The world feels like it's in crisis. We live in an age marked by deep anxiety and disorientation, where it often seems that everyone is out for themselves. The moral lessons we were taught in childhood—that kindness matters, that community is sacred, that we are all connected—now feel hopelessly idealistic, even quaint. At worst, they seem like relics of a fairy tale no one believes in anymore.
As adults, we find ourselves in a society that doesn't seem especially caring or communal. We are measured and judged as isolated individuals—through exams we sit alone, performance reviews that magnify our personal wins and failures, and a culture where the most self-interested often rise the highest. It's as if we know, deep down, what an ideal society could look like—but it remains just out of reach, elusive in practice.
A Philosopher’s Answer: Nasir Khusraw and the Universal Soul
At this juncture, I’ve found unexpected solace in the writings of the 11th-century philosopher-poet Nasir Khusraw. His vision of a shared spiritual consciousness—what he called the Universal Soul—offers a radically different way of understanding our place in the world. It suggests not only a deeper source of meaning, but a foundation for imagining a more compassionate and connected society.
Nasir Khusraw was a respected Muslim scholar and jurist living in Central Asia. By all accounts, he led a comfortable and successful life. But at the age of 42, he experienced what we might now call a midlife crisis. He found his life empty of deeper purpose. So, he left everything behind and embarked on a years-long journey in search of truth. After traveling thousands of miles, he arrived in Cairo, capital of the Fatimid Empire, and encountered a body of teachings that transformed his life—and his thoughts.
Nasir Khusraw, generated by Gemini A.I. (2025)
The Inner and Outer: Esoteric Wisdom in Ismaili Thought
The Fatimids practiced a branch of Shia Islam rarely discussed today: Ismailism. Their worldview diverged from the dominant currents of both Sunni and mainstream Shia traditions. At its heart lies the belief that Islam contains both an outer, literal dimension (zahir) and an inner, esoteric dimension (batin). This inner meaning—the eternal spiritual truth beneath the surface of religious forms—is accessible not only through faith, but through intellectual inquiry and contemplative insight. It is a synthesis of reason and revelation, of mind and spirit.
Ismaili thought drew deeply from both Islamic tradition and Greek philosophy, particularly Neoplatonism. Under the guidance of the Ismaili Imam—who also served as the Fatimid Caliph—Nasir Khusraw came to see the universe as a deeply interconnected whole. The visible world, he believed, reflects hidden spiritual realities. At the center of this vision lies a radical idea: that the unity of God is echoed in the inner unity of human beings, through the Universal Soul—a spiritual essence that binds all of creation.
This idea still resonates today, especially within the contemporary Ismaili community. In 2008, during the Golden Jubilee commemorating the 50th anniversary of the 49th Imam's leadership, the following verse from the Qur’an was chosen to appear on the official emblem:
“O mankind! Be mindful of your Lord, who created you from a single soul, and from it created its mate, and through both spread countless men and women...” (Qur’an, Surah An-Nisa, Ayah 1)
This verse reflects not only a biological origin, but a profound spiritual truth: we are rooted in oneness. We are not merely individuals—we are expressions of a deeper, shared soul.
Pluralism is essential for human development
Earlier this year, the 49th Imam, Shah Karim al-Hussaini, passed away. His son, Shah Rahim, now serves as the 50th Imam of the Ismailis. In this role, he oversees a vast network of development agencies, the ADKN, that not only work to improve quality of life, but also to build bridges—literal and metaphorical—between communities, cultures, and faiths.
At the heart of this mission is pluralism: the belief that diversity need not divide us, and that human development is inseparable from our ability to recognize our interconnectedness. True progress, in this vision, depends not just on technology or policy, but on the cultivation of empathy, cooperation, and a sense of shared destiny.
Another verse from the Qur’an deepens this idea:
“Your creation and resurrection is only like that of a single soul. Indeed, Allah is All-Hearing, All-Seeing.” (Qur’an, Surah Luqman, Ayah 28)
In the Ismaili understanding, creation and resurrection are not merely physical events—they are stages in a spiritual journey. These verses evoke the idea that humanity as a whole is engaged in a collective unfolding, a shared path of return to our source. Our individual spiritual efforts are not isolated acts. They contribute to the broader evolution of human consciousness.
Reflections from the East: The Journey of the Birds
We find similar ideas echoed in other spiritual traditions as well. A striking example comes from the 12th-century Persian Sufi poet Fariduddin Attar, whose allegorical masterpiece, The Conference of the Birds, offers a timeless meditation on the spiritual journey.
The poem begins with a gathering of all the birds of the world, each representing a different type of human soul. The birds are restless and uncertain, seeking meaning and longing for guidance. A wise bird—the hoopoe—tells them of a majestic king, the Simurgh, who resides in a distant, hidden land. Inspired, the birds set out together to find this king, hoping he will bring clarity, peace, and purpose to their lives.
But the journey is not easy. To reach the Simurgh, they must cross seven treacherous valleys, each representing a stage of inner transformation: the Valley of the Quest, Love, Knowledge, Detachment, Unity, Bewilderment, and finally, Annihilation of the Self. As the path grows more difficult, many birds turn back, discouraged by fear, doubt, or attachment to worldly comforts.
