philosophical Sufism (school of Ibn 'Arabi)

‘[A] valid concept of “Islam” must denote and connote all possible “Islams,” whether abstract or “real,” mental or social’ (104)... Ahmed seeks to avoid two major pitfalls: (1) making Islam into a static essence or a category within an essentialist framework – such as proscription/prescription, ‘religion’,‘civilization’, ‘culture’, ‘orthodoxy’, etc., and (2) rendering Islam into a totally incoherent concept by conceding that there are as many islams as there are communities or individuals. Ahmed’s thesis (presented in Chapter 5) is that Islam is best conceptualized as a process of meaning-making or hermeneutical engagement in which the human agent engages with the Divine Revelation granted to Muhammad in one or more of this Revelation’s hierarchical dimensions – Pre-Text, Text, and Con-Text – in order to constitute meaning for himself."

This thesis describes the mystical experience in Islam where the Muslim mystic (Sufi) encounters the Face of God (Wajh Allah) through spiritual practices and beliefs.  In the process of researching and writing this thesis, the author conducted a literature search using various sources on interpreting the subject from the mystical, fundamentalist, and rationalist perspectives.  This thesis is slated to be a reference and resource for those seeking to understand the mystical side of Islam, which is often misunderstood to be outside the fold of the faith and an innovation that does not originate within Islam itself.

The Concept of the Perfect Man in Islamic Mysticism, Islamic Mysticism, Mysticism, Islamic Irfan, Ifran, Gnosicm, Perfect Man, Al-Insan al-Kamil, Ibn Arabi, Muyuddin, Fusus al-Hikam, Jandi, Qaysari, Khawarizmi, Imam Khomeini, Naqd al-Nosus,
http://alhassanain.org/english/?com=book&id=831

What do we mean by integration? Not only do I want to pose this question from the point of view of Sufi metaphysics, but also of other forms of metaphysics as well. Oneness in its absoluteness belongs to the Abso lute alone. It is only the One who is ultimately one. This is not a pleo nasm, not simply a repeating of terms. It is the reassertion of a truth which we are easily apt to forget while we are seeking the One in Its reflections on lower levels of reality and on the plane of multiplicity. We must always remember this metaphysical truth: that oneness in its highest and absolute sense belongs only to God as the Absolute, to Brah man, Allah, the God-head, the Highest Reality, the Ultimate Reality. Precisely because of this truth, no benefit could be gained in our search for unity by being immersed only in multiplicity. In fact, without the One, multiplicity itself could not exist. It would be nonexistent, because multiplicity always issues from the One, always issues from the Supreme Principle. If we remember this truth, we shall then be able to understand what is truly meant by integration. Nearly everybody is in favor of integration these days, without bothering to search fully for its meaning. In the modern world attempts are often made to achieve integration by seeking to bring forces and elements together on a single plane of reality without recourse to the Transcendent Principle or a principle transcending the level in ques tion. But this is metaphysically impossible. It is only a higher principle that can integrate various elements on a lower level of reality. This truth is repeated throughout all of the levels of the hierarchy of the universe. Throughout the universe it is ultimately only the Divine Principle—God—who either by Himself, or possibly through His agents, makes possible the integration of a particular level of reality and the integra tion of that level itself into the whole of existence. On all levels, from the devas of the Brahmic world or the archangels or whatever corre sponding language you wish to use, to the lower angelic world, to the psychological world, and finally to the physical world, it is always by means of a higher principle that the elements and forces involved on lower levels of reality are integrated. Let us give a concrete example. Take the human state. It is composed of body, soul, and spirit. There is no way one can integrate the body without the presence of the soul. That is why when the soul departs, the body falls apart. Furthermore, the remarkable, integrated functioning of various parts of our body is one of the greatest miracles, to which we usually pay little attention.

Krankheit, Schmerz und Tod, Naturkatastrophen, Verbrechen, Krieg und Terror – warum lässt Gott das alles geschehen? Weshalb verhindert ein (all)mächtiger Schöpfer nicht das Leid und das Böse in der Welt?

Die Frage nach dem Grund des Übels hat die Menschen seit jeher bewegt, Anhänger monotheistischer Religionen schon immer herausgefordert und Philosophen wie Atheisten als gewichtiges Argument gedient. Wer sich über dieses komplexe Thema, die sogenannte Theodizee, den Kopf zerbricht, gerät schnell in weltanschauliche Untiefen.

