Integral in Iran

A "tremendous thirst" for Integral in Iran?

Terry Patten — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 20:05:30 -0700

During dinner, I was seated next to Muhammed Legenhausen and across from Dr. Fanaii.

I gave them my documents and told them about Integral Institute and the Integral Spiritual Center. "Have you heard of philosopher, Ken Wilber?"

Legenhausen: "Yes, in fact, I recently approved the purchase of his Collected Works for our library."

"Really!" I was delighted. "Have you read Wilber yourself?"

No, not really, but he had browsed them. He thought Ken's writings (particularly Wilber 2-3 on the levels) would be of great interest to many seminary students.

Why? I probed.

Because Wilber reflects a sophisticated understanding of Western philosophy, psychology, and individual development. And he pays attention to the special importance of spiritual understanding.

Is that of interest?

Well, yes. Many young, smart, religious Muslims are interested in psychology. They want to explore the interconnections of psychology and spirituality.

So you think psychology students will be especially interested in Wilber?

Yes, there's a tremendous thirst here for this kind of material. And he offers to pass the Wilber material on to others there.

So I shared my hunch that Integral consciousness offers an important new opportunity—a trans-rational bridge connecting the discriminating mind of post / modernism (high structures) with the sacred sensibilities of traditional mystical Islam (high states.)

Yes, he said. What's missing is that we aren't praying together.

Back to that, I thought. Okay.

Praying together before entering the negotiation/battlefield.

"Remember Me and fight."

Perhaps we do need deep shared silence. Daring to be visibly heart-open before the "other."

Maybe that's the only way to create a safe intersubjective circle inside of which it is possible to have a genuine meeting.

Maybe that's the only way that sincere, inquiring, courageous Iranians and Americans can meet as whole persons and learn how to generate sacred, high-level, consequential conversations.

Maybe that's the only way to have a cultural conversation that can be counted on, one that can grow to include all parties' heads, hearts, and feet, one that can still make sense in billions of ordinary human moments of loss, fear, sorrow, and anger.

Praying together regularly

Terry Patten — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 14:31:17 -0700

After our formal meeting was over, I spoke with Rev. Sohrabi and Rev. Ebadi. I introduced myself and shared the Persian-language Integral documents I brought with me.

Each of them responded with animated energy, glad to engage in a spiritual conversation. They both seemed to believe that we would be most effective in improving relations between Iran and America by entering into prayer together, and doing so on an ongoing basis.

Rev. Sohrabi even suggested an "International Day of Prayer" involving Americans and Iranians. Would I be wiling to bring this to people in America?

I told him that people in America and other parts of the world already set up many special days of prayer. What might make this different, and significant, would be for Americans to know about their participation. Did they want to initiate such an effort?

A poignant moment. Clearly they felt a strong impulse. And clearly, they hesitated to stick their necks out by drawing too much attention to themselves. My heart went out to them. Dignified, sincere, and in their own ways courageous. And hesitant. Ah, how different it feels to taste the air everyone breathes inside Iran!

Setting the stage for sacred conversations

Terry Patten — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 00:49:00 -0700

Dr. Ebadi asked us a question as we closed:

"If the Holy Mother brought you close to her heart and, told you, 'What does your heart most desire?' What would you ask for?"

He asked so sweetly that people spoke vulnerably about their highest hopes for bridges of understanding across our many divides. As we sat in silence together, I found myself wondering if they were right—if prayer might be a better basis for dialog than the methods our nations have been using.

After our formal meeting, we had dinner. I had the opportunity to speak informally with all four of the clerics. I shared the documents I had brought with me.

And several very interesting conversations ensued...

Let's pray together

Terry Patten — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 00:21:45 -0700

When asked what can be done to address the dangerous standoff between the U.S. and Iran, Rev. Sohrabi said,

"Public awareness is important. If people know more they can influence government policy. The big issue right now is our country's nuclear power program. But we're only engaging a peaceful energy program. There is no evidence that we are developing weapons. If Americans find out the truth, they will act to influence their government's policy.

"What we can do is to pray together. Christians and Muslims can pray together.

"God will help whoever is trying to do what is right. If our government tries to make weapons of mass destruction, we hope cultured and religious people would stand up against us. We also hope that cultured and religious people in America will stand against attacks on us for exercising our rights.

"The roots of Islamic philosophy are based on the ancient Greeks, just like yours. Avicenna and Aquinas were close philosophical cousins. There are many influences of Islam on Western philosophy. And the West has contributed much too—the philosophy of science, epistemology, the philosophy of religion. Many here are interested in Western philosophy. We teach comparative religion, and investigate commonalities.

