Beauty in Sufism: The Teachings of Ruzbihan Baqli - Softcover

Murata, Kazuyo

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1438462786 ISBN 13: 9781438462783

Publisher: State University of New York Press, 2018

Synopsis

Analyzes the place of beauty in the Sufi understanding of God, the world, and the human being through the writings of Sufi scholar and saint Ruzbihan Baqli.

According to Muhammad, “God is beautiful and He loves beauty.” Yet, Islam is rarely associated with beauty, and today, a politicized Islam dominates many perceptions. This work tells a forgotten story of beauty in Islam through the writings of celebrated but little-studied Sufi scholar and saint Ruzbihan Baqli (1128–1209). Ruzbihan argued that the pursuit of beauty in the world and in oneself was the goal of Muslim life. One should become beautiful in imitation of God and reclaim the innate human nature created in God’s beautiful image. Ruzbihan’s theory of beauty is little known, largely because of his convoluted style and eccentric terminology in both Persian and Arabic.

“Murata opens up a vista on Islam that nobody talks about anymore: the Sufi vision of Islam as a religion of love and adoration of beauty. This is a fascinating book and an impressive achievement. I predict that it will remain the central work on the metaphysics of beauty in Sufism for decades to come.” — Leonard Lewisohn, Senior Lecturer in Persian, University of Exeter

About this title

About the Author:

Kazuyo Murata is Lecturer in Islamic Studies at King’s College London and coeditor (with Mohammed Rustom and Atif Khalil) of In Search of the Lost Heart: Explorations in Islamic Thought by William C. Chittick, also published by SUNY Press.

Review:

“...Murata has added a useful contribution to scholarship on medieval Sufi metaphysics and underscored the need to widen our gaze past the category of love as the central conception of the Sufi path.” ― Reading Religion

“Murata opens up a vista on Islam that nobody talks about anymore: the Sufi vision of Islam as a religion of love and adoration of beauty. This is a fascinating book and an impressive achievement. I predict that it will remain the central work on the metaphysics of beauty in Sufism for decades to come.” ― Leonard Lewisohn, Senior Lecturer in Persian, University of Exeter

About this edition

• Publisher: State University of New York Press
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1438462786
• ISBN 13: 9781438462783
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 212