A Transgender Saint?A Transgender Saint?
The extensive nature of Sri Ramakrishna’s cross-gender spiritual practices leads one to wonder if he might have been transgendered. In “Kali’s Child – The Mystical and the Erotic in the Life and Teachings of Sri Ramakrishna,” author Jeffery Kirpal tried to establish that Sri Ramakrishna was homosexual. Many traditional Hindus were outraged by this suggestion. Swami Tyagananda, a monk of the Ramakrishna Order, wrote a scathing 173-page criticism of Kirpal’s book, pointing out sloppy scholarship, biased translations, and wrong assumptions. I’ve studied both these works and do not wish to comment on either. If interested, you will find links to both at the bottom of this page.
It seems that both Kirpal and Tyagananda failed to recognize many signs of gender variance in Sri Ramakrishna’s life. To someone who is transgendered, these signs seem fairly obvious, but for one unfamiliar with gender variance, it would be easy to err and conclude Sri Ramakrishna was homosexual rather than transgendered.
It might be argued that Sri Ramakrishna’s cross-gender behavior was part of his spiritual practice and nothing more. If that were so, we would expect to find no evidence of cross-gender behavior before his spiritual practice began. But there are several stunning examples of cross-gender behavior in his childhood, and other instances during his adulthood quite unrelated to spiritual practice. These examples are examined below.
Disclaimer
I have great reverence for Sri Ramakrishna and I fear someone might consider me disrespectful for expressing these opinions. But I mean no disrespect to this great soul. My own spiritual quest was sparked his teachings, along with those of his main disciple, Swami Vivekananda, and swamis of the Ramakrishna Order whose sermons I attended in California decades ago. I consider myself blessed to have received their spiritual guidance and inspiration. If anyone is offended by my opinions, I hope you will forgive me and try to understand my genuine love and respect for Sri Ramakrishna.
To me, being transgendered is a quirk of nature, like having six toes on a foot. If Sri Ramakrishna was transgendered, it’s certainly not a matter of shame. If indeed he incorporated his gender variance into his spiritual practice, this truly demonstrates his greatness. After all, most of the transgendered, including me, have struggled with the challenges and complexity of their gender variance. But for a great saint like Sri Ramakrishna, gender variance becomes a glorious jewel shining brightly in his magnificent crown.
Childhood Cross-gender Behavior
Swami Saradananda, a direct disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, was apparently aware of Sri Ramakrishna’s gender variance. In “Sri Ramakrishna and His Disciples,” he wrote –
At the threshold of his youth a kind of fancy arose in the Master’s mind, prompted by the influence of his inner feminine nature. Because they were born as women, the gopis of Vrindaban attained satchidânanda
The young Sri Ramakrishna (then known as Gadadhar) took female roles in village drama performances. Perhaps he was like modern transgendered youths who eagerly await Halloween to have a legitimate excuse to crossdress. Swami Saradananda gives this account –
Gadadhar (who was then thirteen or fourteen) would sometimes put on women’s clothing and jewelry and perform important dramatic roles for the village women. It was at their request that he dressed like a woman while acting in the role of Radha or her main female confidante, Vrinda.
When he was portraying these roles his gestures, posture, conversation, and movements were exactly like those of a woman. When they saw him in women’s clothing, the village women would say that no one could tell that it was Gadadhar. This indicates how minutely he had observed the various ways of women. When disguised as a woman, the fun-loving Gadadhar would walk to Haldar Pond to fetch water carrying a pitcher on his waist, and no man on the street would recognize him. (Saradananda, page 137)
Sri Ramakrishna’s crossdressing was not limited to dramatic roles, as the following incident demonstrates –
One afternoon some time later, without telling anyone, Gadadhar dressed himself like a poor weaver woman, putting on a dirty sari, silver bracelets and other jewelry. Just before dusk he walked to Durgadas’s house from the direction of the market, with a basket on his waist and a veil covering his face. Durgadas was with his friends in the parlor. Thus disguised, Gadadhar introduced himself as a helpless weaver woman who had come from a distant village to sell yarn in the market but had unfortunately been left behind by her companions.
