Ibn 'Arabi: Heir to the Prophets

Makers of the Muslim World

by William C. Chittick

The importance of Muhyi al-Din Ibn al-Arabi (1165-1240) for Islamic mysticism lies in the fact that he was a speculative thinker of the highest order, albeit diffuse and difficult to understand. His central doctrine is the unity of all existence. In this text, William Chittick explores how, through the work of Ibn Al-Arabi, Sufism moves away from anguished and ascetic searchings of the heart and conscience and becomes a matter of speculative philsophy and theosophy.

Genres: Islam, Religion, Philosophy, Biography, Mysticism, History, Spirituality

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2005

About the author

is a philosopher, writer, translator and interpreter of classical Islamic philosophical and mystical texts. He is best known for his work on Rumi and Ibn 'Arabi, and has written extensively on the school of Ibn 'Arabi, Islamic philosophy, and Islamic cosmology.

Reviews

[Mojtaba · Rating 5 out of 5]

ابن عربي، فيلسوف خيال
محیی‌الدین ابن عربی و شیخ اکبر، پژوهشگر، فیلسوف، عارف و شاعر مسلمان عرب اهل اندلس بود. وي را بزرگترين عارف در شاخه عرفان نظري ناميده اند و همه عرفاي ما بعد او همه شارحان آثار و اندیشه های او، بوده اند و مطلب جدید چندانی، براین دانش نیفزوده اند. عرفان نظري شاخه اي از عرفان است كه مباني معرفتي عرفا رو به صورت عقلي و فلسفي ارائه كرده است. ميزان كتاب و نوشته هاي پرحجم او در حد اعجاز است. از بیش از ۸۰۰ اثر که به او نسبت داده می شود، ۱۰۰ اثر در نسخه اصلی از وی باقی مانده است. نظرات در خصوص ابن عربي بسيار متناقض است. بعضي او را از اولياء الله و انسان كامل و قطب اكبر مي‌دانند و بعضي او را يك كافر مرتد، و گاهي مميت الدين مي‌خوانند. چيتيك، نويسنده اين كتاب را مي توان از جمله مريدان او دانست. جنجالي ترين نظريه او، نظريه وحدت وجود است. ابن عربي با اين نگاه به وحدت وجود معتقد است كه همه موجودات عالم در آيت، نشانه بودن و تجلي وجود محض (خدا) مشتركند.
چيتيك آمريكايي در اين كتاب، با تسلطي مثال زدني، شرحي خلاصه و روشنگر از مباني فكري اين عربي ارائه كرده است.

معرفت شناسي عرفاني سه گانه بدن، نفس، روح و حس، خيال و عقل
معمولا فلاسفه غرب از عقل يا حس به عنوان منابع شناخت انسان نام مي برند. مطابق با اين نگاه، متناظر با دوگانه حس و عقل، انسان از بدن و روح تشكيل شده است. ابن عربي خيال را هم كه معمولا توسط فلاسفه جدي گرفته نمي شود، به عنوان منبع اصلي شناخت معرفي مي كند. از نظر او انسان موجودي بينابيني است كه اين بينابينيت را فقط خيال ارضا مي كند. خيال هم مثل حس، قابليت درك جزييات را داراست و هم مانند عقل مجرد است كه به مرتبه آگاهي مرتبط مي شود. بنابراين در واقع پروسه شناخت انسان از حس شروع مي شود، ولي بعد از حس به عقل منتهي نمي شود بلكه به خيال مي رسد و در آخرين مرحله كه به مرحله درك توحيد و وحدت وجود رسيد، به شناخت عقلي دست پيدا مي كند. متناظر با حس، بدن وجود دارد، متناظر با خيال، نفس و متناظر با عقل، روح انسانيست. البته ابن عربي تنها عارفي نيست كه اين چنين عقيده اي دارد. اين مدل معرفت شناسي در بين فلاسفه و عرفاي مسلمان معموله، ولي هيچكدام مثل ابن عربي به بسط و تاكيد بر خيال نپرداخته اند.

