Folk practices in Punjab

Part of a series on
Punjabis
History
Diaspora
Asia

Europe

North America

Oceania

Culture
Regions

Punjab portal

Folk practices prevalent in Punjab incorporate local mysticism[1] and refers to the beliefs and practices strictly indigenous to the Punjabi people, of the Punjab region including ancestral worship, veneration of saints, and local festivals. There are many shrines in Punjab which represent the folk religion of the Punjab region which is a discourse between different organised religions.[2] These shrines represent inter-communal dialogue and a distinct form of cultural practice of saint veneration.[3]

Roger Ballard (1999) classifies Punjab's folk religion into the kismetic (misfortune caused by fate, or supernatural beings) dimension of Punjabi religious life, alongside its panth (inspirational leadership), dharam (divine laws), and qaum (community construction) elements.[4][5] The kismetic belief holds that misfortune can be caused by both unfulfilled, jealous spirits like bhuts (ghosts), dhags, jinns, and churails (witches), as well as by other people through the use of magic, including spells and incantations, and the evil eye (nazar).[4] Various folk beliefs are also attached to almost all birds and animals,[6] which serve as omens, vessels of powers, or sacrifices.[7]

Alongside beliefs in folk heroes and ancestors, belief in mostly malevolent spirits, often resulting from untimely deaths and motivated by envy from unfulfilled desires relating to life milestones like childlessness, indulge in varying degrees of harm on the living.[8] The nazar, causing misfortune and damage via jealous gazes, is most often targeted at one's family members, land and crops, and personal property, and protected against by amulets, customs, and various social mores, including humility.[8]

The practice of folk beliefs are often accompanied by what has been called dhadi or folk ballads, that complement more institutionalized music forms like kirtan and qawwali.[9]

  1. ^ Singh, Nagendra Kr; Khan, Abdul Mabud (2001). Encyclopaedia of the World Muslims: Tribes, Castes and Communities. Global Vision. ISBN 978-81-87746-09-6.
  2. ^ Replicating Memory, Creating Images: Pirs and Dargahs in Popular Art and Media of Contemporary East Punjab Yogesh Snehi "Replicating Memory, Creating Images: Pirs and Dargahs in Popular Art and Media of Contemporary East Punjab: Visual Pilgrim". Archived from the original on 2015-01-09. Retrieved 2015-01-09.
  3. ^ Historicity, Orality and ‘Lesser Shrines’: Popular Culture and Change at the Dargah of Panj Pirs at Abohar,” in Sufism in Punjab: Mystics, Literature and Shrines, ed. Surinder Singh and Ishwar Dayal Gaur (New Delhi: Aakar, 2009), 402-429
  4. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference chohan was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference pkdq was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Bhatti & Michon 2004, p. 147.
  7. ^ Bhatti & Michon 2004, p. 143.
  8. ^ a b Bhatti & Michon 2004, p. 144.
  9. ^ Kalra, Virinder S. (2014). Sacred and Secular Musics: A Postcolonial Approach. Bloomsbury Publishing. pp. 132–133. ISBN 9781441100450.