Hijra (South Asia)

For other uses, see Hijra.

In the culture of the Indian subcontinent a hijra (also known by a number of different names and romanised spellings) is usually considered a member of "the third sex" — neither man nor woman. Most are physically male or intersex, but some are female. Hijras usually refer to themselves as female at the language level, and usually dress as women. Census data does not exist, but estimates range from 50,000 to 5,000,000 in India alone.

Although they are usually referred to in English as "eunuchs", relatively few have any genital modifications. A third gender has existed in the subcontinent from the earliest records, and was clearly acknowledged in Vedic culture, throughout the history of Hinduism, as well as in the royal courts of Islamic rulers.

Terminology

The Hindi word "hijra" (alternately romanised as hijira, hijda, hijada, hijara, hijrah) is written as हिजड़ा in devanagari. It has a pronunciation between those of "heejra" and "heejda"; the IPA notation is /hi:dʒɽα:/. The word Hijra seems to have come into India with the Muslims. An older name for hijras is kinnar, which is used by some hijra groups as a more respectable and formal term. An abusive slang for hijra in Hindi is chakka.

A number of terms across the culturally and linguistically diverse Indian subcontinent represent similar sex/gender categories. While these are rough synonyms, they may be better understood as separate identities due to regional cultural differences. In Tamil Nadu the equivalent term is aravanni, aravani, or aruvani. In Urdu, both in Pakistan and India, the term khusra is used. Other terms include jankha and suhaagan.

In South India, the goddess Yellamma is believed to have the power to change one's sex. Male devotees in female clothing are known as Jogappa. They perform similar roles to hijra, such as dancing and singing at birth ceremonies and weddings.

The word kothi (or koti) is common across India, although kothis are often distinguished from hijras. Kothis are regarded as feminine males or men/boys who take a feminine role in sex with men, but do not live in the kind of intentional communities that hijras usually live in. Local equivalents include durani (Kolkata), menaka (Cochin), meti (Nepal), and zenana (Pakistan).

All of these names are now considered preferable to the English term "eunuch".

Gender and sexuality

These identities have no exact match in the modern Western taxonomy of gender and sexual orientation. Most are born apparently male, but some may be intersex (with ambiguous genitalia). They are often perceived as a third sex, and most see themselves as neither men nor women. However, some may see themselves (or be seen as) females, feminine males or androgynes. Some, especially those who speak English and are influenced by international discourses around sexual minorities may identify as transgender or transsexual women. Unlike Western transsexual women, hijras generally do not attempt to pass as women. Reportedly, few have genital modifications, although some certainly do, and some consider nirwaan ("castrated") hijras to be the "true" hijras.

A male who takes a "receptive" or feminine role in sex with a man will often identify as a kothi (or the local equivalent term). While kothis are usually distinguished from hijras as a separate sexual identity, they often dress as women and act in a feminine manner in public spaces, even using feminine language to refer to themselves and each other. The usual partners of hijras and kothis are masculine men, whose sexual identity is as a "normal" male who is attracted to women. These male partners are often married, and any relationships or sex with kothis or hijras are usually kept secret from the community at large. Hijras and kothis often have a name for these masculine sexual or romantic partners; for example, panthi in Bangaldesh, giriya in Delhi or sridhar in Cochin. Hijras' and kothis' sexual identities may overlap with those of Western passive homosexual males, but are perhaps closer to the "queens" of pre-stonewall Western culture with their feminine gender identity.

Some, while clearly feminine in behaviour, may marry women and live as men. Others who live openly as hijras may form relationships with men and even marry, although their marriage is not usually recognized by law or religion.

Becoming and living as a hijra

Becoming a hijra is a process of socialization into a "hijra family" through a relationship characterised as chela "student" to guru "teacher", leading to a gradual assumption of femininity. Stereotypically each guru lives with at least five chelas; her chelas assume her surname and are considered part of her lineage. Chelas are expected to give their income to their guru, who manages the household. Hijra families are close knit communities, which often have their own houses.

