Blessings: Three Thousand Remarkable Buddhist Nuns

Published July 09, 2009 @ 11:50AM PT

When most westerners think about Tibeten Buddhism, they envision figures like the Dalai Lama and rows of bald-headed men dressed in yellow robes. It's not often that we hear about groups of women, especially from traditional cultures, who are accomplished spiritual practitioners.

That's why I was excited to come across this gorgeous trailer for the film "Blessings" (via Elephant Journal). I was really struck by the strength, beauty and dedication of these nuns and happy to discover that the filmmaker chose to explore Tibeten Buddhist culture through their eyes:

Blessings, which was produced by Chariot Videos, tells the story of three thousand nuns living in the remote nomadic region of Nangchen in Eastern Tibet who practice an ancient yogic tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Despite near extinction during the destruction of the Cultural Revolution, these women emerged to rebuild their monasteries by hand.

From Pundarika.org:

Nuns from both large and small nunneries in Nangchen speak about why they became nuns and what it is like to live a life dedicated to spiritual practice. Their stories of the suffering that prompted them to walk away from the security of traditional roles as wives and mothers and devote themselves to seeking liberation are vivid and universal.

You can purchase the DVD here and contribute to an endowment fund for the Nuns here: www.pundarika.org

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Comments (2)

Oh, goodness! Thank you! As a Buddhist who has considered ordaining, issues of sexism and heterosexism within Buddhist communities are of keen interest to me.

I stayed in Blue Cliff Monastery once, and everything was wonderful except for the outdated fact that nuns have to take way more precepts than men, and I wasn't a particular fan of the division of the sexes as someone who feels pretty genderless. But... other than that, the number of monks and nuns was about equal, and it was lovely to see the otherwise seamlessness of it all in terms of gender. Monks and nuns wear the same clothes and shave their heads... When I mention there are nuns or that I have thought about ordaining, people often do say, "There are nuns in Buddhism? I didn't realize that."

Therefore, this film is much appreciated. _/\_

Posted by Luella - on 07/10/2009 @ 07:06PM PT
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Intriguing.

Posted by Reverend Boony on 07/12/2009 @ 03:03AM PT
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Author

Dorothee Royal-Hedinger is a web video producer, blogger and experienced New Media Strategist specializing in nonprofit outreach. She is the founder and host of OrganicNation.tv and runs the video magazine Fresh Cut. She enjoys biking, guerrilla gardening and sustainable design. You can follow her on Twitter @DorotheeRH.