Laleh Bakhtiar

Laleh Bakhtiar holds a BA in History from Chatham College, Masters degrees in Philosophy and Counseling Psychology and a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of New Mexico. Bakhtiar is a Licensed Professional Psychotherapist in the State of Illinois. She also taught courses on Islam at the University of Chicago. She is co-author of A Sense of Unity: The Sufi Tradition in Persian Architecture (University of Chicago Press) and author of SUFI Expressions of the Mystic Quest (Thames and Hudson), as well as a three volume work, God’s Will Be Done, on Moral Healing and some 15 other books on various aspects of Islam.

Bakhtiar is the leading authority on spiritual chivalry, most clearly expressed in the Sufi Enneagram, also known as the Greater Struggle. She has also translated over 30 books on Islam and the Islamic movement into English.

Bakhtiar is the first woman to present a critical translation the Quran in any language. In her Sublime Quran translation she interprets the controversial verse that has lead to domestic violence in the Islamic community to the way the Prophet understood it. Instead of husbands being allowed to beat their wives, she translates: “husbands should go away,” let the anger subside and then consult with one another.

Her translation has been introduced into evidence in child custody cases in the United States to counteract Muslim husbands saying that their religion allows them to beat their wives and is available for free viewing on www.islamawakened.com as well as having been chosen by HRH Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad of Jordan to appear on his website, www.altafsir.com for the 6 million+ visitors to his website.

Bakhtiar is presently Director of the Institute of Traditional Psychology and Resident Scholar at Kazi Publications.