A Comparative Study of "Forbearance" in the Iranian Tradition with the Modern Concept of "Tolerance"

The concept of tolerance, as a cornerstone of multicultural and modern societies, has always been a central issue in political science. This article examines whether the concept of “tolerance” in the Iranian tradition has the same characteristics and functions as modern “tolerance” – as a political-legal term. The importance of this research lies in its ability to reduce misconceptions resulting from the inaccurate application of modern concepts to historical societies and to provide a deeper understanding of the mechanisms of tolerance and coexistence in the Iranian tradition. The main question of the article is what are the differences and similarities between the pre-modern concept of “tolerance” in Iranian culture, compared to the modern concept of “tolerance”. This research uses an analytical-comparative method and relies on primary sources and historical-literary studies to analyze these two concepts. The research findings show that the concept of “tolerance” in the Iranian tradition, although it has similarities with modern “tolerance”, has unique characteristics that arise from the specific cultural and historical contexts of Iran. In particular, this research shows that the Iranian tradition, without relying on the modern concept of “tolerance”, has been able to create successful mechanisms for managing diversity and difference, which were based on ethics, custom, and expediency. These findings can play an important role in studies related to Iranian identity and cultural interactions in the world today.