Author: Christie Yu-Ling Chang
Council on International Educational Exchange and National Taiwan University

What happens when Buddhist women from different parts of the world come together? What do they talk about and what do they learn from each other? What is the significance and impact of cross-cultural exchanges among Buddhist women from Asia and the West?

For the past twenty years, Buddhist women from countries around the world have been gathering together to recover their own history and reevaluate their roles and potential in diverse Buddhist traditions. In the international Buddhist community, Sakyadhita International Association of Buddhist Women is well known for its work in organizing forums where Buddhist women gather for cultural enrichment and frank intellectual dialogue. Since 1987, Sakyadhita ("Daughters of the Buddha") has played a key role in creating solidarity among Buddhist women worldwide and has worked to initiate ecumenical and interfaith exchanges. Through a series of bi-annual conferences and continuing interpersonal exchanges, Buddhist women from various cultural and educational backgrounds have engaged in intensive dialogue and have established close networks of communications and friendship.

This paper traces the history of Sakyadhita and explores the significance of its work from both emic and ethic perspectives. Through personal narratives, textual analysis, and interviews, it discusses the activities and influence of this international Buddhist movement that has unified women from diverse backgrounds. It describes current conditions and disparities among Buddhist women around the world, the issues that concern them, and the projects and potential inspired by this grassroots organization. Finally, the paper explores future directions for Sakyadhita and the role Taiwanese Buddhist women can play in this groundbreaking movement.

A Brief History and Goals of Sakyadhita

"Twenty years ago, the subject of Buddhist nuns was simply not on most people's agenda, even with people of the Buddhist faith. In the early 1990s, when I first began traveling to raise awareness of the plight of nuns in the Tibetan tradition, many people confessed that up to that point they had not given a thought to the nuns, since all one heard about were monks. Today, that is no longer true. Everywhere, Buddhist nuns are finding their place and gradually gaining more confidence to raise their status, that is, the right to equal opportunities for Dharma studies and practice and the chance to realize their own intellectual and spiritual potentials.... Much of the credit for this movement to improve the

status of nuns must be attributed to the Sakyadhita organization...," wrote Bhiksuni Tenzin Palmo in the November 2007 issue of the Sakaydhita newsletter, which celebrates the 20th anniversary of Sakyadhita: the International Association of Buddhist Women. While the story of Bhiksuni Tenzin Palmo, told in a book entitled "Cave in the Snow," is fairly well known to most Buddhist communities in the world, especially those in Taiwan, Sakyadhita, the organization to which Bhiksuni Palmo has attributed much of the credit for a series of international Buddhist women's movements remains mostly in the background. How did Sakyadhita come into existence 20 years ago?

Sakyadhita, which means "daughters of the Buddha" in Sanskrit, is the fruit of the very 1st International Conference on Buddhist Nuns that took place in February, 1987, in Bodhgaya, India. The idea of holding this international conference on Buddhist nuns derived from the correspondences among three outstanding women, each having an extraordinary story of her own: Bhiksuni Dr. Karma Lekshe Tsomo (American in origin, the-key Sakyadhita conference organizer throughout the years), Bhiksuni Ayya Khema (German Jewish, ordained in the Theravada tradition), and Bhiksuni Dr. Dhammananda (Thai in origin and known as Dr. Chatsumarn Kabilsingh before her ordination in Sri Lanka in 2001). It was the very first international gathering of Buddhist nuns in the 2500 years of Buddhist history and it brought together Buddhist women who previously lived isolated lives in their own communities, without meeting Buddhists of other traditions. Although the focus of the first conference was on Buddhist nuns, as advocated by Ayya Khema because the situation of the nuns in the Tibetan and Theravada traditions was so pathetic at the time, the conference has always been inclusive since the first gathering. Everyone was invited to this first international conference on Buddhist nuns, regardless of gender, social status, or religious affiliation. At the end of the conference, "Sakyadhita," an international association of Buddhist women, was founded, and it was decided that a conference would be held every two years. Bhiksuni Dr. Karuna Dharma, who was one of the first American Buddhist women to receive full ordination, helped register Sakyadhita as a non-profit religious organization in California, USA.

