Society for Sacred Sexuality

Gary Joseph · Posted: September 18, 2004

Every living being is a duo-sex soul that assumes gender form on its journey to wholeness.

You are not 'male or female'. You are a fe-male soul, taking on various gender identities until you awaken to the truth that you are gender complete.

We are all very caught up in our lives. We see our current life as the totality of who we are. If we are male, or female, we take that as the entirety of our existence. We wrap our identity in it.

Sacred sex reveals that you are something more. Just as you, as a complete human being, are more than your religious, cultural, national, social, and professional identities, so are you more than your gender identity.

You are a complete soul that has taken on a particular identity as a vehicle in which to embody wholeness. And you will continue taking on new lives and new gender identities until you awaken to your inner fullness.

Different gender identities give your soul the opportunity to view life through a different lens, experiencing the full range of male-female existence. This breaks the boundaries of limited gender identity, and awakens you to your gender wholeness.

Comparing the soul to light, you take on lives as red, blue, green, and yellow hue, as reflected through the prism of your body, until you awaken to your truth as white light. You incarnate through the entire spectrum as a way of seeing life through every lens, so you can comprehend it as pure, holistic, full-spectrum light.

(For more on the male & female in you, see Meet Your Sacred Sex Family. For more on the purpose of your many incarnations, see Journey of the Soul.)

Sacred sex takes you beyond your limited gender identity. Sex in general, and sacred sex in particular, is a union of male and female essence. When two souls come together in sexual union, male & female creation merge.

In sacred sex, you experience an ecstatic awareness that transcends gender boundaries. You join with your Inner Self, bringing together your male & female life forces. You become gender complete. Sacred sex calls this 'spiritual orgasm'. To learn more about this experience, visit the Sacred Union Forum.

GENDER IDENTITY DEFINED

What does it mean to be 'male' or 'female'? Does it mean playing a certain role in society? Behavioral tendencies are certainly part of gender identity, but most agree it goes deeper than this. Is it maintaining a certain appearance and dress? Again, this may be part of it, but there is more than this too. Is it defined by our sexual anatomy? Many would say yes, but as you'll soon see, you can have a gender identity completely opposite that of the anatomy you are born with. There is something still deeper. The same is true even on the levels of hormones and genes -- you can have the genes, and sometimes hormones, of one gender and still identify with the other.

Ultimately, gender identity goes entirely beyond any physical, psychological, or sociological determinant we can attach to it. It is a state of awareness that matches a primordial archetype of life. Each archetype - male & female - has two values. First is its existent state. Second is what it desires for completeness.

Male gender identity is defined as 'full, desiring to expand'.

Female gender identity is defined as 'expanded, desiring to be full'.

[NOTE: These archetypes are one way to define gender. They describe each gender as it relates to the other. In the Gender Role lesson, you'll learn more holistic archetypes that unify gender. Despite the distinction, you'll see similarities between them.]

For man, fullness is his existent state, and expansion is what he desires for completeness. Woman's existent state is expanded, and she desires to be full for completeness.

The easiest way to begin to understand these is to apply them to typical male & female sexual anatomy. Man has the 'staff', which is full. It projects out, desiring to sow its seed and expand. Woman is already expanded. Her sexual organ envelops from every side, desiring to be filled.

Several points about male & female gender identities are immediately clear. They are all related.

First, they are exact opposites. Each has what the other wants. This of course is convenient for everything regarding male/female relations.

Second, due to their opposition, they are in constant dynamic tension. Tension is the perfect word because it has two meanings, both applicable here. The common meaning, stress and conflict, occurs in problematic gender relations. But tension has a higher meaning: a state of balanced equilibrium. (For more on these two, see Gender Relations & Harmony.) Perhaps most important is that whether positive or negative, tension indicates the innate connection between male & female gender.

Third, they each desire the other for wholeness. This sets up the mutual attraction that signifies relationship.

Fourth, together they are whole and complete. Separate, they are incomplete and wanting.

This last point is most significant for our personal identity. So long as we see ourselves as 'male' or 'female', we are incomplete and wanting. If we are male, we view it from a male perspective, feeling like we have 'unfinished business'. Women see themselves simply as unfulfilled, even if everything in their life is 'done'.

