(M)othering

This chapter reflects on the concept of mothering, using the mutual imbrications of Sufi philosophical thought and the womanist idea. The essay is braided together in three parts. The first section focuses on beginning to explore the relationship between Sufi thought and the womanist idea. Using the womanist concepts of LUXOCRACY, the Invisible Realm, and borderlands, I present mirrored reflections on Sufist notions of Nür (Divine Light), al-ghayb (the Unseen World), and barzakh (third spaces), respectively. In the second section, I share a Punjabi Sufi poem titled “Mae Ni Mein Kinnu Akkhan” (“O’ Mother, Who Do I Tell”). Through the exploration of womanist ideas on love-as-method, mothering, and the everyday woman, I move to expand the Sufi: womanist theoretical manifestations being explored. Lastly, in the third segment of this essay, I present specific practical examples of change being implemented by everyday women of color. Using both my personal experience with (lack of) mothering and joining online discussion forums that serve as “affinity groups,” I move past theory into the realm of praxis as performances of the womanist “standing-in” and “fly-over” methods.