Women's Role In Hinduism And Buddhism

The roles of women through the customs of both Hinduism and Buddhism have been a pivotal part in achieving universalization between the orders. Some considered women as obstacles in their goals, while others worshipped them as goddesses. Within Hinduism’s quest for Moksha, and Buddhism’s quest to attain Nirvana, women were acting to gain equality as practitioners of their chosen religion. In a dominion primarily controlled by men, one must wonder how exactly women dealt with the limitations in their social circles, and what these limitations might be. In Hinduism, women held high positions as wives and mothers. According to the religion, home was the center of worship and God blessed the family as a collective, which made women vital
If a mother honors her role through her life, she is able to command a great deal of honor and respect. The purpose of the mother, as well as the father, is to persuade her children to move away from an evil path and to instead have them do good; to educate them properly, and to marry them when the time comes. As a wife, she must support her husband at all times. (Kariyawasam N.D.). Through Vajrayana Buddhism, Buddhism is a combination of the universe in the forms of duality; forms of both men and women. Prajna is known as the feminine form, and encompasses the infinite space that is emptiness encompassing the wisdom of the world made manifest. Karuna is the Masculine principle, encompassing form, activity, and compassion. Vajrayana Buddhism believe that the body symbolizes a vehicle through which one may achieve Nirvana. Due to this, females are often revered and treated as a goddess (Ellwood & McGraw P. 151). Similarly, in Tantric Buddhism, the goal is to pass through archaic ideas and go beyond the prejudice of women, instead worshipping them. The purpose being that doing so would provide the “surest path to enlightenment”. (Ellwood & McGraw P. 152). Women also have the ability to become nuns, lay-women, yoginis, and tantrikas. who are full-time practitioners and travel to teach the Tantric way to both men and women. (Ellwood & McGraw P. 152). Despite the
Rita Gross, for instance, has made several arguments that attack the negative outlook towards women from Buddhist culture. Buddhism has argued that equal rights for women in the religion can be looked at as being attached to the social problems of the world, which in effect directly negates the purpose of Buddhism. Ultimately, this has created a “catch 22” where women fighting for equal rights is considered as attached, but on the other hand, men fighting to keep the power of gender hierarchy intact can also be considered as being attached. (Ellwood & McGraw P. 154). In the end, women of the Buddhist religion accept their births and believe their circumstances to be of the natural order of existence rather than the power between women and men. (Ellwood & McGraw P.