Acknowledging that 99 percent of Buddhist women live in Asia and being conscious to maintain a balance between Asian and Western influences, Sakyadhita has subsequently held conferences basically in Asia, including Bangkok, Thailand (1991), Colombo, Sri Lanka (1993); Ladakh, India (1995); Phnom Penh, Cambodia (1997); Lumbini, Nepal (2000); Taipei, Taiwan (2002); Seoul, Korea (2004); and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (2006). Future conferences are being planned to take place in Mongolia (2008) and Vietnam (2010). In addition to international conferences, regional Sakyadhita conferences were also held in North America as well as in Germany, including Santa Barbara (1988), Claremont Graduate University (1998), Cologne (2000), and Smith College (2006), although the name of Sakyadhita did not occur explicitly in the various titles of these regional conferences. The First International Congress on Buddhist Women's Role in the Sangha, Bhikshuni Sangha and Ordination Lineages that took place in Hamburg, Germany this past July (2007) can be seen as another extension of the Sakyadhita conference, although the scale was overall larger and the theme was much more specific.

At the end of the 1987 conference in Bodhgaya, several objectives were set forth in the first Sakyadhita brochure:

• to promote world peace;
• to create an international network of communications among Buddhist women;
• to work in harmony with all Buddhist traditions and their Sang has;
• to conduct research into Vinaya texts of the different traditions;
• to provide guidance and assistance to Buddhist women aspiring to ordination; and
• to encourage and educate women as teachers of Buddhadharma. When the bylaws were revised in 1999, additional goals were added:
• to promote the physical and spiritual welfare of the world's Buddhist women;
• to promote interfaith dialogue;
• to encourage the development of Buddhist culture and education;
• to conduct research and prepare publications on topics of interest to Buddhist women;
• to support the preservation of Buddhist sacred sites;
• to encourage compassionate social action for the benefit of humanity; and
• to work toward an international Bhikshuni Sangha.

Additional concerns and endeavors of Sakyadhita that answer the needs of our time and the various cultural contexts Buddhist women live in can be found in the diversified themes and topics for discussions in all its conferences. For example, the conference themes for Malaysia two years ago, "Buddhist Women in a Global Multicultural Community", echoes the fast-paced trend of globalization and the multicultural and multilingual contexts of Malaysia. Likewise, the theme of the upcoming Sakyadhita gathering in Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia, "Buddhism in Transition: Tradition, Changes, and Challenges", not only addresses issues that are of interest and concern to Buddhist women in this time of rapid social change, but also echoes contemporary discussions in most Buddhist communities, academia, and the world community in general.

What's Sakyadhita Conference Like?

In accordance with the inclusive nature of Sakyadhita, the international conferences have always been inclusive and welcome participants regardless of gender, social status, or religious affiliation. Each conference involves all four groups of Buddhists (both ordained and lay members in both genders) as well as friends from other religions, although Buddhist nuns and laywomen generally outnumber monks and laymen throughout the years, and representative from other religions have been almost exclusively women. Participants come from all walks о life, bringing together Buddhist women practitioners, some of whom are well-educated an leading figures in their respective communities while some may have just started learning to read. Among them are university professors, researchers, social activists, housewives, singers, artists, etc. Participants generally come from 25 to 30 countries to engage in honest intellectually stimulating, and heartfelt discussions. Most people, including volunteers of al levels, pay their own registration fees, accommodations, and travel expenses. Funds are raised to help bring Buddhist women, lay or ordained, from underdeveloped countries, as an effort to create a truly egalitarian dialogue.
Basic conference program components include morning meditations, talks, group discussions, workshops, evening chanting, and cultural programs. Meditation is led by teachers from different Buddhist traditions every morning, so that one gets to experience meditations of various Buddhist traditions and cultures. During a Sakyadhita meditation session, one may find г Theravada meditation master practicing under the guidance of a Korean meditation master, for example. Talks take place in the form of academic panel presentations with interpretation into different languages (usually including English, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Tibetan, and Japanese). A list of themes is proposed (but always open to suggestions) in early summer before the conference and a call for abstracts is issued at the same time. Paper proposals are reviewed by the international conference planning committee and the notice of acceptance is usually given by the end of the year.

