Homosexuality And The Indian

[varun]

article about homosexuality in ancient and medieval India:

http://www.littleindia.com/news/145/ARTICLE/1835/2007-08-17.html

In India, except for a few people belonging to the English-speaking elite in metropolitan centers, mostly in the higher echelons of advertising, fashion, design, fine and performing arts, men (and women) with same-sex-partners neither identify themselves as homosexuals nor admit their sexual preference, often even to themselves. Many men - some married - have had or continue to have sex with other men; but only a miniscule minority are willing to recognize themselves as homosexual.

The assertion that there are hardly any homosexuals in India and yet there is considerable same-sex-involvement seems contradictory, yet simple to reconcile. Sex between men, especially among friends or within the family during adolescence and youth, is not regarded as sex, but masti, an exciting, erotic playfulness, with overtones of the mast elephant in heat.

Outside male friendship, it is a way to satisfy an urgent bodily need or, for some, to make money. Sex, on the other hand, is the serious business of procreation within marriage. Almost all men who have sex with other men will get married even if many continue to have sex with men after marriage. Sexual relations with men are not a source of conflict as long as the person believes he is not a homosexual in the sense of having an exclusive preference for men and does not compromise his masculine identity by not marrying and hrefusing to produce children...

...In general, then, India has a tradition of "benign neglect" of alternate sexualities, a tradition that is very much a part of the Indian mind. The laws against homosexual activity, such as the act of 1861, are all examples of a repressive Victorian moral code. It is ironical that reactionaries, both Hindu and Muslim, who reject homosexuality as a decadent Western phenomenon subscribe to the same foreign code that is so alien to the Indian tradition. The Indian tradition of indifference or deliberate ignorance is also incompatible with the model of the Western gay movement, which is beginning to make inroads into our metropolises. In its insistence on the politics of a gay identity, of a proud or at least defiant assertion of homosexual identity, this movement is beginning to compel the rest of society to confront the issue publicly.

[TankLV]

1. Whew! Glad to know I'm not gay!

altho I prefer to only have sex with men...get aroused only by pics of men, prefer to look at men, etc. etc.

and have been in a monogomous relationship with my partner for over 8 years now...

And all this time I feared I was "gay"...!!!

[Beregond2]

2. This is hardly unique to India.

Italy and Spain traditionally had almost exactly the same attitude. So long as you married and had kids, what you did on the side was irrelevant.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

4. so has america till recently. how we identify and behave are very seperate

something we learned during the aids crisis

[mitchtv]

6. this was also the code in latinamerica

and Greece for years

[varun]

3. "Western" definition of homosexuality

is catching on in India. Homosexual activity is widespread, but its just not acknowledged. This year (2008) however, there were three major gay pride parades in India. The media is discussing this topic openly (and quite sympathetically), and theres a good likelihood that IPC 377 (India's sodomy laws) will be overturned this year.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

5. the part that isnt mentioned in this article is about collectivistic vs individualistic cultures

india was a collectivist culture, and in collectivist cultures identities belong more to the group than the individual, people want/need to fit in and not to stick out. as the culture w. western influence is moving from collectivism to individualism these differences will cahnge. people will start to embrace identities seperate from their group. a gay identity in a collectivist culture is far harder to embrace since it really tears you apart from the mainstream culture. as individualism becomes more the norm, homosexuals will be able to embrace their own identity with more ease.

[sui generis]

7. I have a couple of desi friends who are married now but play

one of them is a self-described ABCD, but lives back in India now, not happily I think.

I think most of the world didn't really think much of same-gender play until the christians and muslims came along.

For one thing, most of the world didn't live to be very old up until recently . . .

[La Lioness Priyanka]

8. lol abcd. i love that term

[closeupready]

9. I hope one day, people come to realize that notions of "straight" and "gay" are themselves perverse.

By that I mean, I'd bet for most people in most places, responding sexually to other people, regardless of gender, is a natural instinct, and it is the Abrahamic religions which try to seize control of sexuality and harness it for purposes of controlling the minds and thoughts of adherents. So, it makes sense to me that many Westerners and muslims are so fucked up when it comes to sexuality.

[Karl_Bonner_1982]

10. I wonder if the fledgling Indian gay culture looks similar to those in other nations

A lot of gay cultural scenes around the world have similar elements of mannerisms, musical preferences (a lot of dance and pop) and gender roles. I wonder if this is only because they emulated what they thought it meant to be gay in the West?

Me? I don't give a shit about Hollywood celeb culture and I definitely prefer alternative hip-hop, punk, and metal to any dance mix or pop diva.