When we hear the word transsexual or transgender, we imagine tall, slightly masculine women. Thai ladyboys or Israeli singer Dana International, who won first prize at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1998. But the ethnic kaleidoscope hides many surprises. In traditional cultures, transsexualism can take on the form of a cult.
Hijras are creepy-looking, either men or women. They defiantly extend their hand, demanding money from people passing by. Hijras behave very brazenly - they pester passers-by, especially men, seeing them off with obscene gestures. I would characterize hijras as an ethnic variety of transsexuals. Only if at a civilized level and in civilized societies transsexuals first undergo psychological tests, and then enter into a long and gradual process of gender reassignment and hormonal therapy, then in the case of Indian hijras, young people simply cut off their genitals with special machete-type knives. This is what vaginoplasty is like. Today, such a procedure is illegal in India, so it is carried out secretly in private homes. Hijras constitute one of the untouchable castes in India. They also form a religious community that worships Goddess Bahuchara. According to legend, the maiden Bahuchara is captured by robbers and, in order to avoid violence, she cuts off her breast with a dagger and dies, bleeding. Therefore, those who worship this goddess deliberately injure themselves. Like other untouchables, hijras cannot enter shops, government offices, hospitals, etc. They do not have the right to vote in elections and do not have passports.
Hijras wear women's clothing, grow long hair, wear bright makeup, and imitate feminine manners. Combined with tall stature, masculine facial features and a deep voice, this sometimes looks intimidating. Although they behave like women, they are classified as a “third gender.” By the way, during the last census, the hijras themselves refused to register as men or women and demanded that the “third gender” column be included in the questionnaire.
Translated, the word “hijra” means eunuch/castrato or hermaphrodite. Both of these words carry the meaning of sexual dysfunction. The word "hijra" is often used as a synonym for "zanana", which means eunuch or "accepting" (passive) homosexual. In India, there is a belief that if a man practices passive homosexuality for a long time, he will lose his virility and become impotent. The hijras themselves consider themselves “not fully men,” explaining this by their lack of sexual attraction to women. True, they see the reason for the absence of such sexual desires in the fact that their genitals are deformed or completely removed.
The spiritual background of the community is full of rituals and myths. To become a hijra, it is necessary to undergo a rite of passage and a castration procedure. To do this, the community healer asks permission from the image of the goddess Bahuchara. If the goddess “smiles” in response, it means she has given her blessing and the future hijra goes into isolation for a month, where he mentally and psychologically prepares for the castration ritual. On the appointed day, the hijra sits on a low stool, concentrates his attention on the image of Bahuchara, after which his genitals are cut off with two blows of a sharp knife crosswise. According to tradition, the gushing blood is not stopped, as it is believed that it takes the past with it. Therefore, the first hour after the operation becomes decisive in the life of a hijra. The wound is not sutured; it heals on its own. A special rod is inserted into the urethra to prevent the urinary canal from becoming clogged. This is such a prehistoric “gender correction”. The ritual transforms one into hijra or “nirvana.” The latter term is widely used in Buddhism and means “freed from desires” or “reborn.”
After the procedure, the ex-man's testicles and penis are buried under a tree. And on the 40th day, the newly-made hijra is dressed in wedding attire and officially accepted into the community. The community is divided into communes in which 5 to 15 people live together under the auspices of one guru. In addition to castrates themselves, hermaphrodites can join the community. A distinctive feature of all members of the community is the inability to reproduce offspring. Despite the fact that deformed genitals are a distinctive feature of hijras, nevertheless, in practice, any sign of loss of masculinity can serve as a reason to join the community. Be it impotence, effeminate behavior or passive homosexuality.
The future hijra enters the community under the patronage of the guru. For the rest of his life, the guru will serve as a “father” and authority for the hijra. As a rule, a hijra has one mentor for life, although there is an undesirable practice of changing teachers with payment of monetary compensation to the former mentor. This social organization within the community grows out of the generally accepted tradition of spiritual mentoring in Hinduism and is based on the relationship between teacher and students. Disciples occupy a subordinate position and must obey their guru in everything and show him respect in every possible way. Teachers and students form entire clans that live together in communal houses - at least seven per clan. The heads of the houses create a council of elders - jamat. The Jamat makes decisions on admitting new members to the community and resolves disputes and conflicts.
