On November 14, Khalil Andani (PhD Candidate, Harvard University) will present his research paper, “From Divine Diversity to the Single Soul: The Aga Khan’s Vision of Pluralism”, at Boston University’s Conference on Religious Diversity.
Khalil’s presentation takes place two days after Mawlana Hazar Imam is scheduled to deliver the Jodidi Lecture at Harvard University. The full conference schedule is available here and Khalil’s presentation will be in Room 325 1:30 PM: www.eventbrite.com/e/conference-on-religious-diversity-conflict-cooperation-and-creolization-tickets-17360031321
From Divine Diversity to the Single Soul: The Aga Khan’s Vision of Pluralism (Abstract)
While recent media coverage portrays Islam as a faith in crisis, the pioneering efforts of modern Muslim leaders such as His Highness the Aga Khan, the forty-ninth hereditary Imam of the Shia Ismaili Muslims, tend to escape public attention. Nevertheless, various academic institutions, states and international organizations recognize the Aga Khan as a champion of pluralism and cosmopolitan ethics: he is the Chairman of the Aga Khan Development Network and has received 21 honorary degrees, 16 civic honours, and has delivered over 70 high profile keynote addresses including a recent address to the Parliament of Canada. This study examines how the Aga Khan’s vision of pluralism and cosmopolitan ethics are rooted in his interpretation of Islam. The Imam’s conception of pluralism is predicated upon the inseparability of Faith (din) and World (dunya), a theology of “monorealism” that emphasizes the absolute transcendence of God and His continuous manifestation through the diversity of creation, and the unity of humankind as the product of a single soul created by God. Pluralism is both a personal orientation and a civic process that embraces religious, cultural and ethnic diversity against forces that threaten to homogenize human particularities, such as secularism, fundamentalism and tribalism. Pluralism balances the universal and the particular, appreciating diversity as a blessing from God and an opportunity for human beings to attain self-knowledge; a pluralistic ethos is rooted in a sense of humility and awareness of one’s creature-hood in the face of the Divine. The Imam’s vision of pluralism calls for the establishment of “cosmopolitan ethics” – a value system rooted in the ethical and spiritual dimensions of the human “quality of life” and predicated upon multiple faiths, which balances rights and duties, universal principles and particular values.
Khalil Andani is a doctoral (Ph.D) candidate specializing in Islamic intellectual history, theology, philosophy, and mysticism at Harvard University and holds a Master of Theological Studies degree (MTS 2014), specializing in Islamic philosophy and Ismaili thought, from Harvard University. Khalil’s publications include a book chapter on Nasir-i Khusraw’s philosophical thought in the forthcoming Oxford Handbook of Islamic Philosophy, a Review Article, two articles on Ismaili Philosophy in Sacred Web, and an article on Ismaili views of the Crucifixion of Jesus in The Matheson Trust. He was recently interviewed on CBC Radio about the the Aga Khan Museum.
He is also a Chartered Professional Accountant (CA-CPA) and has completed Bachelor of Mathematics (BMath) and Master of Accounting degrees at the University of Waterloo (2008). Over the last few years, Khalil has been invited to deliver several guest lectures and conference presentations on various topics pertaining to Islamic thought and Ismaili philosophy.
