Customer Reviews

Imaginal Worlds (Suny Series, Islam)

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William Chittick is one of the most important contemporary authorities on Islamic philosophy and esoterism, and Ibn 'Arabi in particular. He has devoted immense volumes to the "Greatest Master" of Islamic esoterism, which discuss Ibn 'Arabi's views on Revelation, gnosis, metaphysics, ontology, cosmology, and everything else under the sun.

This short volume deals with some of the most important features of Ibn 'Arabi's thought, and Islam and Sufism in general, including the transcendent unity of Being (wahdat al-wujud), the univeral or perfect man (al-insan al-kamil), ethics, poetry, gnosis, eschatology, the Quran, Hadith literature, and the differences and essential unity of all religions.

Those who question Chittick's conclusions, which are based on Ibn 'Arabi's own writings, are most likely less familiar with Ibn 'Arabi's core texts, such as "al-Futuhah al-makiyyah" and "Fusus al-hikam". Chittick knows these texts in Arabic better than any contemporary author I have read, as well as various commentaries in both Arabic and Persian. He has also studied these texts in both traditional and academic settings from some of the most important authorities on Ibn 'Arabi in the twentieth century.

Along with the writings of T. Burckhardt, H. Corbin, T. Izutsu, and S.H. Nasr, Chittick's treatment of Ibn 'Arabi is the best in any European language, and a major contribution to his thought in the history of Islam.

For primary material, one might also read Caner Dagli's excellent new translation of "Fusus al-hikam" published as "The Ringstones of Wisdom".

Bill Chittick is the finest academic in North America writing about Islam. As is usual with his work, this work is splendid.

I have read bits of this book (and not all of it) and all I want to say is the following:

Undoubtedly, Mr. Chittick knows a lot about Ibn Arabi and is very interested in him; however for an academic--who are supposed to look at all the evidence before coming to any conclusions--I find it very disappointing that this book, though no doubt a labour of love and beautifully written, attributes positions and beliefs to Ibn Arabi (may his secret be sanctified!) which are totally opposed to what Ibn Arabi himself believed. What is even sadder--as the link below clearly shows--is that this position is arrived at by selective quoting of Ibn Arabi's works.

This book--and others like it, for some reason like to depict the great Sufi Shaykh Ibn Arabi as a perrenialist in his beliefs. This is totally wrong as Ibn Arabi category states in his magnus opus his belief in the traditional doctrine of the Ahle SunnaH w'al JamaaH (Sunni Islamic orthodoxy) which is totally opposed to the idea of the validity of all religions.

Because of this vital flaw in this work, I advise people to keep away from it despite its good points as one will be left with an incorrect view of Hazrat Shaykh al Akbar's ideas. The traditional sufis do not even let their discipless tudy Ibn Arabi until they have reached a certain high stage in their own spiritual journey as to do so is to invite confusion which is clearly what has happened to the self-declared Orientalist "interpreters" of Ibn Arabi (quds sirruhu)...

This book is to make us believe that Ibn Al-Arabi is a truly universal man who respects religious diversity( maybe even encourages it). But as Chodkiewicz in his book " seal of the saints" makes it abundantly clear, Ibn Al-Arabi is not at all a fan of diversity or if he is, he is very selective about it. For example, Chodkeiwicz mentions Arabi's strong Anti-Shiism which he puts it rather interestingly as those who have been influenced by " demonic souls". This reminds us of Adolph Hitler's views of Jews as "Rats". Ibn Al-Arabi also attacks the theologians of Sunni Islam, who happen to disagree with him, as "anti-Christ" or " Pharaoh" of their time. I don't think Ibn Al-Arabi even remotely qualifies for a man who respected religious diversity.