Synopses & Reviews
There is a discrepancy between the dominant conceptions of the status and role of the individual prevailing in modern Western ways of thinking, on the one hand, and, the Iranian ways of thinking on the other. This book examines the significance of the concept of the individual in the thinking of Iranians from theological and philosophical as well as socio-political and historical perspectives. The author establishes that the mystical dimension of Islamic thought, the divine nature of Islamic law and the mode of relationship between ruler and ruled in combination counteracted the growth of concern for the individual self in Iranian thought.
Synopsis
This book examines the significance of the concept of the individual in the thinking of Iranians from theological and philosophical as well as socio-political and historical perspectives.
About the Author
Nader Ahmadi is Senior Lecturer in Sociology at Stockholm University, Sweden.
Fereshteh Ahmadi is a Researcher at Uppsala University in Sweden.
Table of Contents
Introduction *
Part I: Philosophical Obstacles * Short Introduction to the Foundation of the Concept of the Individual in Western Thought * The Importance of Sufism in the Study of the Concept of the Individual in Iranian Thought * The Dissolution of Individuality in Persian Sufism * The Socio-Cultural Effects of Sufism on the Social Life of Iranians *
Part II: Social Obstacles * Individuality and Social Reality * Individuality and Politics * Individuality and the System of Law * Epilogue * Notes * Bibliography * Index