Panel: HIKMA 2.0? ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVES ON TRANSHUMANISM, NEUROTECHNOLOGY, AND AI IN THE ANTHROPOCENE



289.2 - TRANSHUMANIST RE-READING OF ALI SHARIATI'S POLITICAL THEOLOGY

AUTHORS:
Hashemi M. (university of Nottingham ~ Nottingham ~ United Kingdom)
Text:
This article offers a transhumanist reinterpretation of the political theology of Iranian revolutionary intellectual Ali Shariati, situated at the dawn of a new technological era. As the concept of human enhancement rapidly transitions from science fiction to the innovation labs of Silicon Valley and Shenzhen, emerging technologies raise profound theological questions. In the context of shifting global power dynamics, these questions inevitably take on a political dimension. Within this framework, Shariati's thought and his role in shaping political movements across the Muslim world, particularly within Shia communities, becomes especially relevant. This article proposes a technologically informed reading of Shariati's political theology and outlines key questions that such a project must address.