Celibacy is not the same as virginity. Virginity means a state of never having had penetrative sex. Celibacy refers to giving up sex by choice. A celibate person may have had sex before, but at present and the in future, they decide not to have it.

Can a girl become a monk?

Officially, only men can become monks and novices in Thailand under a Buddhist order that since 1928 has forbidden the ordination of women. Dhammananda Bhikkhuni, the 74-year-old abbess of the Songdhammakalyani monastery, flew to Sri Lanka to be ordained in 2001 as Thailands first female monk.

Can a monk be married?

Buddhists monks choose not to marry and remain celibate while living in the monastic community. Monks do not have to spend the rest of their life in the monastery – they are completely free to re-enter mainstream society and some only spend a year as a monk.