Letter-Poems to Shauki Masi: Diasporic Queer South Asian Muslim Reflections on the Five Pillars of Islam

An extension of an ongoing haunted queer diasporic kinship practice, this piece consists of letter-poems written to the author’s ancestor, Shauki Masi, who passed away several years ago. In this way, the author offers queer Muslim meditations on the five pillars of Islam: salat (ritual of daily prayer), zakat (alms), sawm (ramzaan), hajj (pilgrimage), and shahadah (declaration of faith). The five pillars of Islam offer a praxis through which Muslims can (re)balance their relationships, communities, and therefore the world.