May 1998 Edition
by Asghar Ali Engineer
Indian Muslims are very much part of the regional cultural streams. In fact, the integration goes to such an extent in many cases that those who do not belong to the regional cultures are not considered Muslims.
THE question is often raised by those who harbour a communal bias and sometimes even by those with a secular outlook: are Muslims part of the Indian mainstream? Actually, the word ``mainstream'' is ambiguous and means different things to different people.
It is alleged by BJP leaders that the Muslims are not prepared to respect Hindu gods and assimilate the Indian culture. On the contrary, they say, Indonesian Muslims have adopted Sanskrit names and the Ramayana dance as their national dance. `Garuda' is the name of their national airlines.
This makes it clear that the mainstream is defined as the Hindu mainstream which, in turn, means Brahmanical mainstream. Thus, if any community does not fit into this framework, it is not considered part of the national mainstream. This perspective suggests that all non-Brahmanical streams are not national and 'mainstream'. Democracy is nothing if it does not admit of diversity and plurality. No one can demand uniformity in democracy as uniformity leads to authoritarianism if not fascism.
No society is uniform, for that matter. Within the Hindu society, there is religious diversity, apart from cultural and linguistic diversity. There is a great deal of religious and cultural diversity among Muslims also. Homogeneous communities are mental constructs and are not reality. Some Western scholars call them ``imagined communities''. Often, it is the communalists who construct such homogeneous communities. Their purpose cannot be served without their mentally homogenising a community.
We always talk of `Hindus' and `Muslims' or `Sikhs' and `Christians', cite their numbers and draw our conclusions. We ignore the diversity and plurality of religious beliefs and cultures within these communities. Politically too, these communities are highly diversified and hardly take a united stand. Even on the question of Partition, it is a sheer myth that Muslims were one. Jinnah got the maximum support from the upper class Muslims of Uttar Pradesh. But the lower class Muslims such as weavers opposed the idea of Partition.
Besides, we draw our conclusions about a community from our experiences in urban areas. No wonder, communalism tends to be an urban phenomenon. The major communal riots occurred in urban areas though in the late Eighties they spread to rural areas. In the urban areas, separate political identities carry more weight than in the rural areas. If we keep the bewildering diversity of our country in view, the national mainstream will appear to be a theoretical construct rather than a reality out there. The example of Indonesia is of a similar nature. The Muslims of all regions there do not have the same culture. For example, a Sanskritised culture is found in Java but not in Sumatra as Java was under Hindu kings during the medieval period. In Indonesia, too, there is a great deal of religio-cultural diversity among the Muslims. In Bali, where the Hindus are in a majority, the Muslims feel threatened as do the Pandits in Kashmir.
Indian Muslims are very much part of the regional cultural streams. For example, the Muslims of Kerala are part of the Malayalam cultural stream and in that sense are closer to the Kerala Hindus and Christians than to the Urdu-speaking Muslims of the North. The Muslims of Tamil Nadu are much closer to Tamil Hindus and Christians. These Muslims have made seminal contribution to the regional languages and cultures.
The same is true of the Muslims of Gujarat. These Muslims are so well integrated with the regional cultures that they feel alienated in other areas of India. This integration goes to such an extent that in many cases anyone who does not belong to these regional cultures is not considered Muslim. I myself had this experience when I visited a place near the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border. When I spoke to an elderly Muslim woman through an interpreter, she was surprised that someone who did not know Malayalam could be a Muslim. Her universe of Islam was limited to her region and her language.
In Kashmir too, the regional identity had been stronger all through and hence it did not see communal riots. Even during the height of militancy the regional solidarity often asserted itself. Kashmiri Islam is basically Sufi Islam and the Kashmiri Hinduism is a Shaivite Hinduism. Both are monotheistic. The Sufi saints are referred to as ``rishis'' in Kashmir. The Kashmiri militants, many of whom were outsiders (from Pakistan and Afghanistan), tried to spread fundamentalist Islam but did not succeed. Generally, the Kashmiri Muslims are not antagonistic to Hinduism. However, for fear of the extremists they may not be able to assert their viewpoint. Privately, they do admit that the Pandits must return to the valley and many of them even looked after the latter's properties in their absence.
