Hello everyone,
Today I would like to write about a recently published book on the Theravada Buddhist Nuns in Australia, Onya Nun! by Roy Sneddon PhD.
I have been reading the book and will finish soon. I would like to invite you to read this because the core subject is Bhikkhunis, and it is also closely related to the Early Buddhism, which is the main focus on the SuttaCentral Discuss & Discover. As you know the Buddha specifically talked about fourfold Sangha, again and again. In addition, it is very interesting to look at the situation unique to Australia.
Roy very kindly offered the book as a Dhamma gift and it can be downloaded from here.
However, we decided not to include the transcripts in this pdf version.
Sadhu to Roy, and all the monastics, lay people and all the beings who supported the Bhikkhuni revival and publishing this piece.
About this book and the author were introduced at the back of the book as follows.
Roy Sneddon is a Scottish-born Australian living in Adelaide, South Australia. Following a long involvement with academia, he has achieved a BGenSt (Griffith University), MHlthAdm (Flinders University), and a PhD (University of Adelaide). His interest in Buddhism was sparked some thirty years ago in Japan when, while desperate for something to read, he found a discarded Buddhist text translated to English. This moment of happenstance eventually culminated in his doctoral research: Exploring Gender Equity Issues facing Theravada Buddhist Nuns in Australia, for which Roy travelled the country yarning with local nuns and monks. Now with his thesis completed, Roy can happily return to his meditation practices: motorcycle rides, Wing Chun Kung Fu and beekeeping.
Presenting Onya Nun!,
the inaugural academic research endeavor singularly focused on Theravadin Buddhist nuns within the Australian context. This volume, an abridged iteration of a doctoral dissertation, offers a rigorous poststructural discourse analysis derived from empirical interviews with Australian Buddhist monastics and lay adherents. The work meticulously examines global gender inequities confronting Buddhist women, viewed through the unique socioreligious landscape of Australian Theravada Buddhism. Onya Nun! constitutes an indispensable resource for Buddhist monastics, lay practitioners, and scholars, providing an unprecedented historical repository.
In adherence to research ethics and for archival integrity, all interview transcripts are appended, thereby preserving the authentic voices and lived experiences of Australian nuns.
