This volume on is in honour of Zawahir Moir, one of the earliest scholars on the Ginans. Composed in Indian languages and idioms, the Ginans illustrate how Muslims were influenced by cultures and philosophies surrounding them, and created new ways of expressing their beliefs and values. Although this living tradition of religious songs is central to Ismaili practice, only a handful of studies have dealt with this subject. This volume, with essays from scholars and community enthusiasts, fills this lacuna in existing scholarship.
About the Author
Professor Tazim R. Kassam is a historian specializing in religions particularly Islamic cultures. She chairs the Department of Religion at Syracuse University and is Director of its Muslim Cultures programme in London. Her book Songs of Wisdom and Circles of Dance offers the most extensive translation of Ginans of Pir Shams.
Professor Francoise Mallison, Directeur d'Etudes Emeritus at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Paris, specializes in the medieval religious cultures of northern India and Gujarat. An expert in devotional literatures in Gujarati, she has published translations of Narasimha Maheta and Svaminarayan lyrics, and articles on the Indian acculturation of Ismaili vernacular poetry.
