1887
  1. Home
  2. Books
  3. Narrative and Identity Construction in the Pacific Islands
  4. Chapter

Beyond exile

The Ramayana as a living narrative among Indo-Fijians in Fiji and New Zealand

image of Beyond exile

Drawing on the themes of collective memory, cultural ideologies, and narrative constructions, this chapter proposes to examine the narrative of the Ramayana epic, its exegesis through performance, and its continued relevance to identity formation among Indo-Fijian Hindus both within Fiji and its Pacific Rim diaspora. Based on the recasting of the “twice-migrated” Indo-Fijian as the “twice-banished” by certain observers, we might expect the meaning of the Ramayana in the lives of Indo-Fijian Hindus in New Zealand to shift towards the theme of Rama’s exile, just as it did for the indentured laborers who made the original journey to Fiji. Nevertheless, while most Indo-Fijians share this sentiment, the Ramayana remains above all a vehicle for personal devotion to god and a guide to a morally centered life. In the context of displacement, the epic serves the devotee best as an anchor rather than a metaphor.

References

  1. Bamberg, M
    (2012) Narrative practice and identity navigation. In J.A. Holstein & J.F. Gubrium (Eds.), Varieties of narrative analysis (pp. 99–124). Los Angeles CA: Sage.
     [Google Scholar]
  2. Bhachu, P
    (1985) Twice migrants: East African Sikh settlers in Britain. London: Tavistock.
     [Google Scholar]
  3. Brake, K
    (1993) Immigration of Pacific Islanders to New Zealand, 1981–1991: Policies, patterns and outcomes. New Zealand Population Review, 19(1–2), 173–203.
     [Google Scholar]
  4. Brenneis, D
    (1979) Conflict in Bhatgaon: The search for a third party. In Subramani (Ed.), The Indo-Fijian experience (pp.41–56). St. Lucia, Australia: University of Queensland Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  5. Buchignani, N
    (1980) The social and self identities of Fijian Indians in Vancouver. Urban Anthropology, 9(1), 75–97.
     [Google Scholar]
  6. Dean, F
    (2003) Pan-ethnicity in New Zealand: An investigation into the use of ethnic linguistic markers in resisting pan-Indian categorization by Indo-Fijians and South Asian tertiary students in Auckland. Unpublished MA thesis. The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
     [Google Scholar]
  7. Hirst, J.S. , & Thomas, L
    (2004) Introduction. In J.S. Hirst & L. Thomas (Eds.), Playing for real: ‘Hindu’ role models, religion and gender (pp. 1–26). London: Oxford University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  8. Kelly, J.D
    (1988) Bhakti and the spirit of capitalism in Fiji: The ontology of the Fiji Indians. PhD diss., The University of Chicago.
     [Google Scholar]
  9. Lal, B.V
    (2011) Intersections: History, memory, discipline. Lautoka, Fiji: Fiji Institute of Applied Studies.
     [Google Scholar]
  10. Leckie, J
    (1995) South Asians: Old and new migrations. In S.W. Greif (Ed.), Immigration and national identity in New Zealand: One people, two peoples, many peoples? (pp. 133–160). Palmerston North: Dunmore Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  11. Lutgendorf, P
    (1991) The Life of a text: Performing the Ramcaritmanas of Tulsidas. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  12. Mayer, A.C
    (1961) Peasants in the Pacific: A study of Fiji Indian rural society. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  13. McGregor, R.S
    (1993) The Oxford Hindi-English dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  14. Miller, K.C
    (2008) A community of sentiment: Indo-Fijian music and identity discourse in Fiji and its diaspora. Unpublished PhD dissertation. University of California, Los Angeles. works.bepress.com/kevin_miller/2
     [Google Scholar]
  15. Mishra, V
    (1979) Epilogue: Rama’s return. In V. Mishra (Ed.), Rama’s banishment: A centenary tribute to the Fiji Indians, 1879–1979 (pp. 139–143). Auckland: Heinemann Educational Books.
     [Google Scholar]
  16. Mugler, F. & Lal, S.M
    (1999) Tamil in Fiji. International Journal of Dravidian Languages, 28(2), 11–36.
     [Google Scholar]
  17. Nandan, K.I
    (2012) Writing as healing: Fiji Indians – The twice banished?Cross Cultures, 145, 269–288.
     [Google Scholar]
  18. Parekh, B
    (1994) Some reflections on the Hindu diaspora. New Community, 20(4), 603–620.
     [Google Scholar]
  19. Ramanujan, A.K
    (1986) Two realms of Kannada folklore. In S.H. Blackburn & A.K. Ramanujan (Eds.), Another harmony: New essays on the folklore of India (pp. 41–75). New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  20. Ray, M
    (2000) Bollywood down under: Fiji Indian cultural history and popular assertion. In S. Cunningham & J. Sinclair (Eds.), Floating lives: The media and Asian diasporas (pp.136–184). St. Lucia, Australia: University of Queensland Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  21. Sagar, R
    (2003 [1987–1988]) Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan, vols. 1–16. DVD. Gayatri Films and Music Pvt.
     [Google Scholar]
  22. Shameem, N
    (1995) Hamai log ke boli, our language: Language shift in an immigrant community: The Wellington Indo-Fijians. PhD dissertation, Victoria University of Wellington.
     [Google Scholar]
  23. Tulsidas, G
    (2001) Sri Ramcaritmanas, or the Manasa Lake brimming over with the exploits of Sri Rama. Hindi text and English translation, no editor. Gorakhpur: Gita Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  24. Voigt-Graf, C
    (2004) Twice migrants’ relationship to their ancestral homeland: The case of Indo-Fijians and India. The Journal of Pacific Studies, 27(2), 177–203.
     [Google Scholar]
  25. (2008) Transnationalism and the Indo-Fijian diaspora: The relationship of Indo-Fijians to India and its people. Journal of Intercultural Studies, 29(1), 81–109. doi: 10.1080/07256860701759956
     https://doi.org/10.1080/07256860701759956 [Google Scholar]

