Paṇḍaka is a

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

and

Pali Pāli (, IAST: pāl̤i) is a Classical languages of India, classical Middle Indo-Aryan languages, Middle Indo-Aryan language of the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pali Canon, Pāli Can ...

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

term which does not have precise English translation, but incorporates (or perhaps confuses) multiple concepts associated with

immaturity Maturity or immaturity may refer to: * Adulthood or age of majority * Maturity model ** Capability Maturity Model, in software engineering, a model representing the degree of formality and optimization of processes in an organization * Developmen ...

voyeurism Voyeurism is the sexual interest in or practice of watching other people engaged in intimate behaviors, such as undressing, sexual activity, or other actions of a private nature. The term comes from the French ''voir'' which means "to see". ...

impotence Erectile dysfunction (ED), also referred to as impotence, is a form of sexual dysfunction in males characterized by the persistent or recurring inability to achieve or maintain a Human penis, penile erection with sufficient rigidity and durat ...

and

infertility In biology, infertility is the inability of a male and female organism to Sexual reproduction, reproduce. It is usually not the natural state of a healthy organism that has reached sexual maturity, so children who have not undergone puberty, whi ...

. It has been studied under the auspices of

Theravada ''Theravāda'' (; 'School of the Elders'; ) is Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school's adherents, termed ''Theravādins'' (anglicized from Pali ''theravādī''), have preserved their version of the Buddha's teaching or ''Dharma (Buddhi ...

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

thought.

Historic context

In the

Vinaya The Vinaya (Pali and Sanskrit: विनय) refers to numerous monastic rules and ethical precepts for fully ordained monks and nuns of Buddhist Sanghas (community of like-minded ''sramanas''). These sets of ethical rules and guidelines devel ...

Pali Canon The Pāḷi Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhism, Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the most complete extant Early Buddhist texts, early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from t ...

, 4 gender types are defined: male, female, ''ubhatobyañjanaka'' and pandaka. ''ubhatobyañjanaka'' refers to

intersex Intersex people are those born with any of several sex characteristics, including chromosome patterns, gonads, or genitals that, according to the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, "do not fit typical binar ...

or literally ''a person with the signs of both binary sexes/genders''. Paṇḍaka is a less clear cut case, all references have a central theme: some form of deficiency in male sexual reproductive capacity or reproductive desire. In traditional Hindu pre-scientific thought, all reproductive capacity (or burden) has been assigned to the sperm and

lingam A lingam ( , lit. "sign, symbol or mark"), sometimes referred to as linga or Shiva linga, is an abstract or Aniconism, aniconic representation of the Hinduism, Hindu Hindu deities, god Shiva in Shaivism. The word ''lingam'' is found in the Up ...

with no credit to the female or egg. The Pali literature makes reference to five types of pandaka: * ''asittakapandaka'' - A man who gains satisfaction from performing

oral sex Oral sex, sometimes referred to as oral intercourse, is sexual activity involving the stimulation of the genitalia of a person by another person using the mouth (including the lips, tongue, or teeth). Cunnilingus is oral sex performed on the vu ...

on another man and from ingesting his semen, and only becomes sexually aroused after ingesting another man's semen. * ''ussuyapandaka'' - A voyeur, a man who gains sexual satisfaction from watching a man and a woman having sex, and only becomes sexually aroused after that. * ''opakkamikapandaka'' - A

Eunuch A eunuch ( , ) is a male who has been castration, castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function. The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2 ...

''by-assault'',

testicle A testicle or testis ( testes) is the gonad in all male bilaterians, including humans, and is Homology (biology), homologous to the ovary in females. Its primary functions are the production of sperm and the secretion of Androgen, androgens, p ...

that are annihilated by assault or violence.（"still could attain ejaculation through some special effort or artifice".） * ''pakkhapandaka'' - People who become sexually aroused in parallel with the phases of the moon. * ''napumsakapandaka'' - A person with no clearly defined genitals, whether male or female, having only a urinary tract, one who is congenitally impotent.

Modern context

In the crackdowns on

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definiti ...

in post-coup

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

, there is draft legislation to clean out crime and sociopaths from the

Sangha Sangha or saṃgha () is a term meaning "association", "assembly", "company" or "community". In a political context, it was historically used to denote a governing assembly in a republic or a kingdom, and for a long time, it has been used b ...

, and in this drive, a motion to criminalize ''sexual deviant behaviours'' within it, yet the very definitions of ''sexual deviancy'' or

paraphilia A paraphilia is an experience of recurring or intense sexual arousal to atypical objects, places, situations, fantasies, behaviors, or individuals. It has also been defined as a sexual interest in anything other than a legally consenting human ...

are being challenged and revisited by scholars.

References

{{LGBTQ Human sexuality Gender and Buddhism Buddhism in Thailand LGBTQ and Buddhism

Historic context

Modern context

See also

References