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The Way of the Sufi (Compass) Paperback – September 1, 1991

by Idries Shah (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars 32 customer reviews
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Product Details

  • Series: Compass
  • Paperback: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin Books; Reprint edition (September 1, 1991)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0140192522
  • ISBN-13: 978-0140192520
  • Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.7 x 7.7 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #392,398 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsAge old wisdom
By Nana Annie on June 1, 2005
Format: Paperback
This book is a great source of information and history on Sufism. A scholarly work, published first in 1970, it is still pertinent to today.

It opens with an important chapter on the study of Sufism in the Western world -- and its limitations.

Shah raises questions about how much one can learn and understand about Sufism, using books and writings which may not fully understand how Sufism works. As one example, he uses modern Western debates on the meaning of the word "Sufi". Westerners, with our determination that there is an understandable and intellectual explanation for everything, often cannot accept that there may not be a 'logical' explanatin.

As explained in the eleventh -century Revelation, the earliest Persian writings on Sufism by Hujwiri, the term 'Sufi' has no etymology.

But for decades, a common explanation by Westerners is that
'Sufi' is similar to the Arabic word pronounced soof which means 'wool'. Those practicing Sufism wore wool, therefore this is the logical explanation.

(Shah submits that the reason common among Sufis is that the effects of sounds are important in Sufism -- and the sound of the Arabic letters which bring out the sounds of S U F are significant to the Sufis in their practices).

This short chapter is full of useful thoughts for modern day Western "Sufis" , with cautions and thoughts about what Sufism is, how it is understood and much more. He ends the chapter with a list of requirements for Western students studying Sufism -

1. Understand the bulk of translations available are unsuitable 2. seek authorative written and oral information and activities designed by Sufis to operate in the student's own culture and times
3.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsAn exellent book on the Sufi Wisdom
By A Customer on July 17, 1999
Format: Paperback
The book provides a good collection of sufi sayings - the words of wisdom - e.g.
------The Answer ---
We wrote a hundred letters, and you did not write an answer. This, too, is a reply.
--- Zauqi
---------Remedy------
Your medicine is in you, and you do not observe it.
Your ailment is from yourself, and you do not register it.
-----Hazrat Ali
--------- The State ----
Justice and fairness, not religion or atheism,
Are needful for the protection of the State.
------Hakim Jami
------ The Science -------
The Science of Truth disappers in the Sufi's knowledge.
When will mankind understand this saying?
----Jalaludin Rumi
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5.0 out of 5 starsThe Seed of Sufi Knowledge
By Caroline Harkins on November 16, 2001
Format: Paperback
Humour! History! Stories! Mental teasers! Here are challenges to habitual and defensive thought. We must turn the stone over and examine its several sides.
Shah can be compared to Socrates in his benevolent probing into our cherished but unexamined patterns of thought and action.
Here Idries Shah has translated and assembled a most considerate introduction to Sufi literature and practice. The Way of the Sufi Includes chapters on Sufism in the West, classical authors, Sufi masters, teaching stories and other topics. But this book is not just about the Sufi way, it forms a part of the Sufi Way in our time. Read with energy and an open (but not glib) mind, it can be an avenue for experiential learning.
Enlightening, entertaining, engrossing, The Way of the Sufi just might affect the way you look at things and what you do.
Exerpts:
The Seed of Sufi Knowledge
The true seed was made in Adam's time. The miracle of life, existence.
It germinated in the period of Noah. The miracle of growth, rescue.
By the time of Abraham it had sent forth branches. The miracle of spreading, maintenance.
The epoch of Moses saw the making of the grapes. The miracle of fruit.
The time of Jesus was that of the ripening of the yield. The miracle of tasting, joy.
Mohammed's time saw the pressing of clear wine. The miracle of attainment, transformation. Bayazid Bistami
What Looks After You
Knowledge is better thatn wealth. You have to look after wealth; knowledge looks after you. Ali
The Thief and the Blanket
A thief entered the house of a Sufi, and found nothing there. As he was leaving, the dervish perceived his disappointment and threw him the blanket in which he was sleeping, so that he should not go away empty-handed.
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5.0 out of 5 starsWritings That Resonate
By A Customer on July 19, 2001
Format: Paperback
In his Introduction to THE WAY OF THE SUFI, Idries Shah tells the reader that "This book is designed to present Sufi ideas, actions, and report: not for the microscope or as museum pieces, but in their relevance to a current community--what we call the contemporary world." Shah has in mind a person with no background in Sufi ideas who has recently heard of Sufism. In the first section he presents a succinct overview of what Sufism both is and is not as well as the problems that might hinder one's approach to learning about the Sufi way. The footnotes in this section are very informative and should be read along with the text. The rest of the book is divided into sections of selected Sufi materials that are relevant to the people of the modern world, such as pieces written by the classical Sufi authors and the letters and lectures of some of the Masters as well as teaching stories and themes for contemplation. This book is an engaging introduction to the Sufi way, with readings that are full of a wit and wisdom that continue to resonate in the mind of the reader.
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THE WAY OF THE SUFI contains examples of almost all the different literary formats used by Idries Shah to project Sufi teachings in the modern world: Teaching-stories, jokes and... Read more

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A multifaceted presentation of Sufi literature, offering a wide range of approaches to Sufi materials. Read more

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I have owned copies of this book for nearly 30 years. It's a beautiful book - almost a living thing. Indescribable. Get it and find out for yourself.

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5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Human beings potential can be completed by exposure to certain factors represented
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Outstanding awakening book for me.. I saw myself, my questions, concerns, feelings..
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It's hard to convey in words just how exceptional the content of this book is. New edition of a classic, still as relevant today as ever.

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