Stealing My Religion: Not Just Any Cultural Appropriation

Abstract

a speech after the mayor, during which he merely reproduces the content of previous speakers under the subtle force of a “decisive soundscape” (248). Moreover, the theoretical analysis implies that, although the Lal Begi tradition is considered defunct, the covert festival and shrine in the darkness show that it exists in secret. As the author observes during the ritual of Lal Beg, many residents emerge to sacrifice a rooster and dedicate offerings, including public figures who oppose all ‘superstition’ (262). When individuals mention the religious event, they are aware that it is a secret. This signifies the necessity of switching from language to a wordless semiotic vehicle, a gesture. When ‘Lal Mahadev’, renamed ‘Lal Beg’ to camouflage the connection with the name of Shiva (Mahadev), the tactics of ‘defensive ambiguity’ employed by the Dalit simultaneously face both the state and the community’s past and can be observed as cautious concealment as well as subterfuge (267, 288). This ethnography is substantial and rich. Based on historical literature and personal narratives, it spans a period of 100 years. With a keen sense of language, religion, and culture of both Muslims and Hindus in Northern India, the author finds a secret world of hidden identity that is under-studied and misread. Traversing the boundaries of politics and religion, this study’s main theoretical dialogue is established on the theory and debate of semiotics. Furthermore, it connects with subaltern studies, sociology, phenomenology, and philosophy. Although the richness of the book may pose a challenge for some readers, it is nevertheless insightful and worth reading for those who are interested in South Asian, religious, political, and ethnographic studies.