bhikkhuni

Bhikkhunis are Buddhist nuns. Although the lineage of fully ordained women monastics died out long ago in the Theravada traditions of South Asia, it has been preserved in the Mahayana traditions of East Asia. In fact, there are currently more nuns than monks in the Chinese Buddhist communities of Hong Kong, Malaysia, and Taiwan. As with Buddhist monks, those who become bhikkhunis shave their heads and don special robes to symbolize their renunciation. While both monks and nuns vow to follow strict precepts to regulate their lives, nuns are subject to a much greater number of such rules.