Was it mere encyclopedism that motivated Fakhr al-Din al-Razi (d.1210), one of the most influential Islamic theologians of the twelfth century, to theorize on astral magic - or was there a deeper purpose? One of his earliest works was The Hidden Secret ('al-Sirr al-Maktum'), a magisterial study of the 'craft' which harnessed spiritual discipline and natural philosophy to establish noetic connection with the celestial souls to work wonders here on earth. The initiate's preceptor is a personal celestial spirit, 'the perfect nature' which represents the ontological origin of his soul. This volume will be the first study of The Hidden Secret and its theory of astral magic, which synthesized the naturalistic account of prophethood constructed by Avicenna (d.1037), with the perfect nature doctrine as conceived by Abu'l-Barakat (d.1165). Shedding light on one of the most complex thinkers of the post-Avicennan period, it will show how al-Razi's early theorizing on the craft contributed to his formulation of prophethood with which his career culminated. Representing the nexus between philosophy, theology and magic, it will be of interest to all those interested in Islamic intellectual history and occultism.

This Reader brings together nearly 80 extracts from major works by Christians and Muslims that reflect their reciprocal knowledge and attitudes. It spans the period from the early 7th century, when Islam originated, to 1500. The general introduction provides a historical and geographical summary of Christian-Muslim encounters in the period and a short account of the religious, intellectual and social circumstances in which encounters took place and works were written. Topics from the Christian perspective include: condemnations of the Qur'an as a fake and Muhammad as a fraud, depictions of Islam as a sign of the final judgement, and proofs that it was a Christian heresy. On the Muslim side they include: demonstrations of the Bible as corrupt, proofs that Christian doctrines were illogical, comments on the inferior status of Christians, and accounts of Christian and Muslim scholars in collaboration together. Each of the six parts contains the following pedagogical features: -A short introduction -An introduction to each passage and author -Notes explaining terms that readers might not have previously encountered

As Abu 'Abd Allah al-Husayn, son of 'Ali and Fatima and grandson of Muhammad, moved inexorably towards death on the field of Karbala', his sister Zaynab was drawn ever closer to the centre of the family of Muhammad, the 'people of the house' (ahl al-bayt). There she would remain for a few historic days, challenging the wickedness of the Islamic leadership, defending the actions of her brother, initiating the commemorative rituals, protecting and nurturing the new Imam, al-Husayn's son 'Ali b. al-Husayn b. 'Ali b. Abi Talib, until he could take his rightful place. This is her story.

The Muslim communities of Southeast Asia are diverse, complex and increasingly influential in the broader Islamic world. However, the extraordinary breadth of practices and views across the Muslim world is not widely understood outside the region, often because of the difficulty of locating and putting in context the material produced by Muslims themselves. This is the first sourcebook to present a wide selection of contemporary materials on Islam in Southeast Asia, most of which have not previously been available in English. The material covers six broad themes: personal expressions of faith; Islamic law; state and governance; women and family; jihad; and interactions with non-Muslims and the wider Muslim world. The book looks at the ideological and doctrinal content of Islam in Southeast Asia in all its facets, while also exploring the motivations underlying different interpretations and viewpoints. This is an essential book for anyone seeking to understand the concerns, language and objectives of the main Muslim groups in Southeast Asia.

The Hand of Fatima traces the development and symbolism ascribed to the hand motif in the Arab and Islamic world, and beyond. Richly illustrated, it details the many types of khamsas produced historically and today - such as khamsas with swords, and khamsas with eagles - and the many objects on which khamsas appear, such as on amulets and flags. It traces the journey of the khamsa into the contemporary world of social and fine art, including museum highlights. Special sections are dedicated to the khamsa in Algeria; cultural crossover in Spain, Portugal, and Brazil; and the symbol of the hand in Shi'ism.

