This is a concise introduction to the life and thought of Ibn Arabi, who is considered as the Greatest of Sufi Masters. Written by the author of a best-selling biography of Ibn Arabi, Ibn Arabi: The Voyage of No Return traces the major events of Ibn Arabis life: his conversion to Sufism; his travels around Andalusia and the Maghreb; his meetings with the saints of his time; his journey to Mecca; his travels in Egypt, Palestine, Mesopotamia, Anatolia and Syria; his most important books. The events of Ibn Arabis inner voyage, however, are far more spectacular than those of his outer life and are here presented directly from the many auto-biographical sections found in his writings. Through her detailed analysis of Ibn Arabis works and her profound understanding of his ideas, Claude Addas gives us a comprehensive insight into the major doctrines of this most influential of Sufi masters: the doctrine of prophethood and sainthood, of inheritance from the prophets, of the imaginal world, of the unicity of Being, of the Seal of the Saints, and many others.
Addas also introduces the main disciples of Ibn Arabi down to the nineteenth century and traces both his unequalled influence on the course of Sufism and the controversies that still surround him till today. Ibn Arabi: The Voyage of No Return is essential reading for anyone interested in Islamic mysticism and is a genuine contribution to scholarship in this field.
Should Ibn Arabi Be Burned?: An Ever-renewed Trial; The Princes Prayer: A Dazzling Metamorphosis; "Flee towards God": In the Footsteps of the Prophet; The Disciple of Jesus; The Masters of the Way: The Heroism of the Andalusian Sufis; The Way of Blame and Absolute Servitude; The Tribe of Saints; The Seal; "When what has never been disappears...": The Imaginal world, Land of Contemplation; The Supreme Vision; "The distance of two bows, or closer": The Nocturnal Voyage; Farewell to the West; The Meccan Illuminations: "Here I am, Lord, all Yours"; "God is, and nothing is with Him": The Unicity of Being; The Eternal Exemplars and Divine Knowledge; "He does not cease being and you do not cease not being"; "Wherever you turn, there is the face of God": The Assembly of Divine Names; "The heart of My believing servant contains Me"; "My Mercy embraces all things"; The Two Horizons: Wanderings; The Heirs of the Master; "Benefit from my existence": The Letter and the Law; Opinions of Ibn Arabi; Chronology; Bibliography.