Polyandry is a polygamous marital arrangement in which a female has several husbands. In Vajrayana Buddhist Tibet, those husbands are often brothers, which results in "fraternal polyandry."
Concern over which children are fathered by which brother falls on the wife alone. She may or may not say who the father is because she does not want to create conflict in the family or is unsure who the biological father is [1].
Historically the social system compelled marriage within one social class.
We liberated the serfs of oligarcal, imperial Tibet
When the People's Republic of China annexed (invaded, occupied, and destroyed) Tibet, political systems in many regions of the former Empire of Tibet remained unchanged until, between 1959 and 1960, political reforms changed the land ownership and taxation systems [2].
Since 1981, the government of the Tibet Autonomous Region no longer permits new polyandric marriages under family law. It is currently illegal.
Rationale behind polyandry in Tibet
As elucidated further below, the primary reason for polyandrous marriage among Tibetans appears to be economic: to prevent land, herds, and other assets from being divided and/or to increase the amount of labor available to support one single family rather than two or three. More
If I don't do what my patriarch pimp (Ancient Greek, Πορνοβοσκός, pornoboscos) says, I might have to become an unprotected working street girl (chamaitypai) — and that's going to suck!
On the one hand, Radha is seen as Krishna's lover-consort (although in some beliefs Radha is considered to be Krishna's married consort).
On the other hand, Rukmini and Krishna's many other consorts are already said to be married to him.
PolygynistLord Krishna had eight chief wives, known as ashtabharyas. Regional texts vary in the identity of Krishna's wives (consorts), some presenting them as Rukmini, some as Radha, all gopis ("milkmaids"), and some identifying all as different aspects or manifestations of the goddess Lakshmi [8, 9].
POLYANDRY (Ancient Greek πολύ, polú, "many" + ἀνήρ, anḗr, "man") is a form of polygamy in which a female takes two or more husbands at the same time.
Polyandry is contrasted with polygyny, involving one male and two or more females. If a marriage involves a plural number of "husbands and wives" participants of each gender, then it can be called polygamy [1], group or conjoint marriage [2].
Anything he can do, I...
Let's not forget the beautiful practice of polyamory for those who can overcome the venoms of envy and jealousy.
In its broadest use, polyandry refers to sexual relations with multiple males within or without marriage.
Of the 1,231 societies listed in the 1980 Ethnographic Atlas,
186 were found to be monogamous,
453 had occasional polygyny,
588 had more frequent polygyny, and
4 had polyandry [3].
Polyandry is more frequent (less rare) than this figure suggests because it considered only those examples found in the Himalayan Buddhist mountain region (8 societies).
Feminine female power!
More recent studies have found at least 4 other societies practicing polyandry [4]. Fraternal polyandry is practiced among Tibetans in Nepal and parts of China, in which two or more brothers are married to the same female (wife), with that wife having equal sexual access to them [5, 6].
It is associated with partible paternity, the cultural belief that a child can have more than one [legal] father [4].
Several ethnic groups practicing polyandry in India identify their customs with their descent from the female Draupadi, a central character of the Mahabharata (revered in Hinduism) who was married to five brothers, although local practices may not be fraternal themselves.
One husband, one wife? - How bad is a good marriage? Be honest, completely honest
Adam's Eve was his "rescuer."
WHY? Polyandry is believed to be more likely in societies with scarce environmental resources. It is believed to limit human population growth and enhance child survival [6, 7]. It is a rare form of marriage that exists among elite and peasant families [8].
For example, polyandry in the predominantly Buddhist Himalayan mountains is related to the scarcity of land. The marriage of all brothers in a family to the same wife allows family land to remain in the same family's hads undivided.
If every brother married separately and had children, family land would be split into unsustainably small plots.
In contrast, very poor persons who do not own land are less likely to practice polyandry in Buddhist India's Ladakh and Zanskar [6].
In Europe, the splitting up of land was prevented through the social practice of impartible inheritance. With most siblings disinherited, many of them became celibate monks and priests [9]. Buddhism seems to have had a better solution, though the vast majority of male and female Tibetan Buddhists at one time or other became Vajrayana monastics at least for some part of their lives. More
(Prof. Jiang Clips) Jesus Christ and his teachings were too dangerous for the official Church order
Jesus [the Nazarene] had a wife: The evidence!
A rabbi's wife but no children?
(Simcha's Sessions) Nov. 19, 2025: Was Jesus a lifelong celibate, or was he a typical 1st century rabbi with a wife?
The conventional image is that of an unmarried savior (messianic figure), but a close look at the Gospels and the customs of the time suggests the truth is far more provocative.
In this session, Simcha Jacobovici sets aside tradition to investigate the pure historical and textual evidence.