The Muslim thinker al-Ghazali (d. 1111) was one of the most influential theologians and philosophers of Islam and has been considered an authority in both Western and Islamic philosophical traditions. Born in northeastern Iran, he held the most prestigious academic post in Islamic theology in Baghdad, only to renounce the position and teach at small schools in the provinces for no money. His contributions to Islamic scholarship range from responding to the challenges of Aristotelian philosophy to creating a new type of Islamic mysticism and integrating both these traditions-falsafa and Sufism-into the Sunni mainstream.
This book offers a comprehensive study of al-Ghazali's life and his understanding of cosmology-how God creates things and events in the world, how human acts relate to God's power, and how the universe is structured. Frank Griffel presents a serious revision of traditional views on al-Ghazali, showing that his most important achievement was the creation of a new rationalist theology in which he transformed the Aristotelian views of thinkers such as Avicenna to accord with intellectual currents that were well-established within Muslim theological discourse. Using the most authoritative sources, including reports from al-Ghazali's students, his contemporaries, and his own letters, Griffel reconstructs every stage in a turbulent career. The al-Ghazali that emerges offers many surprises, particularly on his motives for leaving Baghdad and the nature of his "seclusion" afterwards. Griffel demonstrates that al-Ghazali intended to create a new cosmology that moved away from concerns held earlier by Muslim theologians and Arab philosophers. This new theology aimed to provide a framework for the pursuit of the natural sciences and a basis for Islamic science and philosophy to flourish beyond the 12th century.
Al-Ghazali's Philosophical Theology is the most thorough examination to date of this important thinker.

Central to the current debates on the nature and direction of Islam Highly topical and relevant to the 'Islam and Modernity issue Contributors include blue-chip academics In all the current alienating discourse on Islam, so often depicted as a source of extremism and fanatic violence, this book takes a timely and refreshing look at the traditions of Islamic mysticism, philosophy and intellectual debate in a series of diverse and stimulating approaches. It tackles the major figures of Islamic thought, such as Ibn Arabi, al-Farabi, Ibn Sina and al-Ghazali, as well as shedding light on hitherto unconsidered aspects of Islam and utilising new source material. The contributors are an impressive list of scholars and experts. They include amongst others: S. Alvi, M.A. Amir-Moezzi, L. Clarke, F. Daftary, D. DeWeese, B. Fragner, S. Kamada, W. Madelung, E. Ormsby, N. Pourjavady and J. Morris.

This book is open access and available on www.bloomsburycollections.com. It is funded by the Religious Matters in an Entangled World program, Utrecht University, the Netherlands. Public manifestations of Islam remain fiercely contested across the Global West. Studies to date have focused on the visual presence of Islam - the construction of mosques or the veiling of Muslim women. Amplifying Islam in the European Soundscape is the first book to add a sonic dimension to analyses of the politics of Islamic aesthetics in Europe. Sound does not respect public/private boundaries, and people experience sound viscerally. As such, the public amplification of the azan, the call to prayer, offers a unique opportunity to understand what is at stake in debates over religious toleration and secularism. The Netherlands were among the first European countries to allow the amplification of the azan in the 1980s, and Pooyan Tamimi Arab explores this as a case study embedded in a broader history of Dutch religious pluralism. The book offers a pointed critique of social theories that regard secularism as all-encompassing. While cultural forms of secularism exclude Muslim rights to public worship, Amplifying Islam in the European Soundscape argues that political and constitutional secularism also enables Muslim demands for amplifying calls to prayer. It traces how these exclusions and inclusions are effected through proposals for mosques, media debates, law and policy, but also in negotiations on the ground between residents, municipalities and mosques.

This is a book about a writer, Islamic fundamentalism, mythmaking, and international literary politics. It is the story of Taslima Nasreen, a former medical doctor and protest writer who shot to international fame in 1993 at the age of thirty-four after she was accused of blasphemy by religious fanatics in Bangladesh and her book Shame was banned. In order to escape a warrant for her arrest, the controversial writer went underground and, as the official story has it, fled to the West where she became a human rights celebrity, a female version of Salman Rushdie. Taslima Nasreen's name almost became a household word in 1994, when she was awarded the Sakharov Prize by the European Parliament, and she was feted by presidents, chancellors, mayors, and famous writers and intellectuals around Europe for two years. She is still remembered and widely admired as a modern-day feminist icon who fought the bearded fundamentalists in her own country and whose life was in danger. This is the official story that most people are familiar with, and the one that is widely believed by Taslima supporters around the world. However, as The Crescent and the Pen reveals, in the style of a literary detective tale, the true story behind the international campaign to save Taslima has bever been told until now. Following on the trail of Taslima, Deen questions the reasoning behind the international "crusade" to save her, in the process debunking much of the current thinking that has shaped Islam into the new global enemy. She discovers that the story of what really happened to Taslima is a fascinating labyrinth where memory and myth have merged, the tale having acquired a life of its own with a hundred differentauthors.

This book unlocks the secrets of the seven degrees through which the soul progresses as it travels the Sufi Path to its Lord. It teaches the novice how to transform the Inciting Soul the lowest and most egotistic of the self's manifestations, into the Reproachful Soul, which must then become Inspired, Serene, Contented, and Found Pleasing until it attains the ultimate degree of sanctity and wholeness as the Perfect Soul. To achieve this progressive purification of the self, special Sufi practices, litanies and attitudes of mind are recommended. Both practical and profound, this book offers a concise manual of Sufi teaching on the Way to spiritual liberation.

