THE TEXTUAL DEVELOPMENT OF TRANSGENDERISMREBUKING HADITH

Muhammad Dluha Luthfillah, NIM. 1620011001 (2019) THE TEXTUAL DEVELOPMENT OF TRANSGENDERISMREBUKING HADITH. Masters thesis, UIN Sunan Kalijaga.

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Abstract

Among the reasons for conventional Muslims to stand against queer is their understanding of religious texts, particularly Quran and hadith. Out of dozen hadith, a tradition relating mukhannath in the quarter of the Prophet‟s wife and the la’na (curse) hadith on mukhannath play a significant role in shaping Muslims‟ understanding. Being positioned that way, hadith is expected to be the sources for historical reconstruction. Adopting a method of hadith criticism offered by Harald Motzki, this thesis discusses the extent to which the two groups of hadith serve us as sources for such reconstruction. The limitation of the subject is due to their significant role and, more importantly, the number of variants found in canonical as well as extra-canonical books of hadith collection. This thesis argues that the two groups have undergone textual development. The first group has a sort of historical core relating that the Prophet did meet a mukhannath in the quarter of his wife and found hir (mukhannath) explaining the appealing parts of woman‟s body. The Prophet then responded by banning hir from entering the quarter since then, saying lā yadkhulann hāżā ‘alaykunn “for sure he should not enter (the quarter of you (fem. pl.).” Some a century later around Kūfa or a broader part of Islamic world near Persian imperium, the hadith got additional text that has higher imperative sense (akhrijū) and broader addressee/mukhāṭab (kum, you [masc. pl.]). Hadith of the second group also undergoes textual development. I argue that it was circulating in Ḥijāz in the first half of the second/eighth century, relating that the Prophet has cursed mukhannithīnmutashabbihīn (men who imitates women) and women who do the same (using various terms). Nearing the end of the century the text develops by changing the subject from the Prophet to Allah which is indeed a serious development. In other words, it turns from „people relating what the Prophet said‟ to the „Prophet delivering what God orders‟. What is the underlying context for the development? In order to answer this question I refer to some accounts on mukhannath preserved as secondary texts in literary literature, the oldest of which originates from the third/ninth century. It is worth noting that I regard them as representing the understanding of mukhannath held by the author and his society. A third-century book, for instance, that relates a story about a firstcentury mukhannath tells me about the understanding of mukhannath held by the thirdcentury community. However, I have enough textual bases to argue that a mass castration did happen in Medina (or Ḥijāz in general) in the first/seventh century. Consequently, the data I can present is limited and so is my explanation on the context of the textual development. The first point pertains to the emergence of la’na hadith in which people recount what the Prophet said. This text emerges after the mass castration. Those who morally objected to mukhannath legitimize their stance by arguing that “the Prophet held the same stance.” The second point pertains to the emergence of the phrase rajul yalbasu libsat-lmar’a (man who wears woman‟s dress). This widens the aspect of man‟s imitation from merely mannerism to the issue of clothing. This text emerged in Baṣra-Baghdād in the early of third/ninth century in which the objection to mukhannath goes beyond mannerism and includes clothing. Therefore I argue that there was an attempt during second/eighth and third/ninth century to build a sort of orthodoxy regarding Islamic worldview on mukhannath and queer in general. This orthodoxy attaches itself to an authoritative text, i.e. hadith, to control the public sphere. It succeeded dominating the sphere in such a great level that Muslims of later generations hold the worldview so dear. Keywords: Hadith, transgenderism, isnād-cum-matn, textual development, gender construction

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