Jawanmardi

In this book Lloyd Ridgeon of Glasgow University presents in translation three treatises, all in Persian, concerning jawanmardi or social chivalry, a movement that has an important place in the spiritual and social culture of Islam. These complement Dr Ridgeon’s monograph, Morals and Mysticism in Persian Sufism: a History of Sufi-futuwwat in Iran, which draws on these and other futuwwah texts. Jawanmardi is the Persian equivalent of the Arabic term futuwwah and shares the same conceptual link with youthful spontaneous generosity and altruism. Despite the subtitles of both books, the interest and significance of this material is by no means confined to the domain of Sufism.

In the introduction to Jawanmardi, Ridgeon summarises some of the content of his earlier book: the nature and ideology of the early Islamic futuwwah movements; their links with merchants, artisans and manual workers; and questions regarding the role of women, the links with Sunnis and Shi[is; and the claim of some Iranians that the origins of futuwwah are to be found wholly within the Persianate world. Lastly, he explains that the three texts included in the present book were selected partly with a view to representing the movement as manifested in various different regions and historical periods. This reviewer would recommend anyone interested in the social and ethical dimensions of Islam to peruse at least these fifteen opening pages.