On Becoming an Indian Muslim: French Essays on Aspects of Syncretism

This selection of fifteen essays by modern French intellectuals focuses on religious syncretism. M. Waseem’s translations are clear and precise, and his substantive Introduction outlines the gradual amalgamation of different religious elements during the spread of Islam as described by these French intellectuals. Relying on literary and other texts as well as field studies, well-known French scholars – Louis Massignon, Jules Bloch, Jean Filliozat, Charlotte Vaudeville, Francoise Mallison, Denis Matringe, Marc Gaborieau, and Dominique-Sila Khan among others – trace the various ways in which Islam found popular support at the grass-roots level in India. The essays discuss how, when Islam first came to India, many elements derived from Hinduism came to be accepted as part of Islamic practice on the subcontinent. They also dwell upon the significant contributions of the Indian mystic Kabir, Sufism, Dara Shikoh, Jayasi, Pir Shams, Waris Shah, Ghazi Miyan, ‘Ramdeo’ Pir, the Bhartrhari Jogis of Gorakhpur and Mahatma Gandhi. The concluding essay is by the translator himself and is centred on the followers of the Agha Khan, otherwise known as the Isma’ili Khojas. This selection, a sequel to Garcin de Tassy’s Muslim Festivals in India and Other Essays translated by M. Waseem, will appeal to historians, sociologists and general readers interested in the history and development of Islamic culture in India.