BEYOND GENDER IDENTITY

Sacred sex completes your gender identity by satisfying the desires of both gender archetypes. Sacred Union expands your awareness to universal status. This fully satisfies the male archetype. He feels he has accomplished everything. Sacred Union also fills you with ecstasy. You feel completely full. This satisfies the female archetype.

In both cases, the opposite gender's fulfilled archetype is added to one's own, satisfying both male & female ideals. You are no longer limited to the status of your own gender, seeking your opposite for completeness. You have both within you. This is how sacred sex takes you beyond gender identity and awakens you to your gender completeness.

UNITY OF LIFE

Male & female gender are but two of the many opposites we unify when we awaken to wholeness. All such divisions of life are false constructs of the human mind. The truth of life is unity. Unity manifests in an infinite variety of ways, polarizing into opposite values. Light/dark, black/white, big/small, hot/cold, true/false, and life/death are but a few of these apparent opposites. But this seemingly distinct duality is really the full-spectrum range of unity. Black & white are unified by infinite shades of gray, hot & cold by countless degrees of warmth, and big & small by endless measures of size.

Gender is no different. Yes, there is male & female. But there are also feminine men and masculine women of every gender degree between. Gender is not so much a positive ID as it is a matter of shade or degree.

This is not merely a theory, philosophical idea, or matter of semantics. It is a scientific truth that shows itself in the entire physical reality around us. For a complete understanding of this unity, and to see through the illusion of duality, see the Myth of Evil.

THE GENDER RAINBOW

Your own personal experience likely verifies what we might call the 'gender rainbow'. While your body may look male or female, and you commonly identify yourself as one of these, you more than likely have some qualities of your gender 'opposite' within you. On the off-chance you don't (or won't admit it), you at least likely know people who exhibit some degree of dual gender quality despite their singular identity.

Let's start with the basic archetypes. The first thing you may have thought when you read the gender definitions above is, "I'm not completely either of those." The vast majority of people fall somewhere in between. That is your clue that you're not entirely the gender you think you are.

It becomes clearer when we consider gender qualities that each archetype gives rise to.

The male archetype - full, desiring to expand - engenders what we commonly view as male personality traits. We may divide these up into healthy tendencies and unhealthy ones. While men may fall into one category or the other for certain traits, both are decidedly male.

People who are 'full, desiring to expand' express themselves as follows:

Healthy - strong, steady, stable, adventurous, courageous, charismatic, chivalrous, practical, productive, inventive, one-pointed, and successful.

Unhealthy - stubborn, belligerent, stuck in current ways, withdrawn, lazy/procrastinating, frustrated/angry, aggressive, cut-throat, territorial, and violent.

People who are 'expanded, desiring to be full', express themselves as follows:

Healthy - loving, compassionate, nurturing, accommodating, adaptive/flexible, creative, intuitive, wise, worldly, diversified, experienced, multi-tasking, and networking.

Unhealthy - unstable/oversensitive, overprotective, withholding, needy, sad/depressed/fearful, scattered, and frivolous/gossipy.

Most of these qualities are easily extrapolated from the archetype for each gender. If a man is expressing his gender traits in a healthy way, he is boldly and productively expanding himself in the world. If he can't find a channel for this, he becomes frustrated or angry and exhibits his gender's negative traits. A healthy woman shows her expansiveness by her love, adaptability, and wisdom. If not feeling full, she withholds her love, and her expansive nature becomes scattered.

One more set of character traits helps understand each archetype. Men are cognitive and mechanical, whereas women are sensory and emotive. The reason for this is in the 'position' and flow of each archetype.

The male gender is full within and expands out. Men therefore process the world cognitively, through the mind. Also, they see their body (and environment) as a tool by which to expand out. Hence they are mechanical.

The female gender is already expanded out, and seeks fullness within. Women therefore process the world through the senses, from the outside in. Also, they interpret their experience in terms of how full they feel. Hence they are highly emotive.

These then, are the basic traits of each gender archetype.

If you're like most people, most of your traits fall in the healthy/unhealthy categories for your accepted gender, but a few were likely listed under your gender opposite. This gives you an idea of where you fall on the gender spectrum. As you might guess, very few people are 'pure' male or female.

