Logic and Transcendence "This work is a veritable hymn to the intellect and of the intellect. It penetrates in unparalleled fashion into the labyrinth of modem philosophical thought to unveil solutions to problems which would seem to be otherwise insoluble. In fact most often Schuon provides solutions for currently debated philosophical problems by demonstrating them to be the results of ill posed questions. He removes the opaqueness and ambiguity of modem rationalism and irrationalism like the morning sun whose very appearance dispels the fog. This work is one of Schuon's metaphysical masterpieces, and one of the most important philosophical works of this century if philosophy be understood in its traditional sense as the love of wisdom. Seyyed Hossein Nasr "If I were asked who is the greatest writer of our time. I would say Frithjof Schuon without hesitation." Martin Lings "The man is a living wonder: intellectually a propos religion equally in depth and breadth, the paragon of our time. I know of no living thinker who begins to rival him." Huston Smith Excerpt from book:THERE remains the experimental or mystical proof of God. While admitting that logically and in the absence of a doctrine, it proves nothing to anyone who has not undergone the unitive experience, nonetheless there is 110 justification for concluding that because it is incommunicable it must he false; this was the error of Kant, who moreover gave the name of " theurgy" to this direct experience of ...read more

What do the Sufis believe? What do they aim at? What do they do'? Unlike other writers on the subject. Martin Ling.. treats all three questions with equal justice. lie is thus able to give a wealth of answers to the main question. What is Sufism? Each answer being from a diffevent angle hut all going to the root of the matter. I lore are two examples. 'Nearly 1000 years ago a great Still defined Sufism as "taste". because its aim and its end could he summed up as direct knowledge of transcendent truths, such knowledge being. insofar as its directness is concerned, more comparable to the experience of the senses than to mental knowledge.' 'Most Western readers of this hook will have heard quite early in life that "the Kingdom of Heaven is within you" They will also have heard: "Seek and ye shall find, knock and it shall he opened unto you". Rut how many of them have ever received any instruction in the way of seeking or in the art of knocking? And even as these last four words were being written down, it came to mind that they are in this given context, an answer to the very question put by our title What is Sufism? not only fills the need for a clear and reliable introduction to Sufism. but it is also unique in its thoroughness. and authoritative.

The Creed of Islam This is a study of Islam, dealing with the principles of the Islamic creed and touching on the effect they have on the individual who practises them. The essays have been compiled to celebrate the occasion of the World of Islam Festival, which was held in London from April to June 1976. It is hoped that, along with other works, it will give readers the opportunity to become acquainted with the essence of Islam and its message. This book aims at the general reader and gives simple images of the tenets of the Islamic creed without becoming too technical or going into great detail. The reader will observe that we have attempted to let the Qur'an and Sayings of the Prophet (Hadith) speak for themselves as they are the main sources of Islamic teachings - and that we have not added anything which has no support in these. Quotes inside the book: "To begin with, we have the first statement of belief: I bear witness that there is no god but God. The eternal Divine Message, and secondly: I bear witness that Muhammad is His Messenger, who transmitted the Message. These two statements sum up the doctrine of the Unity of God. So the duty to declare this Unity is the basis and essence of Islam, but it is not mere expression without foundation in the heart and feelings. Unless a man's belief in the Unity of God dominates him completely, penetrating all areas of his feeling and awareness, soaking up his heart and soul, moulding the activity of his body and directi...read more

Tales of Mystic Meaning Often described as the Bible of the Sufis, the Mathnawl is a famous thirteenth-century mystical poem by Jalal al-Din Rumi (1207-73), the great Persian poet and mystic: In Tales 'of Mystic Meaning, Professor R. A. Nicholson presents translations of the most important stories from this entertaining work, which draws its inspiration from the rich religious philosophy of the Sufis, and their belief that all things emanate from God and are moving towards ultimate reunion with Him. Belonging to the last period of Rumi's life, the mathnawi consists of a series of tales that explore the eternal questions of life's meaning and purpose. Professor Nicholson's translation preserves the direct semi-colloquial style of the tales, their lively dialogue and the humorous descriptions of human nature in which they abound. Rumi's moral and mystical teaching lends itself to universal application and displays with a light touch the wisdom that never plays on the surface without contemplating the hidden depths beneath. FREOM THE BOOK "THE GRAMMARIAN AND THE BOATMAN" "A self-conceited grammarian embarked in a boat. Turning to the boatman, he asked,"Have you ever studied grammar'?" "No," he replied. "Then," said the grammarian, "half your life has been lost." The boatman, heart-broken with gnef, refrained from answering him at the time. The wind cast tire boat into a whirlpool. The boatman shouted to the grammarian "Tell me can you swim'?". "No," said he "O fair-spoken...read more

