Aria Nakissa
Biographic Data
| ID | 128261 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Aria Nakissa |
| GIVEN NAMES | Aria |
| FAMILY NAME | Nakissa |
| SIGNATURE | NAKISSA A |
| AFFILIATIONS | Washington University in St. Louis |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-0850-4708 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 17 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 27 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 17 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2014 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Islamic Universities in Egypt and Indonesia as Tools of Liberal Governance: How States Use them to Canonize Reformed Versions of Islam
This article examines how liberal states regulate religion through a comparative study of government-run Islamic universities in Egypt and Indonesia. Building on recent historical scholarship, it is argued that, contrary to conventional views, liberal states have frequently endorsed government intervention in religious life – including “authoritarian” repression of disfavored religious beliefs and practices. Liberal interventionist policies were …
Comparing Moralities in the Abrahamic and Indic Religions Using Cognitive Science: Kindness, Peace, and Love versus Justice, Violence, and Hate
Recent cognitive science research indicates that humans possess numerous biologically rooted religious and moral intuitions. The present article draws on this research to compare forms of religious morality in the Abrahamic traditions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam) and the Indic traditions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism). Special attention is given to moral teachings on kindness, peace, and love, as well as related teachings on justice, violence, a…
Reconceptualizing the Global Transformation of Islam in the Colonial Period: Early Islamic Reform in British-Ruled India and Egypt
Between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, European empires extended their rule over most of the Muslim world. The present article argues that these empires promoted three interrelated political discourses; namely, a discourse on utilitarianism, a discourse on civilizational progress, and a discourse on liberal imperialism. The empires also encouraged Islamic reform movements, which entailed cooperation between Muslim thinkers, Eu…
Liberalism's distinctive policy for governing Muslim populations: Human rights, religious reform, and counter‐terrorism from the colonial era until the present
During the colonial era, liberal Western states established vast empires which came to encompass almost all of the world's Muslims. Western states worked out specific methods for governing Muslims, which were often referred to as “Muslim policy”. Recent scholarship on Muslim policy exhibits several key trends. One is expansion of geographical scope, leading scholars to produce more comprehensive global accounts of Muslim policy. Another trend is …
Using Cognitive Science to Reconceptualize Islamic Ethics and “Islamist” Socio-political Movements
Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s)
Islam and the cognitive study of colonialism: The case of religious and educational reform at Egypt’s al-Azhar
This article argues that the emerging Cognitive Science of Religion (CSR) provides a valuable new perspective on colonialism. CSR argues that humans are innately inclined towards certain types of religious belief (e.g., belief in spirit beings, belief in immortal souls) and certain types of non-utilitarian morality (e.g., belief in an obligation to care for kin, belief in an obligation to avoid ‘disgusting’ substances or behaviours). These innate…
Rethinking Religious Cognition and Myth: A New Perspective on how Religions Balance Intuitiveness and Interest-Provokingness/Memorability
In his influential work on the cognitive science of religion ( CSR ), Pascal Boyer argues that the spread of religious ideas involves a tradeoff between their “intuitiveness” and their interest-provokingness/memorability (i.e.,their capacity to provoke interest and be remembered). For Boyer, religious ideas are “intuitive” insofar as they are easy to understand and learn. However, other CSR studies suggest that religious ideas are “intuitive” ins…
Cognitive and quantitative approaches to Islamic studies: Integrating psychological, socioeconomic, and digital-cultural statistics
The past 3 decades have witnessed growing efforts to rethink areas of inquiry traditionally dominated by the humanities. One such area is religion, and, by extension, "Islamic studies" (i.e., the study of Islam and Muslim societies). Recent efforts to rethink religion and Islamic studies draw insights from cognitive science, and also frequently employ quantitative approaches. Such approaches make use of psychological statistics, socioeconomic sta…
Evolving Conceptions of Human Rights as a Bourdieusian Distinction Strategy: A Critical Perspective on Policies Targeting Muslim Populations
Cognitive Science of Religion and the Study of Islam: Rethinking Islamic Theology, Law, Education, and Mysticism Using the Works of al-Ghazālī
Specialists in Islamic studies have taken virtually no interest in the influential and rapidly developing field of Cognitive Science of Religion ( CSR ). The present article seeks to address this problem by considering how insights from CSR can be systematically applied to reconceptualize Islamic theology, law, education, and mysticism. The article centers on what is probably CSR ’s most influential and well-established idea; namely, that religio…
The Cognitive Science of Religion and Islamic Theology: An Analysis Based on the Works of al-Ghazālī
