Announcing the First Open Online Course on
Bhikkhuni/Bhikshuni Ordination
The University of Hamburg (Universität Hamburg)
Press Releases 2013-11-11
An
open online course at the University of
Hamburg on Buddhist nuns, the first of its kind, will be open for application in
February 2014.
The First International Congress on
Buddhist Women, http://www.congress-on-buddhist-women.org/
held at the University of Hamburg in 2007, brought together
monastic and academic scholars to share advanced research into
legal and historical perspectives on women’s ordination in the
three surviving Buddhist schools. The Congress revealed how this
topic fosters collaboration between the academic world and Buddhist
practitioners across sectarian, national and disciplinary
boundaries. The work has without a doubt affected Sangha reform,
and inspired a deeper interest among lay practitioners in their
Buddhist heritage.
In response to the increase in public
interest and academic activity, and to give this precious work a
dedicated “home,” the University of Hamburg is host to the Women in
Buddhism Study Initiative (WiBSI). The first undertaking of WiBSI
is an open online course, which will begin in April, 2014. In the
spirit of inclusiveness, the e-learning course is a collaboration
among scholars from twelve universities around the world, and is
open to anyone interested in the topic. Participants are expected
to include Buddhist practitioners, monastics, lecturers and
professors, and students enrolled in university programmes at all
levels, in a variety of disciplines.
This milestone in Buddhist Studies is the
first to offer a concentrated curriculum that delivers quality
academic research on the legal questions, based on a study of the
relevant Vinaya material, followed by an updated regional survey on
the current situation of nuns under the Theravada and
Mulasarvastivada jurisdictions.
Participants in the class have the chance
to familiarize themselves with the three surviving Vinaya schools
(Theravada, Dharmaguptaka, and Mulsasarvastivada) and their
handling of bhikkhuni ordination. Taking an academic approach,
students will develop the ability to analyze the complexities
involved in applying the Buddha's ideal of the Fourfold Sangha in
the conventional world. Finally, students will learn about the
strategies women have adopted in order to pursue their renunciant
aspirations, in the context of challenges they have faced due to
gender bias.
This course offers a starting point for
further courses to be offered in subsequent semesters to continue
exploring the various themes within historical and modern topics on
Women in Buddhism.
The course will be held every Thursday from
17 April to 10 July, from 2.15 to 3.45 pm CET. The course consists
of 13 lectures and related coursework. Participants
are invited to register during the registration period (1st of
February to 15th March, 2014) following a link that will be made
available on the University‘s website, here:
http://www.buddhismuskunde.uni-hamburg.de/E-Learning-Bhikkhuni.course_bhikkhunis.0.html?&L=1.
Please visit the course’s
homepage for further details and
registration.