An Ocean Without Shore Ibn `Arabi does not address only his contemporaries or their immediate successors; nor does he address only the citizens of the dar al-islam such as it could be traced on the map of his time. In composing his work Ibn `Arabi constructed an Ark to include all the words of the Word of God, and it is not fortuitous if, of all his writings, it is this summa magna (which the Futuhat Makkiyyah happen to be) that is the most often read and the most frequently cited. The Futuhat, the revision of which Ibn `Arabi completed two years before his death, represent the majestic synthesis of the secrets of the world above and the world below (al-asrar almalikiyyah wa 'l-mulkiyyah) that he transcribed and commented on throughout his life. The role of supreme reference illustrated by the name Shaykh al-Akbar (the greatest of Teachers, the Master par excellence), which was given to Ibn `Arabi later, was not a posthumous accident. He who claimed the function of "seal of Muhammadan sain-thood," according to all the evidence, deliberately assumed the title; he tirelessly enclosed in his work, for the use of those who would live in ages darker than his own, the amanah, the sacred repository of which he considered Himself the guardian. An Ocean Without Shore is a Study of Ibn `Arabi, known in Islam as al-Shaykh al-Akbar, the Greatest Spiritual Master. In the introduction, Chodkiewicz provides a good deal of documentation for the often heard claim that Ibn `Arabi has been t...read more

Universal Man (AI-Insan al-Kamil) is an exposition of the appearances of Absolute Being as Essence, Names, Qualities and Divinity, and of the corresponding contemplative states in the path of Union. This is far from being merely a theoretical matter. Jili writes: "I will mention of all that only that which happened to me on my own journey to God; moreover, I recount nothing in this book neither of myself nor of another, without my having tested it at the time when I travelled in God by the path of intuition and direct vision". Titus Burckhardt (Ibrahim 'Izz al-Din) has provided a full and illuminating introduction and commentary to Jili's work.

This fascinating and important book attempts to investigate the nature of the seven Ahruf in which the Qur'an has been revealed and the reason for the variations in readings among the Qurra' of the Qur'an. It studies, examines, and discusses: • The revelation of the Qur'an in the seven ahrufconcluding that they represent seven linguistical ways of recitation. • The compilation of the Qur'an during the lifetime of the Prophet and the preservation of the Qur'an in the memories of the Companions as well as in written form, the compilation during the time of Abu Bakr, and the further compilation during the time of Uthmän. • The problem of naskh to demonstrate the completeness and trustworthiness of the Qur'an and that no verses are missing or were read and abrogated by naskh al-tilawah either with or without hukm. • The Uthmanic maobif and their relation to the seven ahruf. • The language of the Qur'an and whether it includes one, several, or all the dialects of the Arabs. • The origin of the gird'ilt and conditions governing accepted readings. • Ikhtiyar (i.e., the selection of one reading rather than another) and the rules governing the Qurra' who selected a reading. PROFESSOR AFIMAD "ALI AL-IMAM is ileik of the Qur'an and one of a few distinguished scholars of the Qur'an worldwide. He holds a PhD from Edinburgh University on the topic of variant readings of the Qur'an, served as a lecturer at Omdurman Islamic University, Sudan and is founder and rector ...read more

