Metamorphosis, Mediation, Mannat: Sufi Spiritual Ecology and Endangered Animals in Bangladesh and Pakistan
In the South Asian discourse of Sufism, or Islamic mysticism, "natural" functions can be transcended and bodily boundaries are permeable. Defying species boundaries, this relational ontology entails a belief in the capacity for bodily transformation, or metamorphosis, from one category of...
| Published in: | Journal for the study of religion, nature and culture |
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| Subtitles: | "Special Issue - Religion and the Experience of Nature" |
| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Equinox Publ.
2024
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| In: |
Journal for the study of religion, nature and culture
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| Further subjects: | B
Spiritual ecology
B endangered animal species B species transformation B Spirits B Bangladesh and Pakistan B animal agency B intercessory mediation B ritual vows B Spiritual Ecology B Saints B Endangered Animals B Sufism B Metamorphosis |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | In the South Asian discourse of Sufism, or Islamic mysticism, "natural" functions can be transcended and bodily boundaries are permeable. Defying species boundaries, this relational ontology entails a belief in the capacity for bodily transformation, or metamorphosis, from one category of being to another (as from human to nonhuman animal). In turn, both human and animal actors enter into conversation with mediating "spirits". To this day, these religious entanglements, passed down through generations, allow Sufi communities in Bangladesh and Pakistan to protect "sacred" animals at shrines as vital refuges for wildlife species and to make an important contribution to their conservation. The relational dynamics allow for the cultural division between human and non-human life forms (plants, animals, and spirits) to be problematized, and permeable boundaries to be dissolved into liminal and dynamic zones of interaction. Deeply entangled, agents both human and non-human actively participate in shared ritual configurations that take place within and are nourished by a locally embedded Sufi spirituality. Ritual and devotional practices revolve around their intercessory mediation (shafa'at) with the divine, which endows them with spiritual agency, as they engage in cycles of exchange, such as the practice of taking vows (mannat). Within the framework of this Sufi-inspired, locally embedded spirituality, it is possible for animals to be genuine agents, to have spiritual "agency" and to be involved in cycles of exchange. |
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| ISSN: | 1749-4915 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal for the study of religion, nature and culture
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1558/jsrnc.23391 |