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In Christianity, nuns are found in the Catholic, Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox, Lutheran, and Anglican and some Presbyterian traditions, as well as other Christian denominations. [1] In the Buddhist tradition, female monastics are known as Bhikkhuni, and take several additional vows compared to male monastics .
Buddhism was known in the pre-Christian Greek world through the campaigns of Alexander the Great (see Greco-Buddhism and Greco-Buddhist monasticism), and several prominent early Christian fathers, including Clement of Alexandria and St. Jerome, were aware of the Buddha, even mentioning him in their works.
Forest dwelling was a common practice in early Buddhism, and it is still followed by some Buddhist sects such as the Thai Forest Tradition.. The Sangha or community of ordained Buddhist bhikkhus (Pali bhikkhu, like Sanskrit bhikṣuts, means 'simag; one who lives by alms' [2]), and original bhikkhunīs (nuns) were founded by Gautama Buddha during his lifetime over 2500 years ago.
Although the prevalent romantic view on Buddhism sees it as an authentic and ancient practice, contemporary Buddhism is deeply influenced by the western culture. With the rise of western colonialism in the 19th century, Asian cultures and religions developed strategies to adapt to the western hegemony, without losing their own traditions.
When Buddhism travelled from India to Tibet, apparently the quorum of twelve fully ordained nuns required for bestowing full ordination never reached Tibet. There are singular accounts of fully ordained Tibetan women, such as the Samding Dorje Phagmo (1422–1455), who was once ranked the highest female master in Tibet, but very little is known ...
Joan Breton Connelly Portrait of a Priestess: Women and Ritual in Ancient Greece Princeton University Press March 2007 ^ Silvia Evangelisti Nuns: A History of Convent Life, OUP 2007 ^ Pechilis, Karen. The Graceful Guru: Hindu Female Gurus in India and the United States ISBN 0-19-514538-0 ^ Shattuck, Cybelle and Lewis, Nancy D.
Monks and nuns are expected to fulfill a variety of roles in the Buddhist community. First and foremost, they are expected to preserve the doctrine and discipline now known as Buddhism. They are also expected to provide a living example for the laity, and to serve as a "field of merit" for lay followers, providing laymen and women with the ...
Those living the monastic life are known by the generic terms monks (men) and nuns (women). The word monk originated from the Greek μοναχός (monachos, 'monk'), itself from μόνος (monos) meaning 'alone'. [1] [2] Christian monks did not live in monasteries at first; rather, they began by living alone as solitaries, as the word monos ...