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NEW AGE AND ISLAMIC ESOTERICISM IN EURASIA

Historically, Eurasia includes several Muslim-majority regions with a vibrant Islamic spiritual tradition that developed despite strict laïcité policies during the Soviet era. On the other hand, Islamic esotericism also informed esoteric currents in the late Russian Empire and the USSR, as evidenced by George I. Gurdjieff’s teachings and the Fourth Way circles, as well as by the reciprocal influence of popular Central Asian Sufism on the Soviet esoteric milieu.

The development of Sufism in the West, including Neo-Sufism and entangled practices, has been studied in academia for decades, yielding hundreds of articles and books. By contrast, similar developments in Eurasia have not yet been problematized or sufficiently studied. Some recent research is beginning to fill the gap (e.g., Sufism after the USSR, edited by Igor Pankov, Sergei Abashin, and Alexander Knysh in 2022), but much more remains to be done in this regard.

Therefore, taking advantage of the opportunity provided by the New Age in Eurasia online academic forum, we initiate a blog post series focused on esoteric currents in Eurasia informed by Islamicate traditions, i.e., inspired by Islam but distinct from the religion of Islam itself.

The Guest Editor Oleg Yarosh and the Editors of the blog invite authors whose texts address entangled esoteric teachings and practices aimed at predicting, controlling, or transforming contingent life events (CAS-E), encompassing Islamic and Western esotericism and contextualized within local sociocultural milieus. These include, but are not limited to, meditative practices, artistic expressions, pilgrimages, spiritual healing, divination, and encounters with non-human agents.

We look forward to learning how practitioners in the region rationalize, legitimize, and interpret these practices; what role human and non-human agency play in their development; and how their efficacy is established. This is an academic challenge that requires competence in both traditional Islamic spirituality and modern esotericism.

In conclusion, we hope that this blog series will promote further research in this area and, through collaborative efforts, help establish modern Islamic esotericism in Eurasia as a recognized subject in scholarly studies.

REFERENCES

Center for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences and the Humanities Alternative Rationalities and Esoteric Practices in a Global Perspective (CAS-E). https://cas-e.de/about-us/project-outline/line. Accessed January 05, 2026.

[Pankov, Abashin, and Knysh] Игорь Панков, Сергей Абашин, Александр Кныш (ред.) Суфизм после СССР. Москва: Фонд Марджани, Фонд «Аль-Макам», 2022.

Banner Image: ©Rick Rothenberg

Oleg Yarosh, PhD, associate professor, is an associated scholar at the DFG Center for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences and the Humanities Alternative Rationalities and Esoteric Practices in a Global Perspective (CAS-E) at FAU Erlangen-Nuremberg.

Neo-Sufi Communities in Modern Kazakhstan: ALIF School of Harmonious Development 

by Aygerim Temirbayeva


OpenEdition suggests that you cite this post as follows:
Oleg Yarosh (January 20, 2026). NEW AGE AND ISLAMIC ESOTERICISM IN EURASIA. New Age in Eurasia. Retrieved May 18, 2026 from https://doi.org/10.58079/15j20


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1 Response

  1. February 10, 2026

    […] New Age and Islamic Esotericism in Eurasia is a new thematic series of posts at the New Age in Eurasia blog, beginning with the Introduction by Hypotheses guest editor Oleg Yarosh, followed by Neo-Sufi Communities in Modern Kazakhstan by Aygerim Temirbayeva, presumably with more forthcoming, and with an open invitation to participate. […]

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