Women of the Way: Discovering 2,500 Years of Buddhist Wisdom

by Sallie Tisdale

Book Overview

In this groundbreaking work, Sallie Tisdale traces women Buddhist masters and teachers across continents and centuries, drawing upon historical, cultural, and Buddhist records to bring to life these... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060598166
• ISBN13: 9780060598167
• Release Date: February 2006
• Publisher: HarperOne
• Length: 299 Pages
• Weight: 1.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.3" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

Recovered History for Buddhist Women

Women who practice Buddhism generally notice, sooner or later, that nearly every Buddhist historical figure they study and read about is...not a woman. For some women this is disillusioning, heart-breaking, completely discouraging. Until recently, if she asked her teacher about it, he/she would likely say, "I know dear, it's too bad. There must have been great women teachers, but we just don't know who they were. Records weren't kept about them." Now, with this book, no teacher can say that, and women can begin to feel that they have ancestors too. Sallie Tisdale did an immense amount of historical research - her biographies and stories are based on solid fact - and then she took the brave step of "re-imagining" these women's lives - some of them unspeakably hard - so we can feel them as living, breathing women. Her re-imagining is also based on solid historical knowledge. She brings the women alive. I found myself in tears as I read may of the stories. I'm only sorry she chose not to footnote her work - it would have helped the skeptics to realize the historical accuracy of her biographies, provided a great resource for others, and helped to separate the "re-imagining" from the more solid material. I've been doing research on many of these women myself, and I'm realizing that really only the emotional material, or the background, is imagined. There is a solid basis for every story or dialog in the book. A readable, entertaining, beautifully written, and important book.

Great stories, but a little too much colloquialism.

This is an incredibly valuable resource for information and inspiration for women who are seeking spiritual role models in Buddhism. One should be mindful of the theological and transcendental imagery used in the earlier stories and it might be a good idea to have a general background in the way sutras were written. The only detriment to the entire book is when the author uses homely and colloquial language in an attempt to make the stories more accessible. It's not necessary and takes a little away from the book's impact.

Well told history of Buddhist nuns

I just finished reading this book and found it to be well written and informative. Having read other books about Buddhist nuns, this book gave a real sense of the courage and perserverance that was, and in some sense still is, required to be a nun.