Gender Equality in Buddhism

It was epoch making when Buddhism declared men and women equal in India where women traditionally were regarded as inferior to men. After the death of Buddhism's founder, Gautama Buddha, Buddhist monks, called Hinayana Buddhists, became conservative and authoritarian and began to make light of women as well as lay believers. While the Hinayana Buddhists discriminated against women, the Mahayana Buddhists tried to improve women's positions in society through their «Renaissance of Buddhism». Masatoshi Ueki discusses Nichiren's impartial view of women and insists that the male and female principles are indispensable for the perfection of personality.