Individualism within conformity

Islamicate societies produced an abundance of texts laying down Adab or rules for correct/ideal behaviour in professional and personal life. That literature, avidly read and invoked in South Asia too, gives one an impression that conformity must have been the rule. One must then ask: were there any efforts to not conform, and be more individualistic? And if there were, how did the society at large respond? This article traces a brief history of one form of acceptable individualism called waz’dari, which was for a while in the nineteenth century a notable feature of the Islamicate elite society at Delhi and Lucknow, and is still considered a cherished value by many. From it we learn that minor breaches in the observance of normative protocols were not only considered acceptable but were in fact admired if they were committed with elaborate consistency, instead of randomly or at whim. In other words, ‘consistency in non-conformity’ was also a cherished value for the civilised men of Delhi and Lucknow, though it may not have been an ideal for all. In fact, for some, it was seen as an obstacle in the path of the same elite’s progress.