The culmination of this process is a religious ritual that includes castration. Although it is expected in the hijra subculture, not all hijras undergo castration, and the percentage of hijras which are eunuchs is unknown. The operation—referred to by hijras as a nirvan ("rebirth") and carried out by a dai (traditional midwife)—involves removing the penis and scrotum with a knife without anesthesia. In modern times, some hijras may undergo sex reassignment surgery, but such cases are rare.

Social status and making a living

Most hijras live at the margins of society with very low status; the very word "hijra" is sometimes used in a derogatory manner. Few employment opportunities are available to hijras. Many get their income from performing at ceremonies, begging or prostitution — an occupation of eunuchs also recorded in premodern times. Violence against hijras, especially hijra sex workers, is often brutal, and occurs in public spaces, police stations, prisons, and their homes. As with transgender people in most of the world, they face extreme discrimination in health, housing, education, employment, immigration, law and any bureaucracy that is unable to place them into male or female gender categories. One hijra reports waiting in the emergency room of a hospital for hours while medical staff debated whether to admit her to the men's or women's ward.

Hijras are often encountered on streets, trains, and other public places demanding money from young men. If refused, the hijra may attempt to embarrass the man into giving money, using obscene gestures, profane language, and even sexual advances. Hijras also perform religious ceremonies at weddings and at the birth of male babies, involving music, singing, and sexually suggestive dancing. These are intended to bring good luck and fertility. Although the hijra are most often uninvited, the host usually pays the hijras a fee. Many fear the hijras' curse if they are not appeased, bringing bad luck or infertility.

Politics and activism

Many modern hijras, faced with health concerns and discrimination, have become politically active. For example, the All-India Eunuchs’ Welfare Association was formed in 1993-94, as well as HIV/AIDS awareness groups to combat health problems within their communities. One such group is the Dai Welfare Society, a mutual aid society formed in 1999 in Mumbai by and for hijras. The group estimate that half of hijras living in Mumbai have HIV. Another group is the Hijra Kalyan Sabha.

Other hijras have been elected to high political positions; Shabnam Mausi became India's first hijra MP in 1999 (as an independent), only 5 years since hijras have been able to vote. Another hijra, Kamla Jaan, was elected as mayor of Katni, while another, Meenabai, became the president of the Sehora town municipality, the oldest civic body in the state. In 2005, 24-year-old hijra Sonia Ajmeri ran for state assembly on an independent ticket to represent the estimated 40,000 eunuchs in Gujarat. The wave of hijras entering politics has not been without controversy. In November of 2000, Asha Devi was elected mayor of Gorakhpur, a post reserved for a woman. The city had a population of approximately 500,000 as of 1991. She was unseated when a court decreed that she was a man, but was later reinstated.

Commonly Hijra-rights groups also support gay rights issues in the Indian subcontinent, but this is a newly-emerging situation.

History

The ancient Kama Sutra mentions the performance of fellatio by masculine and feminine people of a third sex (tritiya prakriti). This passage has been variously interpreted as referring to men who desired other men, so-called eunuchs ("those disguised as males, and those that are disguised as females", male and female transvestites ("the male takes on the appearance of a female and the female takes on the appearance of the male"), or two kinds of biological males, one dressed as a woman, the other as a man.

In Islamic societies, they were associated with the ruling class and hired as court eunuchs. This practice became uncommon as late as the 1950s.

During the era of the British raj, authorities attempted to eradicate hijras, which they saw as "a breach of public decency". , anti-hijra laws were repealed, but a law outlawing castration, a central part of the hijra community, was left intact, though rarely enforced.

Hijras and religion

In Hindu contexts, hijras belong to a special caste. They are usually devotees of the mother goddess Bahuchara Mata, and/or Shiva. Within Muslim contexts, the hijra third gender is believed to be the result of Allah's will. All hijras, whether Hindu or Muslim, have been affected by Islamic practices. For example, they bury their dead instead of the normal cremating.

