In order for answers to become clear, the questions have to be clear.

About Abdolkarim Soroush

Abdolkarim SoroushPersian pronunciation: [aebdolkaeri:m soru:S]), born Hossein Haj Faraj Dabbagh (born 16 December 1945; Persian: Hsyn Hj frj dbG), is an Iranian Islamic thinker, reformer, Rumi scholar, public intellectual, and a former professor of philosophy at the University of Tehran. He is among the most influential figures in the religious intellectual movement of Iran.

More about the author

More quotes from Abdolkarim Soroush

We coin concepts and we use them to analyse and explain nature and society. But we seem to forget, midway, that these concepts are our own constructs and start equating them with reality.

Abdolkarim Soroush

Iranian philosopher

In order for answers to become clear, the questions have to be clear.

Abdolkarim Soroush

Iranian philosopher

People first concern themselves with meeting their basic needs; only afterwards, do they pursue any higher needs.

Abdolkarim Soroush

Iranian philosopher

If a group of people feels that it has been humiliated and that its honour has been trampled underfoot, it will want to express its identity and this expression of an identity will take different shapes and forms.

Abdolkarim Soroush

Iranian philosopher

Establishing an equilibrium between the Islam of truth and Islam as an identity is one of the most difficult tasks of religious intellectuals.

Abdolkarim Soroush

Iranian philosopher

We must break problems down into small, digestible bits. We must define the concepts that we use and explain what components they consist of. We must tackle small problems.

Abdolkarim Soroush

Iranian philosopher

Energy is a concept that has been coined by physicists. There is no observable thing known as energy anywhere.

Abdolkarim Soroush

Iranian philosopher

As a result of the awareness and consciousness of decline, an awareness and consciousness of a national ethnicity or an Islamic identity also came into being.

Abdolkarim Soroush

Iranian philosopher

In many of the things that people do, they themselves are the centre of attention, but they inscribe some other name on their banner.

Abdolkarim Soroush

Iranian philosopher