In addition to the more academic presentations (which are not necessarily theoretical, but also include reports by and updates on Buddhist women from around the world), one important feature of the Sakyadhita conference is group discussions. These are open and honest exchanges among conference participants on selected topics of interest and concern, which bring the participants into close communication regardless of language barriers. Starting in 2006, Sakyadhita introduced afternoon workshops at the conferences, which at once became very popular. Workshop topics vary depending on the availability of workshop leaders and are open to suggestions from interested members. Evening chanting, like morning meditation, is led by women from different Buddhist traditions everyday, so participants get to hear chanting from different traditions in different languages. Evening cultural performances are usually organized by the host country, so that participants get to learn more about the local culture. However, cultural programs may also be presented by participants from different parts of the world, such as Hawaiian hula, Korean drumming, South American flute ensemble, etc., which opens the eyes and ears of the participants to a culturally diverse world.

Sakyadhita conferences usually last from five to seven days. Those who are inexperienced with the Sakyadhita conferences sometimes think that the conference will be too long, but those who have the experience of participating know that five to seven days is "just right" or "not long enough." The opening ceremony on the first morning starts with Pali chanting, and then the Heart Sutra in 5 languages. At the closing ceremony on the last afternoon, thanks are expressed and the merits accumulated during the conference are dedicated to all sentient beings. That leaves only 3 to 5 full days for the conference program, with 2 or 3 days of temple tours following the conference. Time flies, due to the very stimulating talks and discussions, the very) peaceful and joyful meditation and chanting sessions, the very educational workshops, and the celebratory/engaging cultural programs. In addition to the full program, many participants stay till very late sharing experiences with one another. After attending many conferences, many lave developed strong bound of friendship and remain in close contact for years. Overall, in addition to offering an opportunity for intellectual and spiritual enrichment, the Sakyadhita conferences are full of fun and laughter. I personally find these conferences much more interesting that any others I have attended.

Truly Engaging Grassroots Global Network for Buddhist Women

When Lewis Lancaster, Professor Emeritus from UC Berkeley, talked about how modern technology has facilitated the networking of some grassroots’ Buddhist organizations in the world, he particularly mentioned Sakyadhita as an example. Indeed, when asked where the "headquarters" of this seemingly huge international organization is, frankly, my answer will be "in cyberspace." For sure, Sakyadhita has an earthly mailing address, but this snail address is only for the convenience of those who need to send in their memberships or limited donations. As a matter of fact, it is the address of one of the volunteers. For years, hard-working volunteers from various parts of the world have worked in the "virtual office" of the internet, communicating and planning conferences through voluminous emails. Not only does Sakydhita International have no central, physical office, but there has also never been any intention to spend funds on building one. Instead, all available funds are used for program costs that directly benefit Buddhist women, especially the less fortunate. Meanwhile, there have not really been many administrative costs either, because almost all those involved are volunteers. Only recently was a graphic designer engaged to help with publicity materials (and only because the expense involved was very reasonable). There is not even a readily available budget for conference costs. Each conference (except for Cambodia, where the cost of accommodations unexpectedly increased at the last moment), from the very first conference in Bodhgaya, began with zero assets and miraculously ended with a zero deficit. Some have interpreted this remarkable solvency as the blessings of the Buddhas.
Another feature that makes Sakyadhita a truly grassroots organization is the engaging process of planning each conference. The organization and planning process is both local and international - a collaborative effort between an international conference planning committee and a local conference planning committee. The local committee typically involves different groups of Buddhist women at the conference site, who may never have had a chance to interact with each other at all were it not for the Sakyadhita conference. Not all Buddhist groups would agree to this mode of cooperation, but Sakyadhita has insisted in power sharing and believes in the ideal of shared decision-making at all levels of the planning process. Through months of intensive email correspondences and limited face-to-face meetings, both committees work tirelessly to overcome all kinds of challenges and obstacles together, working with limited facilities and resources to make the conference possible. The conference planning process has always turned out a great learning experience for both sides, especially upon reflection, though not necessarily during the process. It is not an overstatement to say that the engaging, educational, and enlightening experience of the Sakyadhita conferences actually starts right from the first moment of the planning process.

