Kāyam Khā̃ Rāso and Image of Muslim Rajput Rulers

The article aims to analyse Kāyam Khā̃ Rāso and to contextualize it against the interplay of cultural influences in early modern India. While earlier research showcased that Jān chose to accentuate just the local qualities of their Rajput lineage, this paper argues that Sufism sacred kingship presents an equally important role in its interpretation. ‘The local’ of Kāyam Khā̃ Rāso should be understood as both Islamic and Rajput rather than Rajput at the expense of Islamic features. This article examines different facets of the image of the Kāyam Khānī rulers in the text and showcases how they are presented in Rāso. It then uses the analysed image in to argue that their ‘locality’ belongs simultaneously to both worlds. Their milieu should be regarded as local, Rajput and Islamic, but equally distant from both the so-called Great Tradition of Hinduism, and orthodox Islam. It forms conversation space where contact between traditions can be achieved.