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chapter two God’s Strong Women FEMALE & FEMININE IN SHIʿI SAINTHOOD Those who left Committed a Husaynic act; Those who remained Must perform a Zaynabic act; Otherwise, they are Yazidic. —ʿAli Shariʿati I met Sabiha Asghar in February 2005, during the days leading up to Muharram . Asghar is the principal of the Solar School, an English-medium institution located in Hyderabad’s Old City. She is also the daughter of Sayyid Maulana Reza Agha, Hyderabad’s most senior Shiʿi religious scholar and a popular majlis orator (ẕākir). I met with Asghar on several occasions to learn more about the meaning of the mehndī mourning assembly and other votive rituals dedicated to Qasem and Fatimah Kubra as well as to ascertain people’s understanding of Fatimah Kubra’s role and meaning in the embodiment of ḥusaini ethics–imitable sainthood. In particular, I wondered how Hyderabadi Shiʿa look to figures such as Fatimah Kubra as socioethical exemplars and models of piety and faith. Asghar sits behind her desk in a large, open room. Her hair is neatly covered, and she has a youthful, inquisitive, and businesslike air. Her large desk is the focal point, and the room is readily accessible through several doorways that are covered only by curtains.The atmosphere is informal, and a steady stream of mothers enters the office, seeking admission for their children and perhaps a reduction in the already low school fees. In between visits from the petitioning mothers and their children, Asghar and I spoke at length about the upcoming mehndī mourning assembly on 7 Muharram. By her reckoning, more than one hundred mehndī mourning assemblies take 60 | GOD’S STRONG WOMEN place at large and small ʿāshūrkhānas throughout the city. Many Hyderabadis believe that 7 Muharram is a particularly auspicious day to make a votive request (mannat) to the many metal battle standards (ʿalam) dedicated to Qasem. Asghar explained that not all requests are related to matrimony; however, most of the offerings presented to the Qasem ʿalams are wedding clothing and jewelry: sāṛīs, bangles, shalwār-qamīẓ, and perfumes (ʿiṭr).1 Devotees certainly seek Qasem and Fatimah Kubra’s intercession and grace (baraka) in financial, health, and other personal matters, but supernatural assistance in arranging good marriage alliances is the primary concern for most Hyderabadi Shiʿa on 7 Muharram. The Shiʿa believe that their wishes and desires will be fulfilled for two reasons. Marriage is an especially auspicious event, and the refusal to grant any request that is made in good faith is a sign of poor hospitality. More important, Fatimah Kubra and Qasem are saints, idealized Muslims imbued with the Prophet Muhammad’s charismatic blood, and they (and their family members) are empowered to serve as intermediaries with God.The material dimension of these offerings to the Qasem ʿalam possesses potent symbolic power that connects the everyday life of the Shiʿa of Hyderabad with the socioethical and religious model embodied through the ḥusaini ethics–imitable sainthood of Imam Husain and his family. Fatimah Kubra’s embodiment of ḥusaini ethics–imitable sainthood in her role as the bride/widow of Karbala serves as a powerful role model for the male and female devotees of Hyderabad. Through such votive acts as smearing henna paste on their right palms and making offerings of the brilliant red cloth (bībī Kubrā kī sohā) worn by brides on their wedding day, Hyderabadi Shiʿa ascribe vernacular feminine ideals of wifehood and widowhood onto Fatimah Kubra’s body and venerate and seek guidance in her absolute faith and submission to God. I interviewed Asghar several times over a period of three months and learned much about her spiritual and personal life. Asghar makes little distinction between the personal and the spiritual: her everyday practice fully integrates the socioethical and religious lessons that she has heard all her life in the mourning assembly. During our first meeting, I asked Asghar about what it means to be a wife and a widow in the Shiʿi culture of Hyderabad . Asghar’s mother inculcated in her daughter an idealized vernacular, Hyderabadi femininity authenticated by the example of the women of the ahl-e bait. While Asghar’s mother encouraged her daughter to be socially engaged , like Zainab; to get an education; and to have a job, she also taught Asghar to cultivate Fatimah Kubra’s vernacular ethic of wifely sacrifice [18.223.172.252] Project MUSE (2024-04-20 06:50 GMT...

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