Islamic Alternatives ― Non-mainstream Religion in Persianate Societies

The 11 studies in this collection comprise the proceedings of an April 2014 symposium in Göttingen held as part of a multi-year Iranian studies research project. The goal is to identify cultural relations, associations, and similarities between varieties of Islam in Iran and surrounding countries. They cover early Shi'ism and Futuwwa, Ahl-e Haqq (Yaresan), cultural anthropological analysis, Khaksar, and folk Sufism. Among the topics are from Futuwwa to mystic political thought: the Caliph al-Nasir li-Din Allah and Abu Hafs Suhrawardi's theory of government, between Dersin and Dalahu: reflections on Kurdish Alevism and the Ahl-e Haqq religion, beyond Muslim and Hindu: sacred spaces in the Thar Desert of Pakistan, Dog of God: animality and wildness among Dervishes, and female folk Sufism in the Central Asian space-time continuum. Annotation ©2017 Ringgold, Inc., Portland, OR (protoview.com)