In a society where a popular saying urges women
to “regard her son as her master and her husband as her god”, Buddhist nun
Ketumala is already an outlier.
The 40-year-old walked away from traditional
expectations of marriage and children as a teenager, and has instead spent more
than two decades as a fierce advocate for the importance of women in religion.
The deep-red robes and shorn heads of Myanmar’s
monks are internationally recognised, but the plight of the nation’s vast
number of nuns, estimated to be in excess of 60,000, is little documented.
An entrenched patriarchy – the belief women are
inferior is common and discrimination is routine – means that nuns, who also
shave their hair but wear pink, can face abuse.
“When a man enters into monkhood, people always
applaud saying it is good for the religion and will make it better, but when a
woman enters into nunhood, people always think it is because of a problem,”
Ketumala explains.
“They think it’s a place for women who are
poor, old, sick, divorced, or need help for their life,” she adds.
Outspoken and rebellious, Ketumala is arguably
the best known nun in Myanmar, having founded the Dhamma School Foundation,
which runs more than 4,800 Buddhist education centres for children throughout
the country.
But she warns that many nuns are still treated
with contempt – the nunneries are run on donations but they do not command the
reverence of monasteries and so struggle with funding.
In the worst cases, nuns are abused even for
asking for alms that help them survive.
“Sometimes they are harassed along the road,”
she explains.
Superstition and discrimination
Ketumala’s battle for recognition and respect
for nuns in Buddhism runs parallel to the broader challenge for women’s rights
in modern Myanmar.
Aung San Suu Kyi might be the face of the
nation, but her role at the apex of the civilian government belies the lack of
female representation in positions of power in the country.
Only 10.5 per cent of members of Parliament are
women, although there are signs the ratio might improve after the November
election.
Laws are often made by men, for men, and rights
activists have warned that in wider society violence against women is so
pervasive it is regarded as normal.
Superstitions surrounding women are widespread:
It is frowned upon to wash women’s clothes with men’s – even within the same
family – for fear the men will lose their masculinity.
In religious life, women are banned from
entering certain Buddhist sites or temples and are told never to sit above men.
Ketumala says she has little power to bring
about all the changes she would like to see.
“The decision for entire affairs about the nuns
comes down from the monks,” she explains.
Even creating the foundation was a fight – she
says monks she initially approached for support would not back her, even though
they thought it was a good idea.
She says: “For me it was doing good things
together for the religion and for the country. But what I realised was that the
monks have egos . . . they didn’t want to be involved and implement because it
was a nun’s idea.”
Even when the project launched, she could not
be appointed to its executive, instead given the role of ‘secretary’, and was
ultimately forced to resign as monks took control of its management.
Mastery of the mind
Ketumala admits she was not interested in
religion in her youth, but found her path to enlightenment through reading
about Buddhist philosophies, crediting Sayarday U Zawti Ka’s tome A House Where
Mindfulness Is with giving her clarity.
“I used to think success was measured with
materials – titles and property – but later I found out that those who can
control and master the mind are the only successful people,” she says.
Her family were against her becoming a nun,
fearing she would end up an outcast, and refused to speak to her for years –
though they have since been reconciled.
She pushed ahead despite the opposition, even
securing two degrees in Buddhist Studies as she completed her training.
Ketumala concedes there is no hope of achieving
equal status with monks – some historians say that nuns were once ordained in
Theravada Buddhism, practised in Myanmar and much of Southeast Asia, but as the
practice died out more than a 1,000 years ago there is no way to revive it.
Nonetheless she is determined to make a
difference for the tens of thousands of religious women in the country so they
can “better utilise their abilities”.
In 2016, she launched an empowerment training
scheme for younger nuns, and is planning to create an organisation that will
teach subjects such as the art of leadership and management.
“The institute will provide the skills they
need outside nunnery, particularly for the development of their community,” she
explains.
Ketumala believes the best way to drive change
is to find allies and friends across society, including monks, rather than
creating “enemies” so has taken a soft approach to tackling female
marginalisation.
She adds: “Conservatives are everywhere, so the
situation doesn’t give much space to ask for women rights.”