Two Spirit

Transgender, gender queer, intersex, and gender non-conforming people (TGQIGNC), much like those within the GLB populations, often feel excluded or not welcome within many spiritual communities. Our gender identities and expressions are but one part of what make us complete;  our spiritual selves are also an important component of our wholeness. It is from this place that I will be writing my monthly column on spirituality within the TGQIGNC communities.

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For my first column I decided to explore Two Spirit peoples within indigenous societies. Two Spirit people were once revered as shamans and spiritual leaders within their tribes. Although their sacred positions are no longer widely recognized, the consideration of gender variance as a position of reverence is a noteworthy place to start.

It is important to begin this column by acknowledging that I am an outsider looking in. This means that my comprehension of indigenous societies is clouded by my non-indigenous culture. It is my intent to explore the Two Spirit peoples with as much respect and reverence as possible. In attempting to do so, I will be including Native American voices to tell their own tales.

Let’s first discuss terminology. As I began to research Two Spirit I frequently saw the term berdache. This word was imposed upon Native Americans by early explorers of North America and is considered to be derogatory. The term berdache is, “defined in seventeenth- and eighteenth-century French dictionaries as ‘a young man who is shamefully abused’ or ‘a young man or boy who serves as another’s succubus, permitting sodomy to be committed on him.’”[i] Two Spirit is the preferred term among Native Americans. Unlike berdache, Two Spirit refers to the concepts of gender variant people and, at least originally, has no connection to a individual’s sexuality.

Tribes have different names for the Two Spirit among them: The Din éh (Navaho) refer to them as nàdleehé or one who is ‘transformed’, the Lakota (Sioux) as winkte, the Mohave as alyha, the Zuni as lhamana, the Omaha as mexoga, the Aleut and Kodiak as achnucek, the Zapotec as ira’ muxe, the Cheyenne as he man eh, etc.[ii]

The Two Spirit Society of Denver explains, “The term Two Spirit refers to another gender role believed to be common among most, if not all, first peoples of Turtle Island (North America), one that had a proper and accepted place within indigenous societies. This acceptance was rooted in the spiritual teachings that say all life is sacred and that the Creator must have a reason for making someone different. This gender role was not based in sexual activities or practices, but rather the sacredness that comes from being different.”[iii]

Researchers such as Will Roscoe have documented Two Spirit traditions within 150 indigenous tribes. Common among the role of Two Spirit people was their supernatural authority. In the Way of the Two Spirited People: Native American Concepts of Gender and Sexual Orientation, Sandra LaFamboise and Michael Anhorn explain that, “Our Elders tell us of people who were gifted among all beings because they carried two spirits, that of male and female. It is told that women engaged in tribal warfare and married other women, as there were men who married other men. These individuals were looked upon as a third and fourth gender in many cases and in almost all cultures they were honoured and revered. Two-spirit people were often the visionaries, the healers, the medicine people, the nannies of orphans, the care givers. They were respected as fundamental components of our ancient culture and societies. This is our guiding force as well as our source of strength. This is the heart of Two-Spirited People of the 1st Nations.[iv]

In Two-Spirit Native People, Paul Chirumbolo elucidates on Two Spirit as creator and keeper of humanity. He suggests that, “The Zuni myths of origin also tell of the role of the supernatural ihaman, or Two-Spirit being, which is responsible for restoring and maintaining balance. The ihaman epitomizes the two-sexed creator and hermaphroditic gods, which here as elsewhere, from ancient Egypt to the pre-Columbian Americas, are connected with birth, self-perpetuation, and rejuvenation. With the Zuni’s neighbors, the Navajo, their creation myths, too, suggest that the very survival of humanity is dependent upon the creativity of Two-Spirit people.”[v]

Two Spirit individuals were cherished contributors within their communities. Tribes would perform various rituals to determine if a child was two spirit. “Above all, their childhood was marked by acceptance and understanding by the whole tribe. Multi-gendered adult people were usually presumed to be people of power. Because they have both maleness and femaleness totally entwined in one body, they were known to be able to ‘see’ with the eyes of both biological men and biological women. They were often called upon to be healers, mediators, interpreters of dreams, or expected to become singers or others whose lives were devoted to the welfare of the group. If they did extraordinary things in any aspect of life, it was assumed that they had the license and power to do so, and therefore, they were not questioned.”[vi]

The roles of Two Spirit included artisans, shamans, medicine people, visionaries, dreamers, mediators, and often included a function similar to that of a social worker. The Northeast Two-Spirit Society explains, “In many American Indian communities, men and women’s styles of speech were distinct; sometimes even different dialects were spoken. The Two Spirit people knew how to speak both in the men and women’s ways. They were the only ones allowed to go between the men’s and the women’s camps. They brokered marriages, divorces, settled arguments, and fostered open lines of communication between the sexes.”[vii]

The Effects of European Colonization

With the influx of European settlers and resulting colonization, Two Spirit people have been widely erased. “The existence of Two Spirit people challenges the rigid binary view of the world of the North American colonizers and missionaries, not just of a binary gender system, but a binary system of this or that, all together. The Two Spirits’ mere existence threatened the colonizers’ core beliefs; the backlash was violent. Sketches, housed at the New York City public library, depict Two Spirit people being attacked by colonizers’ dogs. Word of this brutal treatment spread quickly from nation to nation. Many nations decided to take actions to protect their honored and valued Two Spirit people. Some nations hid them by asking them to replace their dress, a mixture of men and women’s clothing, with the attire of their biological sex. After years of colonization, some of those very same nations denied ever having a tradition that celebrated and honored their Two Spirit people.”[viii]

