . In Women in Buddhism, Diana Paul may be forcing our consideration of the problem of female enlightenment. Thus the main purport and accomplishment of her scholarship is revolutionary."—Philosophy East and West

Genres: Buddhism, Religion, Nonfiction

333 pages, Paperback

First published March 24, 1985

About the author

Diana Y. Paul is the award-winning author of THINGS UNSAID. Pushcart Prize Nominee, USA Best Books FINALIST, Readers Favorite SILVER Medal for Best Fiction in Drama, and the WINNER for New Adult Fiction from Beverly Hills Book Awards (National Indie Excellence Awards). , THINGS UNSAID has been ranked #2 on the "Top 14 Books about Families Crazier than Yours."

A former Stanford professor in Buddhism, writing and art are both forms of meditation, which I practice every day.

I am currently working on a second novel, Deeds Undone, a murder mystery that picks up where Things Unsaid left off. I live in Carmel, CA with my husband, Doug, and calico cat Mao. I love to create mixed media art with a Zen sensibility and visit our adult children, Maya (in San Francisco), and Keith (in Los Angeles). Please stop by my author website at http://www.dianaypaul.com and my blog about movies, art and food at http://www.unhealedwound.com or follow me on Twitter: @DianaPaul10. Instagram: @dianapaul10 or on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/diana.y.paul... love to hear from you!

Reviews

[Myridian · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've finally finished wading through this book. Paul discusses ways in which women have been portrayed in a variety of sutras within the Mahayana Buddhist tradition. The book starts with the most misogynistic and moves to more egalitarian views of women.

The biggest problem with this book for me was that I got stuck in the early sections and was so disheartened by the bigotry inherent in the sutras that I put the book down for long stretches of time before working back up my motivation to read it. For those deeply intested in the topic I would recommend this book. It is thoughtfully put together and Paul presents the sutras within the context of the historical and religious viewpoints well. However, for those with more of a passing interest, reading the first chapter and then skipping to the more egalitarian, and as Paul points out, more popular sutras at the end seems like a better bet.

[Anubha (BooksFullOfLife, LifeFullOfBooks) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Presentation of Buddhism literature focused on buddhism through a feminist perspective. Points for women representation