It’s true that he’s a major scholar and prolific writer, but I feel he has too much dogma in this particular book that I’m reading – Traditional Islam in the Modern World. His underlying message is Shiism = Perennial Truth = Wiffy Waffy Grand Utopian Illumination (well, he doesn’t exactly use this term). Being a Harvard and MIT trained academic, I was expecting a more balanced account of Islamic tradition – where it is right as well as how it got it wrong, with more emphasis given to the Sunni world since only 10% of Muslims are Shiites. Take for example his chapter on the tradition of Islamic philosophy, the only philosophies he examined were Ikhwan al-Safa, Ibn Sina, Suhrawardi and Mulla Sadra whom are all persian Shiites. What ever happened to al-Ghazzali? Ibn Abbad? al-Baqillani? Ibn Khaldun?
~ Bangku
Well, sir. Why don’t you do a comparative study including Al-Ghazali et al? It would be an excellent companion to Hussein Nasr’s text. Fauz Noor’s “Tapak Sabda” appears to weave the thread from the shi’i and sunni scholars and would interest you. “Negara Tuhan” which was edited by Maftuh Abegebriel also includes a similar examination vis a vis the idea of a muslim state. Happy reading!
Thanks for the suggestion. Will look into it.
Correct me if I’m wrong, but I read somewhere that Nasr’s position is that the Sunni-Shiite divide pertains largely to the exoteric level of religion and the two converges as one approaches the more esoteric dimension of Islam, just as the truth is similar at this mystical level whatever religion you belong to since, in Guenon’s words, “metaphysics is one, just as truth is one.” So the fact that he deals largely with Shii thinkers is really irrelevant because, as he sees it, at this level, all traditions are more or less the same.
Oh, of course yes. But the book’s purpose was to expose traditional islamic thought, and by only taking shiite thinkers, he seems to show that only shiites truly represent traditional islam and, consequently, perennial truth. To sunnis, i could see him sympathetic to pro- ibn arabi sufis, but that’s it.