"A long overdue corrective to the androcentric scholarship that has ignored Zen nuns' importance.... This very readable book is ideal for classroom use."-Religious Studies Review "Arai's sensitive first-hand account is at times emotional, but the reflexive recollections that derive from her personal experiences and interactions with the nuns are insightful and well documented....the book is valuable in providing us with a different mode of appreciation in order to understand the position of women living in [an]other religious and cultural context."--Japanese Journal of Religious Studies "This is an anthropological study, carried out with love, care, and attention to detail...By the end of the journey, readers will find themselves moved, their humanity reassured and refreshed."--Journal of Asian Studies In this study, based on both historical evidence and ethnographic data, Paula Arai shows that nuns were central agents in the foundation of Buddhism in Japan in the sixth century. They were active participants in the Soto Zen sect, and have continued to contribute to the advancement of the sect to the present day. Drawing on her fieldwork among Soto nuns, Arai demonstrates that the lives of many of these women embody classical Buddhist ideals. They have chosen to lead a strictly disciplined monastic life instead of pursuing careers or leading an unconstrained contemporary secular lifestyle. In this, and other respects, they can be shown to stand in stark contrast to their male counterparts.

About the Author
Paula Arai is associate professor of Asian religions at Louisiana State University. Her research interests include Japanese Buddhist rituals, arts, and practices; women's experiences and contributions; and healing. Her primary research is based on anthropological fieldwork in Japan and has been supported by Fulbright, American Council of Learned Societies, Mellon Foundation, and the Reischauer Institute of Harvard University. In addition to numerous articles and chapters in edited volumes, Arai is also the author of Bringing Zen Home: The Healing Heart of Japanese Women's Rituals.

Reviews
...a long overdue corrective to the androcentric scholarship that has ignored Zen nuns' importance.... This very readable book is ideal for classroom use. * Religious Studies Review *
...a long overdue corrective to the androcentric scholarship that has ignored Zen nuns' importance.... This very readable book is ideal for classroom use. * Religious Studies Review *
A long overdue corrective to the androcentric scholarship that has ignored Zen nuns' importance . . . This very readable book is ideal for classroom use. * Religious Studies Review *
Arai's sensitive first-hand account is at times emotional, but the reflexive recollections that derive from her personal experiences and interactions with the nuns are insightful and well documented....the book is valuable in providing us with a different mode of appreciation in order to understand the position of women living in another religious and cultural context. * Japanese Journal of Religious Studies *
This is an anthropological study, carried out with love, care, and attention to detail...By the end of the journey, readers will find themselves moved, their humanity reassured and refreshed. * Journal of Asian Studies *



Book Information
ISBN 9780199928682
Author Paula Kane Robinson Arai
Format Paperback
Page Count 268
Imprint Oxford University Press Inc
Publisher Oxford University Press Inc
Weight(grams) 376g
Dimensions(mm) 234mm * 156mm * 14mm