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[beckyh2112]

Ganked from artoni

Ask me one fandom-related question in the comments. This can be fandom specific, general, or about fandom/lj stuff/fic writing/etc. in general.

Just one question, please, but it can (and perhaps should) have sub-parts.

Question can be as wacky as you want. Ask me about tv shows, characters, fanfic in general, fandom issues/meta, anything about any of my stories specifically. Whatever you want.

It is helpful to ask about fandoms I know about. If you don't, I will be forced to make things up. Which may be entertaining. And involve tentacle-sex.

Comments

[amentje.livejournal.com]

I always wondered what do you think the airbenders take on sexuality is?

I mean they are monks so that must indicate that they are supposed to stay virgins for the rest of their lives, but after the air temples were destroyed no more airbenders were found so that must have come from the temples and not from surrounding villages (unless they were destroyed to)

So what do you think?

[beckyh2112.livejournal.com]

Buddhist monks and nuns abstained from sex as part of their... vows, I suppose. (I am moderately familiar with the beliefs of Buddhism, not so much with the structure of the religion. But I've picked up a few things here and there.)

However, it's not something they have to go into immediately on achieving adulthood. Heck, at least in Hinduism, going off to become a holy man is considered one of the later things one does with one's life, after one's children are adults and can take over the family farm/business.

Additionally, Buddhist monks and nuns can 'return' their vows three times during their life and return to take them up again later.

So there's no requirement at all, in my mind, for an Air Monk or Air Nun to be virginal. Heck, there's no requirement for Catholic nuns, at least in the Middle Ages, to have been virginal. (I do not know enough about monks to say.) A great many nuns came to the nunneries after failed marriages or to escape failing marriages.

From what I remember of the flashbacks to Aang's temple, we don't see anyone between the ages of child/youth and old dude. So the Air Temples in the show seem to be where one is raised to adulthood, then one leaves and doesn't return until one is ready to become a holy man. This fits with the Hindu idea that becoming a holy man is the stage in life after you live in the world and have children.

How Air Nomads handle heterosexuality/homosexuality/bisexuality/pansexuality/asexuality? Really not enough data to do more than make wild guesses. Like, even wilder than the ones I used for my Fire, Earth, and Water takes. (Fire had the basis in them being the wielders of the element of passion, Earth went in-line with the general subtle and pervasive sexism, and Water I borrowed from Spyri and Rin.) However, the Air Nomads generally seemed to be pretty hippy froods, so while individuals might frown on certain things, I expect that their general attitude was "as long as it's safe, sane, and consensual".