Shi'Ism Doctrines, Thought, and Spirituality [Paperback]

Seyed Vali Reza Nasr (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 401 pages
• Publisher: State Univ of New York Pr (October 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0887066909
• ISBN-13: 978-0887066900
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.8 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,441,379 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An insider's comments on this book, September 26, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Shi'Ism Doctrines, Thought, and Spirituality (Hardcover)

Being a Shia and an avid student of Shiaism, it has always been a frustration for me to read books which are written by half-baked authors who don't even bother scratching the surface of a religion and its ideals and write about it.

I have read several books by authentic Shia scholars from Iran and Iraq. Some of them are very good books, but unfortunately, are not always available to readers in the desired translation and presentation.

I, being a student of this religion and a practising Shia, would highly recommend this book, for anyone who really wants to gain an insight into the religion. Very balanced views, without any prejudices and biases and a "zoomed out" view of shiaism, which despite the breadth it covers, does not neglect the "Depth" and is a complete book in every respect.

My compliments to Syed Hussein Nasr and all contributors of this book, for completing a "complete" and "correct" picture.

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very informative book to read, August 21, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Shi'Ism Doctrines, Thought, and Spirituality (Hardcover)

I have read many books written on Shi'sm by crank theoretician 'scholars', but this book is an exception. Usually books written by scholars of religion are not worth reading, mainly due to the fact that Scholarship and religion do not mix. But a few seem to be an exception to this general rule and Mr. Nasr and a few others such as Corbin and Chittic are among them. Usually these so called Scholars of religion are as ignorant as they are arrogant as the following comment by one of the 'critics' would indicate. Mr. Fathi of the Middle east Journal tells us ' At least half of the subjects discussed in the book are highly abstract and hair-splitting fine points unlikely to be understood even by a university-educated Shii in Tehran, let alone by an American or British reader'. Apparently Mr. Fathi had hard time understanding the book, and due to inherent self flattery, he is under illusion that everyone else from Tehran to England and America wouldn't 'comprehend' the context of the book either. Not everyone would subscribe to Mr. Fathi's arrogant and self-glorified approach, but one has to remind these geniuses that we are not living in dark ages anymore( as surprising as this might be to these people) and contrary to Mr. Fath's misconception, people are very intelligent and capable of understanding ' abstract' topics. One should remind Mr. Fathi that just because one person has hard time understanding ' abstract', doesn't mean that the rest of the world shares that inability as well.