Eunuchs and Concubines in the History of Islamic Southeast Asia
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EUNUCHS AND Moreover, they were always of servile CONCUBINES IN THE status, as the holy law demanded. In Southeast Asia, in contrast, concubines HISTORY OF ISLAMIC (gundik) were sometimes free, and SOUTHEAST ASIA eunuchs (sida-sida) mysteriously dis- appeared around 1700. William Gervase Clarence- 1 Unfortunately, the nature of these Smith practices in Islamic Southeast Asia is hard to unravel, as they are covered by a veil of silence. Servitude itself is seen as highly Abstract embarrassing (Salman 2001). 'Sexual aberrations' merely compound the In the early 17th century, male servant embarrassment, and outsiders writing eunuchs were common, notably at the about such matters easily attract Persianised Acehnese court of Iskandar accusations of 'Orientalism' and Muda. By mid-century, the castration of 'voyeurism.' This is unfortunate, because a male slaves mysteriously disappeared. study of these topics helps to illuminate Concubinage, however, lasted much historical specificities pertaining to both longer. While there were sporadic Islam and sexuality in the region. attempts to stamp out abuses, for example sexual relations with pre-pubescent slave Concubinage in Islam girls, and possibly, clitoridectomy, a reasoned rejection of the institution of Across Islamdom, the ulama accepted that concubinage on religious grounds failed a man could have an unlimited number of to emerge. This paper discusses the sexual servile concubines. Quranic references to treatment of slaves across Islamic 'those whom your right hand possesses' Southeast Asia, a subject which sheds seemed to justify the institution, and the important light on historical specificities Prophet himself was believed to have pertaining to both Islam and sexuality in owned two concubines in the latter stages the region, yet which continues to be of his life (Ruthven 2000: 57, 62-3, Awde treated with silence, embarrassment or 2000: 10, Zaidi 1935). Concubinage also even scholarly condemnation. eased conversion, overcoming the 'four wives barrier' to embracing Islam (Hughes 1885: 600). The ownership of concubines Southeast Asian Islam was characterised certainly became widespread, extending to by a peculiar prominence of adat, or men of quite modest means (Hodgson customary law, and qanun, or statute law 1974: II, 65, 144). (Hooker 1988). In the Middle East and South Asia, where the sharia was better A concubine could rise high in the social established, eunuchs and concubines were scale, although this was exceptional. If she widespread up to modern times. bore a son for a mighty ruler, she wielded great influence, especially after her 1 master's death (Peirce 1993, Babaie et al. Professor, Department of History, School of 2004). However, enforced sexual Oriental and African Studies, University of London continence was the lot of discarded and Downloaded from Brill.com09/30/2021 03:30:07PM via free access Eunuchs and Concubines in the History of Islamic Southeast Asia neglected sexual partners in large harems, Muslims of Sri Lanka and parts of India while the bondmaiden who attended to established a rather generous customary their needs faced both celibacy and upper limit of forty concubines per man drudgery (Peirce 1993: 138, 141-2). (Bevan Jones 1941: 209). A general and Concubines at times resisted their fate. reasoned rejection of concubinage on Islamic law strictly prohibited the molest- religious grounds only emerged from the ation of dependants, but subordination in 1870s, beginning in South Asia and the protected sphere of the household spreading to Egypt (Ali 1883, Hourani made it hard to police transgressions 1970: 164-70). Such revisionism was (Hodgson 1974: I, 344). resisted by literalist thinkers, however, such as Mawlana Sayyid Abul A'la The ulama displayed persistent unease Mawdudi (1903-79) in South Asia. Still about concubinage, discouraging excesses, influential today, Mawdudi proclaimed the protesting at abuses, and forbidding the harem to be 'the last place of refuge where holding of free concubines. The huge Islam guards its civilisation and culture' harems of rulers and nobles flouted (Khan 1972: 38). He also taught that the repeated recommendations in the Qur'an to Prophet had owned at least one concubine treat slaves and wives well, and not to be (Sarwar Qureshi 1983: 28-32). prodigal (Hodgson 1974: II, 143-4, Crone and Cook 1977: 148, Khan 1972: 35-9). Concubinage in Islamic Southeast Canonical stories of Hagar, Ibrahim's ill- Asia treated concubine, introduced a note of uncertainty. These were reinforced by folk A particular advantage of holding traditions that elaborated on Hagar's concubines under custom was that it could tribulations in the desert with her young extend to free women, to the horror of son Isma'il, believed to be the ancestor of pious ulama (Winstedt 1981: 54, Linehan the Arabs (Crone and Cook 1977, Awde 1973: 129). This flagrant breach of the 2000: 143, Ruthven 2000: 13-18). sharia was still reported in North Sumatra as late as the 