[Buddha-l] FW: CONF Symposium: Gender, Sex, Pollution in Buddhist Discourse, Los Angeles, USC, February 3-4, 2012

[Alex Wilding]

Jo K wrote:
> Finally--research and reports on a topic
> long neglected and one that has bothered
> my sensibilities for some time: the _female
> blood libel_ (my construction) in east Asia
> ...
Call this a niggle, but amongst the superabundance of silly things for which
Sarah Palin got into trouble was misuse of the term "blood libel". This is
generally used to refer to a once widespread calumny of, usually, the Jews,
to the effect that they murder children in order to make ritual use of their
blood.
Are you saying that buddhist texts or teachings levelled this accusation at
women? I rather assume not, and in that case I'd urge you to choose a
different phrase. Otherwise your quite probably valid arguments may be torn
down for spurious reasons. In politics that's part of the territory, but in
the search for truth - a very different field - it wouldn't be helpful.
All the best
Alex Wilding