Notes from the Fortune-Telling Parrot : Islam and the Struggle for Religious Pluralism in Pakistan

by Pinault, David

• ISBN13: 9781845533465
• ISBN10: 1845533461
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-12-30
• Publisher: Isd

Summary

This book explores the richness of Pakistans religious landscape, giving attention to a number of topics: Shia flagellation processions, Urdu-language pulp fiction, streetside rituals involving animals (pariah-kites and fortune-telling parrots), and the use of sorcery to contend with the jinns that are believed to infest cities such as Lahore. Uniting these topics is an investigation of how Islamist politicians seek to eradicate sectarian diversity and repress localized forms of Muslim folk practices in the name of a standardized, uniform, and globalized version of Islam. The book looks at forms of resistance to this Islamist globalization, such as collaborative efforts by Christian, Hindu, and Muslim human-rights activists to repeal Pakistans notorious blasphemy law and assert the worth of religious pluralism.

Author Biography

David Pinault is an associate professor of religious studies at Santa Clara University. He received his Ph.D in Arabic and Islamic studies from the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of Horse of Karbala: Muslim Devotional Life in India (Palgrave), The Shiites: Ritual and Popular Piety in a Muslim Community (St. Martin's) and Story-telling Techniques in the Arabian Nights (E J Brill).

Table of Contents

Introduction: Pluralism and Religious Identity in Pakistan	p. ix
My Fortune-Telling Parrot Triggers Trouble in Lahore: Street Rituals and the Legacy of Religious Pluralism	p. 1
Being Hindu in Pakistan: Legacy and Survival	p. 11
Pakistani Christians and the Prospects for Inter-Religious Resistance to the Blasphemy Laws	p. 38
Ritual and Communal Identity: Shia-Sunni Relations in Pakistan	p. 59
Spurting Blood and Attempts to Regulate Ritual: Pakistani Shias and Iran's Bid for Leadership of Global Islam	p. 95
Raw Meat Skyward: Pariah-Kite Rituals in Lahore	p. 108
Jinns and Sorcery in Lahore: Textual Sources and Personal Experiences	p. 122
A Comparison of Muslim and Hindu Perspectives on the Realm of the Jinns	p. 151
Lahori Pulp Fiction: The World of Khofnak Dijast ("Fright Digest")	p. 161
The Politics of Jogging: Women's Status in Pakistan	p. 195
The Greco-Buddhist Past: The Peshawar Museum and Pakistan's Pre-Islamic Heritage	p. 205
The Hazards of Being a Free-Thinker: Prince Dara Shikoh and the Prospects for Religious Pluralism in Twenty-First-Century Pakistan	p. 210
Bibliography	p. 227
Index	p. 232
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