Buddha's teachings for the enlightenment of true self are imparted to both men and women without any distinction of sex, as both were considered to have equal spiritual capabilities. Vinaya Pitaka of Pali canon bears testimony to the fact that Lord Buddha himself said that a woman can attain enlightenment, the Buddhahood. According to Lotus Sutra, a woman who embraces this Sutra, not only excels all other women but surpasses all men. Earlier, female followers of Lord Buddha were not allowed to enroll in the Sanghas, which were predominantly meant for male Bhikkus as it was thought that they might get distracted from their spiritual goals in the company of women. However, later, at the request of ardent female followers, Lord Buddha permitted women to join the monastic community as Bhikkhunis and allowed them to preach the Dhamma along with their male counterparts.



Women in Buddhist Literature, Kaushalya Gupta, Authorspress, Paperback, 214 pages, $20.00

Dr Kaushalya Gupta, (b. 1929) is former professor, Department of Sanskrit, Miranda House, University of Delhi. She has published a number of articles in leading journals. She has participated in many National and International conferences. Her doctoral thesis is on Women in Buddhism. In 2004 she was awarded Sanskrit Sewa Samman by Sanskrit Akademi. She was also contributed in the research of "Plants in Sanskrit Literature". Currently she is engaged in writing poetry in Hindi. Some of them Alok Sparsh, Man Batayan etc have been published.