The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 4 letter word LAMA
I've seen this crossword clue in The Sunday Telegraph
L
A
M
A
More clues leading to the result LAMA
- Priest heading off beast of burden
- In cell, a malign priest
- Innocent bishop to become a priest
- See 22 Down
- High priest?
- Source of wool one left out initially for Eastern monk
- Priest left with a degree
- Strike supported by a devout Buddhist
- Buddhist monk in cell, a master
- Priest, Greek character religious graduate ignored
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Eastern monk" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case eastern monk = lama.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does LAMA mean?
LAMA noun- A master of Tibetan Buddhism.
- A South American mammal of the camel family, Lama glama, used as a domestic beast of burden and a source of wool and meat.