Representation of Women and Gender in the Pranami Discourses and Narratives of The Mughal Period

Abstract

Narratives and discourses in the Pranami literary traditions, Bani (Utterances of Pran Nath, prominent figure of Pranami ‘sect’ in 17th-century India) and Bitak (Hagiographical compositions of close disciples of Pran Nath), depict both overtly and covertly various incidents involving images of women and gender relations in 17th- and 18th-century South Asia. Through these representations in the Pranami narratives, this paper attempts to scrutinize the intricacies of gender relations in which identities and meanings are constructed in multiple and layered ways around descriptions of incidents. This paper also investigates nuanced and contextualized accounts of how the representation of women and gender in the Pranami discourses and narratives of the Mughal period reflects a ‘progressive’ and inclusive perspective that values the agency and contributions of women in religious and social spheres. In the 17th and 18th centuries in Mughal India, including the context of regional kingdoms like Bundelkhanda, this paper explores how the Pranami literary traditions, which emphasized the equality of all individuals, regardless of gender, caste, religious, and social status, imagined a world of social, political, and religious relationships that could be appropriated within a wider framework of given contexts and situations. This approach stands in contrast to the prevailing gender norms of the time and provides insight into alternative visions of gender equality and inclusivity during the Mughal period.