In diesem anregenden Buch erklärt der Sprach- und Kulturwissenschaftler Selahattin Akti, wie einer der bedeutendsten islamischen Mystiker, der große andalusische Sufi-Meister Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi (1165–1240), diese grundlegende Fragestellung beantwortet. Nach einer fundierten Darstellung der unterschiedlichen Lösungswege in der Geschichte der Philosophie sowie in den christlichen und islamischen Theologien erläutert der Autor mit spürbarer Sachkenntnis den Fragenkomplex des Übels aus dem Blickwinkel des mystischen Erkenntnisweges.
Ein wichtiger Verständnisschlüssel ist dabei Ibn Arabis Existenzphilosophie der »Einheit des Seins«, die unter dem Begriff wahdat al-wujud den Sufismus nachhaltig bereichert hat. Dabei gelingt Selahattin Akti neben einer hervorragenden Kurzdarstellung von Leben, Werk und Denken des »Größten Scheichs« eine intelligente, gut verständliche Erklärung von dessen tiefen Einsichten und anspruchsvollen Konzepten zum Verhältnis von Gott, Welt und Mensch, zur Problematik von freiem Willen und Vorbestimmung, zur Schöpfung als permanenter Selbstmanifestation des »verborgenen Schatzes« und als Bewegung der Liebe, zur Unterscheidung von al-Haqq (dem Allwahren) und Allah (Gott) sowie zur Funktion der Göttlichen Namen im Schöpfungsprozess und zur Bedeutung des vollkommenen Menschen als Abbild und Statthalter Gottes.

Monistik bir dünya görüşüne sahip Vahdet-i Vücûd doktrini bu görüş çerçevesinde gelişmiş bir din felsefesi üretmiştir. Bir tür perennialism ifade eden bu din felsefesine göre bütün dinler ve şerîatlar tek bir hakîkatin farklı sûretlerde tecellîsinden ibarettir. Kendisine ibâdet edilen her şeyin de hakîkati mutlak hakîkat olan Hakk’ın zâtıdır. Dolayısıyla sülûk yoluyla Hakk’a ulaşan bir ârifin inancı bütün inanç biçimlerini kuşatan bir itikattır. Osmanlı tasavvuf düşüncesinin ve Vahdet-i Vücûd anlayışının XVII. ve XVIII. yüzyılda yaşayan önemli isimlerinden biri olan İsmâîl Hakkı Bursevî (ö. 1137/1725) bu din felsefesinin temel bazı noktalarını açıklamak maksadıyla Lübbü’l-Lübb ve Sırru’s-Sırr isimli bir risâle kaleme almıştır. Eserde bahsi geçen din felsefesinin dayandığı ontolojik ve epistemolojik zemin gösterilmeye çalışılarak ârifin din tasavvuru açıklanmıştır. Bu makalede Bursevî’nin bu risâlesi çerçevesinde ele alınan inanç biçimi olan heyûlânî inanç ele alınacaktır.

The doctrine of Wahdat al-Wujūd, which represents a monistic world view, has developed a philosophy of religion that is in line with this monistic world view. According to this philosophy of religion, which expresses a certain kind of perennialism, all religions and shari'as are manifestations of the single truth in different forms. The essence of God, which is the absolute truth, is the truth of everything that is being worshiped. Therefore, the belief of an ārif who reaches God through sayr u sulūk (initiation/spiritual journey) is a belief that encompasses all forms of belief. An important representative of the Ottoman Sūfī thought and the doctrine of Wahdat al-Wujūd in the 17th and 18th centuries, Ismā'īl Ḥaqqī al-Burūsawī (d. 1137/1725) penned a treatise entitled Lubb al-Lubb wa Sirr al-Sirr with a view to explaining the basics of this philosophy of religion. By examining the ontological and epistemological grounds on which al-Burūsawī’s philosophy of religion is based, this article aims to explain his understanding of religion and to scrutinize the concept of “heyūlānī (hylic) faith” which is the type of faith discussed in alBurūsawī’s treatise.

