Iran's clerical state and modern medicine in the age of Covid-19
Iran's clerical state and modern medicine in the age of Covid-19
The Covid-19 pandemic starkly exposed the limits of modern medicine, prompting renewed interest in alternative therapeutic traditions. In Iran, modern medicine gained prominence in the early twentieth century as a result of institutional reforms and educational modernisation, becoming a key symbol of state-led modernity. After the February 1979 Revolution, however, the newly established Islamist regime revived traditional medicine as part of its ideological project and as a marker of political identity and legitimacy. Yet, as the state consolidated its authority, modern medicine — alongside other strategically significant sciences and technologies such as nuclear research, missile development, and nanotechnology — became an essential instrument of state power. This shift acquired particular relevance in light of the clerical state’s expanding regional ambitions, crystallised in its efforts to build a Shi‘i sphere of influence across the Middle East. By examining the tension between the ideological revival of traditional medicine and the practical elevation of modern medicine, this chapter reflects on how material and existential conditions (ontology) shape and constrain the production of knowledge (epistemology).
Medicine, Clerical state, power, science, folk/religious medicine
112-137
Ebrahimnejad, Hormoz
50cc6b3c-c322-46e8-b735-2be331cdc9ea
28 October 2025
Ebrahimnejad, Hormoz
50cc6b3c-c322-46e8-b735-2be331cdc9ea
Ebrahimnejad, Hormoz
(2025)
Iran's clerical state and modern medicine in the age of Covid-19.
In,
O’Brien-Kop, Karen and Newcombe, Suzanne
(eds.)
Religion, Spirituality, and Public Health: Competing and Complementary Epistemes.
(Proceedings of the British Academy)
London-Liverpool.
The British Academy, .
(doi:10.2307/jj.31510241.12).
Record type:
Book Section
Abstract
The Covid-19 pandemic starkly exposed the limits of modern medicine, prompting renewed interest in alternative therapeutic traditions. In Iran, modern medicine gained prominence in the early twentieth century as a result of institutional reforms and educational modernisation, becoming a key symbol of state-led modernity. After the February 1979 Revolution, however, the newly established Islamist regime revived traditional medicine as part of its ideological project and as a marker of political identity and legitimacy. Yet, as the state consolidated its authority, modern medicine — alongside other strategically significant sciences and technologies such as nuclear research, missile development, and nanotechnology — became an essential instrument of state power. This shift acquired particular relevance in light of the clerical state’s expanding regional ambitions, crystallised in its efforts to build a Shi‘i sphere of influence across the Middle East. By examining the tension between the ideological revival of traditional medicine and the practical elevation of modern medicine, this chapter reflects on how material and existential conditions (ontology) shape and constrain the production of knowledge (epistemology).
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EBRAHIMNEJAD-IransClericalState-2025
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Published date: 28 October 2025
Keywords:
Medicine, Clerical state, power, science, folk/religious medicine
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Local EPrints ID: 507576
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/507576
PURE UUID: e5ea3af3-b7d2-421b-8072-f06e5a3346a3
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Date deposited: 12 Dec 2025 17:45
Last modified: 12 Dec 2025 17:45
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Contributors
Editor:
Karen O’Brien-Kop
Editor:
Suzanne Newcombe
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