Jinnealogy

Time, Islam, and Ecological Thought in the Medieval Ruins of Delhi

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Anthropology
Cover of the book Jinnealogy by Anand Vivek Taneja, Stanford University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Anand Vivek Taneja ISBN: 9781503603950
Publisher: Stanford University Press Publication: November 21, 2017
Imprint: Stanford University Press Language: English
Author: Anand Vivek Taneja
ISBN: 9781503603950
Publisher: Stanford University Press
Publication: November 21, 2017
Imprint: Stanford University Press
Language: English

In the ruins of a medieval palace in Delhi, a unique phenomenon occurs: Indians of all castes and creeds meet to socialize and ask the spirits for help. The spirits they entreat are Islamic jinns, and they write out requests as if petitioning the state. At a time when a Hindu right wing government in India is committed to normalizing a view of the past that paints Muslims as oppressors, Anand Vivek Taneja's Jinnealogy provides a fresh vision of religion, identity, and sacrality that runs counter to state-sanctioned history.

The ruin, Firoz Shah Kotla, is an unusually democratic religious space, characterized by freewheeling theological conversations, DIY rituals, and the sanctification of animals. Taneja observes the visitors, who come mainly from the Muslim and Dalit neighborhoods of Delhi, and uses their conversations and letters to the jinns as an archive of voices so often silenced. He finds that their veneration of the jinns recalls pre-modern religious traditions in which spiritual experience was inextricably tied to ecological surroundings. In this enchanted space, Taneja encounters a form of popular Islam that is not a relic of bygone days, but a vibrant form of resistance to state repression and post-colonial visions of India.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

In the ruins of a medieval palace in Delhi, a unique phenomenon occurs: Indians of all castes and creeds meet to socialize and ask the spirits for help. The spirits they entreat are Islamic jinns, and they write out requests as if petitioning the state. At a time when a Hindu right wing government in India is committed to normalizing a view of the past that paints Muslims as oppressors, Anand Vivek Taneja's Jinnealogy provides a fresh vision of religion, identity, and sacrality that runs counter to state-sanctioned history.

The ruin, Firoz Shah Kotla, is an unusually democratic religious space, characterized by freewheeling theological conversations, DIY rituals, and the sanctification of animals. Taneja observes the visitors, who come mainly from the Muslim and Dalit neighborhoods of Delhi, and uses their conversations and letters to the jinns as an archive of voices so often silenced. He finds that their veneration of the jinns recalls pre-modern religious traditions in which spiritual experience was inextricably tied to ecological surroundings. In this enchanted space, Taneja encounters a form of popular Islam that is not a relic of bygone days, but a vibrant form of resistance to state repression and post-colonial visions of India.

More books from Stanford University Press

Cover of the book As Light Before Dawn by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book Building Colonial Cities of God by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book Jewish Rights, National Rites by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book The Struggle for the World by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book Spending Without Taxation by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book Jazz As Critique by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book Science for the Empire by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book The Economics of Business Valuation by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book What Money Wants by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book Markets in the Name of Socialism by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book Why Internet Porn Matters by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book The Price of Monotheism by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book Sound and Sight by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book Creating New Knowledge in Management by Anand Vivek Taneja
Cover of the book Law as Punishment / Law as Regulation by Anand Vivek Taneja
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy