Article by Beata Grant (2008) : Da Zhangfu: The Gendered Rhetoric of Heroism and Equality in Seventeenth-Century Chan Buddhist Discourse Records

ABSTRACT

This article looks at some of the different ways in which the use of the term “da zhangfu” or “great gentleman” is exercised in the writings of seventeenth-century Buddhist monks and laymen in reference to religious women. These uses reflect a wide range of opinion on the question of whether or not women had the strength and determination to embark on the Chan Buddhist path of spiritual training The attitudes expressed by these male writers range from undisguised disapproval to qualified skepticism to wholehearted support and admiration, Regarded as a whole, they reflect the ongoing ambivalence towards religious women as well as the unquestionable changes in attitude, that marked the seventeenth-century.

From Nan Nü 10 (2008) 177-211

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Some here will know the name Beata Grant already. She translated the excellent Zen Echoes: Classic Koans with Verse Commentaries by Three Female Zen Masters, 2017

Submitted July 12, 2020 at 05:16PM by grass_skirt https://ift.tt/3fmZRlF