Jainism and the LGBTQ+ Community

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.12794/journals.sujjs.v1i2.311

Keywords:

Jainism, gender, sexuality, asceticism, brahmacarya

Abstract

Jain doctrine has traditionally recognized three genders as well as differences in biological sex and sexual orientation. This essay investigates the relevance of these Jain concepts to contemporary LGBTQ+ issues. On one hand, Jainism’s clear recognition of a third gender and overt focus on non-harm results in a tolerant approach toward gender and sexual diversity. On the other, Jainism’s equally overt focus on asceticism, with celibacy being the ultimate ideal for all people regardless of gender or sex, means that the Jain concepts may not align with the interests and priorities of contemporary LGBTQ+ communities broadly speaking.

Author Biography

  • Holland McCasland, University of North Texas

    Holland McCasland studies visual arts at the University of North Texas and wrote this essay for PHIL 3630 Jainism in the spring semester of 2025.

References

Anderson, Michael. “Homosexuality (Jainism).” In Buddhism and Jainism, edited by K. T. S. Sarao and Jeffrey D. Long. Springer: Dordrecht, 2017.

“Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender—What Is the Jain Thing to Do?” Jainism: Know It, Understand It & Internalize It. December 20, 2022. https://jainism-says.blogspot.com/2022/12/lesbian-gay-bisexual-transgender-what.html.

McNabb, Charlie. Nonbinary Gender Identities: History, Culture, Resources. Blue Ridge Summit: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Incorporated, 2017. ProQuest Ebook Central.

Stryker, Susan. Transgender History: The Roots of Today's Revolution. Second edition. New York: Basic Books, 2008.

Umāsvāti. Tattvārtha Sūtra: That Which Is. Translated by Nathmal Tatia. San Francisco: HarperCollins, 1994.

Wiley, Kristi L. The A to Z of Jainism. Blue Ridge Summit: Scarecrow Press, Incorporated, 2009. ProQuest Ebook Central.

Zwilling, Leonard and Michael J. Sweet. “‘Like a City Ablaze’: The Third Sex and the Creation of Sexuality in Jain Religious Literature.” Journal of the History of Sexuality 6, no. 3 (1996): 359–384. https://www.jstor.org/stable/4629615.

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Published

2025-10-01

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 2 (2025)

Section

Articles

License

Copyright (c) 2025 Holland McCasland

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

“Jainism and the LGBTQ+ Community”. 2025. Samyak: An Undergraduate Journal of Jain Studies 1 (2): 29-34. https://doi.org/10.12794/journals.sujjs.v1i2.311.