Hindu-Muslim Encounters in South Asia

Catalog description

Given South Asia's rich religious diversity, is communal conflict inevitable? Since the colonial era and partition, Muslims and Hindus are, at times, at odds with each other, with interreligious relations intermittently marred by violent conflict. And yet, from early modernity through the present day, Hindu-Muslim encounters extended far beyond the confines of communalist conflict. In this seminar, we explore moments of interreligious encounter and exchange between Muslim and Hindu communities in South Asia from the earliest Muslim polities in the subcontinent up through the present day. We begin by re-examining the stories we tell about how Islam and Hinduism came to co-exist in South Asia, and continue with explorations of Hindu-Muslim translation enterprises, the intersections between Sufi and Yogic practice, and Mughal patronage of Hindu temples. We then build on this foundation to explore the complex dynamics of conflict and coexistence in the colonial period through the present-day. Undergraduates register for 200-level for 5 units. Graduate students register for 300-level for 3-5 units.