Change and Perseverance

Chapter 5 elaborates on the evolution of the pilgrimage and maps the process in recent decades that has gradually claimed the Hinglaj valley and the shrine as Hindu religious space. It offers a detailed analysis of the various resting places, ritual activities, and mytho-historic narratives found on the pilgrimage to Hinglaj in order to show how such paṛāv (Hin. halting/resting places) have transformed in recent years. Using colonial sources, travelogues, and the author’s own ethnographical material from Sindh and Balochistan, the chapter offers a comprehensive study of the sanctum sanctorum and how it has been physically manipulated by Hindu renovators in order to minimize visual impressions suggestive of the (Zikri-) Muslim tradition, a manifestation of the general “Hinduization” in recent decades at the shrine. The chapter also demonstrates how both man-made and natural material alterations in the past, such as renovations or landslides, led to new narratives and ritual practices at the shrine.