Living Our Religions: Hindu and Muslim South Asian American Women Narrate Their ExperiencesAnjana Narayan, Bandana Purkayastha The population of the South Asian Diaspora in the US is over 2.5 million people. Yet in a post 9/11 climate of opinion, little is known about this group beyond images of Muslim and Hindu fundamentalists and terrorists. This is particularly true of women where simplistic assumptions about veils and subordination obscure the voices of the women themselves. Rarely are Hindu and Muslim American women—many of whom are social workers, physicians, lawyers, academics, students, homemakers—asked about their everyday lives and religious beliefs. Living our Religions brings out these hidden stories from South Asian American women of Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Indian and Nepali origin. Their accounts show how diverse and culturally dynamic religious practices emerge within the intersection of histories and politics of specific locales. The authors describe the race, gender, and ethnic boundaries they encounter; they also document how they resist and challenge these boundaries. Living our Religions cuts through the myths and ethnocentrism of popular portrayals to reveal the vibrancy, courage and agency of an invisible minority. Other Contributors: Shobha Hamal Gurung, Selina Jamil, Salma Kamal, Shweta Majumdar, Bidya Ranjeet, Shanthi Rao, Aysha Saeed, Monoswita Saha, Neela, Bhattacharya Saxena, Parveen Talpur, Elora Halim Chowdhury and Rafia Zakaria |
Contents
Religion Gender Boundaries | 21 |
Connections Between | 47 |
Islam through a Mosaic of Cultures | 65 |
The Experiences of | 81 |
Resplendent Clay of Hindu Images as | 97 |
Cultural Hashing of a 1 | 129 |
Religion Gender | 147 |
Religion Practices Resistances | 153 |
Bengali Bangladeshi yet Muslim | 211 |
Religion as Inspiration Religion as Action | 233 |
Muslim Women between Dual Realities | 249 |
Challenging the Master Frame through Dalit Organizing | 265 |
Religion Practices | 281 |
Methodological Notes | 297 |
The Contributors | 317 |
323 | |
Living Hinduism and Striving to Achieve Internal | 179 |
Mapping the Memories of a Nepali Woman in | 195 |
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Allah Anjana Narayan Asian American Bandana Purkayastha Bangladesh Bengali Bhagavad Gita boundaries Brahmin brother Buddhism caste celebrate ceremony challenge chapter Christian cultural human rights Dalit deities Delhi describe dharma diversity Durga puja emphasize ethnic everyday experience faith father female feminism feminist festivals forms frame friends fundamentalists gender genocide Gita global goddess grandmother groups hierarchies hijab Hindu Hinduism Hindutva identity ideologies images immigrant India Indian American Islam Kali Kathmandu Kerala Kolkata Koran Lalon learned lives mainstream male mosque mother movement Muslim Muslim women Nepal Newars one’s oppression organized Pakistan parents patriarchal peace political pray prayers priest principles Quran racial racism reflect religion religious practices rituals role sacred scholars secular Sindh social South Asian spiritual stories Sufi Sufism symbols Taliban temple tion traditions translation understanding United University Press Urdu violence Western woman worship