IIS held a conference entitled,聽The Renaissance of Shi士i Islam in the 15th鈥17th Centuries: Facets of Thought and Practice,聽from 3-5 October 2018 at the聽Aga Khan聽Centre. The conference investigated and evaluated the intellectual contributions of Shi鈥榠 Muslims during this complex period.
- Watch highlights of the conference
- Keynote address by Dr Farhad Daftary聽on The Shi鈥榠 Milieu of Post-Mongol Iran
- Keynote address by Prof. Gerhard B Gerhard B枚wering聽on The Confluence of Mysticism and Messianism in Islamic Theosophy (Irfan) in the 15th鈥17th centuries
The 15th century marked a renaissance for the Ismaili and Twelver Shi士i traditions after centuries of marginalisation. It was with the commencement of the聽Imamat聽of Mustansir bi示llah II around 868/1463鈥 1464, that the Anjudan revival of the Nizari IsmailisAdherents of a branch of Shi’i Islam that considers Ismail, the eldest son of the Shi’i Imam Ja士far al-峁⒛乨iq (d. 765), as his successor. began. Around the same time, several Shi士i messianic movements emerged in Iran and spread to neighbouring countries. One of these, the聽SafavidsA major Shi’i dynasty which ruled Persia (1501-1732 CE), and was succeeded by the Afsharids. (See also Qizilbash, Safawiyya.), became particularly successful. In 1500, led by the youthful Ismail I, the Safavid forces defeated the army of the Aq Qoyunlu, and a year later, in the summer of 1501, took their capital Tabriz, therefore establishing the Safavid state which then became an empire and the first major Shi士i power since the fall of the聽Fatimids聽in 1171. The conference sought to examine聽many unexplored questions from this multifaceted era.
Held at the newly opened聽Aga Khan聽Centre in London鈥檚 Knowledge Quarter, this international conference brought together established and emerging scholars from around the world, as well as educators, researchers, students, and those with a general interest in the subject.
An edited publication based on papers from the conference聽is planned to be released in the future, under the聽Shi鈥榠 Heritage Series. Publications in this series focus on聽Shi鈥榠 Islam,聽promoting a better understanding of its history, doctrines and practices in their historical and contemporary contexts.
