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InHindu mythology, there are deities or heroes whose attributes or behavior can be interpreted aslesbian,gay,bisexual,transgender, orqueer (LGBTQ) or have elements ofgender variance andnon-heterosexual sexuality.[1] Traditional Hindu literary sources do not speak ofhomosexuality directly,[1] but changes of sex,homoerotic encounters, andintersex orthird gender characters are often found both in traditional religious narratives such as theVedas,Mahabharata,Ramayana andPuranas as well as in regional folklore.
Hindu mythology has many examples of deities changing gender, manifesting as different genders at different times, or combining to formandrogynous orhermaphroditic beings. Gods change sex or manifest as anavatar of the opposite sex in order to facilitate sexual congress.[2][3][4][5] Non-divine beings also undergo sex-changes through the actions of the gods, as the result of curses or blessings, or as the natural outcome ofreincarnation.
Hindu mythology contains numerous incidents where sexual interactions can serve a sacred religious purpose; in some cases, these are same-sex interactions. Sometimes the gods condemn these interactions but at other times they occur with their blessing.[6][7]
In addition to stories of gender and sexual variance that are generally accepted by mainstreamHinduism, modern scholars andqueeractivists have highlightedLGBT themes in lesser-known texts, or inferred them from stories that traditionally are considered to have nohomoerotic subtext. Such analyses have caused disagreements about the true meaning of the ancient stories.[8][9]
Agni is depicted as having both a wife and a husband, and as having engaged in homosexual oral sex with Shiva (however was condemned by both Shiva and Parvati following which the semen, which he consumed as adoce (sweet) , was passed into wives of some sages from where it landed on Grass and Kartikeya was born : Shiva Purana. Also, this versionof Kartikeya's birth differs from the one in Mahabharata, where Kartikeya was born from the semen of Agni and was suckled by the Krittikas or wives of sages) and Soma.[10]
Agni, the god of fire, wealth and creative energy, has same-sex sexual encounters that involve accepting semen from other gods. Although married to the goddessSvaha, Agni is also shown as being part of asame-sex couple withSoma, the god of the moon. Agni takes a receptive role in this relationship, accepting semen from Soma with his mouth, paralleling Agni's role in accepting sacrifices from Earth to Heaven.Orthodox Hinduism emphasises that these are "mithuna", ritual sexual encounters, and Agni and his mouth represent the receiving role.[11][12]
Agni also accepts semen from different deities, in the myth of the conception and birth ofKarttikeya, a god of male beauty and battle.[n 1] Numerous versions of Karttikeya's birth story exist, many having a conception from only male input, althoughheterosexual sex or desire also plays a part. However, Parvati is credited as Karttikeya's mother. Ganga is Karttikeya's mother in other versions, accepting semen from Agni and carrying the unborn child. The male progenitor is sometimesShiva, Agni, or a combination of the two.[13] In theShiva Purana and theRamayana, the gods fear the outcome of Shiva and Parvati's "unending embrace", and interrupt their coitus. Shiva then appears before the gods and declares "now let him step forward who will swallow the semen I ejaculate". At the prompting of the gods, Agni performs fellatio on Shiva and swallows his semen.[12] In these stories, Parvati and Shiva condemn Agni's actions, calling them "wicked" or "improper". In the eleventh century textKathasaritsagara, however, Shiva forces the unwilling Agni to swallow his ejaculate.[14] The semen causes a burning sensation in those that ingest it, prompting Agni to divest it into wives of a group of sages, under Shiva's advice. The sages' wives, in turn, drop the semen into theGanges river (theGanga), where it flows to the shore from which Kārttikeya springs. In theMahabharata, Kārttikeya is also the son of Agni, who ejaculates into the hands of one of theKrittikas (thePleiades), who in turn throws the semen into a lake, from whence Kārttikeya is born. In some myths, Agni ejaculates onto a mountain that was itself made from Shiva's divine semen, making Kārttikeya the child of the two gods, according to an interpretation byMarkandeya in theVana Parva.[13]
Mitra andVaruna are gods of great intimacy and often mentioned together in Vedic literature. These Adityas preside over the universal waters wherein Mitra controls the ocean depths and lower portals while Varuna rules over the ocean's upper regions, rivers and shorelines.[15]