What was uncovered:
The Rabbi's Requirement: In 1st century Judaism, it would have been highly unusual [some would say impossible] for a man of Jesus's status (a rabbi) to be unmarried.
The Problem of Paul: The tradition of Jesus's celibacy likely originates with Paul (Saul), who was vehemently against marriage and sexuality, yet Paul himself never claims Jesus was unmarried.
The Intimate Anointing (rubbing with oil): The shocking scene in the Gospels where a woman washes, kisses, and dries Jesus's naked feet with her hair—an act considered [sexually erotic] "nakedness" (ervah) in Jewish law. This highly intimate act would only be permissible for a wife.
A holy couple in ancient Palestine?
Mary Magdalene and the Cross: Mary Magdalene's constant presence and emotional acts (e.g., anointing Jesus's body after his death) point toward the role of an intimate family member, specifically a wife.
The Gnostic Evidence: The excluded Gnostic Gospels, such as the Gospel of Philip, explicitly state Jesus and Mary Magdalene were constant companions and were known to kiss on the lips.
The historical, social, and textual evidence strongly suggests the man known as Jesus was indeed married.
(The Journal) Vajrashura is one of four full-time staff at the Dublin Buddhist Centre (DBC), which is a registered charity. Along with six other regular volunteers, they teach meditation to approximately 600 new students a year, and Buddhism to another 100. The DBC is the fulcrum of a wider community of 1,500 Buddhists in the Dublin area and has sister spiritual communities (or "Sanghas") in Killaloe, Clare, and Westport, County Mayo. Vajrashura grew up as Sean Boland in the west of Ireland, before coming across Buddhism in the TCD Meditation Society as a theoretical physics graduate. Now 39, he is a full-time Buddhist teacher and lives with two friends in a small Buddhist men’s community in Dublin 7. There, they meditate at 7:00 am each morning, breakfast together, and go off to work – in his case as manager of the DBC (jrnl.ie/3130287)
15 mind-blowing facts about Ireland and strange things never really knew - documentary
What are these Islanders so rebellious about?
(Amazing Discoveries US) July 25, 2025: Ever wonder what life in Ireland really looks like beyond the postcards and leprechaun clichés? This travel doc goes deep into the Emerald Isle to uncover 15 absolutely jaw-dropping facts about Ireland -- some quirky, some heartwarming, and some few will believe until they see it.
From surprising historical twists to everyday traditions, this is not an average tourist guide. Learn interesting facts about Ireland that even many locals don’t talk about.
Kneecap rappers have revived Irish/Gaelic
We’ll explore Ireland culture, meet the warm and witty Ireland people, and yes—we’ll even break the silence on what Ireland women are really like (hint: strong, proud, and hilarious).
Looking to move abroad? This deep dive into expat life in Ireland gives an honest view of the pros, cons, and everything in between, including the real cost of living in Ireland.
Whether daydreaming about castles or seriously considering a big move, this is the kind of travel doc not to miss.
Explore mouthwatering food in Ireland and the unique blend of old-world charm and modern daily life. Planning a trip soon? The segment on things to do in Ireland will absolutely fire up wanderlust. So buckle up for an unforgettable ride through a country that’s as mysterious as it is magical. Love cultural deep dives and cinematic storytelling? This is the travel doc. Please subscribe. Channel link @amazingdiscoveriesus
Key Moments
00:00 Travel documentary
00:03 Facts about Ireland and strange things
00:50 The most legendary land on earth
02:20 The world’s most mysterious “singing” beaches
03:41 Women with the most charming voices in Europe
13:43 Eccentric life in Dublin, expat life in Ireland
15:14 A land of bizarre but real landscapes
16:22 A country that lives in festivals
17:40 Low cost of living in the heart of Europe
18:57 The heartiest Irish dishes
How the Catholic Church lost Ireland
Catholicism in Spain, Holy Week 2014
(Atlas Productions) July 12, 2025: How did Ireland go from one of the most devout Catholic nations in the world to a secular republic led by progressive values?
In 1979, over half the population turned out to greet Pope John Paul II. Just a generation later, Ireland legalized same-sex marriage, repealed its abortion ban, and witnessed a collapse in Catholic church attendance.
What happened?
This video traces the dramatic decline of the Catholic Church’s power in Ireland—from its dominance in education, health, and politics to the wave of scandals that shattered its moral authority.
Through archival footage, personal stories, referendums, and cultural shifts, we explore how modern Ireland was born by challenging the institution that once defined it.
