Books by Nasir-i Khusraw
“This is an incredibly famous book. It’s still widely read in Iran, but also beyond. Nasir Khusraw travelled in the mid-11th century…this is his account of his travels. What’s special about it is that it’s from an Ismaili Shii perspective. He writes about some communities that we otherwise wouldn’t know about: they are almost only mentioned in his book. He also outlines the wider struggles between the Seljuks, a Sunni Turkic dynasty who are rising and challenging the Fatimids and Abbasid caliphate in Iraq. He really travels very, very widely. It’s a fantastic read and a very important source. He’s a bit less famous than Ibn Battuta, for example, or Ibn Jubayr, but those travel books were written more from a Sunni perspective. Also, the other famous travel writers were a bit later.” Read more...
Interviews where books by Nasir-i Khusraw were recommended
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1
The Venture of Islam, Volume 1: The Classical Age of Islam
by Marshall Hodgson -
2
Imams and Emirs: State, Religion and Sects in Islam
by Fuad I. Khuri -
3
Book of Travels (Safarnāma)
by Nasir-i Khusraw -
4
Travels through Arabia and Other Countries in the East
by Carsten Niebuhr -
5
The Others
by Seba al-Herz
The best books on Sunnism and Shiism, recommended by Toby Matthiesen
The best books on Sunnism and Shiism, recommended by Toby Matthiesen
In a bid to get away from simplistic explanations of why sectarian identity in the Middle East can lead to conflict, Swiss political scientist Toby Matthiesen wrote The Caliph and the Imam: The Making of Sunnism and Shiism. Here he recommends other books that shed light on Sunni and Shia differences, including a racy novel set in Saudi Arabia.