Many textbooks and academic studies on Muslim history and thought take it for granted that Muslims regard the Qur’an as God’s literal speech dictated verbatim to the Prophet Muhammad in Arabic. How this view became established and the possibility of other Islamic models of revelation require further study. This lecture, based on the presenter's dissertation research in progress, explores the development of different models of Qur’anic Revelation in Sunni and Shia Ismaili Islam. Beginning with the Qur’an’s self-definition, the lecture first discusses how recent Qur’anic studies scholarship shows that the earliest idea of revelation in terms of kitab, tanzil, and wahy was a dynamic event inseparable from the Prophet and was far less structured than the later doctrine of “verbal dictation.” Subsequently, the lecture surveys key developments in how the notion of the Qur’an as a “book” pre-existing in the heavenly Tablet – which is then verbally “dictated” to the Prophet – became established in Sunni exegesis along with the doctrine of the Qur’an as Uncreated Divine Speech. The lecture then discusses an alternative understanding of Qur’anic revelation found among the 9th–11th century Shia Ismaili philosophers who recognize Divine guidance as continuing through a lineage of hereditary Imams descended from Prophet Muhammad. In Shia Ismaili thought, divine inspiration issues from and reveals a transcendent or celestial “Pre-Text”, the process of revelation (wahy) is spiritual and non-verbal, and the Prophet Muhammad plays a creative role in composing the Arabic Qur’an as oral prophetic speech.

U ovoj knjizi, William C. Chittick ne pokušava ponuditi cjelovit uvod u Ibn ‘Arabijeva učenja. Poglavlja ovog djela su radije niz prodorâ u njegov način gledanja na stvari. Autorov cilj je jednostavno predstaviti njegovu misao čitaocima koji joj nisu bili izloženi, odnosno pružiti doobrazovanje onima koji joj jesu bili izloženi. Prva dva poglavlja bave se odnosom Ibn ‘Arabijevih učenja i njegovog samoopažanja kao Pečata muhammedanskih evlija te zaljubljenika u Boga. Treće i četvrto poglavlje opisuju odnos između Boga i ljudskih bića u pogledu ljubavi i prisjećanja. Peto i šesto raspravljaju o prirodi znanja, njegovoj ulozi u ljudskom postajanju i važnosti ispravnog razumijevanja pojavnog svijeta. Sedmo i osmo nude nekoliko opažanja u svijetu imaginacije, posebno njegov odnos prema duši i smrti. Deveto i ujedno završno poglavlje motri središnju ulogu božanske milosti na Onome svijetu.

Entelektüel ya da felsefi düşünce geleneğimizin izlerini sürerken uğramamız gereken duraklardan birisi de tasavvufi düşünce geleneğidir. Tasavvuf sadece bir düşünce geleneği değil aynı zamanda bir yaşam biçimi, ahlak, edebiyat, sanat mimari, siyaset gibi birçok alanla ilişkilendirebilecek entelektüel bir gelenektir ve bu yönüyle kelam ve felsefi geleneklerden ayrılır. Diğer yandan tasavvufi gelenek, daha yaygın ve süreklilik arz eden ve içerisinde pratiği de barındıran bir gelenektir. Bu bakımdan hem teorik olarak hem de pratik olarak İslam kültür ve medeniyetine hayati katkıları olmuştur. Tasavvufi düşünce geleneğinin, diğer geleneklerden kopuk olmamakla birlikte, evren, insan ve Tanrı konusunda kendine özgü farklılıkları mevcuttur ve pratik uygulamaları temelde bu farklılıklara dayanır. Burada daha çok biz entelektüel bir hareket olarak tasavvufu felsefe ile birlikte ele alıp değerlendireceğiz. Bizim için önemli olan hem felsefe geleneği hem de tasavvuf geleneğinin birbirleriyle temas ettikleri noktalardır. Böyle olunca hem Müslüman filozofların hem de felsefi tasavvufun temsilcilerinin düşüncelerine önem verdikleri ya da kendilerinden etkilendikleri filozofları ve felsefi sistemler kendiliğinden önemli hale gelmektedir.

This book was originally a section of Ibn Al-Qayyim's book Miftaahu Daar is-Sa'aadah (Key to the Abode of Happiness). This section was extracted from it due to its discussion of some of the Signs of Allah in the human beings and the universe. Also, Ibn Al-Qayyim's book was chosen due to its perceptive and meaningful wisdom. Another outstanding characteristic of this book is that Ibn-Al-Qayyim calls for the use of the intellect and self-introspection. He encourages the reader to deeply think about the creation of Allah, the Most High -- in the human being, existence, animals and nature. The complier, Capt. Anas Abdul-Hameed Al-Qoz, supports the writing of Ibn Al-Qayyim (Qayyem/Qayim/Qayem/Qayum/Qayyum) by mentioning modern scientific discoveries, useful notes and beneficial pictures that help achieve the objective. Thus, this book is a continuous and active call to all of mankind to look and reflect upon the Signs of Allah if they want the truth and sincerely wish to follow it.

