Tahera Aftab, Ph.D. (1986) in History, University of Karachi, is Professor of History and Founding Director of Women's Studies (retired) at the University of Karachi, Pakistan. She has also taught at Gettysburg College, Gettysburg (PA, USA) She is the Founding Editor and publisher of Pakistan Journal of Women's Studies: Alam-e-Niswan and has published monographs and articles on south Asia, including Inscribing South Asian Muslim Women: An Annotated Bibliography & Research Guide (Brill, 2007) and A Story of Days Gone by: A Translation of Bītī Kahānī: An Autobiography of Princess Shahr Bano Begam of Pataudi (OUP, 2012).

• PrefaceAcknowledgmentsNote on TransliterationsList of AbbreviationsGlossary of Selected Sufi Terms Introduction PART ONE Section A: Setting the Scene Section B: The Sufi Texts: From Imagination to the Inscribed Word Section C: The Sufi Gaze: Perception of Women by the Male Sufis Section D: The Sufi Gaze: The Sufi Perception of Family and Familial Responsibilities Section E: The Sufi Gaze: Interaction with Maid Servants and Women of Ill-repute Section F: Women’s Presence in The Sufi Silsilas Section G: The Sufi Lodges: Fencing the Sacred and The Profane Section H: Sufi Shrines: Manifesting the Deceased Sufi PART TWO Section A. Narratives of Sufi Women According to the Time Period Section B: Biographical Notices of Sufi Women According to Their Specific Status Section C Biographical Notices of Women Sufis Based on Oral Traditions Collected by Visiting their Shrines Section D: Sufi Women Identified by Names Only ConclusionsBibliographyIndex