The religious movement known as Bābism profoundly affected Iranian society during the 1840s. After a lengthy hiatus, academic study of the sect has entered a new phase with the appearance of several important books, articles, and theses. The present work surveys Persian and Arabic manuscripts relating to the history and doctrines of the sect. Part one examines the writings of the Bāb and his followers. Part two analyses primary and secondary sources for Bābī history, with a discussion of the controversial Kitāb-i Nuqṭat al-kāf. Discussion of each...
The religious movement known as Bābism profoundly affected Iranian society during the 1840s. After a lengthy hiatus, academic study of the sect h...
The 19th century saw an enormous shift in the authority structure of Iranian and Iraqi Twelver Shiʿism, with the victory of a theological school (Usulism) that stressed the power of the clergy. This is well known. What is less well known is that there was a parallel development of authority in the Shaykhi school and its offshoot, the Babi sect. Here, especially in later forms of Babism, the Shiʿite claim to charismatic authority reached its limits in hyperbolic attestations of divinity. The present text is in two parts: a study of how Shaykhism bifurcated into a form close to...
The 19th century saw an enormous shift in the authority structure of Iranian and Iraqi Twelver Shiʿism, with the victory of a theological school ...
In recent years, events in the Islamic world have captured the attention of the West to an unprecedented degree. However, much of the media coverage of events like the Islamic revolution in Iran has merely reinforced current prejudices and misconceptions about Islam.
This collection of essays, by specialists in a variety of disciplines, gives an impressionistic overview of contemporary Islam. Different areas of Islamic life are singled out for special attention; these include the problem of relations between Islam and the West, the role of the Sufi orders and the revival of religious...
In recent years, events in the Islamic world have captured the attention of the West to an unprecedented degree. However, much of the media coverag...
In recent years, events in the Islamic world have captured the attention of the West to an unprecedented degree. However, much of the media coverage of events like the Islamic revolution in Iran has merely reinforced current prejudices and misconceptions about Islam.
This collection of essays, by specialists in a variety of disciplines, gives an impressionistic overview of contemporary Islam. Different areas of Islamic life are singled out for special attention; these include the problem of relations between Islam and the West, the role of the Sufi orders and the revival of...
In recent years, events in the Islamic world have captured the attention of the West to an unprecedented degree. However, much of the media coverag...
