Two new articles on Sufism in Sindh and India

Claveyrolas, M. et Delage, R., eds (2016) Territoires du religieux dans les mondes indiens. Parcourir, mettre en scène, franchir. Editions de l’EHESS (coll. Purusartha 34), Paris, 339 p.

In this book dealing with religions and its territories in South Asia and beyond, two articles (French language) focus on Sindh and Sindhis. The first one is about Sufism in Sehwan Sharif (by Rémy Delage) and the second  one about Sindhi Hindus settled in India (by Michel Boivin):

Delage R. “Sufism and urban space. Ritual circulations in the locality of Sehwan Sharif”, pp. 149-175.
“This article seeks to describe the forms of social and spatial organization of a Sufi saint’s cult drawing on the example of the locality of Sehwan, located along the Indus valley in the Sindh region. Based on empirical data collected during fieldwork activities in southern Pakistan as part of the French Interdisicplinary Project in Sindh (MIFS), I how how the system of ritual processions shapes local society on the occasion of two major events of the ritual calendar: one is the festival commemorating the anniversary of the saint’s death and the other is the observance of the martyrdom Imam Hussain in Karbala. the comparative study of these two events, one being highly regulated by the local administration and the other, polarized by the competition between several lineages of spiritual leaders, leads to question the role of Shiism in the developement of a Sufi shrine.”

 

Boivin, M. “Migration and Sufism among Sindhi Hindus of India”, pp. 275-302.

“In 1947, most of the Hindus living in Sindh left the province to settle in India. Surprizingly, they were not vey wholheartedly welcomed by local Hindus who claimed they were “half-Hindu, half-Muslim”. Such a statement was mainly the result of the devotion the Hindu Sindhis had for Sufi saints from Sindh. Furthermore, the Hindus had transferred to India a number of darbars, which retained direct links with the “parent companies” located in Pakistan. This paper assumes that the transfer to India of these Sufi cults has played a role in the process of appropriation of these new territories where the Sindhi Hindus settled. The argument is based on a case study, that of darbar of Sa’in Rochaldas, which is located in Ulhasnagar near Mumbai.”



Cite this blog post
Asian Studies (2017, March 1). Two new articles on Sufism in Sindh and India. Sindhi Studies Group. Retrieved March 29, 2024, from https://doi.org/10.58079/u6q8

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