The compilation of a decade of essays and online ideological struggle with members of Lukman's e-mail chat group formed the basis for "The Black Muslim Manifesto: From Inside the Belly of the Beast." The continuation of that process has called "The Black Muslim Manifesto II: A Luta Continua" into existence. Since the publication of the first "Manifesto," Lukman has continued his analysis of the unfolding global dynamic. Additionally, time has born witness to the accuracy of some of the "Manifesto's" prognostications. For example, we no longer have to speculate about what Obama will do once he's in the WHITE House. Lukman is proud, but not happy, to say that he was one of the few who was NEVER deceived by the "Obama Ploy."

Lukman felt compelled to rush "A Luta Continua" to print because much of his analysis, in "Manifesto II," has already proven to be prescient. Events are moving forward at such a rapid pace that many of his predictions have become history. Lukman didn't want to be accused of that for which he condemns our "rearguard leadership"; namely, "Monday Morning Quarterbacking."

In 2001, Captain James "Yusuf" Yee was commissioned as one of the first Muslim chaplains in the United States Army. After the tragic attacks of September 11, 2001, he became a frequent government spokesman, helping to educate soldiers about Islam and build understanding throughout the military. Subsequently, Chaplain Yee was selected to serve as the Muslim Chaplain at Guantanamo Bay, where nearly 700 detainees captured in the war on terror were being held as "unlawful combatants."
In September 2003, after serving at Guantanamo for ten months in a role that gave him unrestricted access to the detainees--and after receiving numerous awards for his service there--Chaplain Yee was secretly arrested on his way to meet his wife and daughter for a routine two-week leave. He was locked away in a navy prison, subject to much of the same treatment that had been imposed on the Guantanamo detainees. Wrongfully accused of spying, and aiding the Taliban and Al Qaeda, Yee spent 76 excruciating days in solitary confinement and was threatened with the death penalty.
After the U.S. government determined it had made a grave mistake in its original allegations, it vindictively charged him with adultery and computer pornography. In the end all criminal charges were dropped and Chaplain Yee's record wiped clean. But his reputation was tarnished, and what has been a promising military career was left in ruins.
Depicting a journey of faith and service, Chaplain Yee's "For God and Country" is the story of a pioneering officer in the U.S. Army, who became a victim of the post-September 11 paranoia that gripped a starkly fearful nation. And it poses a fundamental question: If our country cannot beloyal to even the most patriotic Americans, can it remain loyal to itself?

Abdul-Rahman Mustafa offers a deft new translation of a large extract from the book I'lam al Muwaqqi'in 'An Rabb al 'Alamin, by the thirteenth-century Islamic scholar, Ibn Qayyim al Jawziyya. The I'lam comprises an extensive discussion of the subject of taqlid, or legal imitation. It is one of the most comprehensive treatments of Islamic legal theory and even today serves as a manual for mujtahids and muftis. In the portion of the I'lam Mustafa has translated, Ibn Qayyim introduces the nature of taqlid and divides it into several categories. He then provides an account of a debate between a critic of the view that taqlid of a particular school or a scholar is a religious duty and this critic's interlocutor. Among the topics discussed are the different kinds of taqlid, the differences between taqlid and ittibi', the infallibility of religious scholars, the grounds on which one legal opinion might be preferred over another, and whether or not laymen can be expected to perform ijtihad. Ibn Qayyim's legal theory is a formidable reformulation of traditionalist Hanbalism, a legal-theological tradition that has always maintained a distinctive character in Islamic history and that is now growing more influential due to modern interest in the Wahhabi movement and in Ibn Taymiyya, whose legal and theological thought was edited and refined by his student, Ibn Qayyim. In his introduction to the translation, Mustafa critically reviews the scholarship on taqlid and outlines Ibn Qayyim's legal theory and the importance of taqlid within it. Taqlid continues to generate controversy amongst educated Muslims and particularly academics, as Salafi interpretations of Islam, which are generally 'anti-taqlid,' come into conflict with the generally 'pro-taqlid' stance of traditional schools such as the Hanafis. Mustafa's translation of a classic account of Islamic legal theory and strong critique of the dominant legal culture are timely contributions to an increasingly heated debate.

