Representing sainthood in india: sikh and hindu visions of namdev

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis article examines representations of the poet-saint Namdev in Indian popular art. Posters and calendars are the key mode of religious visual expression in India today, and are the locus of ongoing debates about sainthood and religious identity. The particular focus of this article is Namdev's representations in the state of Punjab, northwest India. Punjab is home to both Sikh and Hindu communities, which make competing claims about Namdev's relevance and hagiography. This article examines portrayals of Namdev in the poster art found at two Punjabi shrines: one at Ghoman, which draws mainly Sikh devotees, and one in Bassi Pathana, which has a predominantly Hindu base. These shrines produce and distribute portraits of Namdev that are strikingly different from each other. Additionally, it looks at Namdev art not explicitly associated with either shrine, which sometimes appears to represent a compromise between the Ghoman and Bassi Pathana portrayals. The representations of Namdev available in Punjab today illustrate both tensions between regional and pan-Indian interpretations of sainthood and a newer debate within Sikhism itself as to how “Sikh” Sikh religious art must be.