"Mystical spirituality in the West is very close to Shia mystical spirituality. When you are talking to God, differences disappear. Theological disputes dissolve. We all have the same language for talking to God. Our very own scriptures sometimes sound as though they are translations of each other. Why? Because they come from the same Source!

"Spirituality is the most firm foundation for coming together in a real way—not just between Islam and the West, but also for everyone in the whole world.

That stupid Holocaust conference...

Terry Patten — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 00:14:18 -0700

What do you hope we will say when we get home? Legenhausen answered with energy:

"Tell them that you asked hard questions. Tell them that you weren't just rolling over.

"Tell them that you asked about that ridiculous holocaust conference. Tell them that I told you I thought it was horrible.

"They were attempting to focus on a sore spot in the West, in order to expose the West's hypocrisy. But they didn't educate themselves. They invited racists, and the whole thing backfired.

"Back here, I was protesting. I was saying things like "Do you know who David Duke is? This is a man who actually claims that even Chinese civilization was founded by white people." People here had no idea. Now I'm telling them that young Iranians need to be better educated about the Holocaust.

At this point, Dr. Fanaii broke in:

"It happened, but it was exaggerated. Even so, why should Palestinians pay for it? That's not acceptable. And besides, people shouldn't be prohibited from conducting independent research."

What are the teachings of Shia Islam about violence?

Terry Patten — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 23:53:08 -0700

The clerics looked at one another, and it appeared that Hojat-el-eslam Sohrabi was the one to whom everyone deferred. This was one of the most interesting moments in our dialogs, I thought, as I tracked the different emphases of words and manner. Reverend Sohrabi radiated humility and compassion as he spoke:

"The basic teachings of Shia Islam are that every person should strive to be a manifestation of the mercy of God, and should promote brotherhood among all people. One of the most key teachings in all religions, and in Shia Islam, is love—man's love for God, God's love for man, and man's love for his fellow man. Islam teaches kindness, respect, and love for all people, especially People of the Book.

"The only case when force is justified is defensively, to repel aggression. Our basic obligation is to spread brotherhood, mercy, and justice, and sometimes resisting obstacles requires force.

"Each person should strive to be a manifestation of God and God's love for all human beings. This is how you grow closer to God. Our obligation is to go to whatever lengths we can for the well-being of others. Make yourself an expression of Divine love in relation to all other beings.

"This is put into practice again and again in the history of Shia Islam. When Imam Hossein was surrounded by enemies, he tried to be kind. He said, "We don't have to fight." He was pleading for peace, even unto his death.

"The teaching of love in Shia Islam is so important that it carries beyond humanity to animals and plants. Islam emphasizes an attitude of kindness toward all living things.

What is Shia Islam? Does it have a basis for interfaith dialog?

Terry Patten — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 23:38:48 -0700

Right away, Legenhausen pointedly defined the nature of Shia Islam:

"Shia and Sunni Islam are usually discussed in terms of the dispute over the Caliphate. But Shia understand themselves as "the party of Ali," the prophet's closest disciple. This means that Shia believe that God's guidance to human beings didn't stop with the prophet, but continued through the twelve Imams.

"Shia has two central concepts: Reason, and Justice. Even mysticism must go hand-in-hand with reason. And justice should e a primary goal. Governance should not be favoritism, but justice, tempered with mercy."

Asked about interfaith dialog, Legenhausen indicated warm openness to us and to other delegates from "peace churches" in the states.

"There hasn't been much interfaith dialog for many years. The seminary system has been closed. But since the revolution, there are many efforts to learn about other religions and to create dialog.
"There is a Religious Studies Center now in Qom, which is now fully accredited and expanding. One branch studies the Abrahamic religions, another studies other Eastern religions, and the third studies other Islamic sects.

"There is also a second Institute, with societies for epistemology, history, and religious studies. The religious studies society is focused on understanding and dialog with other religions.

We have a lot of discussion with professors in other countries. Last month we had a good dialog with clerics in Innsbrook, Austria. We have held three dialogs with Benedictines in England, one with published papers in English. We have plans for an exchange with the Mennonite Central Committee through the University of Toronto.

"In Islam, Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians are acknowledged as "People of the Book." So we have deep historical roots for inter-religious dialog. When settling disputes with Christians, the Imams used the Bible instead of the Koran as a basis for governing law."