Astute readers may have noticed something else. Truly great people exhibit the healthy qualities of both genders. They have transcended gender limitations and serve as examples of gender complete individuals.

Some examples of men who were/are strong & courageous, while loving & compassionate were Jesus Christ, Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, and Nelson Mandela. Women who were/are the same include Joan of Arc, Mother Teresa, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Aung San Suu Kyi (Burmese pro-democracy leader).

Other figures combining male & female traits are:

George Washington - strong, courageous, adaptive, experienced
Albert Einstein - one-pointed, inventive, adaptive, intuitive
Thomas Edison - inventive, practical, creative, intuitive
Walt Disney - productive, successful, creative, diversified

Susan B. Anthony - worldly, experienced, courageous, charismatic
Golda Meir - adaptive, experienced, strong, practical
Helen Keller - adaptive, creative, inventive, productive
Oprah Winfrey - creative, wise, charismatic, successful

In fact, if we were to look at all the truly great figures in history, we would likely find that they exhibited traits of both genders. Those limited to the traits of one are more common, and so less notable.

Possessing strengths of both genders is a blessing for obvious reasons -- it combines the best of human nature and integrates opposites in ways that greatly and positively impact life. It is a sign of an evolved and well-balanced character. This is something we commonly recognize on the level of personality, but which we unfortunately forget when male & female gender come together on more visible levels.

INTERSEX & TRANSGENDER

So far we've discussed inner traits and tendencies, and seen that most people are a blend of male & female gender. But gender can express itself in a spectrum even on the physical level. What's more, people with the anatomy of one gender may identify themselves as the other, or somewhere in between. The reason again, in both cases, is that gender is not the duality we think it is, but rather the full spectral range of human sexuality.

We can choose to see this blending as a blessing or a curse. How we perceive it typically determines how it plays out.

We'll begin with some definitions.

Intersexual - describes one whose sex chromosomes, genitalia, and/or secondary sex characteristics (breast size, body hair, bone structure, muscle mass, voice, etc.) are neither exclusively male nor female. Intersex people may have biological traits of both genders, or indeterminate traits.

Transsexual - one whose gender identity is opposite the one indicated by their sexual anatomy (or has undergone or is undergoing sexual anatomy change).

Transgender - a more general (and widely used) term applying to people and behaviors that diverge from the gender roles signified by their sexual anatomy (or other gender determinants), and traditionally held by society. Transgenders may identify themselves as male, female, both, or neither.

Transgenders and transsexuals are not typically intersex, nor do they exhibit any specific pattern of sexual orientation.

It's worth learning a little how intersexuality occurs, because there is much misconception about it, leading to stigmatization. Those who fully want to understand the biology behind it should first read Male/Female Androgyny to learn the surprising and fascinating truth that we all begin life as intersex beings in the womb. This shows how easily intersex conditions can arise, and dispels the notion that intersex people are 'freaks'.

To sum up that lesson, males & females have formative sexual and reproductive anatomy for both genders in the early stages of fetal development. From there, sex hormones determine which system evolves and which regresses. Changed hormone levels, which can result from many factors, give rise to intersex conditions.

The preponderance of intersexuality in society depends on how strictly we define it. Intersex genitalia are rare. Secondary intersex traits (body shape & hair, etc.) are more common. Hormonal-based intersex behavior is more common still, though this is not part of the standard definition.

There are many ways intersexuality can occur, starting with genetics. While most of us believe that the genetics of sex comes down to simple XX vs. XY, there are in fact many, albeit uncommon, variations on this theme. Examples include XXY, XYY, & XXYY males, and X & XXX females. Some cases affect gender and sexual identity; others result in no obvious change and may even go undiagnosed through life.

This however, is only the beginning of human sexual diversity. Sex hormones commonly play a determining role in gender identity, even where there is an underlying genetic cause. Below are two examples that lead to intersex conditions. Both begin in the womb, but also impact later life stages, notably puberty.

Androgen insensitivity syndrome (AIS) - genetic males (XY) with AIS are otherwise female. Androgens are the male sex hormones (including testosterone) that stimulate male sexual development in the womb. In this condition, the body's receptors do not respond androgen stimulation. The fetus then develops as a female, which interestingly, is the 'default' gender.

