The Sufi Path of Knowledge: Ibn Al-Arabi's Metaphysics of Imagination [Paperback]

William C. Chittick (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 504 pages
• Publisher: State University of New York Press (June 30, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0887068855
• ISBN-13: 978-0887068850
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 7.4 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #452,317 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Work on Ibn Arabi's Non-Dualistic Cosmology to Date, August 14, 2000

By 

C. King Khidr (Damascus, Syria) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sufi Path of Knowledge: Ibn Al-Arabi's Metaphysics of Imagination (Paperback)

Ibn Arabi is not easy reading. By far the best and most comprehensive book to date is this one -- perhaps Chittick's most important work yet. SPK is primarily a collection of translations from various sections of Ibn Arabi's greatest work, the Meccan Revelations, and is structured more as an anthology. Chittick puts in his own commentary here and there which helps decode the complexity of some of the passages. But for the most part, he allows Ibn Arabi to speak for himself.

Although the book is long, you don't have to read all of it. Chittick is not arguing a thesis, but presenting Ibn Arabi's view on a variety of subjects which are fundamentally rooted in a non-dualistic cosmology where only Allah 'is'. You can read just the introduction of the work (where Chittick gives a bare-bones sketch of the Shaikh's worldview) and then start plugging away from the various passages at your own convenience.

In my opinion, SPK is better than Chittick's more recent THE SELF DISCLOSURE OF GOD which is too technical and requires quite a bit of familiarity with Ibn Arabi in particular and sufism in general.

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars textbook style guide with detail and clarity, August 14, 2006

By 

red infidel "infi_del" (Paris) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sufi Path of Knowledge: Ibn Al-Arabi's Metaphysics of Imagination (Paperback)

One of the difficulties with having such a unified, unique and untouchably elevated God is in reconiciling Him with the nitty-gritty intimacy of life and creation.

Allah is way up there...yet He still dictates stuff way down here.

Allah is so transcendent..yet religious experience demands an intimate spiritual connection.

How do these things happen?


well you see, it's quite simple really :)

It's mostly to do with this concept called 'barzakh' - loosely translated as 'phased intermediation' such that the cosmological make-up of the world consists of several layers, each of which denotes an element of the divine attribute made manifest. This whole system culminates in describing the universe as a "Theatre of Manifestation" of God's attributes (illustrated through the 99 names of Allah). This means that the divine essence permeates through every atomistic fibre of matter in every infinitessimal stitch of time.

Similarly, the consciousness of man is a barzakh - bridging the gap between the terrestial base form of clay and the ultimate climax of spiritual experience, 'fana' - a cosmic consciousness of unity with the Divine.

This book, with neat chapters, concepts and illustrations explains each of the steps of the divine governance of the universe and the methods of Godly consciousness as espoused by the great master of Shaykhs - Ibn Al Arabi. The first few chapters very lucidly run through the groundwork of the concept of the 'divine names' and some basic ontological and metaphysical concepts. This sets the field for a stunning climax where Professor Chttick weaves together the epistemic nature of prayer and spiritual discipline - so that the consciousness of Man mirrors and chimes in a unified beat with the inner harmonies of the universe. Everything is ONE....Everything resides in the ONE.

I have to admit, things get a little spooky and hazy towards the end and I struggled to form a coherent sense of what the whole things was about - in total....but maybe that's something you can't learn from a book.

To cut things short, this is a stunningly awesome book. A little hard going and tedious to begin with but definitely well worth the effort.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Gives more answers to deep questions than any other book,, March 9, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: The Sufi Path of Knowledge: Ibn Al-Arabi's Metaphysics of Imagination (Paperback)

The author has written a number of balanced, penetrating books revealing the world of the religious masters of the Near East of 700 years ago. Willaim Chittick, Professor of Islamic Studys at SUNY Stoney Brook is unique in the English speaking world in his training in these topics; and in the synthesis and scope he provides. The Sufi Path of Knowledge is an expertly and lovingly considered condensation of a work that in it's Arabic original runs over 10,000 pages. Ibn Arabi, along with Al Ghazali and Rumi, was the greatest mystic of the Islamic religion. This book provides more insight on man's nature, the nature of his relationship to the world and his creator, the world of angels and dreams and deep awakening, and the nature of being than any other book I know. Overwhelming