Deciphering the Signs of God: Phenomenological Approach to Islam

Religion & Spirituality

Annemarie Schimmel

Islam

Edinburgh University Press

Mystical Dimensions of Islam presents, for the first time, a balanced historical treatment of the transnational phenomenon of Sufism -- Islamic mysticism -- from its beginnings through the nineteenth century. Through her sensitivity and deep understanding of the subject, Annemarie Schimmel, an eminent scholar of Eastern religions, draws the reader into the mood, the vision, the way of the Sufi in a manner that adds an essential ingredient to her analysis of the history of Sufism. After exploring the origins of the mystical movement in the meditations of orthodox Muslims on the Koran and the prophetic tradition, the author then discusses the development of its different stages, including classical voluntarism and postclassical theosophical mystical trends. Particular emphasis is placed on spiritual education, the different ways of leading the mystic toward the existential realization of the profound mystery of the profession of faith that "there is no deity but God." Sufi psychology and Sufi orders and fraternities are comprehensively explored. Through an examination of mystical anthropology, which culminates in the veneration of the prophet and the saints, the questions of free will and predestination, of good and evil, are implied. The main burden of the text, however, is Sufism as reflected in Islamic poetry, and Professor Schimmel examines the various aspects of mystical poetry in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Sindhi, Panjabi, and Pashto. The author skillfully demonstrates how Sufi ideals permeated the whole fabric of Muslim life, providing the average Muslim -- villager or intellectual -- with the virtues of perfect trust in God and the loving surrender to God's will. Professor Schimmel's long acquaintance with Turkey, Iran, and the Indo-Pakistan subcontinent provides a unique emphasis to the study, and the author's personal knowledge of Sufi practice in these regions lends a contemporary relevance to her work.

Mystical Dimensions of Islam

Politics & Social Sciences

Philosophy

Univ of North Carolina Pr

The University of North Carolina Press

Two early Sufi classics are contained here in one volume. They embody the essence of spiritual life in the Islamic tradition. Ibn 'Ata' Illah (c. 1250-1309) was a Sufi saint and sage who lived in Egypt. Kwaja Abdullah Ansari (1006-1089) was one of major early writers of Persian mystical literature.

Ibn ‘Ata’ Illah/Kwaja Abdullah Ansari: The Book of Wisdom and Kwaja Abdullah Ansari, Intimate Conversations (Classics of Western Spirituality (Paperback))

Wheeler M. Thackston

Victor Danner

Paulist Press

This book of poems by the late Anne Marie Schimmel, is an inspired reminiscence of places, events, myths and characters recounted from the viewpoint of a life unusually led. Written between 1974 and 1994, the poems are influenced particularly by the verses of Rumi, perhaps the greatest of Persian Sufi poets; they are also inspired by the complex moods of Pakistani folktales and by the effort to cope with the rigors of life in the West.

Nightingales Under the Snow: Poems

Literature & Fiction

Poetry

Khaniqahi Nimatullahi Publications

Jalaluddin Rumi (1207-1273) is the most famous exponent of the mystical tradition in Islam and venerated as "Mevlana," "our master." The still flourishing Mevlevi order of dervishes, famous for their ecstatic music and dance, was organized by his eldest son on the basis of Rumi's teaching and practice. He spent most of his life in Konya in Rum (modern Anatolia), whence the name "Rumi." His longest work, the Mathnavi, has held its reputation in the eastern lands of the Islamic world as the most recited and venerated text after the Qur'an. Echoes of the Muslim Scripture, and traces of Rumi's education as a traditional Muslim jurist or faqih, are apparent throughout his writings. The resurgence of interest in Rumi in the West has evolved into a cult, especially on American college campuses. As Schimmel explains, this cult does not do justice to the profound spiritual passion and insights of the Mathnavi and Rumi's Divan. In this concise, readable essay, she sketches the major landmarks in Rumi's life and the influences on it, the religious and cultural background of his poetic Sufism, the dominant strands of imagery and the range of tone and anecdote that animate his spiritual world. She explains why Rumi, as poet and mystic, must be understood in the Persian literary and the Islamic religious traditions to which he belonged. It is through those traditions that he experienced and expressed the Divine Love that the peoples of all faith traditions immediately recognize and affirm. The closing chapters review recent scholarship and translations of Rumi's works, in West and East, and answer the question "What does Rumi mean to us in the modern world?"

Rumi: Makers of Islamic Civilization

Social Sciences

Tauris Academic Studies

Die orientalische Katze

Diederichs Verlag

Rumi.

Diederichs Eugen

Das Mysterium der Zahl

Hugendubel Heinrich GmbH

'...highly interpretative history...reflects the author's immense erudition in the field and her personal predilection for the religious and mystical aspects of Islamic civilization.'Yohanan Friedmann, Asian and African Studies, 1985.'It possesses all the qualities of a good handbook and as such it must be judged. It is concise and compendious and yet clear and lucid.'Jan Marek, Arch#65533;v Orient#65533;ln#65533;, 1985.'...a worthy summary of Islam in the Indian subcontinent.''This book is a welcome summary of, and addition to, the literature on Islam in India.'Frank Whaling, Bibliotheca Orientalis, 1982.'...will have a great appeal to all those interested in the history of Islam in India and is ideally suited to the needs of university students of the subject.'D.J. Matthews, Bulletin of the SOAS, 1982.

Islam in the Indian Subcontinent (Handbuch Der Orientalistik : Zweite Abtilung : Indien : Vieter Band: Religionen; Dritter Abschnitt, 3)

Brill Academic Pub

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Books by Annemarie Schimmel