The garden of truth : the vision and promise of Sufism, Islam's mystical tradition

The headlines are filled with the politics of Islam, but there is another side to the world's fastest-growing religion. Sufism is the poetry and mysticism of Islam. This mystical movement from the early ninth century rejects worship motivated by the desire for heavenly reward or the fear of punishment, insisting rather on the love of God as the only valid form of adoration. Sufism has made significant contributions to Islamic civilization in music and philosophy, dance and literature. The Sufi poet Rumi is the bestselling poet in America. But in recent centuries Sufism has been a target for some extremist Islamic movements as well as many modernists. The Garden of Truth presents the beliefs and vision of the mystical heart of Islam, along with a history of Sufi saints and schools of thought. In a world threatened by religious wars, depleting natural resources, a crumbling ecosystem, and alienation and isolation, what has happened to our humanity? Who are we and what are we doing here? The Sufi path offers a journey toward truth, to a knowledge that transcends our mundane concerns, selfish desires, and fears. In Sufism we find a wisdom that brings peace and a relationship with God that nurtures the best in us and in others. Noted scholar Seyyed Hossein Nasr helps you learn the secret wisdom tradition of Islam and enter what the ancient mystics call the garden of truth. Here, liberate your mind, experience peace, discover your purpose, fall in love with the Divine, and find your true, best self. A result of over fifty years of scholarly study of existential participation in Sufism, this volume presents to the reader a Sufi text written in English and using contemporary language. Though based on profound scholarship, it is not a history of Sufism or just an academic work on the subject. After some two centuries of study of Sufism in the West, with the appearance of many translations, analyses, histories, and some profound expositions of Sufi metaphysics, and given an ever greater interest in Sufism by certain Westerners, it was necessary to write, not just another book about Sufism, but a Sufi book. It is necessary to present the reality of Sufism as did the authorities of old, but in a manner accessible to the present-day serious Western seeker or Western-educated Muslim seeker, even if such a person has no previous knowledge of the subject. This book deals with universal truths of interest to those attracted to the life of the Spirit and in light of the human condition in general, presenting them from within the spiritual and intellectual universe of Sufism while providing a means of access to that universe and revealing some of its riches. It is concerned not so much with the cultural and civilization role of Sufism as with the souls of men and women in quest of the Truth and seeks to present the realities of Sufism while keeping in mind the concrete spiritual and intellectual needs of contemporary men and women in both East and West. CONTENTS 8 LIST OF TRANSLITERATIONS 10 INTRODUCTION 13 Part One 17 1 WHAT IT MEANSTO BE HUMAN 19 Part Two 43 2 TRUTH 45 3 LOVE AND BEAUTY 75 4 GOODNESS AND HUMAN ACTION 97 5 HOW DO WE REACH THE GARDEN OF TRUTH? 119 Part Three 153 6 ACCESS TO THE CENTER 155 Part Four 177 A1 THE SUFI TRADITION AND THE SUFI ORDERS 179 A2 THE TRADITION OF THEORETICAL SUFISM AND GNOSIS 225 NOTES 251 GLOSSARY OF TECHNICAL TERMS 255 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY OFWORKS IN ENGLISH 263 INDEX 265 006162599X,9780061625992 HarperOne,2008 Sufism has made significant contributions to the spread of Islam and the development of various aspects of Islamic civilisation. Many conservative Muslims disagree with various Sufi practices. This title provides the beliefs and vision of the mystical heart of Islam.