There is a clear hierarchy within the community. The community is divided into four groups. Each group earns its living differently. The highest levels of the hierarchy dance and sing at weddings. They give their blessing to newborns and newlyweds. For this they receive badhai payment. It could be money, or food, sweets or clothes. When they are not voluntarily invited to weddings or baby showers, they may show up as uninvited guests, trying in every possible way to ruin the holiday. Attract attention with obscene gestures and rude ridicule. The middle layers of the hierarchy dance and sing in squares and markets, and work as servants in houses. The lower strata of the community do the dirtiest work, collect alms, engage in prostitution and extortion, and steal.
The attitude towards hijras in society is ambivalent. On the one hand, they are afraid. The hijra's threat to lift her skirt and show her mutilated genitals is tantamount to a curse. On the other hand, they are endowed with magical powers. Childless women ask them for blessings. There is also a sign that if a hijra sits down to rest on the threshold of a house, it will bring happiness to the house.
In recent years, the community's activity in political life has been growing. They have their own nationwide association, which meets in the event of the death of one of the most respected gurus of the community. The Hijras created their own party and trade union. The All India Hijras Assembly fights for the rights of the community. The organization also aims to rehabilitate the reputation of the community, which has suffered greatly due to the widespread belief that hijras kidnap boys and forcefully castrate them. A government tax and debt collection service was established in Bombay, composed exclusively of hijras. After a short time, it was noticed that the service was highly effective - Indians were afraid of the curses of hijras and their lifted skirts. Recently, hijras have begun to appear in feature films and perform dance routines at festivals and exhibitions.
Photo: Johanan Ottensuser and Walter Lustisch
In India, a third gender was officially recognized a few years ago. If in the West such decisions are dictated by following social trends, then for India, where there are several million people of the third gender, this is an anti-crisis measure.
India still has a caste system. It is not recognized at the official level, but in fact it is “blooming in full bloom.” There are castes considered “pure”, and there are untouchable castes. The second category includes, for example, Dalits, Chandals, Bhangis, Churkhas (scavengers and scavengers) and Hijras (eunuchs, transsexuals and homosexuals).
Hijras are typical representatives of that third gender, which a couple of years ago the Indian authorities equalized in rights with other citizens of the country.
Since ancient times, the Hijras have had a special place in India. They prefer to trace their genealogy back to Shiva himself; in the tantric tradition, Shiva-Shakti is the ancient Vedic concept of the universe, a combination of the potential energy of Shiva and the dynamic energy of Shakti. Shiva’s reproductive organ (lingam) is the subject of separate religious worship in India, therefore Shiva is a castrato. One of the incarnations of Shiva - Ardhanarishvara - is half-man, half-woman, which indicates that Shiva is also a hermaphrodite. In general, for hijras, Shiva is “their” god.
Curse of the Hijra
The attitude towards hijras is twofold. On the one hand, they are considered untouchable and any relations with them are considered vicious, on the other hand, it is for relations that hijras are often approached. One of the traditional sources of income for this caste is prostitution.
They also dance and sing. It is customary to invite hijras to weddings (it is believed that their presence will provide offspring for the young family); the presence of hijras during childbirth and ritual celebrations is also recognized as positive.
Despite the fact that hijras are a “dirty caste”, they try not to offend them, because there is nothing worse than incurring the wrath of hijras, since they are generally believed to have magical powers and can bring any attack on the offender - from impotence and infertility to leprosy. However, they are called in order to cure these ailments. They say it helps.
The hijra curse procedure is similar to an act of exhibitionism. The hijra lifts the hem of his sari to show what is underneath. He has nothing underneath, since usually a hijra is a castrato. Full. An important point: hijras do not undergo surgery in plastic surgery clinics. Their initiation rite still follows the “hardcore only” principle - the genitals are cut off with one blow of a knife, then the wound must bleed for a long time. It is believed that along with the blood, “everything masculine” comes out of the convert. At the site of such an operation, ugly scars remain.
However, we must admit that not all hijras are castrati. Within the caste there are, for example, Akvahijras (they have everything in place) and Jaakhas, who may even have wives and children. They perform the role of accompanists in musical performances in hijra groups.