The Meccan Revelations 'perhaps no mystic in the history of the world has delved as deeply into the inner knowledge that informs our being as did Ibn 'Arabi. He was born into the cultural and religious crucible of Andalusian Spain in 1165, a place and time in which Muslim, Jewish and Christian scholars earned from each other and from the Greek .CIassics that were then being translated and .circulated. Drawing from the most advanced philosophical and metaphysical thinking of his time and from his extensive knowledge of the religion of Islam, Ibn 'Arabi created an extraordinary mystical theology that essentially sprang from his own spiritual realization. Because of the advance nature of his teachings he has been known for 900 years as the Sheikh al-Akbar, or the Greatest Master. Because of the subtlety of his language and complexity of his thought, access to Ibn 'Arabi has always been difficult and translation daunting. 'previously only short extracts were available in ?English. This volume, the first of two, contains 22 key chapters of this Sufi "summa mystica," on such issues as Ibn 'Arabi's doctrine of the Divine James, the nature of spiritual experience, the end of time, the resurrection and the stages of the path lat lead to sanctity, successfully edited and translated by three of the most accomplished scholars of our age. This great book soars beyond time, culture and any particular form of religion. Describing what fundamental to our humanity, it is astonishingly univer...read more

The question of bias in methodology and terminology is a problem that faces researchers east, west, north and south; however, it faces Third World intellectuals with special keeness. For although they write in a cultural environment that has its own specific conceptual and cultural paradigms, they nevertheless encounter a foreign paradigm which attempts to impose itself upon their society and upon their very imagination and thoughts. When the term "development psychology" for instance is used in the West Arab scholars also say "developmental psychology", when "applied psychology" is mentioned they hurry to use the same term etc. Why not establish a new science with its own mechanisms, methodologies and points of reference to deal with epistemological biases and open up the gate of ijtihad with respect to them? This collection of papers aims to discover some of the biases latent in our terminology, methodologies, research tools, and conceptual principles, and to propose alternative ones marked by a greater degree of independence and neutrality. This is not to belittle the human value of the West's creative contributions but to emphasise the danger of making it the ultimate point of reference and then trying to continously play "catch up" with it.

Named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most important innovators of the century, Tariq Ramadan is a leading Muslim scholar, with a large following especially among young European and American Muslims. In his first book written for a wide audience, he offers a biography of the Prophet Muhammad, highlighting the spiritual and ethical teachings of one of the most influential figures in human history. Capturing a life that was often eventful, gripping, and highly charged, Ramadan provides both an intimate portrait of a man who was shy, kind, but determined, as well as a dramatic chronicle of a leader who launched a great religion and inspired a vast empire. Underscoring the historical importance and meaning of Muhammad, The Messenger addresses the significance of the Prophet for some of today’s most controversial issues, such as the treatment of the poor, the role of women, Islamic criminal punishments, war, racism, and relations with other religions. Selecting those facts and stories from which we can draw a profound and vivid spiritual picture, the author asks how can the Prophet’s life remain - or become again - an example, a model, and an inspiration? And how can Muslims move from formalism - a fixation on ritual - toward a committed spiritual and social presence? In this thoughtful and engaging biography, Ramadan offers Muslims a new understanding of Muhammad’s life and he introduces non-Muslims not only to the story of the Prophet, but to the spiritual and ethical r...read more

TOWARDS UNDERSTANDING THE QUR'AN is a fresh and highly readable English rendering of Tafhim al-Qur'an, Sayyid Mawdudi's monumental and masterly Urdu translation and commentary. Here is a Tafsir with a difference, by a scholar of an entirely different sort. An immense wealth of profound understanding of the Qur'an is here, so is a vast treasure of knowledge and deep insights, illuminating historical accounts and philological discussions, and a highly systematic exposition of social, political, economic and legal teachings. But what makes this Tafsir unique is that it translates the Qur'an into a book to be lived by, a mission to be lived for, and a duty that a reader can no longer evade or postpone. This rare quality is imparted not only by the depth of his scholarship and style of exposition, but also because Sayyid Mawdudi lived by what he expounded, as his life abundantly proves. This Tafsir answers contemporary questions, and makes the Qur'an fully relevant to the concerns of our day, yet it loses nothing of its timelessness nor sacrifices any of the traditional understanding. It demonstrates the unity and coherence of the Qur'an by centreing everything in it on its message, like gems hung on a single string. Each Sarah is prefaced by an account of its background and teachings: Maps and indexes add greatly to the understanding. To sum up: in this Tafsir, Sayyid Mawdudi is offering us what we need most to understand and live by the Qur'an. ZAFAR ISHAQ ANSARI, Director Gen...read more