در مورد كتاب
شكوه كاخ بنا شده توسط ابن عربي در نگاه اول قابل تشخيص نيست. سخناني مانند "افعال ما صفات خداست" براي كساني كه با معماري ابن عربي آشنا نيستند بيشتر شبيه لاطائلات است تا يك جمله عقلي. چيتيك در اين خصوص مي گويد "ممکن است تصور شود که دشواری آثار ابن عربی بدین سبب است که او بی هیچ ضرورتی سخنان کهنه و پیچیده آثار پیش از خود را تکرار کرده است. اما به واقع، ما در آثار ابن عربی با رویکردی فوق العاده بدیع به دانش اسلامی سروکار داریم، تا بدانجا که وی واقعاً پیش از خود نظیری نداشته است. به یقین طی چند قرن پیش از ابن عربی نویسندگان برجسته‌ای وجود داشته‌اند که تعالیم صوفیانه را همراه با پیچیدگی نظری بیان کرده‌اند، اما حتی در مقایسه با بزرگان این گروه، مثل غزالی، می‌بینیم که ابن عربی تغییری بنیادین ایجاد کرده است. "
جامعيت نظام عقلاني حيرت آور است، ولي به دليل فاصله زباني و معنايي و اصطلاحي زمانه ابن عربي با زمانه ما، اين نظام به سادگي قابل درك نيست. مثلا ابن عربي از پديدارشناسي كه مبحث مهمي در معرفت شناسي امروز دنياست با عنوان تحقق نام مي برد كه نياز هست تا ابن عربي با صبر و حوصله و با همدلي و دقيق خوانده شود تا بتوان به كلياتي عقلاني از اين نظام دست يافت.

[Fatma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chitticks' book is an excellent reading; Ibn Arabi is not being pushed towards a mystical shelf but being outlined for what he is; he a grand Islamic scholar and Tasawwuf master. This book gives a great overview on the main subjects of Futuhat but also a solid background to "Western" audience to understand the soul of Ibn Arabi's writing and the core of the Tasawwuf thinking.

I have "read" major parts of Futuhat years ago and I can truly say it resonates with the 'original' writing - Chittick's does not add any personal flavour but still opens it for a larger audience.
Nevertheless, this is not an introduction into any subject- this is deep water.

<< Without being I did not find the road to that Truth;
There I became alive with the Truth; I found subsistence 'baqa’.
Myself I annihilated myself; Myself I found myself again.
You will be all when you make nothing of yourself >>

[Ibrahim · Rating 4 out of 5]

مدخل جيد لمعرفة فكر وفلسفة ابن عربي

[Mahdi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Admittedly, I kinda abandoned this book halfway through. But that said, Chapter Three – "The Divine Roots of Love" – is one of the best reads I've had in 2016: Chittick boils down such a complicated metaphysical system of 'wujud' with wonderful clarity. Ibn 'Arabi's incredibly holistic genius and devotion is something I'll be sure to remember and revisit.

[Frater · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent intro to Ibn Arabi's views on theology, psychology and cosmology.

[Mehdi Azzeddine · Rating 4 out of 5]

عرض رائع و مختلف لافكار الشيخ اﻷكبر محيي الدين ابن عربي .. حيث خلع الكاتب عباءة الفلسفة و التصوف عنه و ألبسه ثوب التحقيق ليصير سلطان المحققين بﻻ منازع

[Saif Elhendawi · Rating 5 out of 5]

I tried to read a bit of Ibn Arabi's work in Arabic but failed miserably, due to the dense language and special terminology that he uses. Thus, I began searching for an easier introduction in English, as I am more familiar with philosophical terminology in that language. Chittick does a great job of offering a relatively accessible book here that introduces the main concepts and ideas of Ibn Arabi. Given the short length of the book and the detail which Ibn Arabi writes in it is quite expected that this short book will not be able to cover even a part of his work. However, it does succeed at providing a good overview that grabs your attention and convinces you to delve deeper into this great scholar's work.

I recommend this book for anyone interested, not just in Islamic philosophy and Sufism, but mysticism and spirituality in general. I look forward to continue exploring Ibn Arabi through Chittick's books.