In Qom: Meeting with Conservative Clergy

Terry Patten — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 22:57:01 -0700

By the time we met with Vice President Mashaee, I was beginning to get the message—we would be tightly restricted, and we would only be approved to meet with people who were specifically approved by the conservative bureaucrats in charge of our visit. This is why I had asked him to facilitate a meeting with government-sanctioned Shia clergy who had both mystical depth and familiarity with Western philosophy. A number of my fellow delegates were upset with me for speaking up spontaneously— they felt that I was threatening the primary values of group consensus and cohesiveness in favor of my own agenda.

Thus, I was delighted several days later when I discovered that the Vice-President's office indeed had followed up on my request. They set up a meeting in Qom with some senior conservative clerics—senior clerical faculty at the Ayatollah Khomeini Seminary, headed by President Ahmadinejad's spiritual advisor, the man reputed to be Iran's most arch-conservative cleric, Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi.

We met with two senior and two junior faculty members from Mesbah-Yazdi's Ayatollah Khomeini Seminary. The senior clerics were Hojat-el-eslam Sohrabi and Hojat-el-elsam Ebadi. Both of them were serious charismatic individuals who had obvious engaged years of sincere spiritual practice.

The junior faculty members were Dr.Mohammed Fanaii, a professor of philosophy and mysticism, and Dr. Mohammed Legenhausen, who teaches Western and Christian philosophy at the seminary. Both of them spoke English. Dr. Fanaii was relatively taciturn, and quite conservative.

Legenhausen, on the other hand was quite a surprise—a warm and friendly American philosophy professor from Texas . (He appreciated our association with Mennonites and peace.) Formerly Gary Legenhausen, he converted to Shia Islam and visited Iran in 1984 and stayed. His familiarity with Iranian religious thinking and American idiom facilitated and furthered our dialog and mutual understanding.

In Qom, Part One: The Great Library of Ayatollah Al-Uzma Mar'ashi Najafi

Terry Patten — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 14:22:27 -0700

Because I skipped ahead to our meetings at Tehran University, I have only one key set of meetings left to blog about—those that took place in Qom, the home of Iran's many seminaries, and the center of clerical power in the Islamic Republic.

Our first stop in Qom was at the Great Library of Ayatollah Al-Uzma Mar'ashi Najafi.

As a seminarian, Ayatollah Mar'ashi noticed that the oldest Islamic texts were becoming hard to find, and that they were primarily being purchased and collected by Europeans who didn't even believe in Islam. He made it his personal mission to acquire and restore important old Islamic religious texts.

Sometimes he fasted—as an act of piety, but also to save money with which to buy books. Slowly, over decades, he accumulated the greatest collection of old Islamic religious texts in the world of Shia Islam.

After the Islamic Revolution, his library came to be regarded as one of the pre-eminent treasures of Islamic Iran. Thousands of additional texts were acquired, world-class restoration experts were hired, the best equipment was acquired, dedicated staff members were trained, and the Mar'ashi Library began restoring severely damaged documents that would have previously been unsalvageable. Although Mar'ashi died in 1990 at the age of 96, his son continues to direct the library.

We toured the museum, viewing a Koran dating from just after the life of Muhammed, along with numerous other ancient books and illuminated manuscripts. We saw the meticulous processes through which library staffers restore ragged ancient pages.

Afterwards we were ushered into a meeting room where we had a chance to sit and talk with Dr. Mar'ashi himself, the son of the Ayatollah, and the director of the Library. And he turned out to be a delightful surprise.

Our tourguide had seemed intent on impressing us. He would tell us the facts about the ancient texts or the collection with great emphasis, sometimes asking what we thought of it all (seemingly fishing, again and again, for expressions of respect or amazement.)

Dr. Mar'ashi, on the other hand, was ordinary and humble, quite willing to speak in the most human and direct terms about virtually any subject. He told us about his visits to the United States, and his close relatives in Michigan.

We were closely watched, and Iranians journalists photographed our meeting, but I had the sense that he would have enjoyed a more heartfelt and probing conversation than we felt free to engage.

Back to the Blog...

Terry Patten — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 13:19:46 -0700

It's been over a month since my last entry! Where the heck have I been?

I turned my attention to my master's thesis (which investigates the optimal pedagogical praxes for helping people grow into higher levels of consciousness, focusing on peer-helpers such as coaches.) I'm happy to say that it's now complete.
Together with Patrick Sweeney and Diane Hamilton, I helped design and facilitate Integral Buddhism: Mandala of Awakening, May 21-23 in Westminster, Colorado.
I've been preparing for some upcoming seminars, particularly Integral Spirituality in Holland June 22-24.Download Flyer2.pdf
I've been enjoying the final weeks of my son, Michael's senior year, his last one living here with us in California He goes off to school, in New York City, this September.

And now—it's time to get back to blogging about Iran and what it taught me! So here we go...