Chapter 7: Transformation of Sacred Masculinity: Religion in Male Development

This chapter explores how the interpretation of religion shapes masculinity in South Asia, focusing not only on the expected roles but also their cognitive interactions with evolving gender expressions. Here, masculinity is analyzed across three levels: personal (individual expressions), relational (interactions with family and community), and institutional (state and social structures). Introducing the concept of “distinction-evolution masculinities,” the chapter examines how dominant faiths in South Asia – Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism, or Christianity – shape diverse male responsibilities across spaces and times. As dialectically pragmatic, this post-Gramscian approach moves beyond identity-dominant intersubjectivity tied to the womanhood archetype. At the individual level, masculinity has the potential to evolve, but its definition remains fluid, relying on how men engage with dominant traits that may reinforce or weaken traditional masculinity. Institutional masculinity, by contrast, is more rigid and defined by the stability of institutions. The relational level lies in between, shaped by expressions like shame and fear that influence how men adapt to or resist expressions. Here with postidentities of gender, religion preserves traditional masculinity and creates a space for inclusive expressions to develop. Religious teachings on topics like purity and sexuality often reinforce men's self-worth is tied to social standing and perceptions, but expressions such as shame and guilt can help moderate toxic masculinity, enabling resistance to conformity. The chapter also examines how religious institutions impact the relative neutrality of values, noting that while faith can remodel inclusivity within alternative masculinities, hegemonic oscillations can result in varied experiences of masculinity.