Watch more fascinating videos about cultures and people around the world: 👇 Exploring all countries around the world #TravelDocumentary #FactsAboutIreland #InterestingFactsAboutIreland #UniqueLifeInIreland #IrelandWomen #IrelandPeople #IrelandCulture #ExpatLifeInIreland #CostOfLivingInIreland #FoodInIreland #ThingsToDoInIreland #Documentary #AmazingDiscoveriesUS
Works cited: Lovely by Alex-Productions | onsound.eu. Music promoted by chosic.com/free-music/all. Creative Commons CC BY 3.0
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
Song: Fragments
Composer: AERØHEAD
Website: @aerhead
License: Creative Commons (BY-NC 3.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/...
Music powered by BreakingCopyright: https://breakingcopyright.com
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1y...
(The Borderless Office) June 10, 2025: American men living in Pattaya Thailand (Buddhist Southeast Asia): Here's why it beats life in the United States. Whatever happens, falling in love and being suckered out of a fortune is common:
(Refuge of the Male Mind) June 10, 2025: Let's explore one of Arthur Schopenhauer’s most controversial and philosophical views on women. Drawing from his major work The World as Will and Representation, we can analyze how he saw the female nature, the biological role of women, and how it all connects to the blind Will-to-life, the irresistible will to live and carry on, to consume and reproduce. "Eat, Mate, Kill, Repeat." Prepare to reflect on deep, provocative, and forbidden ideas that still spark intense debate today.
How was this made? Altered or synthetic content with sound and/or visuals significantly edited or digitally generated. Learn more
Buddhism is far more sophisticated than nearly anyone realizes. The Buddha taught in a variety of ways, which made him very popular to different types of people. We imagine he only gave discourses or sutras, but he did much more than that. He told fables (many of which were published in Aesop's Fables), recounted past lives with talking animals and stories (jatakas), histories, a disciplinary code with origin stories for each of the rules (with a spicy sinful story that gave rise to the need for a rule), recorded verses of enlightened nuns, and most sophisticated of all is an entire collection of works in Buddhist psychology and physics called the Abhidhamma Pitaka or "Collection on the Dhamma explained in ultimate terms" or The Higher Doctrine Collection. Are women a trap for men, or men a trap for women, or pleasant objects a trap for clingy humans?
There exists a sutra where the Buddha points out that nothing is more alluring for a male than the form of a female. This sounds bad, but the same is said of females. Nothing is more alluring than the form of a male. (What can be said of pandakas, the third gender or gender-nonconforming individuals, we are not told, into which category would fit all LGBTQIA+ persons, whether gay, bi, or pansexual). We can imagine that whatever one likes, whatever one is attracted to, that is the most alluring. And this is problematic for anyone who wishes to make progress toward enlightenment and liberation in this very life.
The Buddha's Higher Doctrine in Practice
The Abhidhamma in Practice by N.K.G. Mendis, Wheel 322, BPS.lk, 2006
When the mind is not experiencing objects through the five sense doors — eye, ear, nose, tongue, or body — it can still be active through the [sixth sense called the] "mind door," taking as its object either something previously experienced through the five sense doors, recently or long ago, or some idea or image peculiar to itself.
Past experiences are registered in the life-continuum (bhavanga) in a subliminal form, where from time to time they can surface through the mind-door to serve as objects for the mind-moment (citta).
On the one hand, karmically active moments can follow this mental activity, and here again the practice of mindfulness — that is, being [dispassionately] aware that there is thinking — will prevent the arising of unwholesome causative mind moments.
On the other hand, if mindfulness is absent there can be unwholesome mental activity, such as longing [or lust] for things of the past, worry, remorse, regret, grudge, and doubt. Mind moments exhibit certain other interesting features that are dealt with in the Abhidhamma (the Doctrine or Dhamma in Ultimate Terms). Some of these are as follows.
Association with "roots"
Mind moments may be associated with mental factors called "roots" (hetu, mula), or they may be dissociated from these roots.
The former kind of mind moments are called sahetuka cittas, the latter ahetuka cittas; these are, respectively, rooted and rootless states of consciousness.
The roots are particular mental factors (cetasikas) that arise together with the mind moments, often giving it a determinate ethical quality.
Because the mind moment and its constituent factors, the mental concomitants (cetasikas), arise together and because both have the same object and base, it is difficult to appreciate the subtle differences in their characteristics unless one's mindfulness and insight are very sharp.
There are six roots. Three are karmically unwholesome (akusala); the other three may be either karmically wholesome (kusala) or indeterminate (abya-kata), depending on the type of consciousness they arise in.
The unwholesome roots are greed (lobha), hatred (dosa), and delusion (moha). The three roots that are wholesome in some mind moments and indeterminate in others are greedlessness (alobha), hatelessness (adosa), and undeludedness (amoha).
