Dissertation FINAL Revised

Tracing the Footsteps of the Prophet across the Indian Ocean: The Materiality of Prophetic Piety in Mughal India by Usman Hamid A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations University of Toronto © Copyright by Usman Hamid 2021 i Tracing the Footsteps of the Prophet across the Indian Ocean: The Materiality of Prophetic Piety in Mughal India Usman Hamid Doctor of Philosophy Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations University of Toronto 2021 Abstract This dissertation adopts theoretical and methodological insights from the study of religious materiality to explore how Indian Ocean travel gave rise to religious discourses and practices in South Asia. It traces how the circulation of people, objects, and knowledge between North India and the Hejaz led to new forms of Muslim piety in the imperial centers of the Mughal Empire. A characteristic feature of this piety was belief in the auspicious nature of the Prophet Muḥammad’s body. This belief was expressed both in scholastic discourse and ritual practice as evidenced by the history of Prophetic relics and tradition examined in this dissertation. The introduction lays forth the concept of Prophetic piety and outlines what it means to study it from the perspective of material religion. It draws attention to the way material culture has been mobilized to preserve the memory of the Prophet Muḥammad. Chapter one looks at the arrival of a qadam or footprint relic associated with the Prophet to the court of the Mughal Emperor Akbar (r. 1556–1605), and focuses on the religious debates and royal rituals of ii veneration it engendered. The analysis offers insight on the practice of religious inquiry at the Mughal court and its role in the performance of sovereignty. Chapter two looks at the development of two monumental reliquary shrines, one in Delhi and the other in Ahmedabad, whose central relics shared a connected history. By focusing on the religious economy of the shrines, the chapter looks at how various actors invested in the shrine, including the Mughal court, Chishtī Sufis, and Sayyids, and how their interventions may have shaped devotees’ relic practices. Chapter three contextualizes these ritual practices at the reliquary shrines within new scholastic discourses that began circulating in seventeenth century Delhi. These discourses are found in the scholastic writings of North Indian Sufis who expressed a strong devotion to the Prophet and who had travelled to the Hejaz for pilgrimage and studying hadith. It is in their writings that we see clear expression of the belief in the auspicious nature of the Prophet’s body. iii Acknowledgements I would like to begin by thanking members of my supervising committee, Maria Subtelny and Karen Ruffle for their direction in seeing this project through and guiding my training as a scholar and teacher. I will forever be indebted to Maria Subtelny, whose seminars opened my eyes to the broader history of the Persianate world and its rich literary traditions. I will fondly remember the afternoons spent pouring over countless sources as she patiently guided me through the mystifying metaphors and elusive allusions. To Karen Ruffle I owe my orientation as a scholar and teacher. She has challenged me to think more sharply, more deeply, and more comparatively, proving me with a toolkit to make sense of the materiality of religion. I thank both of them, as well as Carl Ernst and Luther Obrock, for their generously reading this dissertation and offering the gift of feedback. My journey through the doctoral program entailed mentorship and friendship from many, without whom I would have been adrift. I was fortunate to have Ajay Rao and Pasha M. Khan as mentors who invested in me professionally and personally and I aspire to emulate their warmth and magnanimity. Malavika Kasturi, Bhavani Raman, Bart Scott, and Jo Sharma created opportunities and offered sage advice. Finally, this journey could not have possible, had it not been for Sajida Alvi who took a chance on me as an undergraduate. For years the Department of Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations served as a collegial and stimulating environment and I have many fond memories of friendship and intellectual exchange with Adam Ali, Mustafa Banister, Lale Javanshir, Shuntu Kuang, Abolfazl Moshiri, Sajjad Nejatie, and Parisa Zahiremami. At the University of Toronto Sanchia DeSouza, Mekhola Gomes, Jairan Gahan, Candis Haak, Adil Mawani, Jonathan Peterson, Bogdan Smarandache were friends, colleagues, and co-conspirators. From further afield, Salua Fawzi, Eliza Tasbihi and Bariza Umar provided insight and support. iv Arun Brahmbhatt deserve particular distinction for his continual and unflinching support and good judgement. David Wrisley has been a long-time friend, mentor, and confidant—I thank him for reminding me to see the big picture and to keep chugging along. Their presence made completion of this possible. For being fellow travellers this past decade I thank Komail Aijazuddin, Matt Lemche, Greg Mendelson, and Fay. I would like to express my deep gratitude to Anna Sousa, Maria Leonor Vivona, and Michael Godwin for shepherding me through the hurdles of PhD program, and to Blair Kuntz for being a generous and obliging boss. This dissertation was completed after I joined Hamilton College’s Asian Studies Program, where I have benefitted from insightful feedback, warm friendship, and sage mentorship from Thomas Wilson, Lisa Trivedi, and Abhishek Amar. It is by convention alone that I thank my family at end of these acknowledgements; by right, they occupy pride of place. To my parents Tariq and Yasmin Hamid, who have always been supportive of me no matter what path I chose and who always were willing to make sacrifices to see me reach my goals. I thank my father for his indulging me in conversations about history, for his advice to preserve and look forward, and for accompanying me on my adventures in the field. To my mother I offer my thanks for her endless prayers, without which this project would have long languished. My brother Omar and sister Zainab were pillars of support, both materially and emotionally. Acknowledgements are a bittersweet affair. We get a chance to acknowledge the contributions of those who brought us to this point, but no matter how complete a list of names, there are will be those who will be missing. I beg their indulgence. v Table of Contents I. Introduction: Materializing Prophetic Piety ...................................................................................... 1 I.1 Supplicating the Prophet ................................................................................................................ 1 I.2. Prophetic Piety ................................................................................................................................ 5 I.3. Prophetic Relics and Tradition .................................................................................................... 12 I.4. Tracing Prophetic Piety in Mughal India .................................................................................. 19 1. Relics Debated ....................................................................................................................................... 23 1.1. The Footprint of the Prophet at the Court of the Great Mughal .......................................... 23 1.2. Sources ........................................................................................................................................... 27 1.3. Historical Context: The Imperial Hajj ........................................................................................ 37 1.4. The Relic at the Court of the Great Mughal .............................................................................. 47 1.5. Conclusion ..................................................................................................................................... 53 2. Relics Enshrined ................................................................................................................................... 58 2.1. Reliquary Shrines of the Prophet in Mughal India ................................................................. 58 2.2. The Reliquary Shrine in Ahmedabad ......................................................................................... 69 2.3. Dargāh-i Qadam Sharīf ................................................................................................................. 78 2.4. Conclusion ................................................................................................................................... 114 3. Auspicious Corporeality .................................................................................................................... 116 3.1. The Prophet’s Body and the Sunni Hadith Tradition ........................................................... 116 3.2. Visiting the Grave of the Prophet in Medina ......................................................................... 122 3.3. Introducing Madārij al-nubūvat va marātib al-futūvat and its Context ................................. 126 3.4. Auspicious Corporeality ............................................................................................................ 137 3.5. Conclusion ................................................................................................................................... 155 C. Conclusion: Traces in

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