The idea of Two Spirit people as spiritual leaders and healers was a major threat to missionaries and their church’s moral code. This resulted in the demonization and annihilation of a majority of the Two Spirit people. In The Way of the Two Spirited People, Sandra LaFamboise and Michael Anhorn explain that “The attempt to exterminate Native Americans and their rituals by both the church and the government resulted in a loss of many rituals including those who identified and honour cross-gender individuals. With very few exceptions, there is no longer a place in Native cultures for a man-woman or a woman-man. The tribes have forgotten the two-spirit teachings and many of the ancient two-spirit ways are no longer being practiced. Instead, this role appears as a ghost of the past or a dirty secret. Elders who may know the stories and teachings are often afraid to talk about them because of their experiences in Residential Schools and other forms of colonialization.”[ix]

Contemporary Two Spirit People

There is a growing movement to revive the Two Spirit traditions among some Native American tribes. Various Two Spirit groups have formed around the country, including a yearly Two Spirit Gathering. These groups and gatherings provide a sacred space for Two Spirit people to rekindle their ancient traditions, while finding a community of love and acceptance.

In the UTNE article “Sacred Rights of the International Two Spirit Gathering,” John Rosengren tells us that “Many in the Two Spirit community just don’t feel at home within the broader LGBT scene. . . . Many are also misunderstood and shunned within their Native communities, even though some tribes once honored those with male and female spirits as shamans, warriors, and chiefs.” Rosengren’s article also speaks to the temporary sanctuary this gathering offers Two Spirit people, “The laughter helps heal and transform all that oppression sickness that we get from this culture,” says Lawrence Ellis, a 47-year-old who refers to himself as Native, American, and African American. “There’s just such joy.” [x]

It would be a slap in the face to imply that the history and honor of Two Spirit peoples are one and the same as the TGQIGNC communities. It is clear that they are not and this is not the intent of this column. Rather, the purpose is to consider for a moment the possibility of being honored and loved as a gender variant person. Two Spirit people provide a glimpse at this possibility. They also illustrate the volatile potential of challenging the binary gender system. I am grateful for their example, and their courage to take back their rightful place as spiritual leaders and whole people.

I will conclude with a final quote from Alex Wilson from “N’tacimowin inna nah’: Our Coming In Stories,” “Rather than dividing the world into female and male, or making linguistic distinctions based on sexual characteristics or anatomy, we distinguish between what is animate and what is inanimate. Living creatures, animate objects, and actions are understood to have a spiritual purpose (Ahenakew). Our language and culture are rooted in this fundamental truth: that every living creature and everything that acts in and on this world is spiritually meaningful. This understanding is reiterated in the term ‘two-spirit,’ a self-descriptor used by many Cree and other Aboriginal lesbian, gay, bi, and trans people. When we say that we are two-spirit, we are acknowledging that we are spiritually meaningful people.”[xi]

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Resources

Bay Area American Indian Two Spirits

Montana Two Spirit Society

NorthEast Two-spirit Society

Ohio Valley Two-Spirit Society

The Red Circle Project

TwoSpirits.com [Toronto, ON]

Two Spirit Press Room

The Two Spirit Society of Denver

ENDNOTES

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[i] GLBTQ – Berdache: http://www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/berdache.html

[ii] Sandra LaFamboise and Michael Anhorn, The Way of the Two Spirited People: Native American Concepts of Gender and Sexual Orientation: http://www.dancingtoeaglespiritsociety.org/twospirit.php

[iii] The Two Spirit Society of Denver website – Who We Are: http://www.denvertwospirit.com/about.html

[iv] Sandra LaFamboise and Michael Anhorn, The Way of the Two Spirited People: Native American Concepts of Gender and Sexual Orientation: http://www.dancingtoeaglespiritsociety.org/twospirit.php

[v] Paul Chirumbolo, Two-Spirit Native People: http://www.guidancetochangeyourlife.com/twospiritnativepeople.html

[vi] Sandra LaFamboise and Michael Anhorn, The Way of the Two Spirited People: Native American Concepts of Gender and Sexual Orientation: http://www.dancingtoeaglespiritsociety.org/twospirit.php

[vii] NorthEast Two-Spirit Society | Two Spirit History: http://www.ne2ss.org/history/

[viii] NorthEast Two-Spirit Society | Two Spirit History: http://www.ne2ss.org/history/

[ix] Sandra LaFamboise and Michael Anhorn, The Way of the Two Spirited People: Native American Concepts of Gender and Sexual Orientation: http://www.dancingtoeaglespiritsociety.org/twospirit.php

[x] John Rosengren, “Sacred Rights of the International Two Spirit Gathering,” UTNE Reader: http://www.utne.com/print-article.aspx?id=23748

[xi] Alex Wilson, “N’tacimowin inna nah’: Our Coming In Stories,” Canadian Woman Studies; Winter/Spring 2008; 26, 3/4; GenderWatch (GW) pg. 193

Tags: Del Rapier, gender variant, Two Spirit