And Muhammad Is His Messenger
And Muhammad Is His Messenger

Author: Annemarie Schimmel

Publisher: UNC Press Books

Published: 2014-06-30

Total Pages: 396

ISBN-13: 1469619601

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The important role of the Prophet Muhammad in the everyday lives of Muslims is usually overlooked by Western scholars and has consequently never been understood by the Western world. Using original sources in the various Islamic languages, Annemarie Schimmel explains the central place of Muhammad in Muslim life, mystical thought, and poetry. She sees the veneration of Muhammad as having many parallels in other major religions. In order to understand Muslim piety it is necessary to take into account the long history of the veneration of Muhammad. Schimmel discusses aspects of his life, birth, marriage, miracles, and heavenly journey, all of which became subjects for religious devotions. By using poetic texts and artistic expressions and by examining daily Muslim religious practices, Schimmel shows us the gentler side of Islamic religious culture, providing a much-needed understanding of religion as it is experienced and practiced in the Islamic world. This is the first book in English to deal with all aspects of the veneration of the Prophet Muhammad. It is an expanded version of Schimmel's Und Muhammad Ist Sein Prophet, originally published in German in 1981.

Poetry and Mysticism in Islam
Poetry and Mysticism in Islam

Author: Amin Banani

Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Published: 1994-08-25

Total Pages: 234

ISBN-13: 9780521454766

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Mawlana Jalal al-Din Rumi was one of the greatest poets and mystics of the Islamic world. He was born in Balkh (Korasan) in AD 1207 and died in Konya (Turkey) in AD 1273. This book is an examination of his spiritual and literary heritage. As Annemarie Schimmel, the recipient of the Eleventh Giorgio Della Vida Award in Islamic Studies, has written, 'no other mystic and poet from the Islamic world is as well known in the West as Rumi', and she, more than any Western scholar, is his most celebrated and eloquent interpreter. The scholars who Professor Schimmel has invited to share in her tribute have all added new dimensions to an understanding of Rumi and to his impact on the Islamic world.

Mystical Islam
Mystical Islam

Author: Julian Baldick

Publisher: NYU Press

Published: 1989

Total Pages: 225

ISBN-13: 0814711391

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"Covers the origins of Sufism and early influences, particularly from Christianity; the rise of the great Sufi organizations; the thought of Sufism's main theorist and systemizer, Ibn Arabi; Rumi and the Whirling Dervishes; relations with Shi'ism in Iran; Sufism in the heyday of the great empires in Iran, India, and Turkey; and relations with Turkey and Egypt during the nineteenth century as well as Sufi practices in the twentieth century."--Page 4 of cover.

Practical Mysticism in Islam and Christianity
Practical Mysticism in Islam and Christianity

Author: Saeed Zarrabi-Zadeh

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2016-01-29

Total Pages: 364

ISBN-13: 1317329112

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Practical Mysticism in Islam and Christianity offers a comparative study of the works of the Sufi-poet Jalal al-Din Rumi (1207-1273) and the practical teachings of the German Dominican, Meister Eckhart (c1260-1327/8). Rumi has remained an influential figure in Islamic mystical discourse since the thirteenth century, while also extending his impact to the Western spiritual arena. However, his ideas have frequently been interpreted within the framework of other mystical, philosophical, or religious systems. Through its novel approach, this book aims to reformulate Rumi’s practical mysticism by employing four methodological principles: a) mysticism is a coherent structure with mutual interconnection between its parts; b) the imposition of alien structures to interpret any particular mysticism damages its inward coherency; c) practical mysticism consists of two main parts, namely practices and stages; and d) the proper use of comparative methodology enables a deeper understanding of each juxtaposed system. Eckhart’s speculative mysticism, which differs from and enjoys similarities with the love-based mysticism of Rumi, provides a "mirror" that highlights the special features of Rumi’s practical mysticism. Such comparison also allows a deeper comprehension of Eckhart’s practical thought. Offering a critical examination of practical mysticism, this book is a valuable resource for students and scholars of Islamic studies, comparative mysticism, and the intellectual history of Islam.

Mystical Dimensions of Islam
Mystical Dimensions of Islam

Author: Annemarie Schimmel

Publisher: Univ of North Carolina Press

Published: 2011

Total Pages: 544

ISBN-13: 0807899763

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Thirty-five years after its original publication, Mystical Dimensions of Islam still stands as the most valuable introduction to Sufism, the main form of Islamic mysticism. This edition brings to a new generation of readers Annemarie Schimmel's his

Sufism
Sufism

Author: Alexander Knysh

Publisher: Princeton University Press

Published: 2019-03-19

Total Pages: 408

ISBN-13: 069119162X

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A pathbreaking history of Sufism, from the earliest centuries of Islam to the present After centuries as the most important ascetic-mystical strand of Islam, Sufism saw a sharp decline in the twentieth century, only to experience a stunning revival in recent decades. In this comprehensive new history of Sufism from the earliest centuries of Islam to today, Alexander Knysh, a leading expert on the subject, reveals the tradition in all its richness. Knysh explores how Sufism has been viewed by both insiders and outsiders since its inception. He examines the key aspects of Sufism, from definitions and discourses to leadership, institutions, and practices. He devotes special attention to Sufi approaches to the Qur’an, drawing parallels with similar uses of scripture in Judaism and Christianity. He traces how Sufism grew from a set of simple moral-ethical precepts into a sophisticated tradition with professional Sufi masters (shaykhs) who became powerful players in Muslim public life but whose authority was challenged by those advocating the equality of all Muslims before God. Knysh also examines the roots of the ongoing conflict between the Sufis and their fundamentalist critics, the Salafis—a major fact of Muslim life today. Based on a wealth of primary and secondary sources, Sufism is an indispensable account of a vital aspect of Islam.

Early Islamic Mysticism
Early Islamic Mysticism

Author: Michael Anthony Sells

Publisher: Paulist Press

Published: 1996

Total Pages: 420

ISBN-13: 9780809136193

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This volume makes available and accessible the writings of the crucial early period of Islamic mysticism during which Sufism developed as one of the world's major mystical traditions. The texts are accompanied by commentary on their historical, literary and philosophical context.