What did the Buddha say about a woman's body in early texts?
The Buddha described a woman's body as a vessel of impure filth and compared it to a rotten pit or a toilet with nine holes pouring out waste. Isaline Blew Horner and Diana Mary Paul expressed deep concern over this discrimination against almswomen and laywomen in Indian Buddhism.
How do Thai monks justify violence during conflicts like the Cold War era interview?
Thai monk Kittivuddho asserted that killing communists did not violate non-violence principles during a Cold War era interview. Sinhalese Buddhist nationalist monks served as chaplains providing religious services to soldiers fighting Tamil Hindu insurgents during Sri Lanka's civil war.
Why does Whitley Kaufman argue that karma creates problems for free will?
Whitley Kaufman wrote in his 2014 book that karma creates a taut relationship with free will because if karma existed then evil would not exist since all victims of evil just get what they deserve. He offered five specific criticisms regarding the logic of karma including memory problems and infinite regress issues.
When did the first councils occur after the death of the Buddha?
About a hundred years after the death of the Buddha the community began conducting gatherings called councils to resolve divisions. A series of schisms still occurred leading to the birth of many schools of Buddhism over time.
What is the Jain defense against Buddhist notions of impermanence found in Atmasiddhi Shastra?
Chapter 8 verses 62 through 70 of Atmasiddhi Shastra articulate a Jain defense against Buddhist notions of impermanence written by Shrimad Rajchandra in the 19th century defending dualism of lifeless matter and everlasting soul.