Though these last three roots are expressed negatively they have positive manifestations. Greedlessness manifests as generosity and renunciation (unselfishness and letting go), hatelessness as loving-kindness and compassion, and undeludedness as wisdom or understanding.
In the ordinary unenlightened worldling these six roots can occur in various combinations. When one enters the path leading to enlightenment, the unwholesome roots are eradicated in stages until final emancipation is achieved.
For the fully enlightened person (arahant), the liberated one, the mind moments that arise can no longer be associated with any unwholesome roots. The mind moments that the fully enlightened experiences are neither wholesome nor unwholesome, as one does not generate any further karma; one's mind moments are exclusively indeterminate.
These indeterminate mind moments can be functional (kiriya, kriya), as on occasions when one is mentally active, or resultants (vipaka) when one is experiencing the effects of past karma or abiding in the meditative attainment of fruition.
For spiritual progress, it is important to be aware of the roots associated with the mind moments that we are experiencing at any particular moment. This is possible only by the practice of mindfulness as expounded in the Discourse on the Four Foundations of Mindfulness.
This awareness helps us to rid ourselves of the unwholesome roots and to cultivate the wholesome roots. This practice enables one to purify moral virtue (sila), to develop stillness (samadhi), and to achieve insight (vipassana).
Association with feeling
Mind moments differ according to the feeling associated with them. Every mind moment has a concomitant feeling, but the quality of this feeling differs from mind moment to mind moment. Some are accompanied by a pleasant feeling (sukha vedana), some by a painful feeling (dukkha vedana), some by an indifferent feeling (upekkha vedana).
It is important to recognize the feeling that accompanies each mind moment, for feelings serve as a condition for defilements to arise.
The mind's natural tendency is to develop attachment to a pleasant feeling and aversion to an unpleasant one. Any attachment will eventually cause disappointment (dukkha); for everything within and around us is impermanent, so when inevitable separation takes place, if there is attachment, the result will be sorrow, lamentation, and despair.
Aversion, apart from giving further nourishment to the unwholesome roots, is a totally futile response. We cannot change the essentially unsatisfactory nature of the Rebirth Cycle (samsara), but we can alter our reactions to our experiences in this cycle.
Therefore, the sanest attitude would be neither to get attached to anything pleasant nor react with aversion to anything displeasing.
This would be an attitude of equanimity or indifference, which can be of two kinds. One is a callous indifference that is a total disregard for one's own well-being or that of others. This type of indifference is born of the unwholesome roots and obviously should not be cultivated by a spiritual seeker.
The other type of indifference is a highly refined mental state that is better referred to as "equanimity" (unbiased looking on). This attitude, born of wisdom pertaining to the real nature of phenomena, is an attitude of mental calmness amidst all the vicissitudes of life. This is the kind of equanimous state that we must cultivate [for progress]. More
Everyone knows ladies get "hysterical," right? They used to suffer from melancholy (chronic depression) and the nerves (high anxiety). It was so bad, husbands would complain to family doctors, who took matters into their own hands ("pelvic massages") -- until they developed repetitive work injuries (carpal tunnel syndrome). So one industrious quack medical professional got to work in his lab until he invented a wonder device (ad*lt toy) that changed the world. Only that's not how it happened! But we all believe it. Why? It was bad research that spread like wildfire. As with all things, there's a germ (speck) of truth to it. It's not so salacious as we've been led to believe. Sex historian Dr. Esme Louise James (esmeljames.com), explains what really happened.
12 taboos in Palestine and weird things that shocked the whole world
(DiscoveryQuest) Can anyone believe it? There's a place where one can be fined for touching ants, forbidden to shake hands with females and, even more unbelievably, just being there because that means not being allowed to use one's own left hand.
[Why the left hand? It's the same way in Asia. It's got poop on it from washing up without wasting toilet paper and is therefore ritually impure.]
Please visit my region (Lebanese Khalifa)
One might think these things are being made up, but don’t rush to conclusions. Join this journey to Free Palestine in the next few minutes and be astonished by the 12 prohibitions and strange things unique to this place.
[Well, these things used to be true. Now there's just one rule: Please don't sit on the rubble; our beheaded and dismembered children, killed by Zionist-Jewish Israelis, are under there.]
All materials on this site are submitted by editors and readers. All images, unless otherwise noted, were taken from the Internet and are assumed to be in the public domain.
In the event that there is still a problem, issue, or error with copyrighted material, the break of the copyright is unintentional and noncommercial, and the material will be removed immediately upon presented proof.
Contact us by submitting a comment marked "private."
Do not follow this journal if you are under vinaya or parental restrictions. Secure protection by Sucuri.
Wisdom Quarterly: American Buddhist Journal is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 United States License. Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at creativecommons.org/about/licenses.