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An Ocean of Tears
In an age where hearts are hardened and tears struggle to flow, this remarkable work of exhortation and advice by the Hanbali polymath and gifted orator, Ibn al-Jawzi, should be read time and time again.
Filled with heart-softening stories, emotive poetry and forthright admonition at times, this work pushes a person to reconnect with their creator before it is too late.
The author was a renowned orator at whose hands many renewed their covenant to Islam, and the hope is that this translation into the English language will have the same effect on its readers.
Filled with heart-softening stories, emotive poetry and forthright admonition at times, this work pushes a person to reconnect with their creator before it is too late.
The author was a renowned orator at whose hands many renewed their covenant to Islam, and the hope is that this translation into the English language will have the same effect on its readers.
202 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2025
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July 19, 2025
Lots of hikayat in this book, and the purpose is to draw attention to the fleeting time in this world. The book has Ibn al-Jawzi's classic style of admonishing the reader and bringing them out of heedlessness. On one page, he writes,
"You have wasted your life in play while others are reaching the goal; instead, you are so far from it. Others have attained Divine acceptance, while you are embroiled in satisfying desires........O poor soul, if only you had seen the anxiety of the repentant and the unrest of those fearful of the horrors of punishment. They made prayer, charity, and abstinence from the world the coolness of their eyes. All this, while the deprived have wasted their youth in heedlessness and their old age in greed, false hopes, and delusions. You did not benefit from your youth, nor did you repent when older. O waster of youth and old age!"
"You have wasted your life in play while others are reaching the goal; instead, you are so far from it. Others have attained Divine acceptance, while you are embroiled in satisfying desires........O poor soul, if only you had seen the anxiety of the repentant and the unrest of those fearful of the horrors of punishment. They made prayer, charity, and abstinence from the world the coolness of their eyes. All this, while the deprived have wasted their youth in heedlessness and their old age in greed, false hopes, and delusions. You did not benefit from your youth, nor did you repent when older. O waster of youth and old age!"
Displaying 1 of 1 review