AIS people typically have female appearance and genitalia (though, because they lack ovaries to produce estrogens, the uterus does not develop and they are infertile). At puberty, AIS children develop breasts and a feminine shape.

AIS is inherited. It may be complete (which often goes undiagnosed in early life), or partial, leading to some masculinization.

The female equivalent of AIS is congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH). In CAH women, the adrenal glands produce unusually high levels of masculinizing hormones while trying to make cortisone. It is one of the most frequent forms of intersexuality in women.

Genitalia of CAH women may appear completely masculine, or may be ambiguous. They typically exhibit other masculine traits, including deep voice and thick body hair.

It's important to note that intersex people are otherwise just like everyone else; more than likely, you have come across an intersex individual in life without even knowing it.

The causes of transgenderism and transsexualism, because they don't necessarily involve intersexuality, are less clear. They are believed to be a combination of genetic, hormonal, and sometimes environmental factors. These may lead to brain development that is atypical for the respective gender.

One thing though is certain: gender identity is rarely - if ever - a choice. Even if early childhood experiences do play a role, that imprinting occurs long before an individual is capable of consciously 'choosing' a gender. By the time capacity for choice arrives, gender identity is already cemented in the brain structure & functioning, ego, intellect, and emotions. Those with alternative gender identities can no more change theirs than can those with normative ones.

There are many cases of people whose gender was surgically changed at birth (for medical reasons), and who were raised in their new gender, in most cases unknowingly. Without fail though, their gender identity in later years matched their birth identity. If learning & choice played any significant role at all, at least some would have adopted their new gender.

Ultimately, scientific pursuit of the causes of gender identity will always fall short -- there are cases of genetically, hormonally, and anatomically 'normal' people raised in healthy, 'normal' environments, who nevertheless have an alternative gender identity. Science can help understand it, but can't give us all the answers.

The main reason science falls short though, is that its paradigm of gender identity is wrong. So long as science views gender as 'split' between male & female, not accounting for everything falling between, it will fail to truly understand not only alternative genders, but also even the 'standard' male & female. When science starts to see gender as a spectrum, it will better understand the various identities that exist along that spectrum.

GENDER IDENTITY SPECTRUM

Below is a visual representation of how the gender identity spectrum might look. While neither complete nor authoritative, it gives an idea of how we might better view gender.

The above spectrum shows the fluid range of gender identity between male and female. This helps us see and understand the various identities and their relationships. It also teaches us about society in the context of how we view them. For example, society demeans certain identities while accepting their reciprocal ones. We devalue male identities that include female traits. Society has a double standard -- it is acceptable for women to take on male traits, but not vice versa. Double standards apply even to archetypal identities -- female gender is often devalued compared to male.

A unified, balanced gender identity spectrum helps root out social inequity and injustice. It shows all gender identities to be part of the natural human spectrum, fostering acceptance for all. In this light, it's interesting to note that the alternative gender (and sexual orientation) movement has adopted a rainbow-striped banner as its flag.

The gender spectrum may give even deeper insight into society. If we accept the spectrum's balance as part of the natural order of things, it shows us a potential reason for the imbalance of modern society. Whereas many women today tend toward male gender traits, the opposite is not true of men. The weight of the gender spectrum has tipped toward the male side. This may help explain - and point to solutions for - the rise of violence and other 'male' gender traits.

The gender spectrum illustrated above is nice for its relative simplicity, but it doesn't adequately account for the many levels of gender identity in the individual. One's gender identity may be different at these different levels. Rather than the one-dimensional spectral range shown above, a two-dimensional chart may serve as a better model. The following shows how this might look, with a hypothetical gender identity plotted as an example.

The vertical axis lists the various levels at which gender identity can be measured. The horizontal axis shows the male-female value for each. For a given individual, plot points are drawn at each level marking the appropriate gender value. These are then connected, giving a gender identity 'line'. The typical male and female would be plotted as straight vertical lines on the left and right sides of the graph, respectively.

The ego level plot point is the most important, as it indicates the gender that the person inwardly identifies with.

The example gender line shown might be for an individual who is genetically male, with a condition like AIS described earlier, which results in hormonal levels that are more female. The person has a female anatomy and fully identifies as female. Their traits, behavior, and dress, etc. are predominantly female.

Such a scale would go a long way toward helping science understand the relationship between factors that make up gender identity. By plotting the lines of many alternative gender people, scientists may find patterns that allow them to better pinpoint the factors that most determine ego level gender identity. This may be as close to a 'cause' as they will get.

Also, psychologists and medical professionals may find patterns that allow them to better predict the ego level gender identity likely to result from various genetic and prenatal hormone conditions. This would bring greater accuracy in 'assigning' gender at birth, and prevent later duress due to conflict with inner gender identity. In cases where no clear pattern is indicated, parents could refrain from pushing the child into a particular gender, rather allowing them to choose for themselves as they mature.

(The Society for Sacred Sexuality recommends extreme caution in assigning gender at birth in cases of ambiguity. Only when a clear pattern in previous cases indicates a specific chosen identity by the person upon maturing should that gender be assigned. Otherwise, the child should be left free to choose a gender in later life, or accept alternative gender status. While there are challenges in raising open-gendered children, these are less than that of dealing with and reversing a wrongly assigned gender. Gender-free names - Chris, Jackie, Alex, Jamie, Pat, etc. - and neutral clothing, toys, and activities are essential rearing tools. Parents should familiarize themselves with the early developmental signs of gender for clues as to the child's self-identity -- see Gender Relations. If the child shows a clear pattern, that gender can then be assigned.)

Scientists and professionals aren't the only ones who would benefit from the above spectrum. Everyone, regardless gender identity, can learn more about themselves, friends, family, and love relations. Since many people have non-straight-line gender identities, we can begin to learn how these interact, particularly with respect to relationship compatibility. In social and dating circles, the spectrum may give new meaning to that familiar saying, 'what's my line?'

GENDER SPECTRUM PROVED

In a subject marked by debate, controversy, and speculative theory, the proof of the gender identity spectrum comes from biology itself. That biology was briefly described in the introduction to Intersex & Transgender above; we'll expand on it now.

Contrary to common belief, we do not begin life in the womb as undeveloped boys or girls and grow into our respective gender. Despite genetic differences (XX vs. XY), every human being grows in the womb from an identically gendered anatomy. That anatomy has two sets of formative reproductive systems, one male and the other female. Thus, each child can conceivably develop as either male or female, despite their genetic makeup (for example, due to AIS or CAH as described earlier). See Male/Female Androgyny for a full explanation of sex differentiation in the womb.

Most significant though, is that the default gender of a child does not match its genetic makeup. Rather, it is female in every case. Only in the presence of testosterone does the fetus develop as male. Without testosterone, even XY fetuses develop as female. (Fetal estrogens do not significantly impact gender development; they are not needed, as default is already female.) Testosterone-induced development not only impacts the reproductive system and sexual genitalia, but also all other factors that differentiate males from females. These include bone structure and muscle mass, plus brain structure and functioning, to name a few.

Equally significant is that the level of testosterone determines the extent to which the fetus expresses male anatomy and traits. Those levels run the whole gamut from what are typically male to typically female. Stated plainly, a developing fetus can have male or female testosterone levels, or any level in between. Gender is not an all or nothing phenomenon; it is a single spectrum ranging from female to male.

Note that mid-range testosterone levels impact more than sexual anatomy. Their effect on brain structure and functioning likely influence attractions, desires, ways of thinking, behavior, mannerisms, and more -- perhaps even sense of self. Together, these determine and/or contribute to a person's inner perceived gender identity. This identity, like anatomy itself, ranges from male to female, and all points in between.

In this context, it is flatly ludicrous for any scientist, expert, moralist, or anyone else to suggest that male & female gender are narrowly defined black & white categories, and that anything in between is freakish, against God or nature, or in any way wrong. Such claims are patently false.

Even if we wrongly try to associate 'right' gender with typical development, how do we define it? The typical testosterone level for male fetal development is anywhere between 270-1100 ng/dl (nanograms per deciliter). Other sources say 300-1300 ng/dl. This wide range and differing view already indicates the difficulty of assigning a 'right' level. But where do we draw the line at wrong gender development? Is it 269 ng/dl? Is such a child's gender status that different from one at 270? There are no clear divisions in a spectral range. The proper solution is to accept the 'rightness' of the range, and stop creating false divisions.

