ABSTRACT
In this article the tensions between Buddhist monastic ideals of chastity and Mongolian sexual mores and concepts of purity and virtue, which focused on bravery, truthfulness, and loyalty to one’s clan or ruler, are analyzed. Despite repeated efforts from the sixteenth century to the contemporary period to prevent Mongolian Buddhist monks from having wives, sexual relations outside of marriage, or interacting with women outside of their immediate family, Buddhist regulations in this regard have largely been observed in the breech, despite punishments which ranged from flogging to fines, since they were contrary to the sex-positive attitudes of the Mongolians, which continues to this day. These attitudes did, however, lay the groundwork for the acceptance of tantric Buddhism, in which sexual bliss is seen as inseparable from the bliss of enlightenment.