Surprisingly, the number of hijras does not decrease over time, although it would seem that by definition they cannot increase in number. Growth occurs, firstly, naturally, when boys who feel different or girls with problems in hormonal development join the caste. Secondly, hijras play the role of “orderlies” in Indian society, taking in abandoned and sick children. Recognition of their rights is a serious step. This is an anti-crisis measure, a step towards eliminating centuries-old caste segregation. Until today, hijras have taken the path of prostitution largely due to society’s attitude towards them, since other professions were not available to them.
The hijra is one of the untouchable castes in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, which includes representatives of the “third gender”: this community of intersex, homosexuals and transgender people who dress and behave like women, call themselves by a female name, but do not identify themselves with any one , nor to the other sex.
The number of hijras, according to various estimates, ranges from 50 thousand to 5 million.
Hijras have a cult status: childless women ask for their blessings, hijras come (often without an invitation) to weddings, celebrations of the birth of a boy, and take part in relocations. They sing and dance, demanding “badhai” for this - a kind of reward for blessing. If hijras show up for a holiday without an invitation, they are obliged to feed them, listen to their songs and pay a considerable fee. Otherwise, the hijra could allegedly place a curse on the family. Or maybe they won’t, which is why superstitious Hindus are afraid to drive the insolent people out of the house. If there are no holidays at the place of residence, the hijra swears, begs or cheats.
The majority of Hijras are Hindus and the minority are Muslims. The Indian middle sex lives in communities with clearly defined roles and strong support and mutual assistance. If a hijra suddenly decides to make a living through prostitution, then ordinary citizens may severely beat him, even leading to brutal murders. For in such cases, ordinary citizens of India look at the “mummers”, just as in men’s prisons all over the world they look at the “lowered”. Therefore, authorities in some places feel obliged to provide transvestites with human jobs. Thus, in the city of Patna, as an experiment, hijras are employed by the mayor’s office as tax collectors from debtor shopkeepers, and by law they receive 4% of the money “knocked out” from entrepreneurs. About 20% of hijras have a family - they are married to women and even have children.
During the next census in India, hijras demanded to be recognized as a third gender, refusing to be registered as “men” or “women”. In June 2001, the National Hijra Congress was convened in the city of Rath, declaring political claims at the local, regional and all-Indian levels.
In April 2014, the Supreme Court of India officially recognized hijras and transgender people as a third gender.
The third gender: from India to Samoa
The Supreme Court of India has officially recognized the third gender. If in the West such decisions are dictated by following social trends, then for India, where there are several million people of the third gender, this is an anti-crisis measure.
The Untouchables
Today we can say that if Argentina attracts a black man, then India attracts a transgender person. The Asian state, which cannot be called the locomotive of the movement for human rights in general and sexual minorities in particular, took a radical step - it legally recognized the existence of a third gender.
Before this, the third gender was officially accepted only in Germany and Australia. Why India decided to do this is a different matter.
India still has a caste system. It is not recognized at the official level, but in fact it is “blooming in full bloom.” There are castes considered “pure”, and there are untouchable castes. The second category includes, for example, Dalits, Chandals, Bhangis, Churkhas (scavengers and scavengers) and Hijras (eunuchs, transsexuals and homosexuals).
Segregation based on caste is still very serious in India. The untouchables have practically no rights; they cannot eat in public places, call representatives of the “pure” castes on the phone, or go to shops.
For violating these unwritten rules, poor fellows from the “dirty” castes are constantly subjected to oppression that minorities in the West never dreamed of. Thus, just for appearing on the same street as some Brahman, an untouchable can easily be beaten with sticks or thrown into the fire. There are 4,000 incidents of violence against Dalits every week in India. This is, in general, in the order of things. Karma.
As already mentioned, hijras are considered untouchables. They are the characteristic representatives of the third sex, which today the official Indian authorities have equal rights with other citizens of the country.
Since ancient times, the Hijras have had a special place in India. They prefer to trace their genealogy back to Shiva himself; in the tantric tradition, Shiva-Shakti is the ancient Vedic concept of the universe, a combination of the potential energy of Shiva and the dynamic energy of Shakti. Shiva's reproductive organ (lingam) is the subject of separate religious worship in India, therefore Shiva is a castrato. One of the incarnations of Shiva - Ardhanarishvara - is half man and half woman, which indicates that Shiva is also a hermaphrodite. In general, for hijras, Shiva is “their” god.