We will show them Our Signs in the universe and in themselves until it becomes clear to them that it is the truth.

Book Review by: Al-Jumuah Magazine (Safar, 1425 H). 

This book is a translation of an Arabic work based on selections from Imam Ibnul Qayyim's "Miftah Daar is-Sa'aadah" (Key to the Abode of Happiness). Divided into four chapters; man, universe, animals, and nature, it contains sections on various natural phenomena, particularly those related to biology of humans and animals, with reflections on the great meticulous creation and watchful sustenance by Allah. The author often supplements Ibnul Qayyim's insights with accounts of modern scientific discoveries, figures and tables.

Compiled with the verse, "We will show them Our signs in the universe and in themselves until it becomes clear to them that it is the truth," in mind, this book engages the reader to deeply contemplate his own creation as well as the everything else in this vast universe. The author says that he chose this book because in it Ibnul Qayyim, "present the art and technique of thinking and reflection, and propounds the ways that should be followed to secure the desired outcome of reflection on Allah's signs in nature and un the human sphere."

Reading Ibnul Qayim's views on nature, who died in 751 AH (1350 CE), would be interesting both as a way to understand wisdom of various natural phenomena and as a window into the attitude of an eminent eight century religious scholar towards science and nature.

The first purpose is well-served by this book, the second unfortunately is not. The author fails to give an account of the tremendous gap in scientific knowledge between our age and that of Ibnul Qayyim, and how it bore on his views of nature. Background information on the dominant views of other scholars and philosophers on nature and science would add much to the value of this book. A more serious drawback in the book is lack of clear demarcation between the present author's remarks and Ibnul Qayyim's words. Credits for figures and references for modern scientific facts are also missing, which gives an unsettling sense of lack of competence.

The book nevertheless does have many positive points. The faith-inspiring discussions of Allah's wisdom in a variety of natural phenomena offer an uncommon perspective. Various verses of the Qur'an as well as ahadeeth on the subject of nature are quoted in Arabic and explained with illustrations. Nice glossy finish and elegant hard cover give it a good look. For a reader willing to overlook some of the shortcomings, the book can make a great and rewarding read. - Al-Jumuah Vol 16, Issue 2.

Intendiamo aprire, con questo studio, una discussione sulla poetica e sulla filosofia della natura nell’opera di Mīrzā ‘Abd al-Qādir Bīdil (1644- 1720), il maggiore poeta di lingua persiana dell’India mughal, e nella sua scuola. Riprendendo alcune suggestioni di Alessandro Bausani, ormai risalenti a quasi sessant’anni fa, ci concentriamo qui in modo particolare sull’ecologia testuale e metaforica della nuvola (abr) e di alcune realtà fisiche a questa connessa, in modo particolare la bolla (ḥabāb), che si trasformano, nella lettura bideliana, in veri e propri specchi per una riflessione concettuale fondata sul metodo del taḥqīq, insieme “indagine” e “realizzazione”. Il principale testo di nostro inte- resse è un mathnawī relativamente breve, il Ṭūr-i maʿrifat (Sinai della conoscen- za), recentemente tradotto in italiano e tra le opere meno note del maestro di Patna: un vero e proprio safarnāma, o resoconto di viaggio, focalizzato esclusi- vamente sull’osservazione e la narrazione del paesaggio naturale dell’India del nord nel momento del monsone. A questo poema si affiancano, nell’analisi, al- cuni versi tratti dai ghazal di Bīdil e, soprattutto, dall’opera di due suoi discepoli krishnaiti, Amānat Rāy e Shivrām Dās Ḥayā (entrambi attivi nella prima metà del Settecento), che riprendono, nei loro versi persiani, la tematica naturale del maestro declinandola in chiave vedantica e devozionale.

In this chapter, we examine a few potential problems when inquiring into the ethics of medieval Christian and Islamic mystical traditions: First, there are terminological and methodological worries about defining mysticism and doing comparative philosophy in general. Second, assuming that the Divine represents the highest Good in such traditions, and given the apophaticism on the part of many mystics in both religions, there is a question of whether or not such traditions can provide a coherent theory of value. Finally, the antinomian tendencies and emphasis on passivity of some mystics might lead one to wonder whether their prescriptive exhortations can constitute a coherent theory of right action. We tackle each of these concerns in turn and discuss how they might be addressed, in an attempt to show how medieval mysticism, as a fundamentally practical enterprise, deserves more attention from practical and moral philosophy than it has thus far received.

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