I would say that it is ancient, and long out of fashion for nuns. Also, I have the impression that it was more for the older Nara and Kyoto sects (those that came to Japan before the 13th century). I may be wrong, and know very little.
A quick search found someone who was interested in the topic for "cosplay," but seems rather serious on the topic ...
I also discovered an article about a temple of Shingon (Esoteric) Buddhism where one can be a "nun for a day" ...
I don't believe that number is correct. In Japan,I do not have time right now to check the exact number now (doctors appt.) but here is an interesting article on the struggles of nuns in Soto-shu for equal rights ...
And this very good article says 1000 Soto nuns in 1990
Also a book version of the above ...
Gassho, J
STLah
A quick search found someone who was interested in the topic for "cosplay," but seems rather serious on the topic ...
Long hair was so important to the sense of Japanese female beauty that the only time a woman would cut it is to while taking religious vows or as a dire punishment. Buddhist nuns shave their heads (as do monks), but there were instances where a woman could cut her hair short in a partial tonsure. This could be as an act of piety, or because she could not leave her home to go to a convent as yet, or as the first step in becoming a "real" nun. For further discussion of female religious tonsure in Japan, please see “Tonsure Forms for Nuns: Classification of Nuns according to Hairstyle” by Katsuura Noriko in Engendering Faith: Women and Buddhism in Premodern Japan, Barbara Ruch, editor. (Ann Arbor; Center for Japanese Studies, The University of Michigan, 2002) ISBN 1-929280-15-7.
Buddhist nuns, like Catholic nuns, wear head coverings. In English, we use the term wimple. In Japanese, they are called zukin. They somewhat resemble each other, but there are some structural differences.
http://www.wodefordhall.com/zukin.htm
Buddhist nuns, like Catholic nuns, wear head coverings. In English, we use the term wimple. In Japanese, they are called zukin. They somewhat resemble each other, but there are some structural differences.
http://www.wodefordhall.com/zukin.htm
Come and have the rare experience of training as a nun. From mediation to sutras train like a buddhist monk、partake in prayer、enjoy our reputable vegetarian lunch. In the end you will get a buddhist training certificate. This one of those rare experience you should try!
...
Ushered into a small room with tatami straw mat flooring, I pay about $65 for the six-hour course, write a prayer in Chinese characters on a wooden stick, and don a light-weight white kimono and tabi socks split at the toes to ease wearing sandals.
Joined by six other women in a larger hall adorned with an altar to Kannon, the Buddhist goddess of mercy, we get a crash course in how to fold our hands in prayer and read a sutra, then line up to walk to the main temple, a priest leading the way. ...
But the peace is disturbed by a sense that we are playing a bizarre form of dress-up.
For some of the women, that is precisely the point.
"I came for the 'cos-play' experience," says Kumie Nishimura, 28, referring to the popular hobby of dressing up, often as characters from manga comics, anime movies and video games.
"We've already tried ninja, maiko (novice geisha) and samurai," says Nishimura as she chats with two friends and checks her pink cell phone for messages.
Koyo Watanabe, the slightly pudgy priest who mentors us for the course, has few illusions about participants' motives.
"Many Japanese don't think deeply about religion," he says, noting the eclecticism that allows many to combine Christian weddings -- though few are Christians -- Buddhist funerals, and periodic visits to indigenous Shinto shrines.
"Some women come to wear the clothes. Others have some worry, about work or an illness," he says as we sip green tea.
NOT ALL FRIVOLOUS
No one in our group is contemplating taking the veil. It was once a common path for girls seeking higher education or for those whose families had too many mouths to feed, but is now an unattractive option for most modern Japanese women.
The Soto-shu sect of Buddhism, said to have the most nuns, once had thousands but now has only about 400, most elderly.
https://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index...0#.XQwRiOgzaUk
...
Ushered into a small room with tatami straw mat flooring, I pay about $65 for the six-hour course, write a prayer in Chinese characters on a wooden stick, and don a light-weight white kimono and tabi socks split at the toes to ease wearing sandals.
Joined by six other women in a larger hall adorned with an altar to Kannon, the Buddhist goddess of mercy, we get a crash course in how to fold our hands in prayer and read a sutra, then line up to walk to the main temple, a priest leading the way. ...
But the peace is disturbed by a sense that we are playing a bizarre form of dress-up.
For some of the women, that is precisely the point.
"I came for the 'cos-play' experience," says Kumie Nishimura, 28, referring to the popular hobby of dressing up, often as characters from manga comics, anime movies and video games.
"We've already tried ninja, maiko (novice geisha) and samurai," says Nishimura as she chats with two friends and checks her pink cell phone for messages.
Koyo Watanabe, the slightly pudgy priest who mentors us for the course, has few illusions about participants' motives.
"Many Japanese don't think deeply about religion," he says, noting the eclecticism that allows many to combine Christian weddings -- though few are Christians -- Buddhist funerals, and periodic visits to indigenous Shinto shrines.
"Some women come to wear the clothes. Others have some worry, about work or an illness," he says as we sip green tea.
NOT ALL FRIVOLOUS
No one in our group is contemplating taking the veil. It was once a common path for girls seeking higher education or for those whose families had too many mouths to feed, but is now an unattractive option for most modern Japanese women.
The Soto-shu sect of Buddhism, said to have the most nuns, once had thousands but now has only about 400, most elderly.
https://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index...0#.XQwRiOgzaUk
And this very good article says 1000 Soto nuns in 1990
Also a book version of the above ...
Gassho, J
STLah
Comment