In Tamil Nadu each year in April/May, hijras — or aravanis, as they are called there — celebrate an 18-day religious festival. The aravani temple is located in the village Koovagam in the Ulundurpet taluk in Villupuram district, and is devoted to the deity Koothandavar. During the festival, the aravanis reenact a story of the religious epic Mahabharatha: the mythical wedding of Lord Krishna (who had assumed the form of a woman) and Lord Aravaan, son of Arjuna, followed by Aravaan's subsequent sacrifice. They then mourn Aravaan's death through ritualistic dances and by breaking their bangles. An annual beauty pageant is also held, as well as various health and HIV/AIDS seminars. Hijras from all over the country travel to this festival. A personal subjective experience of the hijras in this festival is shown in the documentary India's Ladyboys, by BBC Three.

Documentaries

• Jareena, Portrait of a Hijda (1990) [1]
• The Hijras: India's Third Gender (2001) [2]
• India's Ladyboys (2003) [3]
• Between the Lines: India's Third Gender (2005) [4]
• Middle sexes HBO documentary includes segment on modern Hijda (2005) [5]

Hijras in Indian films

Hijras have been on screen in Indian cinema since its inception, historically as comic relief. A notable turning point occurred in 1974 when real Hijras appeared in a song and dance sequence in Kunwaara Baap ("Single Father"). There are also Hijras in the Hindi movie "Amar Akbar Anthony" (1977). They accompany one of the heroes, Akbar (Rishi Kapoor), in a song entitled "Tayyab Ali Pyar Ka Dushman" ("Tayyab Ali, the enemy of Love"). One of the first sympathetic portrayals was in Mani Ratnam's Bombay (1995). 1997's Tamanna starred male actor Paresh Rawal in a central role as Tiku, a hijra who raises a young orphan. Pooja Bhatt produced and also starred in the movie, with her father Mahesh Bhatt co-writing and directing. Hijras are also seen in the 2005 Deepa Mehta film "Water", about another group of outcasts, the widows of Varanasi. There is a brief appearance in the 2004 Gurinder Chadha film "Bride & Prejudice", with hijras singing to a bride-to-be in the marketplace.

In 2005, a fiction feature film titled 'Shabnam Mausi' was made on the life of an eunuch politician of the same name (see Shabnam Mausi), it was directed by Yogesh Bharadwaj, the title role was played by Ashutosh Rana.

See also

• Evening people
• List of transgender-related topics

References

1. Neither Man Nor Woman: The Hijras of India by Serena Nanda. Wadsworth Publishing, 1998. (ISBN 0-534-50903-7)
2. Lovemaps, p. 106, by John Money. Irvington Publishers, Inc., 1988. (ISBN 0-87975-456-7)
3. Myself Mona Ahmed. by Dayanita Singh (Photographer) and Mona Ahmed. Scalo Publishers (September 15, 2001). ISBN 3-908247-46-2
4. The Third sex and Human Rights, by Rajesh Talwar. Gyan Publishing House, 1999. ISBN 81-212-0266-3
5. Gendered Bodies: The Case of the ‘Third Gender’ in India, by Anuja Agrawal, in 'Contributions to Indian Sociology', n.s., 31 (1997): 273–97
6. Hijras: Who We Are, by Meena Balaji and other Eunuchs as told to Ruth Lor Malloy. Toronto, Think Asia Publisher. 1997.

External links

• Human Rights Violations against the Transgender Community, summary of a 2003 report by the Peoples’ Union for Civil Liberties, Karnataka
• India's Ladyboys: BBC Three
• Collected BBC articles on Hijras
• India's eunuchs demand rights, BBC News, 4 September 2003
• GLBTQ.com: Hijras
• Collected Information About the Eunuchs of India Known as the Hijra
• The Works on Hijra in Indian Sub-Continent - Photographs (Link to most recent archived version at Archive.org.)
• In From the Outside, Timeasia.com, 18 September 2000.
• The Hijras of India Research Guide
• Template:Dlw
• Why are Indian eunuchs warned about unsafe sex?
• World Press: Pakistan's Hijras
• Columbia University: Magical Stories of the Hijras
• Islamic Hijras
• Sangama - Leading Hijra Human Rights Organisation in India
• Neelam and Laxmi - Portraits of hijras living in Mumbai (2005), by journalist and author Sonia Faleiro
• Eunuch MP takes seat - BBC world news- News on Shabnam Mausi, Hijra MP