Specialists in Islamic studies have taken virtually no interest in the influential emerging field of cognitive science of religion (CSR). The present article addresses this problem by considering how insights from CSR can be used to reconceptualize classical Islamic theology. The article analyzes a number of theological topics, including predestination and the uncreated Qurʾān. However, it focuses on five key Islamic theological claims, namely (1…
Security, Islam, and Indonesia: An Anthropological Analysis of Indonesia’s National Counterterrorism Agency
This article provides an anthropological analysis of counterterrorism in Indonesia. In doing so, it draws on several complementary ideas which have shaped anthropological scholarship on security, addressing 'states of exception', 'securitization', 'governmentality', and 'human security'. The article develops its analysis through the first ethnographic study of Indonesia's national counterterrorism agency. Data comes from special access to the age…
The Anthropology of Islamic Law: Education, Ethics, and Legal Interpretation at Egypt's Al-Azhar
This book shows how hermeneutic theory and practice theory can be brought together to analyze cultural, legal, and religious traditions. These ideas are developed through an analysis of the Islamic legal tradition, which examines both Islamic legal doctrine and religious education. In terms of disciplinary orientation, the book combines anthropology and Islamicist history, utilizing both ethnography and in-depth analysis of Arabic religious texts…
Anthropology of Islamic Law: Education, Ethics, and Legal Interpretation at Egypt's Al-Azhar
The Fiqh of Revolution and the Arab Spring: Secondary Segmentation as a Trend in Islamic Legal Doctrine
This article examines how the events of the Arab Spring have helped give birth to a new juristic subfield known as the “Fiqh of Revolution”. The Fiqh of Revolution supplies legal guidance on peaceful rebellion under contemporary conditions, addressing itself to a 21st century world order shaped by new internet media and post‐Cold War international human rights conventions. I argue that besides being an important source of influence for Islamist m…
An Epistemic Shift in Islamic Law
In this article, I combine textual research with ethnographic data collected at al-Azhar and Dār al-ʿUlūm to investigate how the modernization of traditional religious learning has transformed the character of Islamic legal doctrine. I argue that changes in educational techniques have produced a shift in “episteme”. Whereas traditional religious learning was dominated by language-based conceptions of knowledge, modern reforms have reoriented educ…
An ethical solution to the problem of legal indeterminacy: Sharīʿa scholarship atEgypt's al-Azhar
This article explores the importance of ethical discipline in resolving the ambiguities characteristic of legal interpretation. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork among religious scholars at Egypt's al-Azhar, I demonstrate that traditional Muslim educational techniques are structured with the aim of imparting a particular set of dispositions (modelled on those of the Prophet) by enjoining meticulous and constant imitation of the Prophet's personal…
Cognitive Science of Religion and the Study of Islam: Rethinking Islamic Theology, Law, Education, and Mysticism Using the Works of al-Ghazālī
Specialists in Islamic studies have taken virtually no interest in the influential and rapidly developing field of Cognitive Science of Religion ( CSR ). The present article seeks to address this problem by considering how insights from CSR can be systematically applied to reconceptualize Islamic theology, law, education, and mysticism. The article centers on what is probably CSR ’s most influential and well-established idea; namely, that religio…
The Cognitive Science of Religion and Islamic Theology: An Analysis Based on the Works of al-Ghazālī
Specialists in Islamic studies have taken virtually no interest in the influential emerging field of cognitive science of religion (CSR). The present article addresses this problem by considering how insights from CSR can be used to reconceptualize classical Islamic theology. The article analyzes a number of theological topics, including predestination and the uncreated Qurʾān. However, it focuses on five key Islamic theological claims, namely (1…
Security, Islam, and Indonesia: An Anthropological Analysis of Indonesia’s National Counterterrorism Agency
This article provides an anthropological analysis of counterterrorism in Indonesia. In doing so, it draws on several complementary ideas which have shaped anthropological scholarship on security, addressing 'states of exception', 'securitization', 'governmentality', and 'human security'. The article develops its analysis through the first ethnographic study of Indonesia's national counterterrorism agency. Data comes from special access to the age…
An Epistemic Shift in Islamic Law
In this article, I combine textual research with ethnographic data collected at al-Azhar and Dār al-ʿUlūm to investigate how the modernization of traditional religious learning has transformed the character of Islamic legal doctrine. I argue that changes in educational techniques have produced a shift in “episteme”. Whereas traditional religious learning was dominated by language-based conceptions of knowledge, modern reforms have reoriented educ…
An ethical solution to the problem of legal indeterminacy: Sharīʿa scholarship atEgypt's al-Azhar
This article explores the importance of ethical discipline in resolving the ambiguities characteristic of legal interpretation. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork among religious scholars at Egypt's al-Azhar, I demonstrate that traditional Muslim educational techniques are structured with the aim of imparting a particular set of dispositions (modelled on those of the Prophet) by enjoining meticulous and constant imitation of the Prophet's personal…
