Mae ji
Encyclopedia
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
occupying a position somewhere between that of an ordinary lay follower and an ordained monk. It is illegal for women to take ordination in Thailand. And they are expected to work essentially as maids to ordained monks, rather than receiving training and the opportunity to practice. Mae ji have traditionally been and still are marginalized figures in Thai society. During the 20th Century, new movements to improve the lot of mae ji but the situation is still far from being acceptable under modern standards of human rights. The Bhikkhuni lineage is being introduced by Venerable Dhammananda
Dhammananda Bhikkhuni
Chatsumarn Kabilsingh , ordained Bhikkhuni Dhammananda, is a Thai Buddhist nun. On February 28, 2003, Kabilsingh received full bhikkhuni ordination in Sri Lanka making her the first Thai woman to receive full ordination as a Theravada nun in Dharmaguptaka ordination lineage...
, but oppositions from the high-ranking Thai monks seems to have discouraged mae ji from joining her.
Overview
Because the bhikkhuni sanghaSangha
Sangha is a word in Pali or Sanskrit that can be translated roughly as "association" or "assembly," "company" or "community" with common goal, vision or purpose...
(the order of ordained Buddhist nuns) was never established in Thailand, women have traditionally been denied the chance to become ordained members of the Buddhist clergy. Instead, for several centuries Thai women have chosen to live as mae ji, taking the eight precepts and living either in monasteries or in dedicated communities of female renunciants. Temporary mae ji (who typically do not shave their heads) are called ji brahmin (RTGS
Royal Thai General System of Transcription
The Royal Thai General System of Transcription is the official system for rendering Thai language words in the Latin alphabet, published by the Royal Institute of Thailand...
:chi phram) .
Like monks, mae ji shave their heads and undertake precepts not generally observed by lay followers. This is the eight precepts. Mae ji most commonly receive these precepts from a monk, but there is little in the way of a formal ordination ceremony for most mae ji. Mae ji wear white robes in their daily lives, distinguishing them from both monks and other lay people. Mae ji are not technically members of the clergy, and are not recognized as such by the Thai government. While the male sangha has traditionally received considerable oversight and assistance from various government ministries, only in the 20th Century did the Thai sangha begin to take an organized role in providing for the needs of mae ji. An institute now attempts to roughly track the number of mae ji in the country, and provides funds that can be used to provide educational opportunities to mae ji. The amount per person spent on supporting mae ji by the government is significantly less than the amount spent on monks. Likewise, the mae ji do not receive certain perks (such as free passage on public transportation) that are offered to monks. Conversely, mae ji—like monks—are forbidden from voting or standing for civil elections in Thailand.
In addition, mae ji have traditionally not enjoyed the same level of support given to monks by the Thai laity. Because the mae ji have no special position as described in the Tipitaka (they are simply seen as being lay women), gifts given to a mae ji are not seen as bringing merit to the donor in the manner of gifts given to a monk. As most Thais are unfamiliar with the history of the Theravada
Theravada
Theravada ; literally, "the Teaching of the Elders" or "the Ancient Teaching", is the oldest surviving Buddhist school. It was founded in India...
bhikkhuni sangha, many Thais believe that the Buddha
Gautama Buddha
Siddhārtha Gautama was a spiritual teacher from the Indian subcontinent, on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. In most Buddhist traditions, he is regarded as the Supreme Buddha Siddhārtha Gautama (Sanskrit: सिद्धार्थ गौतम; Pali: Siddhattha Gotama) was a spiritual teacher from the Indian...
did not intend for women to follow a religious vocation. Others may believe that women have become mae ji only due to an inability to find a husband, or other personal and family problems.
Most mae ji live on the premise of a temple. The temple may provide daily meals for these mae ji in addition to lodgings, but in general mae ji are expected to provide for themselves, through support from relatives. Most mae ji essentially act as servants or staff for the temple, cooking and cleaning for the monks and overseeing the sale of incense and other offerings to visitors to the temple.
Smaller numbers of mae ji live in their own communities, which may or may not be associated with a local monastery. Women in these communities often experience better conditions than women living in traditional monasteries. The separation of the male and female renunciants helps discourage the mae ji being used as servants by monks and temple staff.
History
The exact derivation of the term 'mae ji' is not known. Several possible etymologies have been suggested, relating 'mae ji' either to SanskritSanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
or Sinhala terms for renunciants, morality, or other positive qualities. The word ji is occasionally used in the Thai language to refer either to Buddhist monks, or to ordained followers of other traditions, such as Brahmanist priests or Jain
Jainism
Jainism is an Indian religion that prescribes a path of non-violence towards all living beings. Its philosophy and practice emphasize the necessity of self-effort to move the soul towards divine consciousness and liberation. Any soul that has conquered its own inner enemies and achieved the state...
monks.
Historically, little is known about the status and lives of mae ji prior to Western contact with the kingdoms that preceded the modern state of Thailand. European observers in the 17th Century reported seeing white robed, shaven-headed women who lived on the grounds of Buddhist temples. Most of these women were reported to be advanced in years, possibly indicating that life as a mae ji may have served as a sort of retirement plan for older women who did not have families to provide for them. Records from prior to this time do not explicitly mention mae ji in Thailand; it is likely that some records were lost in the destruction of the Ayutthaya Kingdom
Ayutthaya kingdom
Ayutthaya was a Siamese kingdom that existed from 1350 to 1767. Ayutthaya was friendly towards foreign traders, including the Chinese, Vietnamese , Indians, Japanese and Persians, and later the Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch and French, permitting them to set up villages outside the walls of the...
in the 18th Century. The marginalization of the mae ji in Thai society may also play a role in their exclusion from the historical record.
