SeyedAmirHossein Asghari, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Research Associate in Natural Law
Education:
- Ph.D., Indiana University Bloomington (2022)
- M.A., Middlesex University London (2013)
- B.A., Azad University Tehran (2000)
Biography:
Amir Asghari is a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Natural Law and Interreligious Understanding within the Department of Religion at Baylor University. He is currently co-authoring a book titled "Natural Law and Interreligious Understanding: Islamic and Christian Approaches" with Dr. Paul Martens.
He completed his Ph.D. at Indiana University, Bloomington. His extensive research spans topics such as Islamic Studies, interreligious understanding, natural law, Islamic philosophy, and Sufism. He actively participates in academic interreligious conversations aimed at promoting the expansion of interreligious understanding.
Dr. Asghari has taught at institutions such as Indiana and Butler Universities, and his scholarly work has been featured in prominent journals. He has also taught at Baylor as a guest speaker in both undergraduate and graduate classes.
His upcoming book, titled “The Thought of Scholars and Mystics,” delves into the intersection of different modes of understanding and interpretation of revelation and the intellectual history surrounding the confrontation and coexistence of opposing schools of thought within the contemporary Shi’a Muslim seminary.
Academic Interests and Research:
- Interreligious understanding
-Theology and Ethics
- Islamic Studies
- Islamic Philosophy
- Natural law
- Sufism
- Shia Studies
Notable Publications:
Forthcoming Book:
"Sufism and Philosophy in the Contemporary Shia Seminary: The Thought of Scholars and Mystics," Bloomsbury University Press, expected publication in 2025.
Current Book Projects:
Current Book Project: "Natural Law: Islamic and Christian Approaches," co-authored with Dr. Paul Martens, expected publication in 2026.
Forthcoming Chapter and Conference Proceeding
Asghari, SeyedAmirHossien. “From Text to Transcendence: Exploring Khwāja Khurd's 'Risāla-yi Nūr-i Waḥdat' and Its Role in Shia Sufism.” In The Oneness of Being (Waḥdat al-Wujūd): Interpretation, Reception, and Implications, Conference Proceeding, Al-Mahdi Institute, AMI Press, expected 2025.<Sufism and Philosophy in the Contemporary Shia Seminary (Bloomsbury, 2025)>
Recent publications:
- (2024) Asghari, SeyedAmirHossein. "Pilgrimage Theology and Interreligious Dialogue: Exploring Divine Presence in Shi'i Visitation Prayers." Journal of Islam and the Contemporary World, Spring 2024. 1 (2).
- (2023) "Bridging Cultures: Sufi Underpinnings in the Han Kitab School of China: Ma Dexin’s Commentary on Liu Zhi’s ‘Nature and Principle in Islam.’" SUREK Alevism, Bektashism and Journal of Cultural Studies, 1(1).
- (2023) "Sufism in the Contemporary Shii Seminary?" Religions 14, no. 10: 1248. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14101248
-(2023) "Understanding Human Dignity in Shi’i Islam: Debates, Challenges, and Solutions for Contemporary Issues" Religions 14, no. 4: 505. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14040505
- (2021) "Replacing Sharīʿa, Ṭarīqa and Ḥaqīqa with Fiqh, Akhlāq and Tawḥīd," Journal of Sufi Studies 9, 2: 202-214, doi: https://doi.org/10.1163/22105956-bja10010
- (2021) "Presence, Manifestation, and Visitation in Abrahamic Religions: The Notion of “Presence” in Shi’ism," Journal of Religious & Theological Information, doi: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/10477845.2021.1926629
- (2021) "The Bektashi Order, Sufism, and Shi’ism in the Work of Baba Rexheb, a Bektashi Sufi of the 20th Century," Turkish Journal of Shiite Studies 1-24. https://doi.org/10.48203/siader.799560
- (2021) "Sufism and Philosophy of Modern Science: Notes on Nasr’s Philosophy," Journal of Turkish Culture and Haci Bektash Veli Research Quarterly (Türk Kültürü ve Hacı Bektaş Velî Araştırma Dergisi) (98) https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352092423_Sufism_and_Challenges_of_Modern_and_Secular_Philosophy_Nasr's_Perspective
- (2020) "Shiʻa Mystical Theology: Notes on Sayyid Ḥaydar ĀmulĪʼs Jāmiʻ al-Asrār wa Manbaʻ al-Anwār," Kom Casopis Za Religijske Nauke 9(3): 65-80, doi:10.5937/kom2003065A
- (2017) "Ontology and Cosmology of ‘Aql (Intellect) in Ṣadrā’s Commentary on Uṣūl al-Kāfī," Journal of Shi‘a Islamic Studies 10 (2): 157-182 (July 2017), doi: 10.1353/isl.2017.0011
Professional Achievements:
- Future Faculty Teaching Fellowship, Indiana University (2021-22)
- Wonkai Lee Fellowship, Indiana University (2021-22)
- The Linda S. Walbridge Fellowship, MELC, Indiana University (2019-20)