Hijra Spirituality and Gender Identity: Negotiating Divine Connection in the Face of Islamic Norms
This study explores how hijra individuals in Pakistan negotiate their gender identity and spirituality within the context of traditional Islamic norms. In-depth interviews with hijra community members were conducted from February to June 2024, with data thematically analyzed. The findings reveal that hijra individuals connect with the divine through the belief in their ‘feminine soul,’ legitimizing their feminine gender expression. This spiritual connection is often conveyed through myths and rituals common in the hijra community, with parallels to Sufi mysticism. However, traditional Islamic scholars reject this version of the divine-human relationship, focusing instead on the physical morphology of gender, which stigmatizes gender-variant identities. In response, hijra individuals perform prayers in a masculine form, asserting that their male body is what God intended for them.
While a recent Fatwa on transgender marriage offers some social acceptance, it replicates existing Islamic practices and creates confusion by applying the term "transgender" to hijra identity, which doesn’t fully address their unique experiences. This Fatwa does not reflect the dynamics of hijra identity and remains limited by traditional Islamic law. Ultimately, the study concludes that spirituality offers hijra individuals a space for self-expression, even when this challenges societal norms and religious doctrines. The performance of a feminine gender by hijra individuals, therefore, both links them to the divine and exposes them to vulnerability under Sharia law.