The Convent: Social Life
The general level of education among the subjects of the biographies
suggests an upper-class origin for many of them, and for some the
biography explicitly states that the women had received their education
at home, such as Tao-ch'iung (no. 17), of whom it is written,
"When she was a little more than ten years old she was already well
educated in the classics and history, and after her full admission to the
monastic assembly she became learned in the Buddhist writings as
well. . . ."
Another indication of upper-class background is that frequently the
woman's family name and original place of residence, and at times
even the official positions of male ancestors, are known. The woman's
easy concourse with high government officials, nobility, and members
of the royal family, including the emperors themselves, also suggests
that they were moving among their own kind. Very frequently ladies
of high social standing visited the nuns or were visited by them. Those
who could afford it often held a vegetarian feast in honor of the nun.
This contrasts vividly with the Kao seng chuan, wherein the origin of
the monks is very frequently unknown.[29] Many boys of obscure background
are to be found reaping honors and fame that they could
scarcely have imagined, thanks to the preservation of the record of
their lives.
The influence of the teaching and preaching nuns spread the word
of the Buddha far and wide (no. 35), their sincerity bringing forth
a response from hundreds. One nun often wept as she implored her
listeners to take up the religion of the Buddha (no. 4). Nuns who
dared to chastise laymen in a public place (no. 4) were honored.
This indicates that nuns taught and preached effectively. Some
nuns were so famous that the world came to them to hear the word
(no. 61).
Eight major convents in the capital account for over half the biographies,
and the lineages can be traced through several generations. Pao-ch'ang
probably knew some of the women in person, or he had access
to very recent records and memories because of his own presence in
the capital.
With famous nuns as the subjects of the biographies, we are not
able to find a picture of an ordinary nun living an ordinary life in the
convent, without noble visitors, without doing anything to bring
attention to herelf. This is a pity because our picture of the religious
heroines becomes the image we remember, and we forget that for
every famous nun there was an unknown number of unknown nuns of
ordinary standing. We cannot see them.
[29]
Zürcher, Buddhist Conquest, p. 7.
