Academic interests
Thematic: Lived and everyday Islam; politics of piety and secularity; mediatized religiosity; radicalization and extremism; Islamic movements and sectarian dynamics; research philosophy and ethnographic (including netnographic) methodology.
Regional: Pakistan (and its Diaspora), South Asia, Norway.
Muhammad Bilal has conducted extensive ethnographic research in Pakistan, examining how Islam and Muslim sensibilities shape everyday lifeworlds, moral imaginaries, and existential frameworks. His work foregrounds the lived and embodied dimensions of Islam and explores how religious piety, ethical formations, and processes of secularization intersect with politics, governance, and everyday social life in Pakistan. He is particularly interested in some of the most critical social transformations, including the emergence of post-Islamist cultural formations, shifting dynamics of religious agency, evolving conceptions of modern Muslim subjectivities, reinterpretations of Islamic traditions, and the influence of global social imaginaries on how Muslims envision and pursue the good life.
His recent ethnographic research on blasphemy and mob violence in Pakistan moves beyond conventional legal and theological frameworks to examine the social life of blasphemy through the lens of everyday experience. By offering an ethnography of the mundane as a secular reading and broader existential prism, this work illuminates the complex realities surrounding blasphemy in Pakistan. It explores the (non-)relationship between faith and violence, the structures of power that shape religious and cultural lifeworlds, and the ways ordinary Muslims navigate daily life, cultivate religious commitments, and interpret and respond to perceived acts of blasphemy.
Within the field of public anthropology, he advocates addressing critical societal challenges through the study of state–religion relations and governance responses to issues such as radicalization, minority rights, the politicization of religion, and identity-based conflicts in Pakistan. His work emphasizes grassroots perspectives and culturally grounded approaches, generating contextually informed insights for policy intervention, public dialogue, and conflict resolution.
His current research explores the negotiation of Islam’s place in Norwegian society, focusing on intersecting perceptions of compatibility, difference, and the challenges of Muslim belonging. The study examines how Muslims and non-Muslims perceive one another and how these reciprocal perceptions shape experiences of belonging, exclusion, and social boundary-making. By investigating the relational dynamics of identity, attachment, and processes of othering, the research seeks to provide deeper insights into both the possibilities and challenges of fostering social cohesion in an increasingly diverse Norwegian society.
Background
Muhammad completed his PhD in Social Anthropology at Macquarie University, Sydney, as an Australian Government Endeavour Fellow. He previously earned an MSc and M.Phil in Anthropology and a Bachelor's degree in Sociology and Journalism in Pakistan.
Before joining the University of Oslo, he served as a professor and the founding Chair of the Anthropology Department at Fatima Jinnah Women University in Pakistan, where he also led the Departments of Sociology and Behavioral Sciences. His expertise in academic governance includes the Dean’s Leadership Fellowship under the Higher Education System Strengthening Activity (HESSA), hosted by the University of Utah, United States, as well as academic administration training with Academics Without Borders, Canada. He also led the development of a five-year strategic plan at a higher education institution, formulating its academic and administrative roadmap and guiding its long-term institutional priorities.
Research Projects, Training, and Outreach
Beyond his academic research, Muhammad has made contributions to public engagement and capacity-building initiatives as a trainer on issues related to radicalization, violent extremism, social cohesion, intercultural understanding, and peacebuilding. He designs and delivers workshops, training programs, and capacity-building initiatives for diverse audiences, including educational institutions, civil society organizations, government agencies, and community stakeholders. Through this work, he promotes critical thinking, constructive dialogue, and community-based approaches to preventing extremism, strengthening social cohesion, and fostering inclusive and resilient societies.
He has also secured national and international research grants and has collaborated extensively with international colleagues on joint teaching and research projects. These initiatives have addressed themes such as violent propensities, religious diversity, and community-based approaches to preventing and countering extremism. His collaborative work has further explored the role of Sufi and traditional music as locally grounded resources for peacebuilding, social resilience, and the promotion of intercultural understanding.
Selected Publications
Book
2025: Beyond the Law: Living Blasphemy in Pakistan: Ethnography of Mundane Violence, Faith, and Lifeworlds. Published by Palgrave Macmillan in the Contemporary Anthropology of Religion series, the official book series of the Society for the Anthropology of Religion, a section of the American Anthropological Association (AAA).
Peer-reviewed Journal Articles (Selected List – International)
2026: The Field Site as a Religious Frontier: Negotiating Blasphemy Accusations and Reflexive Tensions in Pakistan. Ethnography. 27(2), 610-623.
2023: Migration and Transnational Citizenship: The Quandary of Social and Economic Rights of Dual Citizens in Pakistan. Asian & Pacific Migration Journal. 32(4), 492–510. (Co-authored with Chaudhry).
2022: Religion and Identity Crises: Politics and Intersectionality of Identity Markers in Pakistan. Journal of Asian and African Studies. 59(3). 1745-2538. (Co-authored with Azam).
