pink_trike wrote:Heavenstorm wrote:Besides, gender equality is a rare occurrence. Rarely are females being treated as equal in the history of humans
Gender equality in premodern societies wasn't as rare as was once thought. We know know that in many premodern societies women and men had different roles and contributed differently to society but were still considered equal, including in leadership capabilities.
Sorry, besides Ancient Persia, Egypt and perhaps Greece, I rarely read how women were respected in the history, especially in the medieval times in China, India, Europe and Middle East as various religions and philosophical systems located there clearly held man as being the superior gender.
What I get from this discussion thread is that the Theravada framing of a worldview is too constricting for me.
Well, this is a Theravada forum, what do you expect?
Also the literalization of a the Buddhist version of the "end times" of a Dharma ending age appears to be a mythological comfort blanket. Anyone who thinks that today there is less Dharma present in the world compared to 500 or 1000 years ago seems to be living in a fantasy world to me. Today the Dharma is flowing around the awareness of the entire planet and is certainly not "ending."
"Dharma ending age" is also widely recognized fact among the Mahayana circle. Its irony that you made a big claim about your preference of Mahayana, yet ignorant of that fact.
Dharma ending age got nothing to do with the availability of Dharma, you have no idea what you are talking about. There is a general consensus that the fruits of Dharma practice is diminishing every 500 or 1000 year. Given the comparison between the number of recognized Arahants found during the first few hundred years of Buddhism in India and those found in the present times. It is easily concluded that attaining Arahantship in this times are very difficult if not impossible. I don't think you will find any Theravadins that disagree with that.
The idea that female equality is somehow tied to the Dharma ending age and the ending of Buddha teaching in the world is to me ignorant and superstitious and just the rationalization of male Buddhists who want to keep their power and control over women and use theor rationalizations of the Suttas to keep their power. It is no better than the Catholic church using the Bible to rationalize their patriarchial power over society.
[EDIT: Aggressive ad-homonim attacks removed... there is no need for them. Retro.]