As Makkah is sweet and beloved, so is Madina: Islam, devotional genres, and electronic mediation in Mauritius

Abstract

Mauritian Muslims profoundly disagree over the legitimacy of the devotional genre na't, as audition of audiocassette and audio‐CD recordings of the genre has become more popular. In this article, I suggest a close articulation between critiques of textual and spiritual mediation in South Asian Islamic traditions practiced in Mauritius and certain uses of electronic voice mediation, such as the circulation of audiocassette and audio‐CD na't. The significance of electronically mediated devotional discourse emerges in the ways in which media practices become part of genealogical forms of Islamic authority centered on ensuring authentic textual and performative transmission through long chains of reliable interlocutors.

Mediality and materiality in religious performance: religion as heritage in mauritius

“…In recent years, however, its circulation through audiocassettes and later audio and video CDs (Figure 3) as well as mp3 disks and sound files downloaded from websites has led to greater popularity of this genre, which at the same time plays an important role in intra-Muslim sectarian differentiation (Eisenlohr 2006b). The cultivation of na't is a hallmark of the South Asian Ahl-e Sunnat wa Jama'at tradition, which the majority of Sunni Muslims in South Asia and Mauritius follow and which distinguishes itself through a particular combination of Sufi and 'ulemabased traditions of Islam (Sanyal 1996).…”

“…In conversations with my interlocutors, comments about the kinds of voices na't reciters should have and how they sounded were a recurring theme (Eisenlohr 2006b(Eisenlohr , 2010. In re-creating the emotive context of performance possibly resembling the context of authoritative authorship, the quality of vocalization played a key role for my interlocutors, which they held mostly responsible for the touching and piously transformative effects of na't recitation.…”

Technologies of the spirit

“…Islamic traditions represent the official 'ancestral culture' for Mauritian Muslims, which has in turn heightened concerns about the authenticity of such traditions legitimizing the place of Muslims in a Mauritian nation. One of the consequences has been debates about the permissibility and authenticity of certain religious practices, such as the performance of devotional genres linked to practices of intercession, which in turn are closely linked to competition between different South Asian Islamic traditions in Mauritius, most notably the Barelwi and Deobandi schools (Eisenlohr, 2006a(Eisenlohr, , 2006b.…”

“…These recordings are above all used to prepare for and guide performances of the genre at mahfil-e mawlūd, its traditional setting (Eisenlohr, 2006b). But they have also led to the extension of the genre into contexts in which it was previously absent, such as listening to na't alone at home or in the car.…”

Production of mystical Islam in Europe: Religious authorization in the Süleymanlı Sufi community

“…The emergence of new media in the dissemination of religious ideas changes the character of religiosity because it empowers different social actors and increases access to religious knowledge, which result in a "fragmentation of authority" (Eickelman and Anderson 1999). For instance, using the new technology of CDs transformed the methods for cultivating the pious self through listening to religious poetry (Eisenlohr 2006) or listening to taped sermons challenging the reason-based public sphere (Hirschkind 2001). However, this article analyzes how rituals, as media of representation, impact the content of the Islamic message and the social organization of the community.…”