The Wandering Idealists: Hippies in Iran and the Clash of Countercultures
In the kaleidoscope of social revolutions that defined the 1960s and 1970s, the hippie movement stands out as both deeply impactful and inherently paradoxical. Rooted in the idealistic rejection of mainstream Western materialism and war, the movement sought spiritual enlightenment, communal living, artistic freedom, and often psychedelic experience. Originating from college campuses and bohemian enclaves in the United States, it quickly spilled into other parts of the world, including Canada, the United Kingdom, and further afield — to the Middle East, South Asia, and beyond. The journey eastward was both symbolic and literal: hippies sought new cultural horizons, often driven by a fascination with Eastern philosophies such as Buddhism, Hinduism, and Sufism.
According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, “A hippie was a member of the countercultural movement of the 1960s and 1970s that rejected the values and norms of mainstream American life.” The term itself derived from “hip,” a descriptor of the Beat Generation of the 1950s, whose members — like Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac — paved the way for the hippie ethos through their literary and social experiments. While politically active counterparts like the “Yippies” confronted power through protest and satire, hippies often pursued change through introspection, art, altered states, and disengagement from conventional society.