《長老尼偈》作為原始佛教最早而且唯一的宗教女性敘述文本，除了證明原始佛教允許女人出家，雖背負了正法不能久住的汙名，卻有眾多比丘尼聖者得證聖果之外，更說明了：當「女性」與「佛教」的相遇，由生命的苦難而引發宗教向度上的證悟，可作為現代「性別研究」議題相關的論述。 「長老尼偈」與「比丘尼傳」各自表述一中一印歷史社會背景的特殊性，二者截然不同的敘事風格，說明俗世規範和宗教角色建構二股力量於敘述文本中的彼此滲透，同時也提供「女性聲音」得以透過文本而公開彰顯的場域。 本論文試圖從印度佛教早期經典《長老尼偈》與中國第一部佛教女性傳記《比丘尼傳》之對比，以二者中蘊含性別意識形態思想資源，作為現代「性別研究」議題的思考方式，是為本文最終的目的。 “Therigatha, Verses of the Elder Nuns”, the earliest sole religious narrative texts for female of Primitive Buddhism, in addition to a demonstration of a woman being allowed to be a nun and although filthy reputation of Proper Dharma’s failure of being long-established residence is bored, a number of nuns have been enlightened with sacred acquirements, an illustration of : The encounter between “female” and “Buddhism” derives enlightenment of religious dimension from the misery of life which becomes discourse relevant with issues incurred with contemporary “Gender Studies”. “Bhikshuni Biography” and “Therigatha, Verses of the Elder Nuns”narrate specific features in Chinese and India historic backgrounds of society respectively; The narrations in distinctive styles illustrate that two forces behind norms in the secular world and religious roles are built upon mutual penetration of narrative texts herein and the field of “female voice” also is publicly highlighted through the narrative texts herein. The study aims to utilize ideological resources behind gender ideology within compared frames of “Therigatha, Verses of the Elder Nuns”, an early classical version of Indian Buddhism and “Bhikshuni Biography”, the first one biography for religious female in China as the way of thinking in issues of contemporary “Gender Studies”.
