“You say that this society will come to an end, because societies always have done so. I wonder whether they have ended because they were not really societies at all.”

Afghan author, thinker, and teacher, 20th century

Idries Shah, also known as Idris Shah and Indries Shah, was an Afghan author, thinker, and teacher in the Sufi tradition. He wrote in the 20th century and used the pen name Arkon Daraul. He is remembered for work that brought together Sufi teaching, psychology, spirituality, travel writing, and cultural studies. Shah wrote more than three dozen books across those fields, moving between reflective, practical, and exploratory subjects. His work often connects inner life with broader questions of culture and belief, which is why he is read both as a spiritual writer and as an interpreter of ideas and traditions.