TOWARDS UNDERSTANDING THE QUR'AN is a fresh and highly readable English rendering of Tafhim al-Qur'an, Sayyid Mawdudi's monumental and masterly Urdu translation and commentary. Here is a Tafsir with a difference, by a scholar of an entirely different sort. An immense wealth of profound understanding of the Qur'an is here, so is a vast treasure of knowledge and deep insights, illuminating historical accounts and philological discussions, and a highly systematic exposition of social, political, economic and legal teachings. But what makes this Tafsir unique is that it translates the Qur'an into a book to be lived by, a mission to be lived for, and a duty that a reader can no longer evade or postpone. This rare quality is imparted not only by the depth of his scholarship and style of exposition, but also because Sayyid Mawdudi lived by what he expounded, as his life abundantly proves. This Tafsir answers contemporary questions, and makes the Qur'an fully relevant to the concerns of our day, yet it loses nothing of its timelessness nor sacrifices any of the traditional understanding. It demonstrates the unity and coherence of the Qur'an by centreing everything in it on its message, like gems hung on a single string. Each Sarah is prefaced by an account of its background and teachings: Maps and indexes add greatly to the understanding. To sum up: in this Tafsir, Sayyid Mawdudi is offering us what we need most to understand and live by the Qur'an. ZAFAR ISHAQ ANSARI, Director Gen...read more

Summarised Sahih Al-Bukhari in Urdu in 2 volumes. A moral and spiritual revolution begins to happen in the mind and conduct of the readers as their study progresses. We hope that this selection of Ahadith will initiate the readers to follow Islamic teachings throughout their life.

THE AIM of this book, presented here for the first time as a fully revised and updated paperback, is to explore what it means to be a Muslim-a member of a community which embraces a quarter of the world's population-and to describe the forces which have shaped their hearts and minds. In this wide-ranging study the author is concerned not simply with Islam in isolation, but with the very nature of religious faith, its spiritual and intellectual foundations and the light it casts upon the mysteries and paradoxes of the human condition. S o M E R E v I E w s : 'This is a beautifully written book. It offers a taste of theology, of history, of aesthetics and of eschatology blended in such a way as to provide a whole and balanced image, a vision of life that is both comprehensive and thoroughly Islamic.' (Parabola) 'The most remarkable accomplishment of this book is not that it leaves the reader with a basic understanding of Muhammad, the Qur'an and the daily practices of Muslims everywhere, although it certainly does these things. Nor does it lie merely in the clear, open, loving approach the author brings to his subject, though this is striking. Rather his main contribution lies in building bridges of understanding-in showing the Christian's and the Jew's essential oneness with the Muslim.' (Joseph K. Blackman) 'One of the most important works on islam to appear in the English language. It should be read by all Westerners interested in an understanding of the Islamic tradition a...read more

Ibn Rushd's Bida yat al-Mujtahid occupies a unique place among the authoritative manuals of Islamic law. It is designed to prepare the jurist for the task of the mujTahiti, the independent jurist, who derives the law and lays down precedents to be followed by the judge in the administration of justice. In this manual Ibn Rushed traces most of the issues of Islamic law, describing not only what the law is, but also elaborating the methodology of some of the greatest legal minds in Islam to show how such laws were derived. This text provides a still-relevant basis for the interpretation and formulation of Islamic law. Combining his legal and philosophical knowledge, Ibn Rushed transcends the boundaries of different schools and presents a critical analysis of the opinions of the famous Muslim jurists and their methodologies. The legal subject areas covered include marriage and divorce; sale and exchange of goods; wages, crop-sharing and speculative partnership; security for debts and insolvency; gifts, bequests and inheritance; and offences and judgements. Inn-an Nays is Assistant Professor at the International University, Islamabad. He is currently in charge of training and publications at the Shari'ah Academy, a unit of the International Islamic University.

