Female Samanas
From Wikivinaya
There are three kinds of female samanas: bhikkhunis, sikkhamanas and samaneris
The Buddha allowed bhikkhus, bhikkhunis, sikkhamanas, samaneras and samaneris to exchange robes (pārivattakacīvara) (Vin,3,209). This suggests that their robes were similar i.e. brownish. Also, sikkhamanas must have dressed like bhikkhunis because the two types of nun could be confused (Vin.3.334). Samaneris could ordain as bhikkhunis at twenty if they were unmarried. In fact in bhikkhuni pacittiya 71 “maidens” are defined as “samaneris” which implies that married women did not become samaneris. Samaneri ordination, like samanera ordination, was meant for those under twenty.
Samaneris could undertake the sikkhamana training when they were eighteen. This involves training for two years in the six rules – the first six of the eight precepts. This training is begun with formal Sangha permission (Vin.4.319) and is a prerequisite for ordination as a bhikkhuni. The samaneris are then called “sikkhamanas”. Sikkhamanas are therefore senior to samaneris even though they have fewer precepts, though in fact ‘samaneri-sikkhamanas’ probably maintained their ten precepts.
Married women could not ordain as bhikkhunis until they had been married for twelve years and had finished sikkhamana training and, even then, needed their husband’s permission. They could, no doubt, do sikkhamana training while waiting for their twelve years to expire.
When listed, sikkhamanas come even before samaneras and they were therefore probably considered senior to these male novices on account of their age, both the older ‘married sikkhamānās’ and younger ‘samaneri-sikkhamanas’.
The ‘married sikkhamanas’ may have had access to money but probably lived like mendicants with a lifestyle similar to the ‘samaneri-sikkhamanas’. It seems likely that all sikkhamanas would have kept at least the eight precepts (for instance, not using perfume). Many of them may have renounced money too.
I.B.Horner says that in the Buddha’s day girls probably got married between the ages of sixteen and twenty and that the custom of child-marriage does not appear prevalent (Women under Primitive Buddhism pp27-8). A married sikkhamana, then, might commonly ordain as a bhikkhuni when she was thirty.
