Mahmoud Haidar

Thinker, Researcher, and Philosopher

Dr. Mahmoud Haidar is a Lebanese thinker, researcher, and philosopher in the fields of philosophy, theology, theoretical Sufism, comparative religions, and critique of Western thought. He holds a PhD in Philosophy and serves as a visiting professor at Arab and international universities and scholarly institutions. He is currently the president of the Delta Center for Journalism and In-Depth Research and the editor-in-chief of the quarterly Al-Istighrab (Occidentalism). He is also the founder and director of Dar al-Ru'ya for Publishing and Distribution (since 1986), the former editor-in-chief of the journal Madarat Gharbiyya (Beirut–Paris, 2004–2009), and a scholarly advisor to several research centers and universities in Lebanon and the Arab world. His areas of specialization include the critique of Western modernity, political philosophy, theoretical mysticism, comparative theology, and projects such as "ʿIlm al-Mabdaʾ" (Meta-Metaphysics) and the critique of Western reason. Among his important works are: Lāhūt al-Ghalaba (The Theology of Dominance: The Religious Foundation of American Political Philosophy, 2009) Al-Ḥikma al-Bāligha fī al-Ḥikma al-Mutaʿāliya (The Qur'an in Mulla Sadra's Philosophy, 2017) Mafhūm al-Dawla (The Concept of the State, 2017) Mā Baʿd al-ʿIlmāniyya (Post-Secularism, 2019) Al-Faqīh al-Aʿlā (The Supreme Jurist: A Study in the Theory of the Seal of Sufi Wilaya, 2014) Naqd al-ʿAql al-Adnā (Critique of the Lower Reason, 2024) and dozens of other books and articles in Arabic, French, and English. He has participated in numerous international conferences on philosophy, interfaith dialogue, Sufism, and political thought, and focuses on projects related to reverse Orientalism (al-Istishrāq al-Muḍādd) and the critique of the West from within.