Description
Book SynopsisA contribution to Shi'ite Sufism. It brings us to the core of this movement with an analysis of Ibn 'Arabi's life and doctrines. It begins with a spiritual topography of the twelfth century, emphasizing the differences between exoteric and esoteric forms of Islam. It also relates Islamic mysticism to mystical thought in the West.
Table of ContentsList of PlatesPrefaceIntroductionBetween Andalusia and Iran: A Brief Spiritual Topography3The Curve and Symbols of Ibn 'Arabi's Life38At Averroes' Funeral38The Pilgrim to the Orient46The Disciple of Khidr53His Maturity and the Completion of His Work68The Situation of Esoterism77Divine Passion and Compassion105The Prayer of the Heliotrope105The "Pathetic God"112Of Unio Mystica as Unio Sympathetica120Sophiology and Devotio Sympathetica136The Sophianic Poem of a Fedele d'amore136The Dialectic of Love145The Creative Feminine157Prologue179The Creation as Theophany184The Creative Imagination as Theophany, or the "God from Whom All Being Is Created"184The God Manifested by the Theophanic Imagination190The "God Created in the Faiths"195The Recurrence of Creation200The Twofold Dimension of Beings207Theophanic Imagination and Creativity of the Heart216The Field of the Imagination216The Heart as a Subtile Organ221The Science of the Heart237Man's Prayer and God's Prayer246The Method of Theophanic Prayer246Homologations257The Secret of the Divine Responses262The "Form of God"272The Hadith of the Vision272Around the Mystic Ka'aba277Epilogue282Notes and Appendices285List of Works Cited391Index399