To sum up, Sakyadhita has established a truly engaging global grassroots network of Buddhist women. As indicated by the fitting theme of the 7th Sakyadthia Conference in Taiwan in 2002, "Bridging Worlds," Sakyadhita has literally created bridges between women of many different worlds of experience. Through its bi-annual conferences planned in cyberspace, this global organization has brought together Buddhist women from east and west and has created a forum where scholars meet and interact with practitioners. The result is a rich learning experience for all involved. In one conference alone, participants are exposed to many different Buddhist traditions and many other world religions and philosophies. Participants get to experience the diversity of world cultures and see the possibilities of different lifestyle choices. Together, they become more aware of the issues and challenges facing their sisters and themselves, and are able to discuss solutions and ways to cooperate to help relieve the sufferings of the world. Recognizing the Dharma wisdom of causes and consequence, they have no fantasies about quick solutions, but Sakyadhita has created a platform where Buddhist women can share their insights and learn from each other. Together, they are continuing to network and work together for a brighter future.

Significance, Impacts and Influences from Sakyadhita Gatherings

The Sakyadhita conferences have had many significant results and have tremendously influenced many Buddhist women's lives. One of the initial goals for Sakyadhita was to create opportunities for full ordination for all Buddhist nuns and to (re-)establish the Bhiksuni lineage in traditions where it does not currently exist. Today, there are over 500 fully ordained Bhiksunis in Sri Lanka and there is a locally organized Sakyadhita [nuns] training center for nuns in Colombo, inspired by the Sakyadhita conferences. Although the Bhiksuni lineage is not yet successfully (re-)established in the Tibetan tradition, much progress has been made comparing to the situation 20 years ago. The awareness of the importance of having access to full ordination for Buddhist women is now high and even though there are still obstacles ahead, there are more and more highly qualified and respected female teachers in all Buddhist traditions. Therefore, I personally believe that gaining ordination opportunities for women in all Buddhist traditions is just a matter of time.

Other important consequences of the Sakyadhita conferences include a series oi publications on and/or by Buddhist women, genuine friendships, scholarship, international educational exchanges, and grassroots educational initiatives throughout the Sakyadhita network. A body of published scholarship as a result of the Sakyadhita conference includes: Sakyadhita: Daughters of the Buddha (1988); BuddhismThrough American Women's Eyes (1995); Sisters in Solitude: Two Traditions of Monastic Ethics for Women (1996); Buddhist Women Across Cultures: Realizations (1999); Innovative Buddhist Women: Swimming Against the Stream (2000); Buddhist Women and Social Justice: Ideals, Challenges, and Achievements (2004); Bridging Worlds: Buddhist Women's Voices across Generations (2004); and Out of the Shadows: Socially Engaged Buddhist Women (2006). An anthology based on the Sakyadhita conference in Malaysia, Buddhist Women in a Global Multicultural Community, will also appear soon.

For the first time over 2500 years, Buddhist women are recollecting their own history and finding their own voices in these publications as well as in the conferences, which have also in turn generated many innovative ideas for further scholarship, including two published Ph.D. dissertations on the Sakyadhita movement in Germany by Dr. Thea Moore and Dr. Rotraut Wurst and many active research agendas for the future. Scholars are finding different ways to do their research, combining their academic training with their other interests and integrating their academic goals with their spiritual practice. I believe this is why scholars have kept returning to the Sakyadhita conferences. All the scholars I have spoken to express positive views of the Sakydahita conferences. One mentioned that the Sakyadhita conferences have revitalized her passion and interest in research and redirected her path in the academia.

