Full ordination for women
43 Following in the Buddha's Footsteps
Venerable Thubten Chodron 
Volume 4 Following in the Buddha's Footsteps 
Feb 21, 2025 Part of an ongoing series of teachings based on the book Following in the Buddha's Footsteps, the fourth volume in The Library of Wisdom and Compassion series by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Venerable Thubten Chodron.
- Vinaya and different levels of ordination for men and women
- Lineage of full ordination in Tibet, Sri Lanka, China and Taiwan
- Dual ordination
- Bhikshuni ordination in Taiwan, China, Korea, Vietnam, Sri Lanka and Thailand
- Understanding the authenticity of an ordination is complex
- Challenges and suggestion for bhiksuni ordination in Tibetan tradition
- Pratimoksha precepts
- Three ceremonies monastic community perform regularly
- Better education for nuns and some nuns becoming meshes
- Bodhisattva and tantric ethical codes
43 Full Ordination for Women (download)
Contemplation points
- What are some of the challenges experienced by female monastics?
- What opportunities are starting to open up for female monastics that weren’t available before?
- Spend some time considering: How would you feel if you had a sincere aspiration to ordain but someone told you that you could not because of your gender?
- What can you do to foster gender equality in society and in the sangha?
Venerable Thubten Chodron
Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.
