Hmmmm. I'm no expert, nor even a real student of Buddhism, but I'll share my perspective, for what it is worth:
[queue self-indulgent mind-dump]In my personal philosophy, the wheel of Karma isn't as much about punishment or righting the scales as it is about learning and growing. To me, Enlightenment is a foregone conclusion for each of us, and the lifetimes we live necessary steps along that path. Some of us are presented with the circumstances needed to leapfrog along that path and achieve Nirvana, but not doing so is no burden - each of us are presented with a unique life and set challenges, and comparing makes no sense. We're all on the same road. So to me, the attachment we have to our correct gender, or to our sense of self worth through the things we own, or through whatever challenges we face, are not obstacles to be overcome so much as they are gifts for us to learn from or to develop the virtues we, as enlightened beings, must cultivate. Virtues such as perseverence, being true to ourselves, forgiveness and compassion, those sorts of things.
To me the whole point is not to overcome things - that is in and of itself a desire, an aggressive act. Rather, by accepting without judgement, and with perfect compassion (Because all too often we are the last person we show compassion and non-judgement to) both the enlightened and the unenlightened within ourselves, we rise above them.
[/queue self-indulgent mind-dump]Or maybe I'm just full of it. I frequently am.
