Ibn Al Arabi On The Mysteries Of Bearing Witness

The master of Islamic spirituality describes the five pillars of Islam.

A major work of mystical literature, this account focuses on 14 visions in the form of dramatic conversations with the divine, interspersed with dazzling visionary episodes regarding the nature of existence, humans' relationship with reality, and the way to achieve true happiness. The introduction presents a resume of Ibn 'Arabi's life and examines in detail the style and symbolism of the contemplations. Presented for the first time in English, this work is a superb example of Ibn 'Arabi's inimitable style and deep perception.

This book advances an Islamic political philosophy based on the concept of Ihsan, which means to do beautiful things. The author moves beyond the dominant model of Islamic governance advanced by modern day Islamists. The political philosophy of Ihsan privileges process over structure, deeds over identity, love over law and mercy and forgiveness over retribution. The work invites Muslims to move away from thinking about the form of Islamic government and to strive to create a self-critical society that defends national virtue and generates institutions and practices that provide good governance.

This book introduces the literature of Islam as it is presented in English translation. For scholars in other fields who need to understand the vast and complex literary heritage of this erudite and vigorous faith community (but are unable to devote years of their lives to achieving a reading proficiency in classical Arabic), for faculty members called upon to teach introductory or survey courses outside their own disciplines, and for graduate students in theology, medieval studies, world religions, or related fields who need access to these primary sources in English translation, The Literature of Islam is a welcome resource. Even lay readers who are interested in understanding the modern Arab or Islamic world may grasp something of the currents of thought and belief through the centuries that produced these important works, which continue to exert a powerful influence upon Muslims today. The primary literatures of Islam are normally classified into several areas of study: the canonical literature, the interpretation of scripture and tradition, law, theology, philosophy, history, and mysticism. Entries here are organized into these areas of study and represent the most significant texts from important trends in the discipline. The volume also includes an extensive bibliography that lists the editions of primary sources analyzed in each chapter. There are also some suggestions for secondary reading, which might be helpful to a student seeking additional information about each genre of literature.

Ibn al-Arabi gives the mystery of every detail of the pilgrimage.

His campaigns, military thought, and insurgent strategy There are many biographies of the Prophet, and they tend to fall into three categories: pious works that emphasize the virtues of the early Islamic community, general works for non-Muslim or non-specialist readers, and source-critical works that grapple with historiographical problems inherent in early Islamic history. In The Generalship of Muhammad, Russ Rodgers charts a new path by merging original sources with the latest in military theory to examine Muhammad's military strengths and weaknesses. Incorporating military, political, and economic analyses, Rodgers focuses on Muhammad’s use of insurgency warfare in seventh-century Arabia to gain control of key cities such as Medina. Seeking to understand the operational aspects of these world-changing battles, he provides battlefield maps and explores the supply and logistic problems that would have plagued any military leader at the time. Rodgers explains how Muhammad organized his forces and gradually built his movement against sporadic resistance from his foes. He draws from the hadith literature to shed new light on the nature of the campaigns. He examines the Prophet's intelligence network and the employment of what would today be called special operations forces. And he considers the possibility that Muhammad received outside support to build and maintain his movement as a means to interdict trade routes between the Byzantine Empire and the Sasanid Persians.

While prophethood is the backbone of the Islamic tradition and an uncompromised tenet of faith, the impact of modernity with its ambivalent status afforded to the prophet and institution of prophethood shook many Muslim scholars. Through analysis of these modern debates on prophethood in Islam, this book situates Muhammad Iqbal’s (1877–1938) and Said Nursi’s (1877–1960) discourses within it and assesses their implications on the modern period. This book introduces the "what, who and how" of the prophets in the Islamic tradition. It unveils the rich Islamic literature of both the classical and modern periods and analyses the construction of their philosophies and theologies. Concise in both historical and textual analyses, this book makes an important contribution to our understanding of contemporary debates on prophecy and prophethood in Islam and will be of great interest to postgraduate students and researchers of Islam, religious studies, medieval studies and contemporary studies of Islam and religion.