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ABSTRACT
Besila is a paradisical setting in the Kushnameh, an early twelfth-century Persian epic that combines the ancient Iranian messianic legend of Kangdez with more recent geographical knowledge, based on travelers' reports, of China and Korea. Besila's messianic role in the narrative, its antipodal location, and its quasi-fictional status are quintessentially utopian, and yet little is revealed about the society of Besila. The Kushnameh instead emphasizes the means by which paradises are formed, including the rational origins of Besila's monotheistic creed, organic growth, translatio imperii, travel, and geographical knowledge. The Kushnameh's vision of universal monotheism anticipates the story of Hayy ibn Yaqzan, a later utopia with important connections to the development of Islamic political theory. The case of Besila thus suggests that the early modern genre of utopia has deep roots in the medieval discourse of travel and travelers.

ᶜAli Akbar Khatāyi's Khatāynāmeh (Book of China), a detailed description of state and society in Ming China written in 922/1516, includes citations from the Kanz al-Haqāyeq (attributed to Mahmud Shabestari) and ᶜAttār's Elāhināmeh. By citing these two texts at key points in his description of the Chinese government, Khatāyi articulates a radical political vision in which the civil officials, rather than the emperor, are the true rulers. Furthermore, by using the Kanz al-Haqāyeq as a portal text, and through frequent citations of other gnostic poetry, he crafts his own authorial presence by identifying his own text with fotovvat and gnosticism, and invokes a conceptual framework based on the thought of Ibn ᶜArabi epitomized in his intertexts.

The Khatay'namah, or Book of China, a description of Chinese government and society in the mid-Ming period, written by a Central Asian merchant and presented to the Ottoman court in 1516, is evidence that the advent of more rationalized, centralized, and bureaucratic forms of governance in Ming China played a significant role in political developments in the Islamic world. The political ideology of the Ming founder, combining bureaucratic absolutism with a kind of populism that emphasized a direct connection between ruler and subjects, would see a close parallel in the Ottoman Empire in the reign of Suleyman I (1520–66). The Chinese near contemporary of Suleyman, the Zhengde emperor (1505–21), promoted his reign as a continuation of the Mongol Empire, called himself by the title Sheikh `Alam, and took other measures that engendered speculation of his conversion to Islam. This and other developments in China, including construction of the Great Wall in the late fifteenth century, resonated with millenarian beliefs in the Islamic world. The Khatay'namah's description of China evokes millenarian, utopian ideals but also demystifies China's prosperity, which it attributes to the Chinese people's assiduous adherence to law and system, or qanun. This account of China reflects the importance of cross-border trade, the military, and Muslim Chinese communities as sites of encounter between the Islamic world and the Chinese state. The text's rhetorical strategy of emphasizing similarities between China and the Ottoman Empire may be a reflection of early attempts by Muslim Chinese to negotiate a distinct Chinese Islamic identity.

A survey of Iran's current economic problems and political constraints upon the regime. The problems of rents, food prices and the black market as well as of the war are seen as the real time-bombs for the mullahs. Interesting details about the development of Iranian trade with Eastern Europe as well as with the Far East and with Latin America. On the other hand 30 per cent of optimum production is quoted as being the present average industrial output in Iran. (DÜI-Asd)

Background: Policymakers require a systematic approach when planning for information technology needs in healthcare. Objective: The aim of this study was to obtain experts' predictions of future health information technology (HIT) needs until 2025 for Iran in relation to the relative importance of key technologies, expected timeframe of realisation, areas that may be impacted upon and obstacles to achieving these goals. Method: This article presents results from the third phase (a Delphi study) of a larger mixed-method study. Policymakers from the Iranian Ministry of Health and faculty members from different medical universities across the country who were expert in the field of HIT were invited to participate ( n = 61). Results: Participants (39) completed the first-round questionnaire and 24 completed the second. The development of personal health records ( n = 32, 82.0%), the development of clinical decision-making systems ( n = 30, 76.9%) and the use of business intelligence for collecting and analysing clinical and financial data ( n = 32, 82.0%) were predicted to occur after 2025. The healthcare areas predicted to experience the greatest impact from most HITs were facilitating patient–provider communication and improving healthcare quality. Key barriers to achieving HITs were related to weaknesses in planning and limited financial resources for most technologies. Conclusion: By identifying the areas of impact and the barriers to achieving the HIT goals, more accurate planning is possible and resources can be allocated according to priorities.