In Vedic literature, Mitra and Varuna are portrayed as icons of affection and intimate friendship between males (the Sanskrit word Mitra means "friend" or "companion"). They are depicted riding a shark or crocodile together while bearing tridents, ropes, conch shells and water pots. Sometimes they are portrayed seated side-by-side on a golden chariot drawn by seven swans. Ancient Brahmana texts furthermore associate Mitra and Varuna with the two lunar phases and same-sex relations: "Mitra and Varuna, on the other hand, are the two half-moons: the waxing one is Varuna and the waning one is Mitra. During the new-moon night these two meet and when they are thus together they are pleased with a cake offering. Verily, all are pleased and all is obtained by any person knowing this. On that same night, Mitra implants his seed in Varuna and when the moon later wanes, that waning is produced from his seed." (Shatapatha Brahmana 2.4.4.19) Varuna is similarly said to implant his seed in Mitra on the full-moon night for the purpose of securing its future waxing. In Hinduism, the new- and full-moon nights are discouraged times for procreation and consequently often associated with citrarata[definition needed] or unusual types of intercourse.[15]
TheBhagavata Purana (6.18.3-6) lists Varuna and Mitra as having children throughayoni or non-vaginal sex. For example, Varuna fathered the sageValmiki when his semen fell upon a termite mound, andAgastya andVasistha were born from water pots after Mitra and Varuna discharged their semen in the presence ofUrvasi. This account is arguably similar to gay couples having children through surrogate mothers in modern days.[15]
Ardhanarishvara is created by the merging of the godShiva and his consortParvati whose half right body is male while the left half is female.[n 2][2] The name Ardhanarishvara means "The Lord whose half is a woman". This form of Shiva represents the "totality that lies beyond duality", and is associated with communication between mortals and gods and between men and women.[3]Alain Danielou says that "The hermaphrodite, the homosexual and the transvestite have a symbolic value and are considered privileged beings, images of the Ardhararishvara."[3]
According to Tamil versions of theMahabharata, the godKrishna – an avatar of Vishnu – also took the form of Mohini and marriedAravan. This was in order to give Aravan the chance to experience love before his death, as he had volunteered to be sacrificed. Krishna remained in mourning in the Mohini form for some time after Aravan's death. This marriage and death of Aravan are commemorated annually in a rite known asThali, during whichHijras take on the role of Krishna-Mohini and "marry" Aravan in a mass-wedding, followed by an 18-day festival. The festival ends with a ritual burial of Aravan, while the Hijras mourn in Tamil style: by beating their chests in ritual dances, breaking their bangles and changing into white mourning clothes. In other versions, this story does not appear.[16]
A similar merger occurs between the beauty and prosperity goddessLakshmi and her husbandVishnu, forming the hermaphroditic orandrogynousLakshmi-Narayana.[17]
In theBhagavata Purana, Vishnu takes the form of the enchantress,Mohini, in order to trick thedemons into giving upAmrita, the elixir of life. Shiva later becomes attracted to Mohini and their relationship results in the birth of a son. In theBrahmanda Purana, Shiva's wifeParvati "hangs her head in shame" when she sees her husband's pursuit of Mohini. In some stories, Shiva asks Vishnu to take on the Mohini form again so he can see the actual transformation for himself.[4] Stories in whichShiva knows of Mohini's true nature have been interpreted to "suggest the fluidity of gender in sexual attraction".[18]
Pattanaik writes that those focusing only on homoeroticism miss the narrative's deeper metaphysical significance: Mohini's femininity represents the material aspect of reality, and Mohini's seduction is another attempt to induce Shiva into taking an interest in worldly matters. He cites another story to show that onlyVishnu has the power to "enchant" Shiva: a demon tries to kill Shiva by taking the form of a woman (placing sharp teeth in "his" vagina). Shiva recognizes the impostor and kills the demon by the placing a "thunderbolt" on his "manhood" during their act of "lovemaking".[19]
In the later, non-Puranic story of the origin of GodAyyappa,[n 3] Vishnu as Mohini becomes pregnant by Shiva, and gives birth toAyyappa, who she abandons in shame. Pattanaik writes that rather than Mohini becoming pregnant, Ayyappa sprang from Shiva's semen, which he ejaculated upon embracing Mohini. In another version, thePandyan king Rajasekhara ofPandalam adopts the baby. In this version, Ayyappa is referred to asayoni jata, "born of a non-vagina", and laterHariharaputra, "the son of Vishnu and Shiva", and grows up to be a great hero.[5][20]
Changes of sex and cross-dressing also occur inmythology about non-divine figures.[citation needed]
Shikhandi is a character in theMahabharata. He was originally born as a girl named 'Shikhandini' toDrupada, the king ofPanchala. In a previous lifetime, Shikandini was a woman namedAmba, who was rendered unmarriageable by the heroBhishma. Humiliated, Amba undertook great austerities, and the gods granted her wish to be the cause of Bhishma's death. Amba was then reborn as Shikhandini. A divine voice told Drupada to raise Shikhandini as a son; so Drupada raised her like a man, trained her in warfare and arranged for her to marry a female. On the wedding night, Shikhandini's wife discovered that her "husband" was female, and insulted her. Shikhandini fled, but met ayaksha who exchanged his sex with her. Shikhandini returned as a man with the name 'Shikhandi' and led a happy married life with his wife and children. During theKurukshetra war, Bhishma recognised him as Amba reborn and refused to fight 'a woman'. Accordingly,Arjuna hid behind Shikhandi in order to defeat the almost invincible Bhishma. In the Javanese telling, Srikandi (as she is known) never becomes a man, but is a woman equal to men, and is married to Arjuna.[21] After his death, Shikhandi's masculinity was transferred back to the yaksha.
Arjuna himself is an example of gender variance. When Arjuna refused her amorous advances, the nymphUrvashi cursed Arjuna; he would become a "kliba", a member of the third gender. Krishna assured Arjuna that this curse would serve as the perfect disguise for Arjuna during his last year of exile. Arjuna took the nameBrihannala and dressed in women's clothes, causing the curse to take effect. Thus Arjuna gained entry into the city ruled by kingVirata, where he taught the arts of music, singing and dancing to the princessUttarā and her female attendees.[21][22] In thePadma Purana, Arjuna is also physically transformed into a woman when he requests permission to take part in Krishna's mystical dance, which only women may attend.[22]
The story ofIla, a king cursed byShiva andParvati to alternate between being a man and woman each month, appears in several traditional Hindu texts. After changing sex, Ila loses the memory of being the other gender. During one such period, Ila marriesBudha (the god of the planet Mercury). Although Budha knows of Ila's alternating gender, he does not enlighten the 'male' Ila, who remains unaware of his life as a woman. The two live together as man and wife only when Ila is female. In theRamayana version, Ila bears Budha a son, although in theMahabharata Ila is called both mother and father of the child. After this birth the curse is lifted and Ila is totally changed into a man who goes on to father several children with his wife.[23][24][25] In another version, Budha is described astransgender as well.[26]
Another story inHinduism involving a sex change is the story of the sageLopamudra found in the Giridhara Ramayana.[27] This version of the story is different from the other two (as found in the Rig Vedic Hymns and theMahabharata) as it depicts Lopamudra as a man who is turned into a woman (in contrast to the others which depict Lopamudra as being created as a woman and remaining so).[27][28] In the Giridhara Ramayana, the sageAgastya approached the king ofKanyakubja and asked if he could marry one of the king's many daughters when they came of age. The king agreed and promised Agastya that one of his daughters would marry the sage and asked him to wait a few years until then. However, by the time Agastya returned, the king had already married off all his daughters and was so worried about getting cursed by the sage that the king dressed his son Lopamudra as a woman and presented him to Agastya. When Agastya and Lopamudra were married, a miracle occurred and Lopamudra was transformed into a woman.[27]
Numerous deities have been considered patrons of third-sex or homoerotically inclined people. This patronage can originate in epical stories about the deity, or from religious practices and rituals. For example, Conner and Sparks argue that the goddess of fire, love and sexuality, Arani, has been linked tolesbian eroticism via rituals in her honor: for example two pieces of wood perceived as feminine, called theadhararani andutararani, are rubbed together, simulating a spiritual lesbian interaction.[29]
These sticks are also perceived as male and female parents of the godAgni who in theRig Veda is identified as a child of two births, two mothers and even three mothers. His mothers are identified as heaven and earth. These two, calledDyaus andPrithvi, however are also referred to as male and female in theVedic verses. The two mothers are also referred to as sisters in the verses. The two sticks oraranis used in the ritual are referred to as feminine. In theBhagavata Purana the two sticks are however interpreted as belonging to opposite genders.[30]
