Synopsis
Devotion to the Prophet of Islam has been an essential component of Islam since its earliest days. The Muslim “ Statement of Faith” is testimony both that God exists and that Muhammad is His Messenger. Muhammad is considered “ the perfect man” whose life, most Muslims believe, should be copied to the greatest extent possible, down to the smallest details possible. From early on, and over the ensuing centuries, a “ prophetology” developed such that Muhammad’ s role in human life was understood as essential not just during his physical time on earth in the 6th and early 7th centuries, but even before the creation of the first man, Adam, and it remains so until the end of the world. Significant clarity and explanation of the Prophet’ s role in Islamic spirituality was added by the 13th century Sufi mystic Ibn Arabi, often called “ al-Shaykh al-Akbar,” the Greatest of Teachers. In this book Claude Addas traces the development of Muhammad’ s role in mystical thought, especially through the writings of Sufi masters and with a special focus on the influence of Ibn Arabi. She looks into concepts like the “ Muhammadan Way” and “ Muhammadan Reality,” and ends with a discussion of who— according to Muslim, and especially Sufi, thinkers and Ibn Arabi— should be understood as belonging to the “ House of the Prophet” — the ahl al-bayt.
About the Author
David Streight is known for his skill in translations from the French. Fons Vitae has also published his translation of Jean-Louis Michon's "Autobiography of a Moroccan Sufi." David Streight taught and worked as a school psychologist in numerous schools in the Portland (OR) area before being named executive director of the Center for Spiritual and Ethical Education in 2004. David is the author, editor or contributing editor for a number of books for educators or parents, all reflecting his primary interest in fostering goodness in young people and the society they will be enriching. A renowned French author and scholar focused on Sufism with a speciality on the great Islamic mystic, Ibn al-Arabi. Addas earned a degree in Arabic and Persian. She is the author of the 1989 book "Ibn 'Arabi, ou, La quê te du soufre rouge", a biography of Ibn Arabi, which was translated into English by Peter Kingsley as "Quest for the Red Sulphur: The Life of Ibn 'Arabi" and published in 1993.William Chittick described Quest for the Red Sulphur as "the best and most thoroughly documented account" of Ibn Arabi's life. Gregory Lipton described her as "Ibn Arabi's preeminent Western biographer".
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