This work is addressed both to those specifically interested in Islamic studies and to those who search in a more general way for that satisfaction of the spirit which is so often avidly sought and yet so rarely round. For the large number of people now studying the different aspects of Islam in the West and also for the many Muslims who have lost touch with their own tradition to the point of relying on works in European languages for knowledge of the religion they profess, this book is of the greatest import. It expounds aspects of Islamic doctrine little known and difficult to unveil, yet of the most urgent actuality for those who feel bewildered by the intelIectual confusion of modern times. Moreover, in this as in many of his other works. Frithjof Schuon through the teachings of Islam reveals truths which are of universal (hanif) in the Our anic sense) concern to all mankind, truths which alone can give meaning to human existence." Seyyed Hoscein Nasr

This book provides a thorough overview of the current state of Islamic historical studies and an analysis of some characteristic methods and problems. By presenting some possible lines of inquiry and research strategies, Humphreys explores the elements which might be used to construct a persuasive and well-integrated synthesis of Islamic history from A.D. 600 to 1500. He provides a comprehensive survey of the sources and reference tools available to historians and proposes ways to use existing resources to extend our knowledge of medieval Islamic history

Shaykh Burhan uddin Ali (503-593 AH) who was born in Marghinan, a village fifteen farsakh from Samarqand in Farghanah, wrote the volumnious celebrated law treatise. The Hidayah, literally `the guidance'. In the words of the Dictionary of Islam, it is the hidayah fil furu' or 'guidance in particular points.' The book covers all subjects of Islam relevant to everyday life. The opinions of the jurisprudents and the imams are cited on all legal issues involving salah, zakah, charity, mutual dealings, marriage, divorce, dower, gifts, death, funeral, iddah, orphanage, fosterage, wills, bequests, inheritance, guardianship, waqf sales, partnership, huddud or punishments. The authorities cited include Imams Abu Hanifah, Shafi', Malik, Ibn Hanbal, Zafar, etc. Differing opinions are discussed in the light of the noble Prophet's ahadith and the rulings of the respected sahabah like Sayyidina Umar and Ali The English translation of Charles Hamilton was published in four volumes in 1791 CE. This was reprinted now and then without any revision. We at Darul-Ishaat have now revised it and done away with the biased discourse. This difficult brain-racking and time-consuming task is accomplished by Mrs. Z. Bainter. The work will enable scholars and the common men to explore Islamic principles concerning every field of life and to develope ideas on how to apply them and to solve complex issues. An alphabetical index of subjects on the pattern of a list of contents with sub-headings and of Arabi...read more

About the Book: The Creed of Imam al-Tahawi is the first book published by Zaytuna Institute for its Curriculum Series. Translated, annotated, and introduced by Shaykh Hamza Yusuf, it is a simple yet profound expression of the essential points of Muslim belief. Imam al-Tahawi’s creed has achieved an unusual degree of acceptance in the Muslim world, as it avoids involuted theological issues and systematically presents the most fundamental aspects of dogmatic theology. Studied throughout the Muslim world and increasingly in the West, The Creed of Imam al-Tahawi serves as a sound basis for Islamic faith and is the most reliable of the early articulations of Muslim belief. About Imam al-Tahawi: Born in Taha in Upper Egypt in 239 AH/853 CE, Imam Abu Ja’far al-Tahawi lived until 321/933. A first-rate jurist, a brilliant grammarian and philologist, and an erudite man of letters, Imam al-Tahawi is best known for his eponymous creed. Known as “al-Azdi,” in reference to the Yemeni clan known as “Azd al-Hajar,” Imam al-Tahawi was a descendent of a people about whom the Prophet Muhammad said, “Faith is Yemeni.” It is altogether fitting that the man who penned such a unifying creed descended from the land of which faith itself is a descendant. Providing seekers of knowledge with a luminous set of simple and sound statements, his creed is a beacon of certainty in the darkness of doubt and ambiguity. About the Translator: Hamza Yusuf is an American convert to Islam who studied for ...read more