Paper short abstract

This paper will analyse the very varying constructions of Prannath’s apparent aural encounter with the Islamic call to prayer in 1674, in terms of truth claims, cultural exchange and rival identities, both contemporary and modern.

Paper long abstract

In 1674, Prannath (1618-94), the leader of a mercantile sect influenced by Vallabha Krishnaite devotion, apparently heard a mullah give the call to prayer. According to the main hagiography of his life, the Bitak, it was then that he declared the inner meaning of that Arabic summons to the faithful (33.69-71). I look at this encounter between a holy man from a particular bhakti background and these words epitomising Islam to see how the event and its significance have been variously constructed in terms of truth claims, cultural exchange and rival identities. Analysing contemporary and modern accounts, I show how a contextualised focus on a single case can contribute to a nuanced understanding of shifts in the construction of 'religion' in pre-modern and modern South Asia.