5. The Half Smile
THE SACRAL TERRAIN OF ucH is dotted with shrines to prominent
daughters and wives of Sufis. The shrines are dedicated to Bibi Jawindi,
Bibi Ayesha, and Bibi Tigni. These women are remembered as pious,
influential carriers of Sufi ethics who cemented the city's spiritual
claims. In contemporary memory, they are evoked as custodians of
the sacral power of the city. Jawindi's monument is perhaps the most
iconic representation of Uch to the outside world and is a UNESCO
World Heritage site. She was the granddaughter of the great Uch Sufi
Makhdum Jahaniyan Jahan Gasht (d. 1384). Her shrine was built in
1499 by Khurasani prince Muhammad Dilshad and was partially
destroyed in the eighteenth century when the river Indus changed
its course. Yet despite this catastrophic event, it still stands as a
marvel to all visitors. Jawindi's memory is as iconic as the material
remains of her shrine, a living presence in the sacral space of Uch,
with supplicants and devotees approaching her for succor. The
presence of Bibi Jawindi's shrine in the topography of Uch testifies
to her significance in the history of the region. Yet the scholarly
accounts which focus on the sacral history of Uch do not high-
light female saints.^1 Even general histories of Sufism in India make
only very rare mention of female saints (such as Lal Ded from
Kashmir), making our understanding of Sufi Islam in India devoutly
masculine.