Abstract
This paper examines how the Buddhist revival, the Chan revival, and recent popularity of transnational meditation practices have facilitated Chinese women practicing Buddhist meditation in contemporary China. With the influence of the opening of China and growing transnational networks, there has been an increasing number of Han Chinese monastics and lay people practicing transnational meditation, such as samādhi, vipassanā and mindfulness, in the past two decades. Despite the restriction of accessing Chan halls at monasteries, some Chinese nuns and laywomen have traveled to learn meditation in different parts of China, and international meditation centers in Southeast Asia to study with yogis from all over the world. Surprisingly some returned female travelers have taken significant roles in organizing meditation retreats, and establishing meditation centers and meditation halls. Through examining some ethnographic cases of Chinese nuns and laywomen, this paper argues that the transnational meditation movement has an impact not only on gender equality, especially concerning Chinese women practicing meditation, but also on the development of contemporary Chinese Buddhism. The significant role of Chinese female meditators in promoting Buddhist meditation can reflect a trend of re-positioning the Chan School in contemporary China.
Highlights
Over the ten-day vipassanā meditation retreat at Yunshan Monastery1雲山寺 in southern China in 2016, monks, nuns, laymen and laywomen practiced diligently sitting in the meditation hall together or walking meditation in the courtyard (Lau 2017).2Unsurprisingly, there were more female than male participants
In the context of contemporary Buddhist practices in China, where the experience of women is understudied, the present paper focuses on how women’s inclusion and involvement in Buddhist meditation practices in China have changed since the opening of
After examining the contexts of the Buddhist revival in China and the traditional place of women in Theravāda traditions, drawing from multi-sited ethnographic studies in contemporary China and Southeast Asian countries since 2014,8 this paper explores the experiences of Han Chinese women learning Theravāda meditation practices in China, women traveling to Southeast Asia to learn meditation, and the ways in which women’s participation in China via their access to Theravāda traditions has led to greater access, inclusion, and equality for women practicing and promoting Buddhist meditation, by establishing meditation centers and Chan halls in contemporary China
Summary
Over the ten-day vipassanā meditation (neiguanchan 內觀禪) retreat at Yunshan Monastery. 雲山寺 in southern China in 2016, monks, nuns, laymen and laywomen practiced diligently sitting in the meditation hall together or walking meditation in the courtyard (Lau 2017).. Among the fifty Han Chinese participants, there were one monk, seven nuns, nineteen laymen and twenty-three laywomen. They came from different parts of China with diverse backgrounds, including psychotherapists, civil servants, school teachers and students. Most informants who joined this retreat shared with me that gender difference is not relevant to the ability to practice meditation and attain liberation.
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