Next week we present another story from Burma. It deals with men who are Nat-Kadaws, meaning, Spirits' Wives. They are shamans, mediums and psychics, (some may say 'charlatans') who dress as women a lot of the time, hence the word "transvestite" in the story title. According to its producer these men are homosexuals who take on this profession to survive being gay in Burma.

The Nats (pron: nuts) are akin to our saints. Only 37 of them have been designated as, Great Nats. They were originally human beings whose deaths at the hands of ancient Burmese kings were tragic and violent. It is believed they were unjustly killed thus gaining hero status and being revered as gods. The Nat-Kadaws channel their spirits at special festivals.

Mount Popa, as seen in the program, is the most important Nat pilgrimage site in Burma. During the annual Nat festival, masses of rural Burmese come to worship, pray and be entertained by the Nat-Kadaws whose stock in trade is a trunk-full of female costumes, make-up as well as male costumes, as they take on the persona of male spirits as well. One can't help but feel there is more theatricality here than spirituality. 

What the program doesn’t mention is that to be a Nat-Kadaw, the practitioner has to spend many years at university learning each of the dances of the 37 spirits. It is not unknown for some practitioners to spend 20 years mastering their craft. Surely this is more a calling than a desire by Burmese homosexuals to escape the implied ostracism by Burmese society?

Who do you believe when one can read reports that Burma is a "gay friendly" country with even a small gay scene in the major cities? (Dinah Gardner - fridae.com)

The program draws a parallel that being a 'transvestite' equates to being homosexual, a comparison which is unjustifiable and I'm sure gay men would reject outright.

It is not my position to offer editorial comment on the programs I introduce. However in this Blog forum I wish to state that I believe the Nat-Kadaws in the story choose to live isolated from the rest of society not because they are necessarily homosexual but because most of them choose to dress and be like 'women', 24/7, and that's got nothing to do with being homosexual. If anything the reverse is true in that, statistically, at least in the western world it's predominantly heterosexual males that have a fetish for transvestism, not homosexuals.