All posts by Ko Imani

People at concert

Beyond ‘Spiritual, But Not Religious’

“So what are you?” Unconsciously imitating my dog, I tilted my head to the side and stared at the minister. Was she really asking me this question? It was the Together in Faith conference, the annual national gathering of spiritual LGBT activists, and I was

Dove flying in Lisbon, Portugal

Luminosity

Chicks break out of their shells because they’re dying. When the fetal chicken is mature, the egg fills with a toxic gas and the chick inside must break out or die. It seems harsh, but the chick’s passage from incubation to self-salvation and finally into

Dove flying in Lisbon, Portugal

Deep and Hard

Around the Fourth of July, like many queer Americans, I remind myself that equal rights, recognition and respect for Lesbian, Gay, Bi-affectionate and Transgender Americans are the inevitable outcome of our national values. Study after recent study tells us that millions of people all around

Dove flying in Lisbon, Portugal

Nail Implies Hammer

If sexual orientation were a choice, I would still choose to be gay. I always hear people saying, “Who would choose to be gay? The world hates you and disrespects you, you can’t get married, people think you’re a child molester, you’re constantly used as

Man on lake dock in mountains

Still and Know

“Come up, O lions, and shake off the delusion you are sheep. You are souls immortal, spirits free, blessed and eternal.” ~Vivekananda One day, the devil and his friend were walking down the street. Ahead of them, they saw a man bend down, pick something

Dove flying in Lisbon, Portugal

Reach Me a Gentian

“Here I am — this is me in my nakedness, with my wounds, my secret grief, my despair, my betrayal, my pain, which I can’t express, my terror, my abandonment. Oh, listen to me for a day, an hour, a moment, lest I expire in

Dove flying in Lisbon, Portugal

Fire in the Lake

“You, yesterday’s boy, to whom confusion came: Listen, lest you forget who you are. It was not pleasure you fell into. It was joy. You were called to be bridegroom, though the bride coming toward you is your shame. What chose you is the great

Two people holding hands

The Near Enemy

“There is no greater illusion than fear, no greater wrong than preparing to defend yourself, no greater misfortune than having an enemy.” — from the Tao Te Ching, translated by Stephen Mitchell Being a member of an oppressed group in this day and age is

People with their feet in a circle

Shirt of Flame: The Secret Gay Art of War | Excerpt

The one choice you can make today to create the beloved community Individually and as a queer community, the time has come to make a bold and decisive commitment to the most congruent and effective means to create change that we can muster given our