Description
This land, especially that of South Asia, is known for depicting bodiless desires. The very God of Desire and Pleasure, Kama, itself has no body! The land is known to question the cis-het-patriarchal frameworks around desire. It is a land where one needn’t identify with a sexual or romantic attraction style, for everyone knew that sex, pleasure and desires are fluid in nature and not fixed. Every single piece you see in this collection, questions the norms that we have built our society around.
Ever imagine a world where transwomen were considered kingmakers and royal bodyguards, where crossdressing people created fashion trends that cis-gendered people followed? A world where a trans-man ruled as a king, an intersex deity married a gender-fluid royal, a femme-Buddha was elevated to the ranks of a deity. The practice of oral storytelling has dominated much of human history. We shall be delving into these oral histories that speak of values, beliefs and attitudes that dictate social norms of ancient civilizations. While you engage with these stories that are 2000-5000 years old, perhaps its good to reflect on why these tales were crafted in the first place. Perhaps they were narrated to children so that they can make sense of the world they live in.
In SWANA region, South Asia and Southeast Asia, we have a rich history that goes beyond the binary. From Khwajasaras (gender non-conforming people and transwomen) who were appointed to the ranks of guarding royal households to Rani Rudrama Devi, princess of Kakatiya Dynasty, who had a state-sponsored ceremony (Putrika Puja) to transition into a prince, the heir to the throne, Rudradeva Maharaja. From stories of intersex deities like Mercury (Buddh Graha) to their gender-fluid partner, Ila/Sudyumna (who went by mother for 6 months and father for the rest, for their children). From a femme-Buddha, Tara, being elevated to the ranks of a deity in China to Khawalat dancers (who would cross-dress as women performers, and kept the Egyptian traditional dance, Ghawazee alive). We have a rich history of people who took center-stage in the heights of their civilizations, and weren’t relegated to the margins… well, not until colonization. If one were to travel south to the state of Andhra Pradesh, one would encounter cis-men composing poetries were they reimagined themselves as the woman (lover/wife/courtesan) of their beloved from an ontologically different plane. The range of emotions documented in their poems elicit a degree of desire among even the audiences. These poems today are still staged as songs, accompanied by elaborate classical dance-drama traditions in Khuchipudi and Bharatanatyam.
We have a rich history of people who took center-stage in the heights of their civilizations, and weren’t relegated to the margins… well, not until colonization. Let’s challenge the norms we live by!
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
- At the end of the session, attendees will be able to evaluate the cross-cultural relevance of these historical narratives for expanding contemporary understandings of gender and sexual diversity beyond Western clinical and binary frameworks.
AASECT Individual CE Provider #26-622-NR – You can review my Grievance Policy Here. This course meets the requirements of the American Association of Sexuality Educators, Counselors and Therapists (AASECT) and is approved for 1 CE credit. These CE credits may be applied toward AASECT certification and renewal of certification. Completion of this program does not ensure or guarantee AASECT certification. For further information please contact info@aasect.org.