In the end, only thirty birds complete the journey. Weary but determined, they finally arrive in the land of the Simurgh—only to discover something astonishing: there is no external king waiting to receive them. Instead, when they gaze into a reflective lake, they see their own image staring back. The truth begins to dawn: in Persian, “si” means thirty, and “murgh” means birds. They are the Simurgh. Their long and difficult journey was never about reaching a distant ruler—it was about reconnecting to the divine essence they already shared. The king they sought was not separate from them, but the unity forged through their collective struggle, self-discovery, and transformation.
Just like Nasir Khusraw’s vision of the Universal Soul, Attar’s tale invites us to see beyond individual ego and separateness, and toward a deeper spiritual unity that binds all of existence.
Reflections from the West: Exodus and Ethical Becoming
A similar message is found in the story of the Exodus in the Hebrew Bible, where the Israelites wander the desert for forty years. But this is more than a physical migration; it is a process of moral and spiritual transformation. The people move from oppression to covenant, from fear to faith, from idolatry to divine law. Their salvation does not come simply through escape from Egypt, but through becoming a people bound by shared purpose and sacred responsibility.
In these and many other stories, we find the central idea that spiritual liberation is both communal and deeply personal. The transformation of society is inseparable from the transformation of the self.
Ethics of Interconnection: Inner Change, Outer Action
This leads us to another key implication: ethics. In a world where everything is interconnected, ethics is not just about laws or obligations—it is about responsibility to the whole. Each of us, as individuals, shares in the moral and spiritual evolution of our society. Wherever possible, we must raise awareness, speak up for the voiceless, and advocate for the well-being of others. Our inner work must ripple outward.
This idea is expressed with clarity in the Qur’an:
“Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.” (Surah Ar-Ra’d, Ayat 11)
The liberation of a people, then, is not merely a matter of politics or economics—it is rooted in the inner work of individuals. A society transforms only when its members commit to the refinement of their own souls. This transformation begins with disciplining the nafs (self or ego) and expresses itself through ethical action.
Across Time and Culture: A Shared Moral Insight
The moral urgency of this interconnected view has not been lost on people across cultures and eras. In his Letter from Birmingham Jail, Martin Luther King Jr. writes:
“In a real sense all life is interrelated. All men are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be, and you can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be. This is the inter-related structure of reality.”
Centuries earlier, the Persian poet Saadi expressed this same truth in his poem Bani Adam:
“Human beings are limbs of one another,
Created from the same essence.
When one limb is afflicted with pain,
The others cannot rest.”
Even in a secular context, Albert Einstein reflected on this profound unity:
“A human being is part of the whole, called by us ‘universe,’ a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts, and feelings as something separated from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness.”
In another letter, Einstein elaborated on the ethical dimension of this insight:
“A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.”
Introspections of a Genius
For Einstein, ethics are not born from fear of Hell or desire for Paradise, but from a sacred responsibility to one another—grounded in our shared condition and our capacity for empathy. This ethical bond is not merely sentimental or social; it is metaphysical. It is woven into the very fabric of reality. Even when we cannot trace the causes and consequences, the suffering of another—no matter how distant—somehow resonates within us. We may not understand how a child starving in a forgotten corner of the world touches our lives, but in some deeper, mysterious way, it does.
Toward the Future: A Vision for Further Exploration
The intersection between the idea of an interconnected world and the scientific worldview is a rich and compelling topic—one that, inshallah, I hope to explore in a future installment of this essay series. In particular, the pursuit of a unified framework for explaining all physical phenomena (a.k.a. The Theory of Everything) offers fascinating parallels with the spiritual and metaphysical themes discussed here.
Another topic that calls for reflection is the relationship between interconnectedness and the hard-won ideals of the European Enlightenment—such as individual merit, creative self-expression, and the inalienable right of people to pursue happiness. These are among the most liberating ideas humanity has produced. The challenge is not to discard them, but to understand how they might harmonize with a deeper sense of mutual responsibility and shared destiny. This too, I hope to explore in a future essay.
Finally, we can probe the question of religious institutions; what is their role in all of this, if any? Was Einstein right when he said that no religious base is necessary for the understanding of ethical behavior? This topic also deserves an essay.
Conclusion: The Soul of Society is the Soul of the Self
In Nasir Khusraw’s thought, every individual soul is not an isolated entity but a living part of the Universal Soul—a larger, unified reality striving toward perfection. This metaphysical idea has profound social implications. It means that our personal growth is not merely private or spiritual—it is communal, cosmic, and necessary.
In this view, society is not transformed from the top down—by ideology, legislation, or charismatic leaders alone. Nor is it reshaped purely by economic systems or technological innovation. It is transformed from the inside out—by the ethical and spiritual striving of individual souls.
This is not a rejection of politics or leadership. We need laws, institutions, and shared visions. But none of these can replace the quiet, daily work of inner refinement—cleansing the ego, expanding compassion, and aligning the self with truth. Without that foundation, even the best systems become hollow.
Nasir Khusraw’s philosophy reminds us that we cannot outsource our moral responsibilities to savior figures. We cannot wait for someone else to fix the world while neglecting the state of our own soul. Each of us plays a role in the unfolding perfection of the Universal Soul.
Acknowledgment
Portions of this essay were developed with the assistance of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, a language model trained on a wide range of texts. The ideas expressed in this essay are my own, as are the final interpretations, selections, and conclusions.
Thanks for sharing. Very enlightening post!
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