Mother goes on to answer that this difference is not real and will not stay. Alok da, is the recent national agitation by the young generation on their right to choose their sex or remain sexless an outcome of the supramental force acting on the material world to bring out the external manifestation? When I shared about this with some friends, they became curious to read Sri Aurobindo and Mother on this issue, but I have no clue so I did not suggest anything.
There are quite a few passages in The Mother’s conversations about the issue of gender. Sri Aurobindo has elaborated upon it in his last writings on The Supramental Manifestation. Let me quote just one of them which captures the essence best.
‘X asked me if in the course of rebirths a woman can become a man, and a man a woman. He thought of certain feminine traits in him that could be explained thus. I would also like to know if there is in the psychic being itself something like sex?
(Answer:) Not sex exactly, but what might be called the masculine and feminine principle. It is a difficult question [whether sex is altered in rebirth]. There are certain lines the reincarnation follows and so far as my experience goes and general experience goes, one follows usually a single line. But the alteration of sex cannot be declared impossible. There may be some who do alternate. The presence of feminine traits in a male does not necessarily indicate a past feminine birth—they may come in the general play of forces and their formations. There are besides qualities common to both sexes. Also a fragment of the psychological personality may have been associated with a birth not ones own. One can say of a certain person of the past, “that was not myself, but a fragment of my psychological personality was present in him.” Rebirth is a complex affair and not so simple in its mechanism as in the popular idea.
11 January 1936
Letters on Yoga, 22.447-448
The psychic, that’s true, has masculine and feminine tendencies, but it’s not “man” or “woman”: the psychic is sexless.
‘The psychic, that’s true, has masculine and feminine tendencies, but it’s not “man” or “woman”: the psychic is sexless.’
It is quite comprehensive. Essentially the masculine and feminine elements are there in the very origin of creation as the passive masculine and the dynamic feminine aspects in creation. These are two sides of one Reality known to ancient Indian thought as Ishwara and Shakti, Purusha and Prakriti.
Nature simply tries to replicate this truth in her own, often clumsy way, through symbols. The body is one such symbol. But since her present operations are in ignorance, due to the spell of Avidya, there are all kinds of apparent errors and anomalies that occur as she experiments with forms and tendencies. That is why we have, – and always had, men with feminine traits and women who were more masculine in their tendencies. This has always been known and accepted.
The problem is with the Christian and the Mohammedan world that regards ‘homosexuality’ as a sin.
The problem gets compounded when there is a variance between biological differentiation and the psychological orientation. In earlier times it was simply accepted as an anomaly except that there was no official same sex marraige and hence the question of legal rights etc did not come up. Nobody should have or perhaps has any issue if people with same gender live together as sexual partners. There was perhaps a social disapproval in the Western world. But now with an increased sense of individuality people want that the society must accept, approve and most of provide equal rights by giving the legal status of wife to a man and vice versa. In fact the whole issue has been raised to absurd levels. Surely each one has a right to change gender, live with anyone of any gender they are happy and comfortable with, nobody should be ostracised for colour, gender, money etc, and there should be equality and unity and fraternity regardless. But the paradox is that the rights activists are dividing the world along gender in an inverse way. As humanity evolves it will become more and more subtle and freed from the sting of gender. As one grows into the psychic essence, the problem of gender automatically drops off and one begins to see each other as equal children of God.
Here is another significant writing of the Mother.
‘In regard to this Supreme Reality all are equal, men and women, in rights and in duties; the only distinction which can exist in this domain being based on the sincerity and ardour of aspiration, on the constancy of the will. And it is in the recognition of this fundamental spiritual equality that can be found the only serious and lasting solution for this problem of the relation of the sexes. It is in this light that it must be placed, it is at this height that must be sought the focus of action and new life, around which will be constructed the future temple of Humanity.’
The paradox is that the gender rights movement has deflected the major issue of women rights and gender equality which should be a much more burning question especially in the Islamic world into rights for gay which is, if we ignore the legalities of it, not such a major issue after all.
The problem is if they want to adopt a child. The issue is bit tricky and complex with all this storm about same sex marraige. As to inheritance people are free to anyways nominate anyone to inherit their property. The conflict is mainly with the Christian and Moslem world. But unfortunately due to lack of proper information and misinformation many Hindus are getting sucked into it.
Affectionately,
Alok Da
