The Writing on the Water

The Writing on the Water: Chronicles of a Seeker on the Islamic Sufi Path

by Muhyiddin Shakoor

Element Books Limited, Dorset, United Kingdom ©1988; 224 pp.

Muhyiddin Shakoor, initially a naive Muslim male, documents his transformation through engaging the illogical maze of tasks assigned by his Shaikh, the bewildering events appearing in his path, and his struggles with the issue of Sufi legitimacy into a seasoned, committed Dervish with some considerable illumination. A householder, his narrative rarely mentions his family, focusing intentionally on the processes by which is mind is broken down so he can find himSelf.

A burning barn in the forest, continual car breakdowns, searching for swords, an endless soap opera and the question of the phonograph needle — is this a mystery, a thriller movie, a third-rate novel? Actually, these concepts are the outer forms of teachings received by the author from his Sufi Shaikh in contemporary America. They teach of intuition, symbols, miracles, and the real challenges of the Sufi in the everyday world.



-- reviewed by Dawn Kurzka