Sufi Shrines and Politics of Neopatrimonialism: Analysis Since Twentieth Century

Abstract

Since the inception of Sufi fraternities, the political elite sought patrimonial relations with them due to their socio-religious prestige, but the twentieth century witnessed the transformation of these relations from patrimonial to neopatrimonial, based on the exchange of services. This paper develops its argument further that sajjadah nashins or care takers of Sufi shrines gave their support in exchange to politico-economic benefits with taking the examples of African and Asian Muslim countries. This research is a qualitative analysis of this mutual exchange based relations of services and benefits, as an impact of growing consumerism in the countries under colonial rule, since the twentieth century. Based on historical empiricism this research finds that those states where political elite saw Sufi fraternities as a potential threat also went through a transformation after the incident of 9/11, for Sufism was categorized as a tolerant side of Islam in contrast to intolerant Islamic militant groups.