Re: The peer faqeer syndrome
I think this is mostly prevalent in areas where women are mainly housewives / men are the main breadwinners, and joint family system is common. So pretty much in Pakistan and India. These women spend a lot of time dealing with drama associated with saas-susr/bhabhi/nand/jithani/etc. Their daily lives are hectic and their problems are centered around their families. Compared to that, their husbands/brothers/fathers are busy earning for the khandaan, so they have little time to worry about micro problems like why saas gives preferential treatment to bahu#3 and how to woo the MIL so she will finally acknowledge all my efforts towards this family.
Apart from the nature of problems each gender faces, I think lack of higher education among these women is another big factor, as men provide for the family so it’s imp they are well educated to succeed in their respective careers (not so imp to send women to college/university). So if someone is having difficulty conceiving a child, their first thought is not to consult the doctor but to find out from the peers if perhaps jithani sahiba is doing jaadu tona (because hey, I did find that extra roll of hair under my pillow the other day that didn’t belong to me and we all know, jithani has her eyes set on inheritance money belonging to first child to be born in the family).
Very rarely, we do find highly educated and resourceful women from upper class who also turn to these peer fakeers. I think they do so out of desperation. Sort of as a last resort to find a quick fix to their problems. Being a socialite and an elitist, they were probably never too close to religion to begin with and their lifestyle didn’t allow for much time to nurture their family and home. So when trouble knocks on the door, they don’t know whom to turn to. A person is easier to talk to (much like therapy sessions with a psychiatrist); it’s harder to “get answers” from Allah when you’re not accustomed to doing so.
I think that is a major misconception that the educated and rich (upperclass) people rarely indulge in such shady matters. I recall watching this documentary on black magic and taweez business, and this ‘magician’ also said that it’s the rich people who bring in the big money and keep the business going.
Education and or social (economical) status has nothing to do with it. It’s weakness, paranoia, jealousy, insecurity, vindictiveness and hunger for power that makes people do this.