[Ahmed Al-Emadi · Rating 4 out of 5]

أول قراءاتي لفكر ابن عربي. لغة الكتاب في بعض الأجزاء تجعل فهم بعض الجمل شبه مستحيل و هو شيئ متوقع من ابن عربي لكن إخراج الكتاب المتواضع ساهم في تعقيد لغة الكتاب فوق تعقيدها. يتجلى ذلك في الترجمة السيئة لبعض الآيات والأحاديث النبوية( والتي ترجمها الكاتب من العربية للإنجليزية وأعاد المترجم ترجمتها للعربية! ).
الكتاب برأيي جيد و يستحق ثلاث نجوم. النجمة الرابعة لأن بعض الأفكار المطروحة، و إن كنت أختلف مع الكثير منها، تزعزع الكثير من القناعات و تزرع الشك أكثر من أن تثبّت اليقين، و أنا أحب مثل هذه الكتب :)

[hanaazq · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing introductory-type book to Ibn 'Arabi and his metaphysical world. Beautifully written and is very easy to understand. Chittick dives into all the different themes and concepts that are there in Ibn Arabi's writings. This book has made me more eager to dive in to more of Chittick's works on Sufism.

[Abdulkadir Jailani · Rating 5 out of 5]

the best and most authoritative introduction to Ibn Arabi thought

[Razi Shaikh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incomparably beautiful book. An excellent introduction to Ibn Arabi's thoughts. If the metaphysical beckons you, read this book.

[Talha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Unique

[Muhammad Sohail · Rating 5 out of 5]

William C Chittik introduces great Muslim mystic Ibne Arabi’s huge & marvellous corpus in a very easy to understand and simple manner in this concise work.

[Tama · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ibn ‘Arabi was a thinker.
I need a reminder that existence is near impossible. But I don’t feel it in my nervous system anymore, at least not sober.
When I’ve thought to remember this infathomable existence when depressed it doesn’t help.
But this knowledge helps my actions. Spontaneity has no downside. The fear of prison is low, but still horrible.
Names make remembrance possible. This is profound. As the name of prison strikes fear into the law-conscious citizen. The name of Martin, Luther, and John should bring about biblical stories of moral lessons which are part of one.
Like the name of Singapore Airlines has me remember my food poisoning fish meal.
At worst an inefficient encyclopaedia, in this it’s overwritten and lacks perspective. It tells you seeking knowledge should be done on one’s own—by reading the original text, if translated and coming to conclusions—hopefully retaining as much of the original as possible. I think my biggest issue with its definitions of terms is that it gives no practical examples. It would be interesting to know how these thoughts would shape the lives of the people that read and live by them.
To pinpoint an inefficient flaw with the piece is how Chittick uses Ibn ‘Arabi’s name at points and then writes with an understanding that we should know he is telling us Ibn ‘Arabi’s perspective without saying so directly. I think he should’ve scrapped the use of the name and said at the start, everything I write is an introductory simplification of Ibn ‘Arabi’s thinking based on his writings, etc.

Ibn ’Arabi understands that religious texts have not been clear. Do not paint the way to act, but provide morals with which to act. I guess his addition to the Qur’ an, as far as I can gather from Chittick, is in telling man how to perceive reality through the lens of the Qur’ an. Though to grace all interpretations would be too radical, He says it must be supported by the words. When Trump inacts a crime against god it is for power outside of religion, money…

If you can see under an image you are on the path of once unknown secrets.

For me I want goodness because I know the feeling of goodness and it is the best feeling. People who act with hatred or no care for others, who aren’t spreading goodness deserve eternal fire but they won’t get it. Their selfishness is based on lies that most of us uphold, that laws and systems uphold. If we were a community based society we would strive to strengthen our communities in ways that benefit, the evil then might be localised war, which has it’s own systems of honour (bring science into it, make it about killing and not honour or resources and those villains deserve eternal fire).

Reading about Ibn 'Arabi this way also strips it of the historical interest, because I am not reading a thousand year old man's writings but a modern, flawed academic's.

“Quiddity” essence or distinctive feature in something.

“It is beyond all of us what he designs.” These words spoken into my head without my control. Well, I allowed it to finish the thought as I caught the words as they came in up until “beyond all of us” I focused on the thought to hear “what he designs” though it’s in tune with the book I’ve been reading and not very surprising for an intrusive thought, if I can call it that.