Bahuchara Mata is a patron goddess of the Hijra. In popular iconography she is often shown riding arooster and carrying a sword, trident and a book. Various stories link Bahuchara to castration or other changes in physical sexual characteristics, sometimes as the result of her aiming curses against men. Bahuchara is believed to have originated as a mortal woman who became martyred. In one story, Bahuchara is attacked by a bandit who attempts to rape her, but she takes his sword, cuts off her breasts and dies.[31][32] In another story, Bahuchara curses her husband when she catches him sneaking to the woods to engage in homoerotic behavior, causing his genitals to fall off and forcing him to dress as a woman.[6]
Stories also link Bahuchara to gender variance after she becomes divine. One epic concerns a king who prayed to Bahuchara for a son. Bahuchara complied, but the prince grew up to be impotent. One night Bahuchara appeared to the prince in a dream and ordered him to cut off his genitals, wear women's clothes and become her servant. Bahuchara is believed to continue to identify impotent men and command them to do the same. If they refuse, she punishes them: for their next seven incarnations they will be impotent. This epic is the origin of the cult of Bahuchara Mata, whose devotees are required to self-castrate and remain celibate.[33]
Samba, the son ofKrishna, is also a patron of eunuchs, transgender people and homoeroticism. Samba dresses in women's clothes to mock and trick people, and so that he can more easily enter the company of women and seduce them.[34] In theMausala Purana, Samba, dressed as woman, is cursed after being questioned about "her" supposed pregnancy. As a result of the curse, Samba, although remaining male, gives birth to an iron pestle and mortar.[35]
Some versions of theBengali mythological textKrittivasa Ramayana contain a story of two queens that conceived a child together. When the famous king of theSun Dynasty, MaharajaDilipa, died, the demigods become concerned that he did not have an heir. Shiva appeared before the king's two widowed queens and commanded, "You two make love together and by my blessings you will bear a beautiful son." The two queens execute Shiva's order and one of them conceived a child. In other versions of the story,Kamadeva, the god of love, blesses them with a child after they fall in love. The child was born boneless, but by the blessings of the sageAshtavakra, the child was restored to full health. Ashtavakra named the child "Bhagiratha" – he who was born from two vulvas (bhaga). Bhagiratha would later become one of the most famous mythic kings of India and is credited with bringing the Ganges River down to earth through his austerities.[7]
The elephant-headed, wisdom godGanesha's conception has numerous versions. Some sources consider him to be the progeny ofShiva andParvati, although conception occurs outside the womb. However, most versions consider him to have been produced purely through the actions of Parvati, who in theShiva Purana fashioned him from clay. However, when Ganesha blocks Shiva, he is beheaded and later restored to life by Shiva.[36] In a 13th-centuryKashmiri text, Jayadratha'sHaracaritacintamani, Ganesha's birth is the result of Parvati's menstrual blood being washed into the Ganges, where it is swallowed by Parvati's elephant-headed handmaiden Malini, who in turn gives birth, giving Ganesha an all-female origin.[37][38] Courtright considers the birth to be "less auspicious" due to the lack of male input and use of bodily fluids such as sweat or menstrual blood,[39] but Ruth Vanita points out that Hindus consider Ganesha's birth auspicious, and that the use of non-procreative bodily fluids is considered sacred and purifying in manyHindu rituals.[38][40][41]
Sangam literature uses the word 'pēṭi' (Tamil:பேடி[42]) to refer to people born withintersex condition; it also refers to Antharlinga[definition needed] hijras and various types of Hijra. Likewise, the famous Sangam period characters of KingKopperuncholan and Pisuranthaiyar are another example of same-sex love. They are said to have not seen each other at all and yet shared love and regard for each other, so much so that they die at the same time in different places. The friendship between King Pari and poet Kabilar is shown as something more than just friendship. There are lyrical undertones suggestive of the intimate relationship between them. But since there is no explicit representation, one can only postulate a possibility.[43]
TheManimekalai a literary work, written by Sangam era poetSatthanar, describes the story of how Buddha showed compassion to the people of a city including a cross-dressing man.[44]
Queer manifestations of sexuality, though repressed socially, squeeze their way into the myths, legends and lore of the land.
