Religion and State Formation in South and Southeast Asia

CURA announces the fall 2025 colloquium schedule. This year-long conversation brings together an interdisciplinary community of scholars of culture, religion, and world affairs. Please register below for the session(s) you plan to attend. The November 7 workshop will feature a paper by Farah Adeed, PhD Student, Department of Political Science, Boston University.

Please note that reading the paper in advance is required for attendance. CURA workshops are dedicated to focused, in depth feedback and discussion. A copy of the paper(s) will be sent to registered participants one week in advance of each session.

Abstract: Religion and State Formation in South and Southeast Asia In some postcolonial states, religious movements contribute to state formation and become integrated into governance structures, while in others, they remain perpetual outsiders. Why? This paper develops a theory of doctrinal position on territorial nationalism to explain how movements that developed deliberately calibrated positions compatible with secular nationalist goals gained enduring authority through institutional, symbolic, and mobilizational pathways. While existing scholarship conceptualizes religion-state integration as producing exclusivity, I show how anti-colonial alliances created inclusive patterns within shared national frameworks. The argument demonstrates that even movements with similar theological orientations achieved different levels of state integration based on their historical role in independence struggles. A paired comparison of social movements in Pakistan (Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam and Jamaat-i-Islami) and Indonesia (Muhammadiyah and Persatuan Islam) demonstrates that integration into state structures depends critically on movements' doctrinal interpretations of Islam's relationship to nationalism and partnership with nationalist movements during anti- colonial struggles. Through comparative historical analysis of primary and secondary sources, including archival records, movement publications, and government documents, this research contributes to our understanding of state formation, highlighting how Islamic movements became not just models for institutions but active co-creators of state identity and legitimacy.

Register by: 11/6/2025
When 12:00 pm - 1:30 pm on 7 November 2025
Building Pardee School of Global Studies, 154 Bay State Road, 2nd floor (Eilts Room)
Contact Email cura@bu.edu
Contact Organization Institute on Culture, Religion & World Affairs: CURA
Fees free
Open To na
Speakers Farah Adeed