The gender identity spectrum may not give science an exact biological cause, but it is based on biological evidence. It also does something more important. It shifts the emphasis of science to the more practical issues of understanding and accepting gender identity, as well as its impact on society. These, surprisingly, hint at the true cause of gender identity anyway.

TRUE CAUSE OF GENDER IDENTITY

While science searches for the biological cause of gender identity, it's worth noting that any such basis - regardless of what it is - is simply a physical excuse for a deeper phenomenon. In this case, that more meaningful event is a particular soul coming into the world. If the soul is meant to have an alternative gender identity as part of its growth in this lifetime, nature creates some physical mechanism by which it occurs.

This applies to all life conditions. For example, if a soul's time on earth is up, nature arranges for a mechanism by which the soul can pass from this life. Whether that is natural death from old age, sickness, accident, natural disaster, or even murder, is secondary to the timely passing of the soul. While in line with the soul's karma and not random, the cause of death is less significant than the fact of death. The same is true of all conditions of life, including gender identity.

The soul takes on different gender identities as part of its awakening to wholeness. These let the soul experience life from different gender perspectives, in order to integrate life into a unified whole. Whatever gender identity gives the soul the best opportunity to transcend limited gender perception, that is the identity the soul takes. Collectively, the various gender identities of people are meant to expand societal views. These are the true 'causes' of gender identity.

Souls may be born into alternative gender identities simply as new ways of perceiving the world, or as a result of particular past life experiences. For example, souls that have most recently spent several consecutive lifetimes as one gender, and are currently born as the other, may have transgender tendencies. Having been bound up in the experience and awareness of one gender for several lifetimes, they naturally exhibit those qualities this lifetime, despite their opposite gender body.

While this explanation will not satisfy science as we know it today, it is nevertheless true.

This soul-based understanding helps de-stigmatize alternative gender experience. It shows it to be a natural condition that any soul may have experienced in the past, may now be experiencing, or may in the future.

It is not entirely different than a person born into a life with strong familial, cultural, religious, class, or other associations, yet who feels an inner affinity for something different. Examples are the child that doesn't want to take up the family business, or who chooses to adopt a different culture or religion, or rejects his/her class status. Such a person may feel awkward and out of place being forced to conform to the 'norms' of their birth, and may be alienated by others if 'found out'.

Society often wrongly attributes such atypical behavior to confusion on the part of the individual. The soul-based understanding of life however, indicates that every identity - whether gender or otherwise, and whether typical or otherwise - is exactly as it should be.

GENDER IDENTITY CONFUSION

One of the most mistaken 'causes' people claim for alternative gender identity is confusion. In truth though, the term 'gender confusion' is a misdiagnosis. Transgender people are not typically confused about gender in the sense of not knowing which gender they are. Most know which gender they are, just as surely as everyone else. That gender just happens to be different than the one they anatomically appear to be.

Even in cases where transgenders don't fully relate to either male or female norms, seeing themselves as 'both' or 'neither', they are not typically confused about it. Unless forced by society or self-imposed values to choose one gender or the other, they accept their 'both' or 'neither' label. Confusion comes only if they try to typecast their gender-transcending experience.

Ironically, gender confusion more aptly applies to others who try to label people based on this or that criteria, and then are confused when people don't follow their 'rules'. Serious problems arise when society imposes a particular gender identity on someone.

Conflict between a person's innate gender identity and unnaturally imposed ones leads to 'gender dysphoria', or being uncomfortable with one's assigned gender. Different dysphoria arises when one's own values (often religious) conflict with their inner identity. This breeds discomfort with one's innate gender.

These conflicts do not arise when we accept gender as a spectrum, stop pigeonholing people into our limited definitions of it, and stop loathing ourselves if we don't fit some preset notion of it.

The fluidity of gender itself adds to our confusion. Set and limited definitions don't work because parts of gender identity (specifically, what is considered proper behavior and appearance for men & women) greatly differ across culture and change through time. Many norms that are perfectly accepted in one society or era would be considered transgender in another.