Liberalism's distinctive policy for governing Muslim populations: Human rights, religious reform, and counter‐terrorism from the colonial era until the present
During the colonial era, liberal Western states established vast empires which came to encompass almost all of the world's Muslims. Western states worked out specific methods for governing Muslims, which were often referred to as “Muslim policy”. Recent scholarship on Muslim policy exhibits several key trends. One is expansion of geographical scope, leading scholars to produce more comprehensive global accounts of Muslim policy. Another trend is …
Islam and the cognitive study of colonialism: The case of religious and educational reform at Egypt’s al-Azhar
This article argues that the emerging Cognitive Science of Religion (CSR) provides a valuable new perspective on colonialism. CSR argues that humans are innately inclined towards certain types of religious belief (e.g., belief in spirit beings, belief in immortal souls) and certain types of non-utilitarian morality (e.g., belief in an obligation to care for kin, belief in an obligation to avoid ‘disgusting’ substances or behaviours). These innate…
Cognitive and quantitative approaches to Islamic studies: Integrating psychological, socioeconomic, and digital-cultural statistics
The past 3 decades have witnessed growing efforts to rethink areas of inquiry traditionally dominated by the humanities. One such area is religion, and, by extension, "Islamic studies" (i.e., the study of Islam and Muslim societies). Recent efforts to rethink religion and Islamic studies draw insights from cognitive science, and also frequently employ quantitative approaches. Such approaches make use of psychological statistics, socioeconomic sta…
Rethinking Religious Cognition and Myth: A New Perspective on how Religions Balance Intuitiveness and Interest-Provokingness/Memorability
In his influential work on the cognitive science of religion ( CSR ), Pascal Boyer argues that the spread of religious ideas involves a tradeoff between their “intuitiveness” and their interest-provokingness/memorability (i.e.,their capacity to provoke interest and be remembered). For Boyer, religious ideas are “intuitive” insofar as they are easy to understand and learn. However, other CSR studies suggest that religious ideas are “intuitive” ins…
The Fiqh of Revolution and the Arab Spring: Secondary Segmentation as a Trend in Islamic Legal Doctrine
This article examines how the events of the Arab Spring have helped give birth to a new juristic subfield known as the “Fiqh of Revolution”. The Fiqh of Revolution supplies legal guidance on peaceful rebellion under contemporary conditions, addressing itself to a 21st century world order shaped by new internet media and post‐Cold War international human rights conventions. I argue that besides being an important source of influence for Islamist m…
An Epistemic Shift in Islamic Law
In this article, I combine textual research with ethnographic data collected at al-Azhar and Dār al-ʿUlūm to investigate how the modernization of traditional religious learning has transformed the character of Islamic legal doctrine. I argue that changes in educational techniques have produced a shift in “episteme”. Whereas traditional religious learning was dominated by language-based conceptions of knowledge, modern reforms have reoriented educ…
An ethical solution to the problem of legal indeterminacy: Sharīʿa scholarship atEgypt's al-Azhar
This article explores the importance of ethical discipline in resolving the ambiguities characteristic of legal interpretation. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork among religious scholars at Egypt's al-Azhar, I demonstrate that traditional Muslim educational techniques are structured with the aim of imparting a particular set of dispositions (modelled on those of the Prophet) by enjoining meticulous and constant imitation of the Prophet's personal…
The Fiqh of Revolution and the Arab Spring: Secondary Segmentation as a Trend in Islamic Legal Doctrine
This article examines how the events of the Arab Spring have helped give birth to a new juristic subfield known as the “Fiqh of Revolution”. The Fiqh of Revolution supplies legal guidance on peaceful rebellion under contemporary conditions, addressing itself to a 21st century world order shaped by new internet media and post‐Cold War international human rights conventions. I argue that besides being an important source of influence for Islamist m…
The Anthropology of Islamic Law: Education, Ethics, and Legal Interpretation at Egypt's Al-Azhar
This book shows how hermeneutic theory and practice theory can be brought together to analyze cultural, legal, and religious traditions. These ideas are developed through an analysis of the Islamic legal tradition, which examines both Islamic legal doctrine and religious education. In terms of disciplinary orientation, the book combines anthropology and Islamicist history, utilizing both ethnography and in-depth analysis of Arabic religious texts…
Anthropology of Islamic Law: Education, Ethics, and Legal Interpretation at Egypt's Al-Azhar
Evolving Conceptions of Human Rights as a Bourdieusian Distinction Strategy: A Critical Perspective on Policies Targeting Muslim Populations
Cognitive Science of Religion and the Study of Islam: Rethinking Islamic Theology, Law, Education, and Mysticism Using the Works of al-Ghazālī
Specialists in Islamic studies have taken virtually no interest in the influential and rapidly developing field of Cognitive Science of Religion ( CSR ). The present article seeks to address this problem by considering how insights from CSR can be systematically applied to reconceptualize Islamic theology, law, education, and mysticism. The article centers on what is probably CSR ’s most influential and well-established idea; namely, that religio…
