Misandry and Mahayana

I read something by Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche a pick day which unequivocally set me to thinking. He wrote a simple though compelling account of his mother, Mayum Kunsang Dechen, late join of a late Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche. In a course of his narrative, he mentioned a following story:"... a immature American lady came to Nepal a couple of years ago. She was meddlesome in a Dharma, though she didn't wish to take retreat with a masculine Lama. She longed for a womanlike teacher. She favourite my mom as good as went to her many times asking if she could take retreat with her, though my mom said, 'No, this is not a proper way. You should go as good as see this Lama, which Lama.' The American girl said, 'If we won't give me refuge, we will not take retreat during all.' So my mom gave her retreat as good as teachings. In those days, a American girl was quite immature as good as it seemed to me which she was we do a little kind of use afterwards. She has returned to America, so we do not know what she's we do these days."The story is distressing, though not uncommon. We have all seen as good as listened of similar situations. we personally listened a Western woman, who earnestly felt herself to be a scrupulously consecrated nun, assert which she would leave Buddhism if she was forced to take instructions from a man.
For a little reason, it seems such meditative began to arise in a 1980s -- presumably as a tusk of Western feminism, presumably from pick factors -- as good as it continues to a present day. Incredibly, there was once even a little arrange of backlash against Guru Rinpoche, when a series of women sought to equivocate visualizing him, as good as actually removed his picture from their altars! This, as good as things like this, stirred Gyaltrul Rinpoche to comment:"Maybe a little of ! we women might prefer to focus upon a womanlike lama, though we needn't worry since a primordial wisdom being, such as Guru Rinpoche, is of both sexes. There's positively no distinction: he is lama, yidam, as good as dakini."I do not intend to be critical, though we simply do not assimilate how misandry as good as Mahayana have been supposed to fit. Are we professing to adhere to a particular faith, as good as afterwards rught away bending which faith to fit your neuroses? Are we receiving retreat in a Buddha, Dharma, as good as Sangha for a benefit of all sentient beings only so prolonged as no group have been involved?
Surely, we commend which in a context of a Great Vehicle, yours might be a minority view?
In a West, gender issues in a context of sangha have been sticky. Really sticky. For example: we have a little Western womanlike commentators -- a little of them style themselves as gurus -- who stress gender issues to a indicate of featuring them, as good as engage in all sorts of hyperbole about "empowering dakinis," or "roaring" about this as good as that.

Dakinis have been already empowered, as good as we unequivocally should stop a resounding prolonged enough to hear their roaring.

Some of these putative teachers explain all which befalls them is in result of their status as women, i.e., if we remonstrate with them, we remonstrate "because they have been women." Of course, they gather like-minded individuals, as good as parent a good deal of rhetoric about their particular "lineage." We even have a example of authorization sanghas based upon pick sexual preferences. Over time, this becomes a form of sectarianism -- zero more, zero less -- as good as which is something we need to really delicately examine. The Dalai Lama writes:"It is sometimes pronounced which a vital cause of a decline of Buddhism in India 8 hundred years ago was a use of Vajrayana by unqualified people, as good as sectarianism caused by corruption wit! hin a Sangha. Anyone training Tibetan Buddhism should keep this in thoughts when they impute to a precept, 'every action of a guru is to be seen as perfect.' This is an intensely dangerous teaching, particularly for beginners."Women do not -- as good as let me repeat: do not -- need to feel disenfranchised or oppressed in or by Tibetan Buddhism. The initial Tibetan to grasp enlightenment following a teachings was in fact a woman: Yeshe Tsogyal. There have been countless instances of highly realized womanlike teachers as good as practitioners ever since -- distant some-more than many people comprehend -- so, we can contend a trail has been good as good as truly blazed.

Misandry -- contempt of group -- together with misogyny -- contempt of women -- have been zero some-more than gender-specific expressions of misanthropy -- loathing of tellurian beings. Since this is a really opposite of Buddhism, because should we give any voice during all to such thinking? Why should we pay this any attention, or give it any ground? Isn't this something we should try to overcome?

Really, this is self loathing -- an additional facet of a ego distracted out of control.

I suppose there have been numbers of women who might stop me during this indicate as good as say, "this isn't loathing of men, this is only a simple preference," as good as which is good within anyone's right to so state. However, welfare innate of attachment as good as aversion is only an additional reason to suffer, only an additional reason for things to go wrong, only an additional reason to fail. If we wish to have Buddhism a transfer belligerent for malfunctioning appreciation of your tangible status as a valuable tellurian between pick humans -- or let me say, as an typical sentient being between pick sentient beings -- afterwards we do not cruise we will be really successful.

In my own life, we have had a good happening of assembly really good masculine teachers, as good as we have also enc! ountered really good womanlike teachers. When we met them, their gender was positively insignificant to a knowledge of their teaching. You know, when we see kindness as good as energetic wisdom in a single place during a single time, it is like seeing a sun. You do not stop to think, "Is this male? Is this female?"

Similarly, we have been many times to hospital, as good as many times quite ill. When we was during a hospital, we had womanlike nurses, masculine nurses, womanlike doctors, as good as masculine doctors. When we was all crushed up, or unequivocally really sick, we did not stop to cruise a issue of gender during all. These were caring people who were trying to help me in a formidable situation. You know, if somebody gives we medicine, we should be grateful. Is it appropriate to refuse a medicine, saying, "Oh! we will not take this disinfectant unless a lady gives it to me!" or, do we only take a disinfectant as good as get well?

We bring enough baggage to Buddhism as it is. We unequivocally do. We do not need to manufacture issues, or cater to passing issues, or lead a assign up a mountain to kill a windmill.

Our shared sacrament -- if we wish to cruise about it which approach -- is fundamentally about love.

No strings attached.

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