Curse of the Hijra
The attitude towards hijras is twofold. On the one hand, they are considered untouchable and any relations with them are considered vicious, on the other hand, it is for relations that hijras are often approached. One of the traditional sources of income for this caste is prostitution.
They also dance and sing. It is customary to invite hijras to weddings (it is believed that their presence will provide offspring for the young family); the presence of hijras during childbirth and ritual celebrations is also recognized as positive.
Despite the fact that hijras are a “dirty caste”, they try not to offend them, because there is nothing worse than incurring the wrath of hijras, since they are generally believed to have magical powers and can bring any attack upon the offender - from impotence and infertility to leprosy. However, they are called in order to cure these ailments. They say it helps.
The hijra curse procedure is similar to an act of exhibitionism. The hijra lifts the hem of his sari to show what is underneath. He has nothing underneath, since usually a hijra is a castrato. Full. An important point: hijras do not undergo surgery in plastic surgery clinics. Their initiation rite still follows the “hardcore only” principle - the genitals are cut off with one blow of a knife, then the wound must bleed for a long time. It is believed that along with the blood, “everything masculine” comes out of the convert. At the site of such an operation, ugly scars remain.
However, we must admit that not all hijras are castrati. Within the caste there are, for example, Akvahijras (they have everything in place) and Jaakhas, who may even have wives and children. They perform the role of accompanists in musical performances in hijra groups.
Surprisingly, the number of hijras does not decrease over time, although it would seem that by definition they cannot increase in number. Growth occurs, firstly, naturally, when boys who feel different or girls with problems in hormonal development join the caste. Secondly, hijras play the role of “orderlies” in Indian society, taking in abandoned and sick children. Recognition of their rights is a serious step. This is an anti-crisis measure, a step towards eliminating centuries-old caste segregation. Until today, hijras have taken the path of prostitution largely due to society’s attitude towards them, since other professions were not available to them.
Fa'afafine
Hijras are not the only representatives of the third gender on Earth. The third gender is not as rare as it seems at first glance. In addition to the textbook Thai katoi, which even became an object of mass culture (lady boys), there is a third gender, for example, in the Philippines (bakla) and Samoa.
In Samoa, persons of the third gender are called fa'afafine. This tradition is hundreds of years old. In large “boy” families, it is customary for the youngest son to be dressed and raised “as a woman,” so that the mother always has an assistant in household matters. Fa'afafine are also not classified as either male or female; they can freely have relationships with both men and women. It is significant that relationships between two fa'afafine are condemned and considered homosexuality.
The third sex has existed since ancient times among almost all tribes of North American Indians, as well as among the Eskimos. They were called berdashi (people with two souls). It was also a separate caste among the intra-tribal hierarchy. They were believed to have a special connection with the deities, and therefore ritual functions were assigned to them; berdashis were usually shamans and healers. Like the Faafins, sexual relations between Berdashs were taboo, while the relationship between men of the tribe and Berdashs was not considered something shameful and was not recognized as homosexual.
Not every young man could become a berdash. This role was honorable among the tribes. The Moon Goddess herself gave her blessing on this path; refusal could result in death. And if the life of a berdash in Indian society was considered sacred, then a cowardly warrior, inclined because of his cowardice to play a female role, was despised by the tribe and could be expelled from it.
Photo: khabarindia.in
neobychno.com
pikabu.ru
Hijras are one of the untouchable castes in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, which includes representatives of the “third gender”: hermaphrodites, castrati and eunuchs, transvestites and transsexuals, bisexuals and homosexuals. This community of men (physically) who dress and act like women, calling themselves by a feminine name, many worship the goddess Bahuchara Mata, one of the many forms of the Mother Goddess. The number of hijras, according to various estimates, ranges from 50 thousand to 5 million. 
According to this belief, a person becomes a true hijra by undergoing a ritual of castration, usually at the hands of another more senior member of the community (the operation is considered illegal in India and is performed in private homes without the use of anesthesia). Dai Ma, a hijra who performs such operations, does not remove the penis and scrotum with a scalpel, but cuts off the genitals with one blow of a knife. And then the wound should bleed for a long time. Thus, “everything masculine” is washed away. In most cases, large, ugly scars are left. 
