Faith and Resilience in Women During the Partition of Punjab

Abstract: Drawing upon Sikh philosophy and socio-cultural transformation as a lens, coupled with the violence of Partition in the Punjab region, this paper addresses the different aspects of women's experiences in pre-Partition Punjab. It seeks to redirect the narrative from a Sikh victimization approach to the masculinity of Punjabi—and Sikh—women's agency and their active participation on different timelines in history. In autobiographies, primary sources and secondary literature, the research looks for the origins of woman empowerment and Sikhism. It discusses the fundamentals of equality from Guru Nanak through Mata Sundri Ji and subsequent leaders and also looks at the contribution of Mai Bhago. The research explores women's agency in religious, political, and cultural life with Langar and Phulkari, and social reform movements and subsequently the freedom struggle. Even at the time of Partition, Sikh women emerged as survivors of trauma and mobilisers since they protected horrible violence. The paper attempted to portray the intersection of Sikh women's religion and community to illuminate how these women created new Sikh identities while strengthening traditions in the context of modernity. These women's histories, in their efforts to reclaim them, made a notable contribution to Sikh women's history and emphasize the changes in Punjab's socio-political context that occurred in the pre-Partition and post-Partition period. Their narrative, excluded from the mainstream histories, along with those of other Sikh women makes one reconstruct them as rooted and empowered social historical persons whose spirit and cultural identity set fire to society.