[Hassan Zayour · Rating 4 out of 5]

Professor Chittick has rightfully earned his reputation when it comes to understanding (from a scholarly perspective) mystical Islam. This domain, however, has been perpetually famed for its magical alluring properties —many scholars have fallen for its charm. Chittick does not explain his over-interest in Ibn 'Arabi (which might be of irrelevance for the reader), but it is quite admirable to discern the efforts he apparently exhausted to grasp a decent understanding of such a figure in Islamic mysticism/philosophy.
Fusus Al Hikam and Al Futuhat Al Makiyyah are already very dense and profound Arabic texts; to possess an understanding of them like that demonstrated in this book, I can only imagine Chittick learning Arabic and venturing on studying these volumes for nothing less than decades. There is no other way to comprehend them as such, and I salute this scholar who beautifully summarized the main points of Ibn 'Arabi's hard-to-digest school of thought. This is also extra difficult due to Ibn 'Arabi's lack of a systematized approach, in which his perception cannot be replicated.
If a scholar wishes to dive deeper into this epistemological school of mysticism, then this book would serve as an excellent introduction. The author has also written more elaborate volumes on this topic, which could also be of great relevance. In addition to that, he guides the reader into a list of additional readings provided by well-seasoned researchers in this domain.
All in all, this was an amazingly well-written book, and the author has done a spectacular job in trying to understand something that is profoundly complex while also exhibiting it lucidly.

[Michael Nguyen · Rating 2 out of 5]

After reading this book, Ibn Arabi no longer seems that interesting. A lot of his ideas are qur'anic speculations. The mysticism is so dense with semantics that it takes the fun out of the mysticism, and it becomes more like very dry continental philosophy. There's epistemology and ontology in there, not very fun either. Ibn Arabi's view of hell is that it will actually be pleasant. His view of God is that we need both intellect and imaginal eyes to view the full picture. The intellectual rational eye sees God's absence, whilst the imaginal eye sees his existence. Humanity is non-existent but God is. Everything exists except God, God is loving himself when he creates humanity. Very paradoxical, very Zen, very Advaita Vedanta at points, very semantic.

[Colm Gillis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ibn 'Arabi is known as one of the most challenging scholars to read within Islamic thought. Chittick intends to simplify the complexity of 'Arabi's thought for a general audience with this very brief survey. The author managed to make 'Arabi's opinions accesible and it is a surprisingly easy and pleasant read. On the other hand, I thought that a book such as this could have done with utilizing some common themes so that the reader would see general patterns emerging. The writing also, while simple and elegant, lacks a little bit of spark. So, while the book renders a commendable service, at the same time it falls a bit short.

[Rania · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not familiar with the thought of Ibn Arabi, so this is a very comprehensive introduction for the non-specialists. It sums up the main tenets of his thought. Apparently, he his one of the most intriguing Muslim thinkers of all time. I am eager to know more before I start tackling his books, which are known to be a bit challenging. I first knew about this book from an interview with the author in an Indian Channel.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mostly easy read covering the thought of Ibn 'Arabi. If you're looking for a thorough biographical work, this isn't it. It's a 10,000 ft overview of the basic themes in his writing mostly from the Al-Futahat al-makkiyya. This would be a good first introduction to his thought before diving deeper.

[Faheem · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not find this a clear book. But I admit I'm not familiar with his ideas, and perhaps my training mitigates to the kind of thinking that this book is stuffed with.

[Aymen Alramadhan · Rating 3 out of 5]

الكتاب يمثل مقدمة موجزة لأفكار شخصية أثارت الكثير من الجدل وتلقت الكثير من الهجوم من المدرستين الشيعية والسنية . مدرسة فكرية ولدت قبل ٨٥٠ سنة في أسبانيا على يد مؤسسها محيي الدين ابن عربي - " الشيخ الأكبر" في التراث الصوفي.

الكاتب هو الأستاذ في قسم الدراسات الشرقية في جامعة نيويورك (william chittick) صاحب الاربعين كتابا" في الدراسات الشرقية والاسلامية والتي ترجم الكثير منها الى اللغات الفرنسية واليابانية والألمانية والأيطالية والروسية والفارسية والتركية.

الكتاب ممتع وبسيط وهدفه عرض أفكار ابن عربي للقراء الذين لا يعرفونها، أو لتنشيط وتجديد معلومات أولئك الذين لديهم إطلاع على فكره. تقييمي ٣ من ٥ بحكم ان الكتاب يشدك في بعض اجزاءه ويسهب ويطيل في اجزاء أخرى

[Dina Kaidir · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this! Given that Ibn 'Arabi has been considered one of the most difficult of authors, Chittick, writes with ease (which is mercy) about Ibn ‘Arabi’s doctrines and perspectives.