Horse of Karbala: Muslim Devotional Life in India

by D. Pinault

Overview

Horse of Karbala is a study of Muharram rituals and interfaith relations in three locations in India: Ladakh, Darjeeling, and Hyderabad. These rituals commemorate an event of vital importance to Shia Muslims: the seventh-century death of the Imam Husain, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, at the battlefield of Karbala in Iraq. Pinault examines three different forms of ritual commemoration of Husain's death - poetry-recital and self-flagellation in Hyderabad; stick-fighting in Darjeeling; and the 'Horse of Karbala' procession, in which a stallion representing the mount ridden in battle by Husain is made the center of a public parade in Ladakh and other Indian localities. The book looks at how publicly staged rituals serve to mediate communal relations: in Hyderabad and Darjeeling, between Muslim and Hindu populations; in Ladakh, between Muslims and Buddhists. Attention is also given to controversies within Muslim communities over issues related to Muharram such as the belief in intercession by the Karbala Martyrs on behalf of individual believers.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781349619825
Publisher:	Palgrave Macmillan US
Publication date:	03/08/2001
Edition description:	1st ed. 2001
Pages:	257
Product dimensions:	5.51(w) x 8.50(h) x (d)

About the Author

DAVID PINAULT is Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Santa Clara University. He is the author of The Shiites: Ritual and Popular Piety in a Muslim Community.

Table of Contents

Initiation: Hyderabad, 1989 An Introduction to the Shia Tradition in Islam Blood, Rationality, and Ritual in the Shia Tradition 'Would That You Could Bury Me, Too, Beside My Brother!': Women's Roles in Shia Devotional Literature Shia Ritual in a Sunni Setting: Muharram Observances in the Hill Station of Darjeeling, West Bengal Horse of Karbala: Ladakh, Shia Ritual, and Devotional Literature Relating to Zuljenah Muslim-Buddhist Relations in a Ritual Context: An Analysis of the Muharram Procession in Leh Township, Ladakh Shia Lamentation Rituals and Reinterpretations of the Doctrine of Intercession: Two Cases from Modern India The Day of the Lion: A Ladakhi Shia Ritual Determined by the Zodiacal Calendar Shia Encounters in the U.S.: Notes on Teaching the Shia Tradition in American Classrooms

Editorial Reviews

Pinault (religious studies, Santa Clara U.) explores Muharram rituals and interfaith relations in Ladakh, Darjeeling, and Hyderabad. The publicly staged rituals commemorate the seventh-century death of Imam Husain, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad at Karbala in Iraq. He shows how they mediate Shia Moslem relations with Hindu and Buddhist communities. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews

'...a refreshing readable account that is accessible to undergraduates and graduates alike.' - Frank J. Korom, Religious Studies Review

From the Publisher