International educational exchanges among nuns and laywomen have been taking place without much acknowledgement. I am paying special attention to such exchanges because I am myself professionally involved in this field of study abroad. I was simply amazed to see the efficiency of such grassroots educational exchanges being organized. In addition to various grassroots educational projects that have been inspired and set up in the more remote areas like the Himalayas and Bangladesh, nuns from different parts of the world are being sponsored to study in India and Thailand through the Sakyadhita network. Through the same grassroots network, American college students have joined to teach on a variety of subjects, such as English, Math, Human Rights, AIDS, as well as Karate to nuns and village people in the Himalayas. In addition to the earlier network of women Buddhist teachers such as those listed in the Sakyadhita webpage, including many well-known figures in contemporary Buddhist world, Sakyadhita has continued to inspire, to nurture, and to network a new generation of female Buddhist teachers as well as future leaders from and for both East and West.

Another result of the Sakyadhita conferences is a possible new model for cross-cultural communications and interfaith dialogue. As mentioned, the planning process as well as the conference itself involves diversified cross-cultural communications on various levels. Such communications are by no means easy and oftentimes involve very complicated multilingual as well as multicultural misunderstandings. Fortunately, with the shared values and commitment to Dharma practice (and perhaps blessings from all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas as well), frustrations are usually soon overcome and common ground quickly found. As a linguist, I have found this communication process rather fascinating. Someday, I hope, I can conduct or encourage a full-length research project in this interesting and rich field of study.

In terms of interfaith dialogue, the Sakyadhita conferences have always been open to adherents of all faiths and philosophies. Protestant and Catholic Christians, Hindus, and Muslims have been the frequent participants over the years. One of my favorite Catholic sisters, who belongs to the Dominican order, is now one of the' most helpful members of a Buddhist nunnery in Hawai'i. Together with Bhiksuni Dr. Karma Lekshe Tsomo, this Catholic Sister conducted a workshop back in the conference in Malaysia 2006, which was entitled "Sister Acts." In this workshop, participants had a chance to share their interfaith experience, to learn and practice how harmonious interfaith dialogue can be made possible. At the opening ceremony of the 7th Sakyadhita conference in Taipei, a Muslim woman from Peru began the week's events with a call to prayer, as traditional in Islam. Together we shared the suffering and pain of being misunderstood that Muslims in the US and around the world experienced after 9/11 incident just before the conference. Together we shared our common goals and sincere wishes for a more peaceful world.

The Role of Taiwanese Buddhist Women

The involvement of Buddhist women from Taiwan in the Sakyadhita conferences can be traced back to Bhiksuni Shig Hiu-Wan, the internationally renowned Chinese Zen master and artist as well as founder of Huafan University in Taiwan, with whom Bhiksuni Dr. Karma Lekshe Tsomo, the key leader of Sakyadhita, had studied after taking her full ordination in Taiwan back in 1982. The late Ven. Hiu-Wan sent delegates to the 1st conference in Bodhgaya and personally attended the 2nd Sakyadhita conference in Bangkok. As a matter of fact, Dr. Tsomo has continuously emphasized the inspiration she received from the training by Bhiksuni Shig Hiu-Wan. "When I arrived at Yungmingshan, for the first time, I found myself under the spiritual guidance of a female master, the wise and compassionate bhiksuni master Ven. Shig Hiu Wan. This opportunity to train with the master was a formative experience that shaped my character and all the work I have done since that time." In the same talk, Dr. Tsomo continued to say, "The conference concept that Shihfu pioneered became a model for the Sakyadhita International Conferences on Buddhist Women that I have helped coordinate since 1987, conferences that have brought thousands of Buddhist women together from all t around the globe."