It is wrong to say the Muslims refuse to respect Hindu gods such as Ram and Krishna. It amounts to saying all Indian Muslims conform to this behaviour. It is again homogenising the entire community. At best, it is only one trend among many. There are thousands of Muslims who deeply revere them.
The Sufis, of course, had an outlook different from that of the theologians. Mazhar Jani Janan, an eminent 18th century Sufi saint, was of the view that since Allah promised to send His prophets to all the peoples of the world for religious guidance (for every people, there is a religious guide) how could He forget the Indians? And since Indians highly revered Ram and Krishna, they must be His Prophets.
A 20th century Sufi Khwaja Hasan Nizami wrote that Ram and Krishna were the prophets of Allah. Hasrat Mohani, Urdu poet and freedom-fighter who gave a call for complete freedom in 1921 itself and rejected the concept of Home Rule, was a great admirer of Lord Krishna. He performed Haj every year and also visited Brindavan on the occasion of Janmashtami regularly. Some of the Farangi Mahli Ulema in Lucknow also held Lord Krishna in great respect. The Urdu poet Iqbal, described Lord Ram and Imam-e-Hind, i.e., revered religious leader of India.
The Sufis adopted the local rituals and customs and their Islam was highly Indianised and the Muslim masses followed these Sufi saints rather than the Ulema and their theological pronouncements. Baba Farid, who is buried in Pak Pattan in Punjab (now in Pakistan), is considered the founder of Punjabi poetry. He is greatly revered by the Sikhs and his verses have been quoted in Adi Granth Sahib, along with that of other Indian saint-poets. Khwaja Nizamuddin Awliya, who is buried in Delhi, used to say there were as many ways of worshipping God as were particles of sand. He used to listen to Bhajans along with Qawwali (Sufi music).
Khwaja Hasan Nizami, who was the keeper of the mausoleum of Nizamuddin Awliya, vividly describes in his Fatimi Da'wat-e-Islam how the Sufi saints adopted the local rituals to popularise Islam. The carrying of sandal on the death anniversary of Sufi saints (called urs or kurs in Tamil Nadu) and the washing of the saints' graves are Hindu temple rituals. The followers of Imam Shah in Gujarat went so far as to describe the Prophet as kal yug avtar of Krishna and the prophet's son-in-law, Ali, as the tenth avtar of Vishnu.
Several Sufi saints are revered by the Hindus and Muslims alike. Offering, vows, tying threads, exorcising evil spirits and other practices are common to both the communities. Sometimes, the keepers of Sufi mausoleums are Hindus such as at the Haji Malang Baba's Mausoleum. Its keeper is a Brahmin.
Certain Muslim communities are highly Hinduised, as for example, the Meo Muslims of Rajasthan and Haryana. Many anthropological studies on the Meos show their Hindu customs and rituals. They celebrate Diwali and Holi as they celebrate Eid-ul-Zuha. They, like Hindus, do not marry within one gotra though Islam permits marriage with cousins. Solemnisation of marriage among Meos is not complete without both nikah as in Islam and the circumambulation of fire as among Hindus.
An anthropoligical study of the lifecycle rituals (i.e., the rituals performed from birth to death) among Bengali Muslims has shown a striking similarly between Hindus and Muslims. Many purification movements launched from time to time to rid the Indian Islam of Indian influences have never succeeded. The regional influences on the Indian Muslims have become an integral part of their life.
Thus, one can say it is the folk religion which is practised by the masses rather than the scriptual religion. Scriptual religion exists only in books. Can anybody still maintain the myth that the Indian Muslims refuse to assimilate elements of the Indian culture?
Also see Adaptation and Compromise with Hindu and Jain Traditions in the Regional Sultanates and The 2-Nation Theory and Partition for a historical perspective on this subject.
For other selections relating to the history of India and the sub-continent, also visit South Asian History .
Also see other essays on Secularism in India
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