ISKCON BBT
The following conversation between Srila Prabhupada and Hayagriva dasa was tape-recorded in San Francisco on April 5, 1967:
SP: (Srila Prabhupada) Jagannatha Misra is father. He was…whatever
money and cloth and gold and silver…they were coming…he
was also distributing to poor man, some dancers. In India there
is a system…what do you call the eunuchs? Those who are
neither male or female? What do you call them? What is their
name?
HD: (Hayagriva dasa) A combination of both?
SP: Yes.
HD: Male and female? Hermaphrodite.
SP: Eunuchs? What is the eunuch?
HD: Eunuch. A eunuch is a …
SP: Tell me that.
HD: Impotent…someone who’s been castrated.
SP: Oh. That is called a eunuch.
HD: Eunuch.
SP: Rather, by nature, neither man nor woman.
HD: Oh. This is also called asexual. That is to say, no sex.
SP: No sex?
HD: Hermaphrodite means they have the physical characteristics
of both man and woman.
SP: Oh? At the same time?
HD: At the same time.
SP: I do not know exactly, but such people, they have their
own society, and their means of livelihood is that whenever
there is some good occasion…marriage or childbirth, like
that, so, they go there and pray to God that this child may
be very long-living. In this way they make some prayer and get
some…
HD: These people. Now, I don’t understand…
SP: Yes. Saci devi is the mother of Lord Caitanya. She is sitting
with the child. And everyone is greeting and visiting, and everyone
is saying, “Oh! Look how nice a child He is!”
HD: And these “asexual” people?
SP: They are dancing.
HD: They are dancing.
SP: Yes. They are chanting Hare Krsna. Like that. So. Hare Krsna
dancing is going there and visitors are coming and presenting
very nice things. Yes.
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, founder
of the Hare Krsna movement of the Western world, rarely discussed
gay or third-gender issues but mentions it here in a conversation
with one of his disciples. He is referring to the transvestite
dancers and their societies that still exist in India even today.
He is obviously trying to find a more appropriate word for the
outdated term “eunuch,” which he had used in his writings
when referring to people of the third sex. He also acknowledges
herein that he does not exactly know the nature of these people.
As was proper for a sannyasi, His Divine Grace avoided discussing
sexual topics except in regard to their renunciation. He did,
however, recognize the Kama Shastra as “the science of
sex” but gave it little regard in comparison to other more
important scriptures. He rarely discussed homosexuality, and
the few times he did were always in context as to how it applied
to heterosexual men and women.
Despite this, and more importantly, was Srila Prabhupada’s
shining example of conduct in dealing with his third-sex disciples
and friends. He always gave them full support, encouragement,
and love. He never rejected anyone as a candidate for Krsna
consciousness. His warm friendships with openly gay people such
as Allen Ginsberg set an example that we would all do well to
follow.
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