The Cognitive Science of Religion and Islamic Theology: An Analysis Based on the Works of al-Ghazālī
Specialists in Islamic studies have taken virtually no interest in the influential emerging field of cognitive science of religion (CSR). The present article addresses this problem by considering how insights from CSR can be used to reconceptualize classical Islamic theology. The article analyzes a number of theological topics, including predestination and the uncreated Qurʾān. However, it focuses on five key Islamic theological claims, namely (1…
Security, Islam, and Indonesia: An Anthropological Analysis of Indonesia’s National Counterterrorism Agency
This article provides an anthropological analysis of counterterrorism in Indonesia. In doing so, it draws on several complementary ideas which have shaped anthropological scholarship on security, addressing 'states of exception', 'securitization', 'governmentality', and 'human security'. The article develops its analysis through the first ethnographic study of Indonesia's national counterterrorism agency. Data comes from special access to the age…
Islam and the cognitive study of colonialism: The case of religious and educational reform at Egypt’s al-Azhar
This article argues that the emerging Cognitive Science of Religion (CSR) provides a valuable new perspective on colonialism. CSR argues that humans are innately inclined towards certain types of religious belief (e.g., belief in spirit beings, belief in immortal souls) and certain types of non-utilitarian morality (e.g., belief in an obligation to care for kin, belief in an obligation to avoid ‘disgusting’ substances or behaviours). These innate…
Rethinking Religious Cognition and Myth: A New Perspective on how Religions Balance Intuitiveness and Interest-Provokingness/Memorability
In his influential work on the cognitive science of religion ( CSR ), Pascal Boyer argues that the spread of religious ideas involves a tradeoff between their “intuitiveness” and their interest-provokingness/memorability (i.e.,their capacity to provoke interest and be remembered). For Boyer, religious ideas are “intuitive” insofar as they are easy to understand and learn. However, other CSR studies suggest that religious ideas are “intuitive” ins…
Cognitive and quantitative approaches to Islamic studies: Integrating psychological, socioeconomic, and digital-cultural statistics
The past 3 decades have witnessed growing efforts to rethink areas of inquiry traditionally dominated by the humanities. One such area is religion, and, by extension, "Islamic studies" (i.e., the study of Islam and Muslim societies). Recent efforts to rethink religion and Islamic studies draw insights from cognitive science, and also frequently employ quantitative approaches. Such approaches make use of psychological statistics, socioeconomic sta…
Reconceptualizing the Global Transformation of Islam in the Colonial Period: Early Islamic Reform in British-Ruled India and Egypt
Between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, European empires extended their rule over most of the Muslim world. The present article argues that these empires promoted three interrelated political discourses; namely, a discourse on utilitarianism, a discourse on civilizational progress, and a discourse on liberal imperialism. The empires also encouraged Islamic reform movements, which entailed cooperation between Muslim thinkers, Eu…
Liberalism's distinctive policy for governing Muslim populations: Human rights, religious reform, and counter‐terrorism from the colonial era until the present
During the colonial era, liberal Western states established vast empires which came to encompass almost all of the world's Muslims. Western states worked out specific methods for governing Muslims, which were often referred to as “Muslim policy”. Recent scholarship on Muslim policy exhibits several key trends. One is expansion of geographical scope, leading scholars to produce more comprehensive global accounts of Muslim policy. Another trend is …
Using Cognitive Science to Reconceptualize Islamic Ethics and “Islamist” Socio-political Movements
Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s)
Islamic Universities in Egypt and Indonesia as Tools of Liberal Governance: How States Use them to Canonize Reformed Versions of Islam
This article examines how liberal states regulate religion through a comparative study of government-run Islamic universities in Egypt and Indonesia. Building on recent historical scholarship, it is argued that, contrary to conventional views, liberal states have frequently endorsed government intervention in religious life – including “authoritarian” repression of disfavored religious beliefs and practices. Liberal interventionist policies were …
Comparing Moralities in the Abrahamic and Indic Religions Using Cognitive Science: Kindness, Peace, and Love versus Justice, Violence, and Hate
Recent cognitive science research indicates that humans possess numerous biologically rooted religious and moral intuitions. The present article draws on this research to compare forms of religious morality in the Abrahamic traditions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam) and the Indic traditions (Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism). Special attention is given to moral teachings on kindness, peace, and love, as well as related teachings on justice, violence, a…
Sociology (15 works) · Islam (12 works) · Philosophy (12 works) · Political science (12 works) · Law (11 works) · Theology (10 works) · Law (9 works) · Education and Islamic Studies (8 works) · Philosophy (8 works) · Epistemology (7 works)