COMMUNITY INSTITUTIONS AND MINORITY RESILIENCE AMONG MUSLIMS IN KERALA

Abstract

This article investigates diverse institutions developed by Muslims in Kerala to preserve their Islamic identity within a pluralistic society. Kerala’s historical experience of peaceful coexistence while preserving religiosity offers a contrasting model to the contemporary formulations of fiqh al-aqalliyyāt that advocate legal innovation to address the challenges of Muslim minorities living under non-Muslim polities. Muslims in Kerala have maintained strong religiosity and communal cohesion for over a millennium without departing from the classical Islamic legal framework. This study primarily relies on secondary literature, supplemented by limited site visits and field observations. It argues that Muslim survival in Kerala depended less on legal reinterpretation and more on the vitality of local institutions and community-driven strategies. It identifies the MaÍal system of self-governance, the Qāḍī institution, religious educational networks, scholarly associations and community leadership as central to this institutional framework which together sustain religious continuity, socio-economic stability, and peaceful coexistence in a minority context. The findings demonstrate the continued relevance of community-based institutional frameworks in safeguarding Muslim minorities from legal and moral pressures of non-Muslim societies. It calls for further ethnographic research on how such institutions function in a minority setting that can offer alternative strategies for emerging Muslim communities in the West and North America.