Customer Reviews

Happiness Without Death: Desert Hymns

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I love books, and this is one of the few I have read and re-read many times. I stumbled across "Happiness Without Death" at a seminar three years ago, drawn by its unusual title. Once I read two of Assad Ali's poems, I was hooked.

Each of the poems in this volume was inspired by a surah (book) of the Qur'an, and each poem gives a rare glance into the type of deep worship that many people crave these days, though they don't realize it. Ali blends his utter devotion to God with his finely honed intellect and his ability to listen so deeply that his heart transcends ordinary reality. The resulting prayers/poems calm me when I'm crabby, pep me up when I awaken still tired from not enough sleep, and have inspired many of my own poems and essays.

If you want contemporary freeform verse that captures the essence of the Essence, this is it. As an added gift, the last portion of this volume contains fresh translations of the first thirty chapters of the Qur'an as they were revealed to the prophet Muhammad, with brief commentaries that make them accessible to Western readers.

Buy this book for someone you love, for someone curious about the true heart of Islam beyond the politics that dominate the media, for an aspiring poet, or simply as a well deserved gift for yourself. Enjoy!