Louis XV, 1712

Examples include kilt wearing by Scottish men, powdered wig wearing by males of old Europe, male-to-male greeting kisses in some old world cultures, and male hand-holding in some Pacific cultures. More striking is the centuries ago Western custom of clothing young children - whether male or female - in dresses. From the photo at left, most people today would call King Louis XV a 'cross-dresser', a claim that would likely have brought your beheading in 18th century France. If you have old family tree photos, you will likely find one of your own male ancestors similarly (if less lavishly) attired.

If the above examples are too far removed or out of the norm, ask yourself whether the custom of modern women to wear pants, play sports & work out, enter the military, and work alongside men would have been considered gender appropriate behavior in ages past. Had women of those eras behaved like today's, they would have been accused of 'acting like men' and outcast.

Much of what we call gender identity is really our social perception of gender appearance and roles. Clearly there is a difference between a man who identifies himself as female and one who dresses female yet identifies himself as male. But there is also a distinction between the female-dressed male and your typical male-dressed one. Their gender identity is different. For one, their male identity allows for dressing female, for the other it doesn't.

All those differences are the degrees of the gender identity spectrum. It's not possible to single out one behavior in one society at one time in history and categorically state that it is 'gender appropriate' or transgender.

The point to take from this is that gender is fluid between individuals, just as it is between societies and eras. We must see it that way to fully accept ourselves and others. Most important, gender is fluid to the soul. This is the truth and reality of life. When we see it as such, we rise to gender wholeness. We honor ourselves as both male & female -- gender complete.

HISTORY OF ALTERNATIVE GENDER

One thing that contributes to our lack of acceptance of alternative genders is our belief that it is a modern phenomenon of Western society, somehow the result of our 'moral decline'. That however, is not the case. Learning of its perseverance and pervasiveness helps show it is a part of our natural human condition. Below is a brief review of alternative gender peoples throughout culture and history. It is by no means complete.

Dating back to our earliest civilizations, Sumer, Babylon, and Assyria all have lore of alternative gender people. One such story is even part of Sumer's creation legend. Ninmah, the mother-goddess, fashions mankind out of clay, in various forms. One she fashioned "with neither penis nor vagina on its body".

Archeological finds from the Middle Kingdom of Egypt (2000-1800 BCE) list three human genders: tai (male), hmt (female), and sḫt ("sekhet"). Sḫt is often translated as 'eunuch', though there is little evidence that such persons were castrated, or even naturally male.

References to a third sex are also found throughout the texts of India's three ancient spiritual traditions — Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. The Vedas describe humans as belonging to one of three separate categories, according to fundamental nature or prakriti. These are pums-prakriti (male-nature), stri-prakriti (female-nature), and tritiya-prakriti (third-nature).

The clearest indication that these are birth genders, not due to castration or other modification, comes from the ancient Vedic law book, Manu Smriti. It explains the biological origins of the three sexes: "A male child is produced by a greater quantity of male seed, a female child by the prevalence of the female; if both are equal, a third-sex child or boy and girl twins are produced...."

The Buddhist Vinaya, passed down via oral tradition from Buddha himself, lists four main gender categories, one of which is a catchall. They are: male, female, ubhatobyanjanaka (dual sexual nature), and pandaka (various non-normative sexual natures).

Greek creation lore given in Plato's Symposium indicates three original sexes: female, male and androgynous. Modern humanity derives from the androgynous sex.

Greece also boasts likely the most famous intersex being of all: Hermaphroditus, born a handsome boy, was transformed into an intersex being by union with the nymph Salmacis. The word 'hermaphrodite' is a blend of the names of his parents, Hermes and Aphrodite.

If the above citations are too mythical for some, here is one closer to home for Christians:

russ · Posted: April 22, 2005

Not only do we assume both gender identities over many lifetimes as "Souls Seeking Experience" but even more importantly we are ALREADY both male and female. The realization of Enlightenment is predicated upon becoming BALANCED having the "inner and the outer" as one.
All men have an 'inner feminine the ANIMA" All women have an "inner masculine the ANIMUS"
The BALANCING of these inner and outer energetic expressions is the PREREQUISITE for the "Rising of the Kundalini Fire" which brings about ENLIGHTENMENT as it is integrated into our body /mind and TRANSFORMS it creating the "New Heaven and New Earth" described by St John the Divine in the book of Revelation of the Christian bible. This is also the "Golden Body" of the Siddahs referred to in "Babaji and the Eighteen Siddah Kriya Yoga Tradition" and the "turning base metal into gold " of "The Alchemists"

