Biography
Cyrus Ali Zargar is the Endowed Al-Ghazali Distinguished Professor in Islamic Studies. He earned his PhD from the University of California, Berkeley in Near Eastern Studies in 2008. Zargar’s research interests include Classical Sufism, Islamic Philosophy, Arabic and Persian Sufi Literature, and Ethics in Literature and Film.
Research Interests
Classical Sufism / Islamic Philosophy / Arabic and Persian Sufi Literature / Ethics in Literature and Film
Recent Research Activities
Zargar recently completed a book titled Religion of Love: Sufism and Self-Transformation in the Poetic Imagination of ʿAṭṭār (d. 1221). This monograph considers space, time, and praxis in the Persian Sufi poetry of ʿAṭṭār, focusing on the development of sacred symbols. His most recent book, The Polished Mirror: Storytelling and the Pursuit of Virtue in Islamic Philosophy and Sufism, was published in December of 2017.
Publications
Books
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Religion of Love: Sufism and Self-Transformation in the Poetic Imagination of ʿAṭṭār. Albany, NY: The State University of New York Press, 2024.
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The Ethics of Karbala: Myths, Modernity, and the Warrior’s Nobility. London, UK: Routledge, 2024.
- The Polished Mirror: Storytelling and the Pursuit of Virtue in Islamic Philosophy and Sufism. London: Oneworld.
- Sufi Aesthetics: Beauty, Love, and the Human Form in the Writings of Ibn ʿArabi and ʿIraqi. Columbia, South Carolina: University of South Carolina Press.
Articles/Essays
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“Sober in Mecca, Drunk in Byzantium: Antinomian Space in the Poetry of ʿAṭṭār,” Journal of the American Academy of Religion 89:1 (March 2021), pp. 272-297.
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“A Daring Obedience: Ibn ʿArabī's Futuwwa on the Right Side of the Law,” Journal of Islamic Ethics 4:1 (December 2020), pp. 38–65.
Courses
| Course # | Course | Title | Mode | Days/Times | Syllabus |
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| 12311 | PHH3200 | Medieval Philosophy | In Person (P) | Tu,Th 1:30 PM - 2:45 PM | Unavailable |
| 12952 | REL3111 | Religion and Phil Through Film | Web-Based (W) | 7:00 PM - 7:00 PM | Unavailable |
| Course # | Course | Title | Mode | Days/Times | Syllabus |
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