The Convent: Social Life
The general level of education among the subjects
of the biographies suggests an upper-class origin for many of them, and for
some the biography explicitly states that the women had received their
education at home, such as Tao-ch'iung (no. 17), of whom it is written, "When
she was a little more than ten years old she was already well educated in the
classics and history, and after her full admission to the monastic assembly she
became learned in the Buddhist writings as well. . . ."
Another indication of upper-class background is
that frequently the woman's family name and original place of residence, and at
times even the official positions of male ancestors, are known. The woman's
easy concourse with high government officials, nobility, and members of the
royal family, including the emperors themselves, also suggests that they were
moving among their own kind. Very frequently ladies of high social standing
visited the nuns or were visited by them. Those who could afford it often held
a vegetarian feast in honor of the nun. This contrasts vividly with the
Kao seng chuan, wherein the origin of the monks is very
frequently unknown.
29 Many boys of obscure
background are to be found reaping honors and fame that they could scarcely
have imagined, thanks to the preservation of the record of their lives.
The influence of the teaching and preaching nuns
spread the word of the Buddha far and wide (no. 35), their sincerity bringing
forth a response from hundreds. One nun often wept as she implored her
listeners to take up the religion of the Buddha (no. 4). Nuns who dared to
chastise laymen in a public place (no. 4) were honored. This indicates that
nuns taught and preached effectively. Some nuns were so famous that the world
came to them to hear the word (no. 61).
Eight major convents in the capital account for
over half the biographies, and the lineages can be traced through several
generations. Pao-ch'ang probably knew some of the women in person, or he had
access to very recent records and memories because of his own presence in the
capital.
With famous nuns as the subjects of the
biographies, we are not able to find a picture of an ordinary nun living an
ordinary life in the convent, without noble visitors, without doing anything to
bring attention to herelf. This is a pity because our picture of the religious
heroines becomes the image we remember, and we forget that for every famous nun
there was an unknown number of unknown nuns of ordinary standing. We cannot see
them.
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