What does this research mean for the field?

The Malabari community in Malaysia cultivates a distinct Islamic sensory sensibility for collective mobilization as a response to a specific form of state secularity that legally and bureaucratically ties Islam to the majority Malay race. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.NOVEL_FINDING. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To investigate how the Malabari community in Malaysia mobilizes a distinct Islamic identity through bodily sensations and to examine how this reflects Malaysian secularity.

September 3, 2026Current Anthropology

Blurring Islam

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Authors

WNWaseem NaserMax Planck Society

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Implication

Ethnographic study reveals distinct bodily sensations and religious sensibility in Malaysian Malabaris, highlighting how minority groups navigate state-regulated religious secularity.

Key Points

To investigate how the Malabari community in Malaysia mobilizes a distinct Islamic identity through bodily sensations and to examine how this reflects Malaysian secularity.
Conducted a sensory ethnography examining collective everyday practices within the Malabari community in Johor, Malaysia.
Analyzed the relationship between bodily sensations, minority identity formation, and state bureaucratic classifications that tie Islam to Malay ethnicity.
Demonstrated that Malabaris mobilize collective solidarity by cultivating physical and sensory experiences that sediment in the body, distinguishing them from majority Malay Muslims.
Identified that heightened community focus on sensory experience stems from Malaysian secular governance, which regulates populations by legally and politically managing religious identity.

Cite This Study

Waseem Naser (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a993586636c6408cfa7dbac https://doi.org/10.1086/743068

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Implication

Ethnographic study reveals distinct bodily sensations and religious sensibility in Malaysian Malabaris, highlighting how minority groups navigate state-regulated religious secularity.

Blurring Islam

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

Blurring Islam

Discussion

Member takes

Implication

Key Points

Cite This Study

Also Consider

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