The colonization of the Punjab by the British ushered in economic, social, cultural and legal conditions in which Islamic identity came to assume new forms. In pre-modern times, Waris Shah's epic,... Show moreThe colonization of the Punjab by the British ushered in economic, social, cultural and legal conditions in which Islamic identity came to assume new forms. In pre-modern times, Waris Shah's epic, Heer, was an integral part of everyday life; it was recited at social and literary gatherings. But the text had not yet become the object of intellectual critique. Rather, the critique embedded in the text suffused everyday conflicts and pleasure. In the modern period, however, the text was dis-embedded from the life-world. It became a site for the contestation of pre-modern and modern forms of Islamic identity. Show less
A modern-day visitor to Jamic Amr ibn al-cAs mosque in Cairo during the month of Ramadan can not miss the overt female presence in the women's quarter. That Muslim women of all ages attend this and... Show moreA modern-day visitor to Jamic Amr ibn al-cAs mosque in Cairo during the month of Ramadan can not miss the overt female presence in the women's quarter. That Muslim women of all ages attend this and other congregational mosques throughout the world is a fact that clearly contravenes a legal consensus arrived at during the formative period of Islamic law. After deliberation on the legality of women's attendance at mosques for congregational prayers, the majority of jurists, both Sunni and Shi'ite, concluded that women - particularly young, attractive women - should avoid mosques for fear of the social unrest (fitna) associated with their presence there. Show less
