Dr Daryoush油Mohammad Poor delivered a paper as part of the lecture series,油油organised by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) at Leiden University, Netherlands, on 19th油September 2014.油The paper, entitled油Imaginative Anachronistic Leaps and Secular/Religious Myths of Terrorism: The case of Nizari IsmailisAdherents of a branch of Shi’i Islam that considers Ismail, the eldest son of the Shi’i Imam Ja平far al-畊diq (d. 765), as his successor. of the油Alamut油永艶姻庄看糸,油addresses the legends of the assassins, which are still part of academic writings (in the field of political science) legitimising narratives of violence. In this way, violence is still portrayed as an inherent part of religion, despite the assassin legends having been deconstructed to a great extent by scholars such as Marshal Hodgson (1955) and Farhad Daftary (1994).
Such imaginative narratives, which are often almost entirely unaware of modern academic developments or disinclined towards further investigations, serve to enhance the religious-secular dichotomies of violence and terrorism. This paper, which is part of a book due for publication in 2015, serves to bridge the gap between Ismaili studies, Ismaili historiography, political theories and modern narratives of violence.
Dr Daryoush油Mohammad Poor also participated in the油油held in Montreal, Canada, on 9 August 2014. He presented a paper entitled油Precedents to Rethinking Models of Authority among Nizari Ismailis: The Case of油Tusi, on the contribution of Nasir油al-Din油al-Tusi to the notions of authority and the doctrine of油imamate油among Nizari Ismailis. 油The paper specifically dealt with how油Tusi played a critical role in the articulation of the doctrine of油岳温l庄馨油and its connection with油tawhid,油and the subsequent articulation of the doctrine of油qiyamat油in the late油Alamut油period, all of which are centrally connected with the doctrine of油imamate.
The paper also addressed how the doctrine of油qiyamat油was perceived in different periods with various degrees of elaboration by the Imams, the scholars in the community, and the油糸温平敬温Lit. ‘summons’, ‘mission’ or invitation to Islam. Amongst Shi’i Muslims, it was the invitation to adopt the cause of the Imamat. It also refers more specifically to the hierarchy of…油system. Articulations of this theme during the late油Alamut油period appear to build on Tusis writings in his major works, namely油Sayr wa suluk,油Rawday-i taslim,油Matlub al-mu幣minin油and油Aghaz wa anjam.油All of these texts are available in translation under the titles of油Contemplation and Action油(IIS 1998),油Paradise of Submission油(IIS 2005), and油Shii Interpretations of Islam油(IIS 2010).
Dr Poors presentation utilised quotations from fragments of rare, unpublished manuscripts (from the collection of the IIS-ISMC Joint Library) of the油Alamut油period, elaborating how the doctrine of油qiyamat油was understood during that time.
Dr Daryoush Mohammad Poor has also recently published a book entitled油油.
