Invoking the invisible in the Sahara: Islam, spiritual mediation, and social change

In this innovative new history, Erin Pettigrew utilizes invisible forces and entities - esoteric knowledge and spirits - to show how these forms of knowledge and unseen forces have shaped social structures, religious norms, and political power in the Saharan West. Situating this ethnographic history...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Pettigrew, Erin (Author)
Format: Electronic Book
Language:English
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Published: Cambridge Cambridge University Press 2023
In:Year: 2023
Series/Journal:African studies series
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Mauretanien / Sahara / Islam / Occultism / Belief in spirits / Social change / History
Further subjects:B Islamic occultism (Mauritania)
B Mauritania History, Local
B Africa / Generals / HISTORY
B Islamic occultism (Western Sahara)
B Western Sahara History, Local
B Supernatural Religious aspects Islam
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Parallel Edition:Electronic
Description
Summary:In this innovative new history, Erin Pettigrew utilizes invisible forces and entities - esoteric knowledge and spirits - to show how these forms of knowledge and unseen forces have shaped social structures, religious norms, and political power in the Saharan West. Situating this ethnographic history in what became la Mauritanie under French colonial rule and, later the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, Pettigrew traces the changing roles of Muslim spiritual mediators and their Islamic esoteric sciences - known locally as l'hÌĐjaÌ"b - over the long-term history of the region. By exploring the impact of the immaterial in the material world and demonstrating the importance of Islamic esoteric sciences in Saharan societies, she illuminates peoples' enduring reliance upon these sciences in their daily lives and argues for a new approach to historical research that takes the immaterial seriously.
Item Description:Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 19 Jan 2023)
ISBN:1009224581
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1017/9781009224581