A very serious defect of Southern Buddhism is its double standard of
morality, one for the layman and another for the monk. It places the
celibate _bhikkhu_ (mendicant) on a higher footing than the layman.
During the Buddha's own lifetime he was accused of making many homes
desolate, and this has been a constant criticism in China where it is
a crime not to beget sons; and where Buddhism has been obstinately
monastic. There have been great exceptions, especially where kings
have been good Buddhists, but it is on the whole a monastic religion,
and has continually reverted to type.