"When Habeeb Moulavi came on the phone for the first time and I explained to him about my research on theological polemics among various Muslim groups in the southwest Indian state of Kerala, he replied: "I don't know what people will say about us if you write about these things [polemics]." Such polemical events led by ulama, all conducted in Malayalam and primarily dealing with theological matters like the scriptural legitimacy of devotion to saints (awliya), take diverse forms in contemporary Kerala such as a disputation"-- Provided by publisher.