Muslim sexuality,
Tatar manuscripts,
Islam in Russia,
Archival practices,
Soviet Orientalism,
erotic poetry
Abstract
The article analyzes the culture of sexuality among the Muslims of Inner Russia in the 19th and 20th centuries as well as the archival practices that have marginalized the related texts. The article sheds light on the circulation of erotic poetry composed by the mujaddidi shaykh ‘Abd ar-Rahim al-Utiz-Imiani. If the audience in the first half of the 19th century shared the poet's sense of humor and the metaphoric language of sex and cuisine, by the late 19th century these initial meanings had been lost. In Soviet times, the secular ethics shied away from sex in Islam and did not regard it a suitable topic of discussion. The article surveys Muslim sexuality beyond al- Utiz-Imiani's poem and provides its critical edition next to the first Russian translation.
