Hinduism and LGBT topics

Hindu views of homosexuality and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) issues more generally are diverse, and different Hindu groups have distinct views.

India under Hinduism did not have legal or moral restrictions on homosexuality or transsexuality for the general population prior to early modern period (Islam) and colonialism (Christianity), however certain dharmic moral codes forbade sexual misconduct (of both heterosexual and homosexual nature) among the upper class of persists and monks, and religious codes of foreign religions such as Christianity and Islam imposed homophobic rules on their populations. Hinduism also describes a third gender that is equal to other genders and documentation of the third gender are found in ancient Hindu and Buddhist medical texts.

Numerous Hindu texts have portrayed homosexual experience as natural and joyful, the Kamasutra affirms and recognises same-sex relations, and there are several Hindu temples which have carvings that depict both men and women engaging in homosexual acts.

There are numerous Hindu deities that are shown to be gender-fluid and falling into the LGBT spectrum. Same-sex relations and gender variance have been represented within Hinduism from ancient times through to the present day, in rituals, law books, religious or narrative mythologies, commentaries, paintings, and even sculptures. There are certain characters in the Mahabharata who, according to some versions of the epic, change genders, such as Shikhandi, who is sometimes said to be born as a female but identifies as male and eventually marries a woman. Bahuchara Mata is the goddess of fertility, worshipped by hijras as their patroness.

The Arthashastra argues that some homosexual intercourse is an offence, and encourages chastity (however, this also applies to heterosexual intercourse). The Dharmashastra recognises the existence of homosexuality, without openly condemning it in religious or moral terms. The Manusmriti regards homosexual (as well as heterosexual) acts in an ox cart as a source of ritual pollution, something to be expiated by Brahmin males through ritual immersion. These commentaries were written as guides for sexual misconduct (heterosexual and homosexual) among the upper class of persists and monks. In Maniusmirti and the Arthashastra of Kautilya homosexual contacts are compared to having sex with menstruating woman which is sinful and demand doing purification ritual. The Dharmashastras perceives advantage of conceiving sons by heterosexual marriage, acknowleding other types of relationship grudgingly.

Academic works have citied cases of Hindu priests performing same sex marriages in temples in numerous cases since independence from colonialism. Hindu bodies in several countries have also voiced support to campaigns backing same-sex marriage.

In 2009, the Delhi High Court legalised homosexuality in India, but the Supreme Court of India subsequently overturned the high court's decision. The Supreme Court of India, in a later ruling in 2018, reversed its previous verdict and decriminalised homosexual intercourse and relationships.