Mystical Regimes of Order: Ritualistic Practices and Conflict Resolution in Everyday Uttarakhand

This presentation explores the meanings of ritualistic practices in the contexts of societal order and conflict resolution. Drawing on empirical research conducted over a 12-month period, this project delves into local narratives and experiences with esoteric practices that connect bodies and nature bringing them into one continuous whole. In the communities of the Kumaon region of Uttarakhand, this interconnectedness is perceived as the very foundation of macrocosmic order. In this project, I examine how people experience rituals in the context of conflict, where situations and the people involved in them are often portrayed in binary ways. Thus, I examine the significance of rituals for concepts of justice, environmental conservation and people’s experiences of gender and caste.

This project draws on data that was collected through semi-structured interviews in the form of informal conversations that often spanned several weeks. I have spent close to a decade volunteering with the local communities in rural Uttarakhand, about six months of which (between June 2022 and December 2022) was spent on focused empirical research. However, observation and even dormant participation in ritualistic practices that form an integral part of everyday life and have been part of community access over the last several years also became part of my methods of inquiry.

Link for virtual attendance:
https://fau.zoom.us/j/63672581746