Quote from Ibn al-'Arabi and the Sufis

Ibn al-'Arabi and the Sufis

by Binyamin Abrahamov

Anqa Publishing, Oxford, UK, 2014. 192 pp.

"Every scholar of Ibn al-'Arabi's thought has been impressed by the wealth of his mystical and philosophical ideas, parables and poems. From the earliest research on Ibn al-'Arabi's thought, scholars have tried to trace his sources and to evaluate his originality. This is an extremely difficult task not only due to the huge quantity of his writings, but also with regards to the complexity of his theories. An analysis of the Greatest Master's attitude toward the Sufis, both his predecessors and contemporaries, has not yet been accomplished, except for William Chittick's discussion of three mystics. Such a work is needed to enhance our knowledge of the foundations of his thought and answer, at least as an initial step, the question of the measure of his originality.

The present volume examines Ibn al-'Arabi's attitude toward the Sufis and assesses the extent of their influence on him. A crucial point is Ibn al-'Arabi's general acceptance or rejection of the Sufis' views and practices. We do not pretend to be exhaustive, because the basis of our research is mainly al-Futuhat al-Mekkiyya, Fusus al-hikam and some of the author's epistles. We believe that these writings are representative of his thought and hence appropriate to serve as the basis of our investigation." (p. viii)

-- submitted by Jennifer Knight

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