It was due to this connection that the 7th Sakyadhita conference 2002 in Taiwan was held at Huafan University, with full moral support and only minimum accommodation cleaning charges. The conference theme, "Bridging Worlds", was beautifully matched by one of the paintings by Bhiksuni Shig Hiu-Wan, in which a laywoman stands on a bridge, ready to pass from one side to the other, sharing, and spreading the wisdom of Buddhadharma. The very high level of education and all the wonderful achievements of the Taiwanese Buddhist women, lay and ordained, have been made well-known to the world. Their contributions to the local community as well as to the world in general are much appreciated and they are considered models by many Buddhist women outside of Taiwan. It is almost instinctual (to me, at least) that there must be something, be it experiences, ideas, and/or resources, that these outstanding, hardworking, and most generous Taiwanese Buddhist women can certainly share with their Buddhist sisters in less privileged conditions through the Sakyadhita network. However, to a great extent, the tremendous potential of Taiwanese Buddhist women have remained "hidden treasures" in this series of International Buddhist women's movement initiated by and through Sakyadhita. Despite much hope and high expectations, the number of Taiwanese Buddhist women involved in Sakyadhita remains small. To increase these numbers has continuously been a personal research agenda for me. Hopefully the puzzle of their reticence to participate internationally will soon be solved. Hopefully more and more Taiwanese Buddhist women will be able to develop their enormous potential through this international network in the near future and become more visible role models for women on the world stage.

The Future of Sakyadhita

What does the future hold for Sakyadhita? What are the organization's possible future directions? We may explore this question from various perspectives. In terms of its early goals, we have seen that the Bhiksuni lineage has been restored in Sri Lanka but is yet to be (re-) established in the Tibetan tradition, Burma, Cambodia, Laos, and Thailand. Therefore, the Bhiksuni lineage is definitely an important objective remaining in the agenda of Sakyadhita. The goal of establishing an international Bhiksuni Sangha was added to the revised bylaws of 1999 as a result of the growing interests expressed mostly by Asian nuns. The results of a recent survey on western nuns also indicate a strong interest in having such an international Bhiksuni sangha, and with the growing network of Buddhist nuns from 30 countries through the Sakyadhita network, we can almost certainly foresee the establishment of such a Sangha.

In terms of organizational development, since expansion has never been the intention of Sakyadhita, establishing branches was never a Sakyadhita priority in previous years. Sakyadhita branches in Sri Lanka and Salcyadhita Singapore, have accomplished great things, but they have pretty much done so on their own. Nevertheless, due to the growing requests to help start Sakyadhita branches in order to facilitate networking among Buddhist women in local regions, official Sakyadhita branch and chapter guidelines have been drafted, not with an idea to expand and with absolutely no interest in patriarchal or hierarchical structures and power dynamics. Instead, alternative ways of organizing are being explored, and the branch and chapter guide will help Buddhist women organize locally so as to focus on local needs with more efficiency. National and local Sakyadhita branches will also help Buddhist women from the same countries and localities fulfill their potential and enable them to reach out and network with sisters from around the world, who share similar interests and/or concerns. With the establishment of local branches and chapters, the vision of Sakyadhita remains unchanged, that is to inspire, to educate, and to empower Buddhist women so as to help them engage in compassionate social change.

To conclude, I would like to quote a vision statement by Ven. Dr. Karma Lekshe Tsomo emerged spontaneously while waiting for flight last June while planning the upcoming Sakyadhita conference in Mongolia. This short but powerful vision statement goes: "Meditating for Peace, Working for Peace". If there are 300 million Buddhist women in the world (and there may be more if we are to include those in China and North Korea), as Ven. Dr. Tsomo repeatedly points out, "this represents a powerful force for good in the world." "Buddhist women are already committed to peace, honesty, compassion, and positive human values. If all these women unite their efforts for compassionate social action, they can be a major force for global transformation." May the genuine efforts of Buddhist women help relieve sufferings of this sweepingly insane world.