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    Swe Nunnery, Tibet: Living Together At The Top Of The World

    Photos from China

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    At the end of a long day, a nun lights a candle before going to bed. Although nuns are generally an under-funded and overlooked population in Buddhist monasticism, what they lack in monetary wealth, they more than make up for with a rich and vibrant community life and spiritual practice. Views[267] Nuns gather joyfully outside of the du-khong, or main meditation hall, before mid-day prayer. Without access to the same funding as their male counterparts, the nuns were forced to build the meditation hall entirely by themselves over a period of three years. They recall it as one would a dream, still unsure of how they managed the incredible feat of carrying the wooden planks up the mountain, mixing the materials together, and constructing the building. Views[219] Nuns carry bundles of sticks they’ve collected for kindling. Swe Nunnery continues to elude the steady encroachment of modern Chinese influences into Tibet: the nunnery operates with no electricity or running water, and provisions must be fetched from the nearest town - a 45 minute walk away. Views[316] Two nuns huddle together to study a Buddhist text. In Tibet and elsewhere, nuns are not typically afforded the same educational opportunities - including basic schooling - as their monk counterparts. Instead, they must study doubly hard on their own or with other nuns to learn the same material. Views[430] Perched high on a hillside in the Amdo region of Tibet, Swe Nunnery is home to nearly sixty nuns of all ages belonging to the smallest of the five schools of Buddhism - the Jonang. The Jonang were commonly thought to have vanished in the 17th century, but in recent years have been rediscovered living in remote regions of Tibet, such as this one. Swe Nunnery is currently the only active Jonang Nunnery in Amdo. Views[318]
     

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