Hijras: history and characteristics of this community in India

Hijras are not considered male or female, but are a mix of both genders, what they themselves call the “third gender”. This community lives in India and its origins are very old; in fact, at the time that the Mughal Empire took over India (16th century) the hijras were already documented exercising important positions, such as that of caregivers of the emperor's children and as advisors to state.

In this article we will try to make a brief profile of this community, one of the most stigmatized in India and which is currently demanding its rights vigorously. As the hijras use the feminine to talk about themselves, in this article we will also use it to refer to them.

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Who are the hijras?

As we have already mentioned, it is one of the oldest communities in India, and also one of the most underappreciated. It was not always so, however. During ancient times and later during the Mughal period, hijras enjoyed enormous popularity and respect among Hindus

, and also among Muslims. It wasn't until the arrival of the British that what had once been admiration and respect turned into a stigma. Since then, the hijra communities have survived with great difficulty, and many of them have had to engage in prostitution to survive.

Although we can also find women, the members of the hijra communities are usually men who do not identify with this gender. These hijras grow their hair long, put on makeup, perfume and wear feminine clothes: beautiful saris and veils, and a profusion of earrings, necklaces and bracelets. Most of them have suffered discrimination (and even mistreatment) within their families, which do not accept their identity, and have been forced to flee and form communities with other hijras.

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How do the daughters live?

The hijras live in communities (gharanas) managed by a nayak, who is usually the eldest hijra. The nayak is the guru but each of the hijras has their own mistress, and each can be the mistress of another hijra. The group of female disciples are the cheelas (sisters).

Generally, hijras give their blessings in exchange for money in order to earn an income in their community. But, as the social stigma is still strong, they are often forced to beg to survive. Many others end up in the dark world of prostitution, with the terrible consequences that this entails: mistreatment and infections of venereal diseases, including HIV.

Castration is an option that many of them carry out, but it is not mandatory to be part of a hijra community. Living in a community does not entail giving up sexual life either: the practice of sex is completely free and a personal choice.

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The third gender in Indian culture

If currently the hijras live a clear stigmatization, it was not like that in ancient India, as we have already commented. In fact, Hindu religion perfectly contemplates the third gender, since their gods have, at the same time, masculine and feminine energy.

Indeed; In Hindu mythology, the male gods (the deba) always have by their side shakti or feminine energy. Gods and goddesses are not seen as separate figures, as is the case in other mythologies, but rather are two sides of the same coin. A single male god, as well as a single female goddess, are theological errors.. Divinity is always masculine and feminine.

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Krishna and the soldier Aravana, the origin of the hijras

In it Mahabharata, one of the books of Hinduism (s. III a. C), hijras are mentioned as kinnars. The book also tells the story of the god Krishna and the soldier Aravana. The myth says that Aravana, son of a cousin of Krishna, lamented the night before going into battle that he was going to die without having lain with a woman. It was true that he could marry that very night, but what woman would want to marry a man who, the next day, could be dead?

Aravana wept uncontrollably, and Krishna, moved by her grief, transformed into a woman, Mohini, and married him. When Aravana died the next day in battle, Mohini mourned her husband and put on widow's clothes.

The hijras take that legend and make it their own. In fact, in southern India they are also called aravanis, in honor of the soldier. Every spring, communities of hijras go on a pilgrimage to Koovagam to hold a festival commemorating the story. There, the hijras dress up as brides, "marry" Aravana and celebrate the event with a lively and colorful party. Then, they break their jewelry, dress as widows, and mourn the death of the soldier, just as Mohini mourned.

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Hijras in Indian popular culture

Despite the increasing marginalization that the hijras have suffered since colonialism (and which, unfortunately, continues today), these communities are held in high esteem by the people of India. Currently, the admiration and respect that, in the past, were lavished on the hijras continue to prevail among the popular classes.

In fact, hijras are still called today to bless births, weddings and other events, since they are recognized as bearers of divinity by living with both genders. For the people, the hijras are the living expression of the gods, those who summarize duality in their being.

But be careful, because if the hijras can give their blessing, it is believed that they can also curse. That is why the people who require their favors are very careful to compensate them with food, saris or money directly.

What is the future of the hijras?

At present, the hijra communities of India are strongly demanding their rights, so forgotten during the last centuries. Most live very simply, often near destitution; their situation is made worse by the Indian government's ban on begging on the street. Some, in order to live, continue to dedicate themselves to prostitution.

On September 6, 2018, a small-big step forward was taken. India finally decriminalized homosexuality and removed it from the Penal Code. A year later, at the Kumbh Mela (the sacred Hindu pilgrimage that takes place four times every twelve years old), the hijras reclaimed the space they had lost in the Hindu religion and in society India. Currently, it is estimated that there are more than 2 million hijras in India, in the midst of the struggle for real equal rights and access to a dignified life free of stigma.