Fundamental Principles for Criteria of Religiosity in Islamic Thought

The criteria that are now used in psychology of religion for the assessment of how deep an individual or a society is religious were obtained on the basis of cultural principles and humanities of the West and though they are deployed worldwide, there is no justification for applying them to Islamic society of Iran for discovering the religiosity status of individuals. By examining the reality of religiosity and enumerating some necessary principles to be observed, this article attempts to make steps in explaining the criteria for religiosity in proportion to Islamic thought.Among important elements that need to be considered are: 1) necessity of distinction between religion and religiosity; 2) direct relation between religiosity and happiness; 3) reality of faith (iman) its fundamental status in religiosity; 4) enjoyment of most people of a degree of religiosity; 5) due attention to a variety of religiosity; 6) central place of intention in religiosity; 7) excellence of esoteric manifestations of religiosity in comparison with its exoteric ones; 8) necessity of taking account of individual situation in critical conditions; 9) submission by heart before God as essence of religiosity.