In Ecotheology and Love: The Converging Poetics of Sohrab Sepehri and James Baldwin, Bahar Davary points to the interrelation of religion, poetry, and ecology from a comparative perspective with an emphasis on decoloniality. This work shows how authors Sohrab Seperhi and James Baldwin sought social justice by building their work on love and an authentic way of knowing the world based on an interconnected knowledge of the self. The layers of depth in Sepehri and Baldwin's works and their immediacy for our time has yet to be fully understood, but through Ecotheology and Love, Davary takes a significant step towards achieving such a fuller understanding.
Bahar Davary is professor of religious studies and affiliate faculty of the Ethnic Studies and Asian Studies Departments at the University of San Diego. She is author of Women and the Qur'an: A Study in Islamic Hermeneutics.
Chapter 1. Love: A Way of Knowing and Being in Islamic Contemplative Tradition Chapter 2. Ecopoetics of a Persian Poet: Beyond Nature Poetry Chapter 3. Ecotheology and Ecojustice: Beyond The Green Expanse Chapter 4. Poetry, Politics, Social Justice, and Resistance
"Bahar Davary's Ecotheology and Love is a profound meditation on nature mysticism in the context of Islam. Davary explores the rich imagination of a supremely gifted poet, mystic, and painter, the Iranian Sohrab Sepehri, through a rich dialogue with Baldwin, as well as the Qur'an and other Muslim luminaries. In the process we learn not only about the sanctity of nature, but the very process of a deep and meaningful interreligious engagement far beyond the superficiality of so much of current 'interfaith dialogue.' Highly recommended!" -- Omid Safi, Duke University "While focusing on ecotheological issues, Davary does a splendid job in highlighting Sepehri and Baldwin's advocacy for resistance 'from below,' ushering in the primacy of the lesser-heard voices. Highly recommended for those interested in post-colonial studies, environmental ethics, comparative theology, and interfaith dialogue." -- Edmund Chia, Australian Catholic University, author of Asian Christianity and Theology (2022) and World Christianity Encounters World Religions "We owe Dr. Bahar Davary a big debt of gratitude for making the Hasht Ketab and the Blue Room essays of the Iranian poet Sohrab Sepehri available to those of us who do not read Farsi. Davary makes it clear that Sepehri's poetry is neither love nor religious poetry, yet by connecting him to James Baldwin, she unveils Sepehri's profound message about love and the care for the Earth. Through a brilliant interpretation of Sepehri's poetry, Davary touches our minds and hearts as we face the existential threat to our common home." -- Peter C. Phan, Georgetown University
