Homosexual acts and full-time cross-dressing are not taboo in traditional Indigenous American societies. Male and female homosexuals and transvestites are referred to by many Indigenous American societies in their own tongues as "two spirit" people. Not only are two spirit people just tolerated--they are respected for their orientation, which is regarded as a perfect balance between masculine and feminine energies. They are also regarded as being exceptionally spiritually gifted, which is why many of them serve as shamans and healers. Effeminate males often live and dress as women, and women with masculine traits often serve as hunters and warriors along with men.
Bisexuality is also very common, including among many heterosexually married men and women. In polygamous marriages, it is not uncommon for a man with a bisexual orientation to have a "he/she" (male transvestite) as one of his spouses. It is reported that the great Lakota foreign invader resistance fighter Sitting Bull had a winkte as one of his "wives."
Pictured above is the cover of a book about one of the most celebrated two spirit he/she Indigenous Americans of all time, Wewah, who was a respected member of the Zuni nation in New Mexico, circa late 1800's.
There were a few Indigenous American societies where two spirit people held no special status, but at the same time were not treated as outcasts. The ancient Aztecs used to include two spirit people in their human sacrifices to their perceived blood-thirsty gods, but did not condemn them to death for their homosexuality in and of itself.
From a biological standpoint, tradtional Indigenous American medicine people have always known in their own "primitive" understanding and terminologies that individual psycho-gender identity and sexual and romantic gender preference is the result of one's biological makeup, and how and to what extent sexual orientation is expressed is influenced by one's cultural and sociological environment.
Most Indigneous American traditionalists observe and respect the two spirits tradition.
Two Spirit website: Native Out in the Links section of this blog.
Brain structure and sexual gender preference.
Books on this subject.
"Secret Cowboys" music video with Willie Nelson and Burt Reynolds
2 comments:
Good piece, really. I like the fact that you people don't discriminate on this subject, truly wondeful that different sexualities were so well accepted in that culture. And what a pity that our European lust for scapegoating has overshadowed such a peaceful and 'normal' way of accepting this part of humanity.
Hello...
Lets' adventure!
Adventure Philippines!
Post a Comment