1890s (Jacobs 1894: I, 78). The ulama thus attempted to mitigate the The nobles of central and eastern Java evils of the institution from an early date. were most infamous for obliging free They insisted that children of concubines women to cohabit with them, without were free, and of equal social status to reducing them to slavery. In contrast, the children of free wives, as long as the more sharia-minded grandees of Banten, father recognised paternity. The mother of in West Java, took concubines only from such children was also to be freed at the 'those villages which during the period of death of her master (Brunschvig 1960). Islamisation had refused to embrace the new religion, and had thereupon been More radical measures against declared to be slaves' (Kumar 1997: 62). concubinage were rare, came late, and However, the collective and hereditary remained contested. The Druzes of slavery of whole villages was itself Greater Syria formed an unusual except- contrary to the spirit of the sharia. ion, banning slavery, concubinage, and polygyny from the eleventh century, but Adding insult to injury, the children of they were marginalised by their sectarian free concubines were considered to be beliefs (Abu-Izzedin 1984: 122, 230). inferior to those of free wives (Snouck 9 Downloaded from Brill.com09/30/2021 03:30:07PM via free access MANUSYA: Journal of Humanities, Special Issue No.14, 2007 Hurgronje 1906: I, 360). Prince siblings in a special adat ceremony, and Dipanagara was passed over for the throne even then they were not completely equal of Yogyakarta in the early nineteenth (Djajadiningrat 1929: 90). Among the century as the son of a concubine, possibly Alas of North Sumatra, adoption, contributing to the outbreak of the great prohibited in the sharia, was employed to Java War of 1825-30 (Adas 1987: 94, 96). clear the 'stain' of slave descent (Iwabuchi Although it is not stated clearly whether 1994: 130, 158). his mother was free or slave, the habits of the central Javanese nobility make it quite However, Muslims in Southeast Asia likely that she was a free concubine. might also turn to the sharia in dealing with matters of concubinage. This is clear Even in the case of servile concubines, from a 1892 collection of Meccan fatwas Southeast Asian men tended to dislike for Southeast Asian believers. Fatwa 34 Islamic legal provisions, preferring to hold explained why the child of a female slave, such women under adat (Lasker 1950: 32- born as the result of illicit sexual relations 3). The numerous debt slaves of the region with her owner, inherited the mother's were especially prone to being possessed servile status. Had the mother been a under customary arrangements, as this legitimate concubine, the child would category of servility found no place in the have been born free. Fatwa 96 stressed sharia (Clifford 1913: 122-3, Maxwell that a master had to free a slave if he 1890: 247-8, Thosibo 2002, Ruibing wished to marry her, rather than merely 1937). Moreover, the recourse to custom have her as a concubine (Kaptein 1997: may have helped in selling concubines to 195). single non-Muslim Chinese men, which became big business from the eighteenth In addition, servile concubinage shared century, as numbers of Chinese certain features typical of Islamdom as a immigrants swelled (Reid 1983: 27). whole. In late seventeenth century South Under the sharia such sales would have Sulawesi, jealous free wives whipped their been frowned upon. Indeed, they would husbands' concubines, or even went so far technically have been prohibited if the as to murder them. At the same time, by female slaves in question were Muslims. maintaining inflated harems, masters denied a family life to unwanted partners Southeast Asian Muslims also invoked (Gervaise 1971: 83-5, 115-16). Sultans customary law to evade sharia provisions were especially likely to have excessively that imposed an equal status on children of large harems, as in Aceh in the sixteenth concubines (Lasker 1950: 32-3). In Aceh, and seventeenth centuries (Hadi 2004: where considerable stress was placed on 100). That said, concubines possessed the maternal line, descendants of their own slaves in northern Borneo in the concubines retained the 'taint' of slavery 1840s, and were considered to be fairly for several generations. To avoid this, socially privileged (Low 1968: 144). people practised birth control or infanticide, both of which violated the Concubinage survived the imposition of holy law (Snouck Hurgronje 1906: I, 21-2, colonial rule. Raja Ali, ruler of Riau, 359, Loeb 1972: 230-1). In Lampung, mentioned concubines at least twice in his South Sumatra, children of concubines extensive correspondence with the Dutch had to be recognised by their free half- authorities. In 1872, he lamented that his 10 Downloaded from Brill.com09/30/2021 03:30:07PM via free access Eunuchs and Concubines in the History of Islamic Southeast Asia sex drive was weakening just as he had Even the rank sexual exploitation of acquired a pretty young gundik (Putten servile women through prostitution was 2 and Al-Azhar 1995: 41, 115).