Throughout history, the study of sacred texts has focused almost exclusively on the content and meaning of these writings. Such a focus obscures the fact that sacred texts are always embodied in particular material forms-from ancient scrolls to contemporary electronic devices. Using the digital turn as a starting point, this volume highlights material dimensions of the sacred texts of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The essays in this collection investigate how material aspects have shaped the production and use of these texts within and between the traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, from antiquity to the present day. Contributors also reflect on the implications of transitions between varied material forms and media cultures. Taken together, the essays suggests that materiality is significant for the academic study of sacred texts, as well as for reflection on developments within and between these religious traditions. This volume offers insightful analysis on key issues related to the materiality of sacred texts in the traditions of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, while also highlighting the significance of transitions between various material forms, including the current shift to digital culture.

Sufism is the subject of intensive discussion and debate. Yet, it is also true that the study of contemporary Sufism has been overlooked by the fields of Middle Eastern, Islamic and religious studies. The networks, political agendas, development of new rituals and the organisation of Sufism, especially in the West, have not been studied comprehensively enough, despite growing interest in Islamic mysticism. This book sets out to fill the gap.It is not only timely, in that it offers the first sustained treatment of Sufism in the context of modern Muslim communities; but it is also innovative, in that it broadens the purview of the study of Sufism to look at the subject right across international boundaries, from Canada to Brazil, and from Denmark to the UK and USA. Subjects discussed include: the politics of Sufism; the remaking of Turkish Sufism; tradition and cultural creativity among Syrian Sufi communities; the globalization of Sufi networks, and their transplantation in America; Iranian Sufism in London; and Naqshbandi Sufism in Sweden.The practice of Sufism has become especially important for young people - particularly young women - to find an adequate framework within which to explore Muslim spirituality in dialogue with modernity. And in its thorough examination of how Sufi rituals, traditions and theologies have been adapted by late-modern religiosity, this volume will make indispensable reading for all scholars and students of modern Islam.Sufism is fashionable, important and sellable. Contemporary Sufism has been neglected in the literature - until now. This title is unique in its international scope and comprehensive treatment of modern western Sufi communities.

Christian-Muslim Relations, a Bibliographical History 4 (CMR 4), covering the period 1200-1350, is a continuing volume in a general history of relations between the two faiths from the seventh century to the present. It comprises a series of introductory essays and also the main body of detailed entries which treat all the works, surviving or lost, that have been recorded. These entries provide biographical details of the authors, descriptions and assessments of the works themselves, and complete accounts of manuscripts, editions, translations and studies. The result of collaboration between numerous leading scholars, CMR 4 along with the other volumes in this series is intended as a basic tool for research in Christian-Muslim relations.

'Converting Persia' explains how Iran was to acquire one of its defining characteristics: its Shi'ism. Under the Safavids (1501-1736 CE), Persia adopted Shi'ism as its official religion. Rula Abisaab explains how and why this specific brand of Shi'ism - urban and legally-based - was brought to the region by leading Arab 'Ulama from Ottoman Syria, and changed the face of the region till this day. These emigre scholars furnished distinct sources of legitimacy for the Safavid monarchs, and an ideological defense against the Ottomans. Just as important at the time was a conscious and vivid process of Persianization both at the state level and in society. Converting Persia is vital reading for anthropologists, historians and scholars of religion, and any interested in Safavid Persia, in Shi'ism, and in the wider history of the Middle East."Rula Abisaab has provided us with a remarkable study of Safavid Iran. Her work throws new light on the interplay of religion and society and will be a crucial work for all interested in the making of modern Iran." -Abbas Amanat, Professor of History, Yale University.

This monograph explores the ways in which canonical Francophone Algerian authors, writing in the late-colonial period (1945-1962), namely Kateb Yacine, Mohammed Dib, Mouloud Feraoun, Mouloud Mammeri and Assia Djebar, approached the representation of Algerian women through literature. The book initially argues that a masculine domination of public fields of representation in Algeria contributed to a postcolonial marginalization of women as public agents. However, it crucially also argues that the canonical writers of the period, who were mostly male, both textually acknowledged their inability to articulate the experiences and subjectivity of the feminine Other and deployed a remarkable variety of formal and conceptual innovations in producing evocations of Algerian femininity that subvert the structural imbalance of masculine symbolic hegemony. Though it does not shy from investigating those aspects of its corpus that produce ideologically conditioned masculinist representations, the book chiefly seeks to articulate a shared reluctance concerning representativity, a pessimism regarding the revolution's capacity to deliver change for women, and an omnipresent subversion of masculine subjectivity in its canonical texts.