The Idea of India
Posts Tagged ‘Blasphemy’
Believers, Blasphemers and Beggars In Ajmer, The City That Love Built And Life Sustains
Believers, Blasphemers and Beggars In Ajmer, The City That Love Built And Life Sustains

When they celebrate the death anniversary of a saint, they come in crowds from far and near to his tomb; and reaching there on the day of the ‘urs’, they perform more devotions than they do for obligatory (Islamic) rituals. To solve their worldly problems, they address their supplications to the tombs…They pray to the […]

Rajasthan’s Cheeta-Merat And The Battle For Their Souls by Radihika Saraf
Rajasthan's Cheeta-Merat And The Battle For Their Souls by Radihika Saraf

Introduction: The Cheeta-Merat (also known as the Kathat) defy all conventional conceptions of ‘Hindus’ and ‘Muslims’, and practice a unique syncretic religion that combines elements of Islam and Hindusim. This little-known community, with an estimated population to be about 400,000, is spread across over 100 villages in the vicinity of Ajmer and Beawar towns in […]

The Art of Blasphemy: The Poetry of Kabir
The Art of Blasphemy: The Poetry of Kabir

The Kabir Project has a new film by Shabnam Virmani, on the meaning of Ram and the dreams of Kabir Ω His early life is a mystery, with some arguing that he may never even have existed. He is said to have been raised by a Muslim family, in a Muslim neighborhood of the holy […]