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First published in 1998. The following essays conclude a series of five, which fall into two groups and are therefore published in separate volumes. While mysticism, save for a few casual references, found no place in the studies on the Lubdbu 'l-Albdb of 'Awff and the Luzumiyydt of Abu '1-'Ala al-Ma'arri, in these now brought together it has taken entire possession of the field. Ibnu 'l-Farid, indeed, is an exquisite poet; and the picture of Abu Sa'id ibn Abi '1-Khayr, drawn by pious faith and coloured with legendary romance, may be looked upon as a work of art in its way. But on the whole the literary interest of the present volume is subordinate to the religious and philosophical. The author has tried to make the reader acquainted with three Sufis famous in the East and worthy of being known in Europe.
Sūfism, the religious philosophy of Islam, is described in the oldest extant definition as 'the apprehension of divine realities,' and Mohammedan mystics are fond of calling themselves Ahl al-Haqq, 'the followers of the Real.' In attempting to set forth their central doctrines from this point of view, the author draws to some extent on materials which he has collected for a history of Islamic mysticism. This edition provides an easy approach to the study of Islamic mysticism. Apart what the general reader requires to be told at first about Sūfism; the book includes a large amount of material that will be new even to professional Orientalists. Dr. Nicholson sets before us the results of twenty years' unremitting labour, and that, too, with remarkable simplicity and clarity for such a subject; at the same time he lets the mystics mostly speak for themselves and mainly in his own fine versions from the original Arabic and Persian.
Selection of the lyrical poetry of Jalaluddin Rumi.
Experts: Sufism, the religious philosophy of Islam, is described in the oldest extant definition as the apprehension of divine realities, and Mohammedan mystics are fond of calling themselves Ahl al-Haqq, 'the followers of the Real.' In attempting to set forth their central doctrines from this point of view, I shall draw to some extent on materials which I have collected during the last twenty years for a general history of Islamic mysticism-a subject so vast and many-sided that several large volumes would be required to do it anything like justice. Here I can only sketch in broad outline certain principles, methods, and characteristic features of the inner life as it has been lived by Moslems of every class and condition from the eighth century of our era to the present day... The Sufi who sets out to seek God calls himself a 'traveler' (salik); he advances by slow 'stages' (maqamat) along a 'path' (tariqat) to the goal of union with Reality...
This 1923 book is based on a series of three lectures on Sufism delivered at the School of Oriental Studies.
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First Published in 2004. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.
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Jalaloddin Rumi's Masnavi-ye Ma'navi, or 'Spiritual Couplets', composed in the 13th Century, is a monumental work of poetry in the Sufi tradition of Islamic mysticism. For centuries before his love poetry became a literary phenomenon in the West, Rumi's Masnavi had been revered in the Islamic world as its greatest mystical text. Drawing upon a vast array of characters, stories and fables, and deeply versed in spiritual teaching, it takes us on a profound and playful journey of discovery along the path of divine love, toward its ultimate goal of union with the source of all Truth. In Book Two of the Masnavi, the second of six volumes, we travel with Rumi toward an understanding of the deeper truth and reality, beyond the limits of the self. Alan Williams's authoritative new translation is rendered in highly readable blank verse and includes the original Persian text for reference. True to the spirit of Rumi's poem, this new translation establishes the Masnavi as one of the world's great literary achievements for a global readership. Translated with an introduction, notes and analysis by Alan Williams and including the Persian text edited by Mohammad Este'lami.
Often described as the bible of the Sufis, the Mathnawi is a 13th-century mystical poem by Jalalu'l-Din Rumi, the Persian poet and mystic. Professor Nicholson presents translations of the most important stories from this work, which explore the deep questions of life's meaning and purpose.