Gary Joseph · Posted: April 22, 2005

Beautiful -- I'm not familiar with those terms: anima/animus; perhaps you can share a little more about male/female from that perspective. It sounds like Greek origin; what's the philosophy behind it?

russ · Posted: April 22, 2005

Anima and Animus are the interior archetypes of male and female as posited by Carl Jung. There is an Archetypical Male -the Animus and an Archrtypical Female -The Anima. As both male and female we possess both: one the Dominant expressive the other the Inner Expressive .Each man has an inner female Each woman has an inner male. which can inform our psyche/body and bring about balance.
This is expressed in Tantra as inner male Shiva Inner female Shakti.
"The Tantric Marriage" occurs when Shiva and Shakti ascend together on the Kundalini River of Fire and the pineal/pituitary gland merge creating the" manger in the cave" where the Holy Child of the Shiva /Shakti marriage is born: THE CHRIST CHILD. This occurs naturally when the male and female energies are in balance in our body. All true Spiritual Practice is aimed toward developing this balance and the resulting BIRTH OF THE CHRIST CHILD which it facilitates.

Gary Joseph · Posted: April 24, 2005

So Jung says each woman is dominant expressive female, and inner expressive male? And each man dominant expressive male, and inner expressive female?

Is that what you're saying?

What does he say about balancing them?

russ · Posted: April 25, 2005

I am not a Jungian psychotherapist so I cannot speak in depth on this. Carl Jung took an opposite approach to psychotherapy that the more well known Sigmund Freud. He uncovered the "world of Archetypes" . There is a Female archetype the mother Goddess- Anima who undergirds all women. There is a male Archetype the Father provider- Animus who undergirds all men. Each possesses an "inner opposite" female has a male inner energy, male has a female inner energy.
Carl Jung opened the world of the Soul and Self to western pschotherapy and emphasized the world of Archetypes as the means of understanding emotional and mental illnesses. Deep inner conflicts/challenges which express through mind and emotion . Resolution of these coflicts brings about wholeness /balance.
Clarissa Pincola -Estes has written somewhat on this in her book "Women Who Run with the Wolves" She refers to the "wild woman" as the primal female energy source for women and the task of woman to integrate this 'wild woman essence" THE ANIMA into their daily lives.
I am not aware of any writings focused on integration of the "core male essence"THE ANIMUS into mens daily lives.

Gary Joseph · Posted: April 25, 2005

That's great; I always like to hear of prominent thinkers who've expressed ideas that fit those of sacred sex.

Sacred sex goes one step further though: we are all male/female on BOTH levels -- inner AND outer. Even though our physical bodies display traits of one gender, the male & female life principles that give rise to us are present even on that level.

For a full discussion of this, see Meet Your Sacred Sex Family; it explains that we each have an inner God/Goddess to go with our outer god/goddess qualities. If anyone wishes to continue the anima/animus discussion, that's a good place to do it.

This Forum is mainly for our identity as a male or female in our current body. However, the connection between the two forums is this: you are both male & female currently occupying a body of one gender as a means to realize yourself as whole (male/female together). Therefore, instead of getting caught up in your gender identity (which changes from lifetime to lifetime), use it as a way to reach out to your gender opposite and bring those qualities into your life to become more whole.

russ · Posted: April 27, 2005

Amen Brother! We are both potential AND possibility

Gary Joseph · Posted: October 22, 2009

The Washington Post recently ran an article on this topic stemming from the issue of gender differentiation in competitive athletics ("Which side are you on? -- In athletics and elsewhere, the line between male and female can be hazy," Oct. 20, 2009). The article points out many of the factors mentioned in the lesson above that impact gender. Some quotes:

Gary Joseph · Posted: December 5, 2015

The Washington Post ran another story affirming gender as a spectrum, not a dichotomy ("Brains aren't strictly male or female but more a mash-up, study concludes," by Rachel Feltman, Dec. 4, 2015).

Here's the opening: