Rita Gross does not disappoint. I found this book to be an excellent addition to feminist religious and spirituality studies.

Buddhism Beyond Gender is an interesting take on Buddhism through the eyes of a Western feminist practitioner. Rita Gross claims that the perils of clinging to gender roles are often overlooked since gender identity is so ingrained in our cultures. In her view, the Buddha's message was not inherently androcentric, but traditional roles have become so, creating inequality between the sexes. She says this issue is not, necessarily, a projection of Western feminist ideals, as there are many passages that could be termed "feminist" in historical Buddhist texts.

I thought this book was worth the read. The writing was a bit redundant and not as well-organized as I'd like, but since Gross, unfortunately, passed away before publication of this book, I didn't remove a star for that.

I never found Buddhism to be particularly gendered to begin with but it was interesting to see a new perspective thanks to Gross. I really enjoyed the topics I've never heard of before like "the five woes" for women and what is termed "two-sexed" humanity. It was an enlightening read and a great way to start the new year.