The Tao of Transgenderism
As a college teacher, I often do a course called Critical Thinking. I enjoy the exchanges that take place in the classroom, reading student views on controversial topics, and learning how other people view the world. I do love studying schools of thought and how they have influenced the world. From Descartes to Hegel to Marx, and so many others, critical thinking helps us to develop into more open-minded individuals.
Over the past few months the Tranny Tribune has published some pieces, written by myself and others, in hopes of starting various dialogs within our community. This month is no exception. I want us to put back on our philosopher caps.
We have had many discussions in the Forums, blogs and chatroom over what it means to be transgendered. While we all agree (well, most of us), that this is how we were born, there are many aspects to being TG that often meets with debate. We have been down this road before – is a TS more transgendered that a CD, is a post-op TS more sincere than those who choose not to have surgery, etc.?
But we often don’t recognize that we can establish our own little philosophy, our own way of thinking and approaching the world in which we live. What can make this fun, along with the other dialogs we have started, is seeing how many different ways we can take our burgeoning school of thought. So, in keeping with certain terms that are very familiar, shall we call this “The Tao of Transgenderism?”
Reaching back to ancient Chinese history, the Tao (pronounced DOW) signifies something that cannot be seen, felt or tasted, yet exists everywhere. The goal was to become one with the Tao. This is quite similar to Hinduism and Buddhism whereby adherents try to reach a purer state of being. So as we begin to take baby steps in discovering the Tao, here are some ideas to consider:
Acceptance. This does not mean acceptance from mainstream society. While society may become more lenient towards the TG community in the future, full-hearted acceptance is just a dream. Acceptance here means something different from what outsiders think. Here I am saying that those of us who are TG accept how/who we are, and that we have inner peace in embracing our true selves.
Respect. While having respect for all living beings is something that is stressed in both the religious and secular worlds, we must also find a means to respect those who approach their transgenderism in a way separate from ourselves. While a post-op TS might view the man who sneakily wears panty hose under his jeans at work as not being TG, each of us has the right to do as we see fit. Providing, of course, our personal lifestyles do not deliberately hurt another. I may not identify with the above-mentioned lover of panty hose, but that does not mean I have the right to tell him he is wrong.
Courage. We have addressed this many times on TW. This is not the same as Acceptance, as addressed above. Rather, this is the spiritual courage we need, no matter how frightened we might be to disclose our true selves to others. Courage here is our inner courage in order to not feel guilty. We’ve all heard friends, family, etc., make disparaging comments about transgendered persons, and had to stifle a response for fear of being found out. In some cases the person then felt guilty for either being TG, not being fully out, or even both. From spiritual courage will come Acceptance.
Faith. In a way similar to Courage, Faith is having that all-important knowledge that we are choosing the right path in not turning away from who we truly are.
Honesty. How can we be honest with others until we are honest with ourselves? More importantly, when is it time to come out to those in our lives who are unaware of our true selves? This is a question that has been dealt with in much greater detail in the past (see the article “Coming Out – The Opening of a Dialog” in the Tranny Tribune archives). While circumstances may dictate when honesty is the best policy, we must be aware of when to embrace this all-important ideal.
The Tao of Transgenderism? Do these five terms in fact start us off in the right direction of establishing our own Tao? What is missing? What can be eliminated? Are we all going off to the forest to live in a cave and perfect our philosophy? Or are we making our way to the local resale shop as they are have a 50% off sale?
The Tao of Transgenderism. Think about it. We could take this quite a long way if we give it a try. Put on your philosopher’s cap, light the candles in the study, sip some dry red wine, and ponder the Tao of Transgenderism.
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