In 1969, the first nation-wide meeting of mae ji was organized by the Sangharaja
Supreme Patriarch of Thailand
The Supreme Patriarch or Sangharaja is the head of the order of Buddhist monks in Thailand. The position is formally appointed by the King of Thailand, although the actual selection is made by senior clergymen...
. During the same year, the Thai Institute of Mae Ji was formed to organize mae ji scattered throughout Thailand. The institute seeks to improve conditions for mae ji by providing better access to education, and screening and placing potential mae ji. The Institution also seeks to ensure that all mae ji possess basic knowledge of Buddhist teachings and proper monastic behavior. The Institute has also attempted to discourage mae ji from begging for alms Instead, older mae ji (who are particularly at risk for poverty) and increasingly placed in old-age homes.
Other female Buddhist orders in Thailand
Despite the absence of a full bhikkhuni ordination in Thailand, a number of other groups of female renunciants emerged in Thai society during the 20th Century. The buddha-savikas are a very small organization of women who have received ordination from the TaiwanTaiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
ese lineage. The sikhamats were female renunciants ordained in the controversial Santi Asoke
Santi Asoke
The Santi Asoke literally Peaceful Asoke) sect of Theravada Buddhism was established by a former television entertainer and songwriter Phra Bodhirak after he "declared independence from the Ecclesiastical Council in 1975"...
movement. They lived a communal life, kept a strict vegetarian diet, and at
attempted to be self-supporting through organic farming and daily manual labor.
See also
- AnagarikaAnagarikaIn Theravada Buddhism, an anagarika is a person who has given up most or all of his worldly possessions and responsibilities to commit fulltime to Buddhist practice. It is a midway status between monk and layperson where one takes on the Eight Precepts for the entire anagarika period, which could...
- BhikkhuniBhikkhuniA bhikkhuni or bhikṣuṇī is a fully ordained female Buddhist monastic. Male monastics are called bhikkhus. Both bhikkhunis and bhikkhus live by the vinaya...
- dasa sil mataDasa sil mataA dasa sil mata is a Buddhist eight or ten precept-holder laywoman in Sri Lanka, where the newly re-established bhikkhuni lineage is not officially recognized yet. Dasa sil matas' status is between an ordinary lay follower and a fully ordained bhikkhuni...
(sil maniyo)- Literally '10 precept mother'. Female lay renunciants in Sri LankaSri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
. - ThilashinThilashinA Thilashin is a Burmese Buddhist female lay renunciant. They are often mistakenly referred to as nuns, but are closest to Samaneri.They, like the Mae ji of neighbouring Thailand and the dasa sil mata of Sri Lanka, occupy a position somewhere between that of an ordinary lay follower and an...
- Literally 'possessor of moral integrity'. Female lay renunciants in MyanmarMyanmarBurma , officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar , is a country in Southeast Asia. Burma is bordered by China on the northeast, Laos on the east, Thailand on the southeast, Bangladesh on the west, India on the northwest, the Bay of Bengal to the southwest, and the Andaman Sea on the south....
. A branch of this lineage was also brought to NepalNepalNepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
in the 1930s. - SiladharaSiladharaSiladharas are an order of Theravadin Buddhist nuns in the Thai Forest Tradition. The order, in modern times, exists at Amaravati Buddhist Monastery and Chithurst Buddhist Monastery in England, but originated centuries ago, in India and Sri Lanka...
s - Order of Theravadin Buddhist nuns at Amaravati Buddhist MonasteryAmaravati Buddhist MonasteryAmaravati is a Theravadin Buddhist monastery at the eastern end of the Chiltern Hills in south east England. The centre, in practice as much for ordinary people as for monastics, is inspired by the Thai forest tradition and the teachings of the late Ajahn Chah....
, UK. They follow the basic 10 precepts, plus a selection of rules from the bhikkhuniBhikkhuniA bhikkhuni or bhikṣuṇī is a fully ordained female Buddhist monastic. Male monastics are called bhikkhus. Both bhikkhunis and bhikkhus live by the vinaya...
patimokkha. - SamaneraSamaneraA samanera ) may be translated as novice monk in a Buddhist context. The literal meaning is 'small samana', that is, small renunciate where 'small' has the meaning of boy or girl. In the Vinaya monastic discipline, a man under the age of 20 cannot ordain as a bhikkhu, but can ordain as a samanera...
- SamaneriSamaneriA samaneri is a novice Buddhist nun, who lives according to the ten precepts. Male novices are called samaneras. A woman is to be ordained, according to Theravada tradition, by both a monk and a nun, first as a samaneri. After a year or at the age of 20, she will be ordained as a full bhikkhuni....
- Temple boyTemple boyA temple boy is a boy in Thailand who lives in a Buddhist monastery and assists monks.The temple boys carry the alms bowls of the monks during the morning alms collection, and subsequently prepare the monks’ food before eating the left-overs themselves. They follow the ten precepts...