Ayn al-Qudat’s Tamhidat: An Ocean of Sufi Metaphysics in Persian

Edited by Mohammed Rustom

Abstract:

“Readers of William Chittick and Sachiko Murata’s writings often note their unique ability to discern and effectively communicate the visions of reality animating the various texts in Islamic thought that they study. This is surely because they do not see these works as mere repositories of ideas that make no demands on those who engage with them. Rather, they are akin to shoreless oceans inviting onlookers to plunge in, provided they have no hope of returning. In keeping with this characterization, and as a tribute to our beloved teachers and friends, in this article we would like to offer a drop from one of the deepest of these oceans belonging to the pre-modern period”

Ayn_al_Qudats_Tamhidat_An_Ocean_of_SufiDownload

The Spirituality of the Sufi Path – William C. Chittick

ABSTRACT:

I understand Sufism as a dimension of  the Islamic tradition that stresses the need to undergo spiritual transformation. Those who wanted to achieve transformation typically undertook specific practices and disciplines known as the Ṭarīqa (al-ṭarīqa), “the Path,” one of the words by which Sufism was commonly designated. Many guides on the Ṭarīqa never put pen to paper and were remembered only because of  their influence on contemporaries or later generations. Others entered into the ranks of  the most prolific authors of Islamic history. The primary literature is vast and extends into the modern period, with many Sufi teachers active today (Chittick 2000). Any attempt to survey the major branches of  the Ṭarīqa, not to speak of  the famous authors, would go far beyond the bounds allotted to this chapter. I can only hope to describe in barest terms the theory and practice of  the Sufi path as explained in classical texts.

Interview with Haris Dubravac on the occasion of Rumi’s death day

The Spiritual Meanings of the Hajj – Dr. Zafer Mian

Abstract :

“And [remember] when We assigned for Abraham the place of the House, [saying], “Ascribe no partners unto Me, and purify My House for those who circumambulate, and those who stand, and those who bow and prostrate. And proclaim the hajj among mankind: they shall come to thee on foot and upon all [manner of] lean beast, coming from all deep and distant mountain highways, that they may witness benefits for them and mention the name of God, during known days, over the four-legged cattle He has provided them. So eat thereof, and feed the wretched poor. Then let them be done with their untidiness, and fulfill their vows, and circumambulate the Ancient House.” (The Study Quran – Nasr, 2017)”

“Ḥāl (State) in Sufism,” Encyclopedia of Islam Three (Brill)

“White Death: Ibn ‘Arabi on the Trials and Virtues of Hunger and Fasting,” Journal of the American Oriental Society 141, no. 3 (2021): 577-586. – Atif Khalil

Abstract

“The article presents an analysis of Ibn al-ʿArabī’s (d. 1240) treatment of fasting and hunger as it appears in chapters 106 and 107 ofal-Futūḥāt al-makkiyya (Meccan revelations). In the process of examining this very short section of the encyclopedic text, the essay both draws out the deeper theological significance of hunger and fasting and highlights the virtues and trappings of the spiritual exercise in the mystic’s thought. An attempt is also made to situate some of Ibn al-ʿArabī’s ideas within the broader context of the earlier Sufi tradition to which he was heir”

Ibn al-‘Arabī: The Doorway to an Intellectual Tradition

Review of Sainthood and Authority in Early Islam: Al-Hakim al-Tirmidhi’s Theory of wilaya and the Reenvisioning of the Sunni Caliphate by Aiyub Palmer in JIMS 5, no. 2 (2020): 88-93

La crise de coeur – Mohammed Rustom

In the Footsteps of Moses: A Contemporary Sufi Commentary on the Story of God’s Confidant (kalīm Allāh) in the Qurʾān – Yousef Casewit

Abstract:

“Moses is one of the most revered Prophets in Islam. The fact that he is mentioned in the Qurʾān more than any other figure bespeaks his eminence and the significance of his prophetic narrative to spiritual wayfaring. His election by God and the unfolding events of his prophetic mission have served as a model for Sufi wayfaring. To this effect, God proclaims: I cast upon you a love from Me, that you might be trained under My eye (Q Ṭāhā 20:39). In the Footsteps of Moses is a compilation of spiritual discourses (sing. mudhākara) by the contemporary Moroccan Sufi Shaykh Mohamed Faouzi al-Karkari. This book offers insights into the key events of the life of God’s Confidant through the first reading of the divine Name. Describing his life, the Shaykh states: “When the Hidden Alif or the staff of Moses appears, union discloses itself in separation, and dry land appears in the ocean. The Pharaoh of the lower self drowns in the ocean of esoteric reality, and the Moses of the heart is delivered.” Key events covered include the spiritual significance of Moses’ birth; his mother’s casting him into the river; being adopted by the Pharaoh’s wife; his years of training under the direction of Shuʿayb in the desert of Midian; communing with God at Mount Ṭūr; the encounter with Pharaoh and his sorcerers; the splitting of the Red Sea; the golden calf; and his encounter with al-Khiḍr“

Rumijeve poeme oslovljavaju najbitnije obzire ljudskog postojanja (Preporod 51.23, 2021)

Rumijeve Poeme Oslovljavaju Najbitnije Obzire Ljudskog Postojanja (Preporod 51.23, 2021)Download