Description
Book SynopsisThe Journeys of a Taymiyyan Sufi explores the life and teachings of ʿImād al-Dīn Aḥmad al-Wāsiṭī (d. 711/1311), a little-known Ḥanbalī Sufi master from the circle of Ibn Taymiyya (d. 728/1328). The first part of this book follows al-Wāsiṭī’s physical journey in search of spiritual guidance through a critical study of his autobiographical writings. This provides unique insights into the Rifāʿiyya, the Shādhiliyya, and the school of Ibn ʿArabī, several manifestations of Sufism that he encountered as he travelled from Wāsiṭ to Baghdad, Alexandria, and Cairo. Part I closes with his final destination, Damascus, where his membership of Ibn Taymiyya’s circle and his role as a Sufi teacher is closely examined. The second part focuses on al-Wāsiṭī’s spiritual journey through a study of his Sufi writings, which convey the distinct type of traditionalist Sufism that he taught in early eighth/fourteenth-century Damascus. Besides providing an overview of the spiritual path unto God from beginning to end as he formulated it, this reveals an exceptional interplay between Sufi theory and traditionalist theology.
Table of ContentsIntroduction Part I. The Physical Journey (al-Riḥla) Introduction: al-Wāsiṭī’s Biography Chapter 1. Leaving Home, Bastion of the Spectacular Rifāʿīs Chapter 2. Scholastic Sufism of the Alexandrian Shādhiliyya Chapter 3. The Final Steps: From Heretics to the Saved Sect Part II. The Spiritual Journey (al-Sulūk) Introduction: Sulūk as Sufism Chapter 4. Traditionalist Sufism: Outlining the Foundations of the Journey Chapter 5. Progressing Towards the Beloved Through the Degrees of Witnessing Conclusion Bibliography Index
