The Mystical Teachings of al-Shadhili

"This work is excellent. It provides a thoroughly annotated and sound translation of one of the oldest biographies of the well-known thirteenth-century Sufi master Abu'l-Hasan al-Shadhili. The annotation is exhaustive and extremely useful. In general the genre has not received much attention and it is good to see a major work to which one can refer as an example. It will be welcomed by everyone interested in the history and teachings of Sufism. Given al-Shadhili's fame, a work on him is long overdue. His order is more influential than any other today in the West." — William Chittick, State University of New York at Stony Brook

"This is a superb work of translation done with precision and care and according to traditional scholarly methods. There are many things I like about this book In the first place the translation is very good. The language is idiomatic, flows freely, and is easy to read. It retains the flavor of the original Arabic text without, however, reflecting any of its Arabic syntax and word order." — Nicholas Heer, University of Washington

"We do not have many biographies of great Sufis, much less their prayers, letters, and remarks. This collection allows us to penetrate into the thinking of the foremost Sufi of his day, and later. This is especially important for al-Shadhili wrote no books whatsoever." — Victor Danner, Indiana University

"This is a fascinating and extremely important book, from which one could easily teach an entire course on Islamic spirituality. It combines a number of central genres: hagiography, letters of spiritual direction, prayers and meditations, personal spiritual pedagogy (malfuzat), etc.—in an understandable, approachable, and humane context that clearly brings out the historical and religious setting of these typical spiritual teachings. I would love to have a copy for use in many of my undergraduate courses.

The topics raised here, whether with regard to the social history of Islamic religion or the interrelations between popular spirituality and learned forms (and of both with political powers) are centrally important to any understanding of Islam and at the forefront of scholarly research in both Islamic history and Islamic religion and spirituality." — James W. Morris, Oberlin College