References

  1. Bamberg, M
    (2012) Narrative practice and identity navigation. In J.A. Holstein & J.F. Gubrium (Eds.), Varieties of narrative analysis (pp. 99–124). Los Angeles CA: Sage.
     [Google Scholar]
  2. Bhachu, P
    (1985) Twice migrants: East African Sikh settlers in Britain. London: Tavistock.
     [Google Scholar]
  3. Brake, K
    (1993) Immigration of Pacific Islanders to New Zealand, 1981–1991: Policies, patterns and outcomes. New Zealand Population Review, 19(1–2), 173–203.
     [Google Scholar]
  4. Brenneis, D
    (1979) Conflict in Bhatgaon: The search for a third party. In Subramani (Ed.), The Indo-Fijian experience (pp.41–56). St. Lucia, Australia: University of Queensland Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  5. Buchignani, N
    (1980) The social and self identities of Fijian Indians in Vancouver. Urban Anthropology, 9(1), 75–97.
     [Google Scholar]
  6. Dean, F
    (2003) Pan-ethnicity in New Zealand: An investigation into the use of ethnic linguistic markers in resisting pan-Indian categorization by Indo-Fijians and South Asian tertiary students in Auckland. Unpublished MA thesis. The University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.
     [Google Scholar]
  7. Hirst, J.S. , & Thomas, L
    (2004) Introduction. In J.S. Hirst & L. Thomas (Eds.), Playing for real: ‘Hindu’ role models, religion and gender (pp. 1–26). London: Oxford University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  8. Kelly, J.D
    (1988) Bhakti and the spirit of capitalism in Fiji: The ontology of the Fiji Indians. PhD diss., The University of Chicago.
     [Google Scholar]
  9. Lal, B.V
    (2011) Intersections: History, memory, discipline. Lautoka, Fiji: Fiji Institute of Applied Studies.
     [Google Scholar]
  10. Leckie, J
    (1995) South Asians: Old and new migrations. In S.W. Greif (Ed.), Immigration and national identity in New Zealand: One people, two peoples, many peoples? (pp. 133–160). Palmerston North: Dunmore Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  11. Lutgendorf, P
    (1991) The Life of a text: Performing the Ramcaritmanas of Tulsidas. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  12. Mayer, A.C
    (1961) Peasants in the Pacific: A study of Fiji Indian rural society. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  13. McGregor, R.S
    (1993) The Oxford Hindi-English dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  14. Miller, K.C
    (2008) A community of sentiment: Indo-Fijian music and identity discourse in Fiji and its diaspora. Unpublished PhD dissertation. University of California, Los Angeles. works.bepress.com/kevin_miller/2
     [Google Scholar]
  15. Mishra, V
    (1979) Epilogue: Rama’s return. In V. Mishra (Ed.), Rama’s banishment: A centenary tribute to the Fiji Indians, 1879–1979 (pp. 139–143). Auckland: Heinemann Educational Books.
     [Google Scholar]
  16. Mugler, F. & Lal, S.M
    (1999) Tamil in Fiji. International Journal of Dravidian Languages, 28(2), 11–36.
     [Google Scholar]
  17. Nandan, K.I
    (2012) Writing as healing: Fiji Indians – The twice banished?Cross Cultures, 145, 269–288.
     [Google Scholar]
  18. Parekh, B
    (1994) Some reflections on the Hindu diaspora. New Community, 20(4), 603–620.
     [Google Scholar]
  19. Ramanujan, A.K
    (1986) Two realms of Kannada folklore. In S.H. Blackburn & A.K. Ramanujan (Eds.), Another harmony: New essays on the folklore of India (pp. 41–75). New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  20. Ray, M
    (2000) Bollywood down under: Fiji Indian cultural history and popular assertion. In S. Cunningham & J. Sinclair (Eds.), Floating lives: The media and Asian diasporas (pp.136–184). St. Lucia, Australia: University of Queensland Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  21. Sagar, R
    (2003 [1987–1988]) Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan, vols. 1–16. DVD. Gayatri Films and Music Pvt.
     [Google Scholar]
  22. Shameem, N
    (1995) Hamai log ke boli, our language: Language shift in an immigrant community: The Wellington Indo-Fijians. PhD dissertation, Victoria University of Wellington.
     [Google Scholar]
  23. Tulsidas, G
    (2001) Sri Ramcaritmanas, or the Manasa Lake brimming over with the exploits of Sri Rama. Hindi text and English translation, no editor. Gorakhpur: Gita Press.
     [Google Scholar]
  24. Voigt-Graf, C
    (2004) Twice migrants’ relationship to their ancestral homeland: The case of Indo-Fijians and India. The Journal of Pacific Studies, 27(2), 177–203.
     [Google Scholar]
  25. (2008) Transnationalism and the Indo-Fijian diaspora: The relationship of Indo-Fijians to India and its people. Journal of Intercultural Studies, 29(1), 81–109. doi: 10.1080/07256860701759956
     https://doi.org/10.1080/07256860701759956 [Google Scholar]

  • From This Site

    /content/books/9789027268679-sin.21.12mil
    dcterms_subject,pub_keyword
    -contentType:Journal
    10
    5
/content/books/9789027268679-sin.21.12mil
dcterms_subject,pub_keyword
-contentType:Journal
10
5
Chapter
content/books/9789027268679
Book
false
Loading
This is a required field
Please enter a valid email address
Approval was successful
Invalid data
An Error Occurred
Approval was partially successful, following selected items could not be processed due to error