According to "Ethical issues in six religious traditions", Hindu traditional literary sources say little about homosexuality directly, although there are many references and accounts to suggest LGBTQ characteristics in ancient Hindu literary texts and artworks. Homoeroticism in traditional texts is often masked by adherence to strict gender rules.[1]Critical study is further hampered by the lack ofSanskrit words for modern conceptions (such as homosexuality), although words for specific same-sex sexual acts exist. Timothy Murphy writes that LGBT themes are often ignored by "heterosexist scholars", and even early investigations into sexual minorities in Hindu culture failed to analyse stories or artwork depicting same-sex sexual acts between mythological beings. Murphy describes the study of LGBT topics in Hindu culture as "still in their infancy".[46]
Hindu society had a clear cut idea of all these people in the past. Now that we have put them under one label 'LGBT', there is lot more confusion and other identities have got hidden.
Goldman writes of transgenderism in Hindu literature: "Few cultures have accorded this phenomenon so prominent a place in the realms of mythology and religion as has that of traditional India." Goldman considers the numerous myths concerning gender change to be a manifestation of patriarchal cultures' desire to control the sexuality of women, but writes that many myths "project a positive valuation of women and femininity".[47] Changes in gender may be caused by a god or through the use of magic, in order to deceive others or to facilitate a romantic encounter. A change in gender may also occur spontaneously due to changes in a person's spiritual or moral character, either in a single life, or through reincarnation.[48]
According to theEncyclopedia of Love in World Religions, queer theorists and activists have reinterpreted ancient texts "searching for alternative voices" that demonstrate the diversity of gender models and sexualities in Hinduism. These scholars includeGiti Thadani, who attempted to uncover lesbian subtext in ancient Vedic and Sanskrit texts inSakhiyani: lesbian desire in ancient and modern India, andRuth Vanita, who attempts "to locate spaces of same-sex intimacy in vernacular texts" inSame-sex love in India: readings from literature and history.[8][9]
Some LGBT interpretations of popular stories and characters have been controversial.Ganeśa: Lord of obstacles, Lord of beginnings, appliedpsychoanalytic approaches to Hindu stories. The book stated thatGanesha's trunk represented a flaccid penis and his love of sweets indicated a desire to perform homosexual oral sex.[39] The deductions of this book, and similar application of psychoanalysis to the study of Hinduism, has been questioned by Western and Indian academics including Antonio De Nicholas, Krishnan Ramaswamy,S.N.Balagangadhara, and Saraha Claerhout, who have stated that the book is based on mistranslations and psychoanalytic misinterpretations.[49][50] The book became infamous in India, triggering protests and resulting in a public apology from the publishers and withdrawal of the book in India.[51]
The scholarship ofWendy Doniger, which focuses on interpretation of Hindu texts through psychoanalysis, is similarly controversial and has been criticised. Doniger has been described as "being rude, crude and very lewd in the hallowed portals of Sanskrit Academics."[52][53] Doniger's works that feature LGBT interpretations of Hindu myths include the booksSiva: The Erotic Ascetic,Tales of Sex and Violence,[54] andSplitting the difference: gender and myth in ancient Greece and India.[55]Michael Witzel, a professor of Sanskrit, said that Wendy Doniger's knowledge of Vedic Sanskrit is severely flawed.[56] Nicholas Kazanas, a European Indologist, has also criticised Doniger's works and wrote that Doniger seems to be obsessed with only one meaning of myths: the most sexual imaginable.[57]
Specific[15]
Such an explanation (...) requires compelling evidence before it can be considered true. The author,[Paul Courtright] of course, does not provide this because he thinks he is advancing a psychoanalytical 'interpretation' of Ganesa.
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