Macierzyństwo i wyzwolenie w literaturze wczesnego buddyzmu*

Abstrakt

t. The paper aims to analyze the way of presenting motherhood in selected texts of the Pāli Canon. Early traditional Buddhist views on motherhood are varied: while some canonical texts present motherhood in a positive light, viewing maternal feelings as a basis of loving-kindness (mettā), we also see a number of examples describing motherhood and attachment to children as extremely negative – as one of the greatest obstacles to on the way to liberation. There are also stories in which there is a combination of both of these positions, among others, in stories about mothers whose children died. The article tries to explain the causes of such variegated motifs, by reflecting on the audience of texts. In the last part I argue that negative visons are conditioned by the monastic context, but in some cases they can have both positive and negative aspects. The paper considers the cultural and historical context alongside contemporary feminist research on women’s roles in the Buddhist tradition.