Shedding new light on sectarianism outside the confines of Pakistan’s sociopolitical context, this novel book recontextualizes religious sectarianism in the country by studying it as a cultural and historical phenomenon. The book examines religious texts and speeches to understand how different religious groups interact and develop, combining historical, phenomenological and dialectical methods of study. Amongst the literature that focuses on conflict between sects, the book provides a cutting-edge discussion on how sectarian discourse can in fact promote integration, assimilation and peaceful coexistence alongside division. The chapters describe the distinctive influence of sociocultural patterns on sectarian discourse and argue that the major neo-sectarian divisions owe their existence to the socio-cultural process. Despite the regional focus on Jhang District, the book contributes to the socio-cultural discourse in South Asia and the religio-sectarian discourse in the Muslim world. Ultimately, the book looks to promote a culture of knowledge exchange between traditional and modern streams of knowledge, and will interest scholars and readers interested in South Asian religion, politics, history, culture and society.