He begged to be given shelter for the night. Durgadas asked a few questions and was satisfied with the answers. He then said, “All right, go in and ask the women to find a room for you.” Gadadhar bowed down to him in gratitude and entered the woman’s quarters. He introduced himself to them as a weaver woman and charmed them with his manner and conversation. Pleased with their young guest’s sweet words, the women arranged a room for him and served some refreshments with puffed rice and sweets. (Saradananda, page 138)
Womanly Behavior
Swami Saradananda and Swami Nikhilananda both give accounts of Sri Ramakrishna behaving like a woman in the presence of others –
We have mentioned elsewhere that there was a wonderful coexistence of male and female temperaments in the Master. It is no wonder that under the influence of women’s attire his feminine traits were aroused. But no one could have ever imagined that while submerged in that mood his movement, speech, smile, glance, gestures, and other actions, as well as his thoughts, would become completely feminine. (Saradananda, page 297)
While worshipping Ramlala as the Divine Child, Sri Ramakrishna's heart became filled with motherly tenderness, and he began to regard himself as a woman. His speech and gestures changed. He began to move freely with the ladies of Mathur's family, who now looked upon him as one of their own sex. (Nikhilananda, page 24)
Sri Ramakrishna eccentric behavior was apparently accepted and even embraced by the ladies of the house where he resided. According to Swami Saradananda –
During this time the Master sometimes went to Rani Rasmani’s Janbazar residence and lived as a woman with the ladies of Mathur’s family. The ladies already knew the Master’s stainless, pure character and adored him as a god. Now they were charmed by his womanly conduct and behavior, and his natural affection and service. They were so convinced by his behavior that they considered him to be one of themselves and abandoned their bashfulness and hesitation in front of him.
The Master told us that when the husband of any of Mathur’s daughters visited the house, the Master would adorn the girl with ornaments and arrange her hair with his own hands. Behaving as though he were and older and more experienced woman friend, he would show her how she should conduct herself and how to entertain her husband. Then, taking her by the hand, he would lead her to meet her husband. He later told us, “At that time they considered me a female confidante of theirs and did not feel at all uncomfortable.” (Saradananda, page 298)
Womanly Appearance
Not only did Sri Ramakrishna act in a womanly manner, but his appearance, too, was very womanly. Swami Saradananda recounts –
When the master was practicing sakhi bhâva, he was so absorbed in the thought of himself as a maidservant of
Hriday said, “When the Master was thus surrounded by ladies, it was hard for even his closest relatives to recognize him at once. One day during that time Mathur took me to the woman’s quarters and said, “Can you tell me which of them is your uncle?” (Saradananda, page 298)
Suddenly, Mathur’s eyes fell on the women, and he saw a stranger, adorned with gorgeous clothes and ornaments, standing next to his wife, fanning the Divine Mother. Despite looking again and again, he could not recognize her. He thought that she might be a friend of his wife, or the wife of a wealthy man who had perhaps come at her invitation…
After a while, Mathur went to the inner apartment and by the by asked his wife, “During vespers, who was standing next to you, fanning the Deity?” Jagadamba replied with a smile: “What! You did not recognize him? It was the Father (Sri Ramakrishna) in an ecstatic mood, who was fanning. It is quite understandable that you did not recognize him – when the Father is dressed like a woman, it is hard to recognize him as a man.” (Saradananda, page 505)
Gender Identity
Sri Ramakrishna himself admitted having a female gender identity, as Swami Nikhilananda writes –
He (Narendra – Swami Vivekananda’s original name) has a manly nature and I have the nature of a woman. (Nikhilananda, page 693)
Sri Ramakrishna seemed to think that some of his disciples also had a female gender identity, perhaps projecting his own feelings on them. According to Swami Nikhilananda –
Bhavanath, Baburam, and a few others have a feminine nature. Harish sleeps in a woman's cloth. Baburam says that he too likes the womanly attitude… But Narendra, Rakhal, and Niranjan have a masculine nature. (Nikhilananda, page 459)
And finally, Swami Saradananda relates this wonderful anecdote, along with his own musings about his guru’s gender identity –
Every one of the Master’s devotees has seen to the greater or lesser degrees the coexistence of masculine and feminine moods in him. Once Girish experienced this and boldly asked, “Sir, are you a man or a woman?” The Master replied with a smile, “I don’t know.”
Who will now decide what the Master meant when he made that remark? Was he saying this from the point of view of one who has realized the sexless âtman, who experiences “I am neither a man nor a woman,” or was he acknowledging the coexistence of both male and female characteristics within himself. (Saradananda, page 408)
References:
Jeffery Kirpal, Kali’s Child – The Mystical and the Erotic in the Life and Teachings of Sri Ramakrishna.
Swami Tyagananda’s lengthy criticism of Kirpal’s book can be found here .
Swami Saradananda, Sri Ramakrishna and His Disciples,
Swami Nikhilananda, The Gospel of Sri