The Elixir of the Gnostics: A parallel English-Arabic text

Sadra, Mulla

ISBN 10: 0934893705 / ISBN 13: 9780934893701

Published by Brigham Young University, USA, 2002

About this Item

Arabic-English parallel text with introduction and notes. This work of Mulla Sadra (1572-1640) elaborates on an earlier Presian work, The Book of the Everlasting by Baba Afdal. Almost as new. Dj in a clear, protective wrapper. 8vo, xxxvii, 145 + 87 (in Arabic) pp. 620g.

Seller Inventory # 003766

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Elixir of the Gnostics: A parallel English-Arabic text
• Publisher: Brigham Young University, USA
• Publication Date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0934893705
• ISBN 13: 9780934893701
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: Fine
• Dust Jacket Condition: Fine

About this title

Synopsis

Sadr al-Din Muhammad Shirazi (1572-1640), more commonly called Mulla Sadra, was one of the grand scholars of later-period Islamic philosophy and has grown to become one of the best-known Muslim philosophers. Iksir al-'arifin, or Elixir of the Gnostics, is unique among Sadra's writings in that it reworks and amplifies an earlier Persian work, the Jawidan-nama (Book of the Everlasting) by Afdal al-Din Kashani, or Baba Afdal.

The underlying theme of Sadra's amplification is emblematic of Muslim philosophy: the importance of self-knowledge in an individual's journey of "Origin and Return," the soul's origins with God and its eventual return to Him. Everything, Sadra says, is on such a path, gradually disengaging from the material world and returning to a transcendent essence—all leading to a final fruition in which everything in the universe returns to God and finds permanent happiness. Philosophy, Sadra argues, is the most direct means to self-knowledge—and thus the best tool for navigating this journey.

Language Notes

Text: English, Arabic (translation)
Original Language: Arabic