Skip to content
Home » Principles of Sufism pdf download

Principles of Sufism pdf download

PRINCIPLES OF SUFISM
Book Title The Principles Of Sufism
Book AuthorZaineb S. Istrabadi
Total Pages293
Book Views

Loading

LanguageEnglish
Book DownloadPDF Direct Download Link
Get HardcoverClick for Hard Similar Copy from Amazon

The Principles of Sufism (Qawaid al-Tasawwuf) An Annotated Translation with Introduction by Zaineb S. Istrabadi

Principles of Sufism

Book Preface

This dissertation is an annotated translation of Shaykh Ahmad Zarruq’ s work Qawa’id al-Tasawwuf (The Principles of Sufism), one of the shaykh’s most important works.

It is a Sufi manual in which he follows the footsteps of many other great masters who wrote works in order to preserve Sufi teachings.

A number of these works were written for both the followers of Sufism and its foes to prove to the latter the authenticity and orthodoxy of the path. Works such as al-Risalah al­Qushayriyyah by al-Qushayri,Tabagat al-Sufiyyaah by al-Sulami, Adab al- Muridina by al-Suhrawardi, Ihya Ulum al-Din by al Ghazali -and others come to mind.

 These works were often written in a clear style, inter­spersed with Quranic and Hadith citations and stories and biographies of the saints of Islam. This is not the case, however, with the Qawaid of Zarruq.

Rather, it is written in an aphoristic style and is at times purposefully vague and unclear. This is not the general style of Zarruq, who in his other works, such as the numerous commentaries on the Hikam of Ibn Ata’ Allah, or in his commentary on the Sahib al-Bukhari, uses the simplest and clearest language possible in discussing whatever matter is at hand.

Perhaps he chose to write this particular work in an obscure style in order to prevent any confrontations with religious scholars. Perhaps he felt that too clear an exposition would delimit the range of possibilities or the applications of particular principles.

Then, too, it is in the nature of aphoristic writing to be somewhat obscure and vague at times. Whatever the reason, the person who reflects on his Arabic sentences must supply a good deal of material that he quite often takes for granted.

 In the end, the elliptical character of Zarruq’s argumentation and style compel his readers to come to terms with his remarks and observations from the very beginning or else to abandon the enterprise. This represents a challenge on the part of Shaykh Ahmad Zarruq, calling upon his readers to meditate intensely on his meaning and thereby to reach new plateaus of understanding that a straightforward affirmation could not generate.

This dissertation is divided into three major parts: an introduc­tion to the life and works of Zarruq, the English translation of Qawaid al-Tasawwuf and an appendix.

The appendix supplies brief biographical sketches of persons mentioned in the Qawaid, a glossary of technical terms, and two chains of initiation, one from the Prophet Muhammad to Zarruq, and another from Zarruq to Ahmad al-Alaw1, who died in 1932.

To read more about the The Principles Of Sufism book Click the download button below to get it for free

Report broken link

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *