Words of Power - (Shi'i Heritage) by Orkhan Mir-Kasimov (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a [CC BY-NC-ND 4.0] licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by Islamic Publications Ltd.
The Jawidan-nama-yi kabir ('Great Book of Eternity') was the magnum opus of Fadl Allah Astarabadi (d. 796/1394) and provided the basis of the Hurufi movement. Today it is one of the most important known texts belonging to the mystical and messianic current that became particularly active in Iran and Anatolia following the Mongol rule. It illuminates the contemporary reconfiguration of religious and political authority along messianic and charismatic lines that took place in the Islamic East, which arguably contributed to the rise and consolidation of the Ottoman, Safawid and Mughal dynasties. Words of Power is the first comprehensive study of Fadl Allah's seminal work. Orkhan Mir-Kasimov summarises Fadl Allah's biography, charts the history of the Hurufi movement, contextualises the Jawidan-nama within Islamic intellectual history, and considers its lasting impact in the Muslim world.

About the Author

Orkhan Mir-Kasimov is Research Associate at the Institute of Ismaili Studies, London. He has published widely on Islamic mysticism and messianism, and particularly on aspects of Hurufi thought. Most recently, he edited the volume Unity in Diversity: Mysticism, Messianism and the Construction of Religious Authority in Islam (2013). He has lectured at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes and The National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilisations in Paris.