Hijras played a traditional role in India as entertainers at weddings and in homes where a boy was born. The birth of a son is considered the most important event in Indian families. Hijras visit the home, ritually bless the newborn and entertain the family with music, dance and song. In return for their performance, hijras receive money and gifts from their families. 
In this sense, hijras are one of the most “successful” traditional transsexual communities in Asia. They tend to live together in communities, or "houses", within which there is a clear division of roles and a support system like a family. 
Many hijras make a living through prostitution at various stages of their lives. A full hijra is one whose genitals are cut off. Hijras in Indian society are viewed with a paradoxical mixture of respect and disgust. Sometimes a “decent” Indian, the father of a family, will vilify representatives of this caste in the light of day, and at night he will gladly accept their sexual services. 
This community of thousands includes hermaphrodites, bisexuals, castrati, transvestites, homosexuals... About 20% of hijras (mostly transvestites) have a family - they are married to women and even have children. 
Provocation, including sexual provocation, is the strength of hijras. Brightly made up and dressed in colorful women's outfits, they walk, swaying their hips, along the streets of Indian cities. Their appearance is always accompanied by noise; they often behave quite impudently, and sometimes even aggressively. Many of them earn money by begging and prostitution. 
It often happens that hijras are raped or beaten - by clients or the police. They have nowhere to wait for help - they will simply be laughed at. Traditionally, hijras live in communities in the houses of so-called “gurus”. 
Since childhood, they feel like people of the opposite sex. 
These are people who are prevented from living by a constant feeling of inconsistency between who they are to others and who they consider themselves to be in terms of gender and sexual orientation. 
While visiting Mumbai, we often found ourselves in difficult places where it was, to put it mildly, scary to be. In, for example, there was such a smell that it seemed that molecules of various diseases, the size of a billiard ball, were floating in the air. But these are all flowers compared to the hijra region.
Hijras are an Indian untouchable caste that includes members of the third gender. Moreover, a much larger number of people here belong to the third gender. In my post I already talked about bisexuals, transgender people and homosexuals, but in India we have somewhat expanded our knowledge on this issue.
The hijra caste also includes: intersex people (the presence of characteristics of both sexes), hermaphrodites (the presence of not only male and female sexual characteristics, but also reproductive organs, most often one of them is underdeveloped), gynandromorphs (in one person large areas of the body have signs of different genders, for example, one breast is male, the other is female), and the same is castrati (well, everything is more or less clear with him, since the times).
In theory, they should all be castrati, since it is believed that a hijra is not a real hijra until she undergoes ritual castration at the hands of an older member of the community. Now these rituals are officially prohibited in India, but they still continue to be performed underground. Moreover, it is not customary to stop bleeding after amputation. Imagine the picture: they put your reproductive organ on a stool and... And that’s it, there is no more organ.
Hijras dress and behave like women and have a truly cult status, as they are believed to be favored by the goddess Bahuchara Mata (someone like).
Hijras are both feared and revered. Childless people ask for their blessings, they are invited to weddings and celebrations on the occasion of the birth of children. And if they don’t invite, then they will come themselves - and this will cost even more, since they will have to pay off for the insult inflicted on them.
If the hijra is insulted or they are dissatisfied with the reception given to them, then they can send damage or a curse, make the woman infertile, and the man impotent or homosexual.
In addition to rituals, hijras also earn money through prostitution, drug trafficking, begging, scams, fraud, etc. Being a hijra is a very lucrative business. Therefore, some particularly enterprising Indians simply dress up as women and pretend to be hijras, without actually being one.
But do not forget that hijras are a caste and they live in a community, so if such a stray Cossack is caught, he will not think enough, and given their temperament, we can safely assume that castrati will arrive in the regiment after this meeting.
Hindus tell scary stories that in areas where there are many hijras, it is dangerous for a man to walk alone, because they can seduce the male representative they like, seduce him, and then make him one of them (in the sense of castrating).
To what extent this is true, God knows, but there was no desire to test it on myself. By the way, largely because of this, all the photos were honestly taken from the Internet, where there are very interesting works in the public domain.
For example, to illustrate this post, we used photographs by Muhammad Muheisen from his art project “Double Life”. For the sake of these works, he lived for several years among the hijras in order to better understand and earn their trust.