Bhakti Tirtha Swami

[Bhakti Tirtha Swami is a diksa disciple of Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada in the Gaudiya Vaishnava line, sannyasa disciple of Kirtanananda Swami, and founder of the Institute For Applied Spiritual Technology.]

Dear Amara,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to ISKCON founder-acarya Srila Prabhupada.

Quite a while back, I received a copy of your paper, Tritiya-Prakriti: People of the Third Sex. I read the paper. It was very informative, but I did not really let it sink in deeply. Recently, I have been making so much more effort in trying to open up my heart to be more available in understanding and serving all Vaishnavas with greater effectiveness. After hearing of Damodara’s suicide, I read your paper over again, along with some of the writings of H.H. Bhakti Ananda Goswami, Rama Keshava dasa and Mitravinda dasi. I must say that I have seen the light, (especially after more closely reading over the story in the Bhagavatam concerning Lord Brahma’s creating the personalities from his buttocks, the account of the members of the third sex who were in attendance at Lord Caitanya’s appearance, and a closer investigation of Arjuna in his transgender form of Brihannala.)

I realize my problem was that of the worst kind. You see, I never saw myself as homophobic. As we know, this word is so easily thrown around and means so many different things to different people. Because I was always brought up to be respectful and to try to understand all people, I did not really allow myself to go deep in trying to understand the third sex. I figured that this is necessary for those who were insensitive, arrogant and fundamentalist. Such people, of course, are in their own category, and have their problems in minimizing their own humanity and spirituality. But perhaps worse than such bigots are those like myself who have a little understanding and think we have a lot: who think that we are compassionate and tolerant, while basically being superficial and even condescending.

It is quite amazing how most of us can be so prejudiced about so many things and not even know it. As we read Srila Prabhupada’s books, our own prejudice can easily cause us to see and not to see (pasyann api na pasyati). I thank you and several others for your compassion and for your tolerance in making efforts to educate your godfamily, so that we can be more authentic servants of the servant.

Yours in Srila Prabhupada’s service,

With love,

Bhakti Tirtha Swami

(Personal letter, July 7, 2002)