M. Mehdi Ali – Medium

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M. Mehdi Ali

Najaf, Karbala, Kufa — Bookstore Itinerary

As an avid book collector, I am often asked why I bother to pay money for books when most texts can be easily found for free online. Or…

12 min readApr 25, 2023

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Najaf, Karbala, Kufa — Bookstore Itinerary

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M. Mehdi Ali

Beirut Bookstore Itinerary

To travel to a new place in search of books is one of life’s most delightful pleasures. There is great joy in perusing the shelves of a…

11 min readMay 30, 2023

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Beirut Bookstore Itinerary

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M. Mehdi Ali

Riyadh Bookstore Itinerary

Riyadh is one of the world’s most underrated destinations for book-traveling and book-buying.

12 min readDec 22, 2023

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Riyadh Bookstore Itinerary

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M. Mehdi Ali

Finding Tabatabai in Azerbaijan

Whenever I travel to a new country, I am always most interested in visiting local, independently-owned bookshops, because they preserve a…

7 min readJun 19, 2023

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Finding Tabatabai in Azerbaijan

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M. Mehdi Ali

Pursuing a PhD in Islamic Studies in the West

The Western approach to the study of religion, as a critical discipline that needs to be explored and interrogated, is rarely understood…

7 min readJul 5, 2023

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Pursuing a PhD in Islamic Studies in the West

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M. Mehdi Ali

A Beginner’s Guide to Hawza Studies: A Compilation of English-Language Resources

When I posted some pictures last week of English-language resources for people interested in Hawza/Shi‘i studies, I was overwhelmed by the…

28 min readFeb 9, 2024

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A Beginner’s Guide to Hawza Studies: A Compilation of English-Language Resources

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M. Mehdi Ali

Inheriting Books from the Personal Library of Gustave E. Von Grunebaum

Even before setting foot in his library, I knew that this was a scholar who had spent a lifetime procuring books that would be difficult to

12 min readFeb 4, 2024

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Inheriting Books from the Personal Library of Gustave E. Von Grunebaum

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M. Mehdi Ali

Makkah Bookstore Itinerary

Makkah, the holiest city in Islam, is a haven for books in the classical Islamic sciences.

7 min readJan 1, 2024

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Makkah Bookstore Itinerary

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M. Mehdi Ali

Madina Bookstore Itinerary

To visit al-Madina al-Munawwara, the City of the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.), is to return home for the believing Muslim. It is a city built…

8 min readDec 25, 2023

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Madina Bookstore Itinerary

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M. Mehdi Ali

Istanbul: The Beauty of Religious Architecture

There is something profoundly beautiful about visiting a mosque in Istanbul, the city of a thousand minarets.

3 min readJul 9, 2023

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Istanbul: The Beauty of Religious Architecture

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M. Mehdi Ali

M. Mehdi Ali

M. Mehdi Ali is a PhD candidate in Religion at USC , a former Fulbright Scholar in Jordan, an alum of Stanford Law , and a bookshop essayist

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