Burma at the Turn of the 21st Century

–3–Women’s Practices of Renunciation in the Age of Sāsana Revival

41 As a matter of fact, whoever wants to develop real Vipassanä-nana [insight knowledge gained through meditation] should first of all discard the notion of I, he, man, woman, i.e. the illusion of I, the illusion of Self to discern that they are merely material aggregates and mental aggregates. Then one has to go on contemplating so as to realise that these aggregates of mind and matter are of the nature impermanence, unsatisfactoriness and insubstantiality. Without differentiation into aggregates of mind and matter, if one were to contemplate on conventional concepts of ‘I am anicca [impermanence]; the object of offering is anicca; the recipient is anicca’, no real Insight Knowledge would be possible. —Mingun Sayadaw, The Great Chronicle of Buddhas Periodically in the infinite round of rebirths that is samsära,1 a buddha by virtue of his extraordinary efforts of purification over incalculable eons of time will discover and proclaim the dhamma, the liberating law. The teachings of buddhas are always the same. They illuminate for the world and the heavens the Four Noble Truths: the Noble Truth of suffering, the Noble Truth of the cessation of suffering, the Noble Truth of the causes of suffering, and the Noble Truth of the Eightfold Path leading to the eradication of suffering. The truth of the dhamma, acquired through a buddha’s own efforts and culminating in autoenlightenment, blazes brightly in the world for a period of time –3– Women’s Practices of Renunciation in the Age of ¯ Revival Ingrid Jordt before the knowledge is forgotten by men, women, and the gods, and the universe is once again cast into ignorance and darkness. Säsana (Burmese, thathana)2 is a Pali term denoting both the teachings of a buddha and the period of time during which a buddha’s teachings flourish in the world. After the death of a buddha, the sangha, the monastic order, protects and perpetuates these teachings. The sangha is invested with the task of assuring that the dhamma is transmitted as accurately as possible to each successive generation. Together with the buddha and dhamma, the sangha comprises the tiratana, or triple gem: the Enlightened One, the law proclaimed by him, and the community of holy disciples who live according to the law. The tiratana is the supreme refuge and object of veneration for persons seeking escape from suffering through their own arduous efforts. A buddha cannot save a person. He can only point the way out of the predicament of suffering by expounding upon three immutable truths: that everything changes (anicca), everything is without substance (anattä), and consequently that everything is unsatisfactory (dukkha). It is the task of the sangha to continue pointing the way after a buddha’s passing. They adhere to the buddha’s code of conduct (vinaya), learn and transmit the canonical teachings of the texts, and practice satipatthäna-vipassanä meditation—that they may realize for themselves the goal of the doctrine. While the vocational life of the “world renouncer” offers the most supportive environment for dhamma-striving, the teachings are intended for a universal audience. Yet not everyone has the opportunity to engage in dhamma-striving. Why some individuals have access and opportunity to renounce the world while others do not is explained in orthodox teachings in terms of merit (puñña) and päramï (moral perfections leading cumulatively to insight knowledge and enlightenment). Burmese orthodoxy holds that whereas at the time of Gotama Buddha3 tens of thousands of individuals had the päramï to meet with a buddha and realize the dhamma, today, midway through the säsana (predicted to last five thousand years) individuals are bereft of such refined moral perfection. The säsana is in decline. Concerns over whom the teachings are for, who the legitimate carriers of the Buddha’s message should be, and what opportunities are available for progressing along the Noble Eightfold Path are questions that confront practitioners of every historical period. Practice may be expressed in a wide variety of ways, and legitimation for these practices is to be traced back to the texts. A moral/spiritual hierarchy of purity and purification is reckoned relative to the distinction between ultimate (paramattha-sacca) and conventional (sammuti -sacca) realities. On the ultimate plane, morality cannot be seen—here one would find arahat[ship], or perfect sainthood, and the three lesser stages of sainthood (sotäpanna, sakadägämï, and anägämï). On the conventional 42 Ingrid Jordt [3.149.255...