The CEO of the Islamic Research Foundation cited the objectives of the event as clarifying various aspects of pilgrimage theology, expanding interdisciplinary discussions in the field, paving the way for interfaith dialogue between Islam and other religions from a pilgrimage perspective, and talking about capacities, benefits and vulnerabilities in this respect.

“The scientific secretariat of the event has taken the initiative to run some 30 preliminary sessions, both online and in person, in Persian, Arabic and English languages to better pave the way for a larger researchers’ turnout. Therefore, a trilingual website has been launched to introduce the objectives and topics of the conference”, added Ahad Faramarz Gharamaleki.

Some of the topics of the event include pilgrimage and religious concepts, interdisciplinary study of pilgrimage theology, pilgrimage in different religions and cultures, pilgrimage and intercultural relations, etc.

The head of the foundation also announced that negotiations were under way with universities and university lecturers abroad, expressing hope that “the conference can pave the way for Imam Reza shrine to expand relationships with the scientific community of the country”.

The conference will be held in Oct-Nov 2023 in the city of Mashhad. The deadline to submit abstracts will be July 6, and Sept. 21 will be the deadline for the submissions.