2021: The Quandary of Faith and Politics of Islamisation: An Incursion into Experiences and Perspectives of Pakistani Christian Minority. International Journal on Minority and Group Rights. 28(4).
2021: Sufi Shrine as Space of Hegemonic Struggle in Pakistan: An Ethnographic Account. Religions of South Asia, 14(3). 233-57. (Co-authored with Seemab & Azam).
2021: The Politics of Popular Islam: An Ethnographic Exploration of Islamic Revivalism in Pakistan. Politics and Religion Journal. 15(1) 199–293.
2021: The Interplay of Social Policy and Suicide in the Gilgit-Baltistan Region: What Went Wrong? Journal of social policy Studies. 19(3), 509-22. (Co-authored with Shahzadi & Hussain).
2020: Migration, Diaspora and Citizenship: A Qualitative Study of the Perceptions of Pakistani Nationals towards the Political Rights of Pakistani Dual Citizens. International Migration Journal, 59(1), 58–73. ISSN: 1468-2435. (Co-authored with Chaudhry).
2019: An Ethnographic Account of Educational Landscape in Pakistan: Myths, Trends and Commitments. American Educational Research Journal. 56(4), 1524–1551.
2018: Television Entertainment: An Ethnographic Study of Islam and the Cultural Text of Everyday Life in Pakistan. Anthropos – International Review of Anthropology and Linguistics. 113(2), 423–436.
2018: Rethinking the Authority of Ulama and Mosques in Shaping Religious Discourse in Pakistan. Anthropological Notebooks, 25(2), 5–24.
2011: Constructing and Deconstructing the Discourse of Religion in Pakistan’s Political Culture: An Anthropological Inquiry. Journal of Social Anthropology, 8(1–2), 119–133. (Co-authored with Kavish).
Peer-reviewed Journal Articles (Selected List)
2025: Exploring The Ontology of School Bullying: Experiences and Coping Strategies of Students and Educators at the Elementary Level. International Journal of Social Science Bulletin. (3(7), 756-76. (Co-authored with Khalid & Behlol).
2023: The Ontology of Successful Teaching: Capturing Voices of Primary School Teachers. Voyage Journal of Educational Studies. 3 (3), 78-91. (Co-authored with Behlol, Khattak, Nisa & Rashid).
2022: The Conundrum of Digital Religiosity in Pakistan: A Netnographic Exploration of Internet Memes as Contested Religious Capital. Journal of Policy Research. 8(2) 134-143. ( Co-authored with Aiman & Shafia).
2021: The Rise of Sectarianism: An Ethnography of Religious Intolerance in Southern Punjab. Journal of Peace, Development and Communication. Vol. 5(1), 315–324. (Co-authored with Khan & Azam).
2021: Digital Ascendancy and Madrasah Education: The Influence of Media Technology on the Life-worlds of Female Madrasah Students. Global Mass Communication Review. Vol. 6(1), 43–56. (Co-authored with Khushnood & Jahangir).
2021: Digital Activism and Political Engagement of Pakistani Youth on social media: A Netnographic Exploration. Pakistan Journal of Society, Education and Language (PJSEL). 8(1), 247–259. (Co-authored with Bano & Azam).
2020: Publish or Perish: Deconstructing Research Culture in Higher Education Institutes of Pakistan. Pakistan Journal of Society, Education and Language (PJSEL). 7(1), 11–27. (Co-authored with Jahangir).
2019: The Discursive Constructions in School: A Qualitative Assessment of Value Conflicts Between School Ethos and Everyday Life. Pakistan Journal of Education (PJE), 36(2), pp. 1–22. (Co-authored with Misri).
2017: Peshawar School Massacre, Pakistan: A Qualitative Account of Citizens’ Perceptions. Journal of Political Studies. Vol. 24(2), pp. 383–397. (Co-authored with Asim).
Book Review
2016: The Islamic State in the Post-Modern World: The Political Experience of Pakistan by Louis D. Hayes. Journal of Contemporary Islam: Dynamics of Muslim Life, 10(2), 289–291.
Peer-reviewed vernacular-language research articles
2022: Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and Academic Attitudes of Muslims: Socio-historical Analysis of Educational Philosophy. IDRAK. 17(2). (Co-authored with Virk and Azam).
2020: The Contemporary Muslim Society and Discourse of Socio-Cultural Life in Iqbal’s Poetry: A Critical Appreciation from Quranic Milieu. Al-Basirah. 9(1), pp. 62–79. (Co-authored with Virk).
2020: The Interplay of Sufism and Poetry: A Qualitative Incursion into Mir Dard’s Divine Poetics in Light of Kashaf-ul-Mahjoob Rahat-ul-Quloob. 4(2), 165–174, (Co-authored with Virk).
2020: The Issues of Urdu Translation in the Context of Culture and Nativity in Bhule Shah’s Poetry. Daryaft. Vol. 24, 55–76. (Co-authored with Virk & Azam).
Other
2006: Cultural Expressions, Catastrophe and Emotional Stability (Anthropological Analysis of Disaster in Balakot). Conference Proceedings of the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan (HEC). 114–122.