The Pluralism Project at Harvard University

Anne Murphy

Columbia University
Sikh Historical Representation in Diaspora

My summer research will be incorporated into my dissertation, entitled "The Material of Sikh History," which addresses ways in which history is represented in Sikh tradition through material objects and sites, and how this practice is related to the production of Sikh "history" at key junctures, from the 18th century to the present. One particular aspect of my dissertation addresses the ways in which Diasporic connections to India are articulated and maintained through the display and interpretation of material representations of Sikh history. I spent a week at the Gurdwara Nanaksar in Fresno California, which sponsored the tour and display of several historical objects from India and Pakistan related to the Sikh Gurus, and examined local media representations of related events. I also visited the San Francisco Asian Art Museum, which features a permanent installation of Sikh art objects, where I interviewed staff and examined the collection. In the context of my broader work, I address how these representations relate to broader forms of Sikh historical representation, but in a specifically diasporic mode.

Gurdwara Nanaksar (2006)