Fons Vitae is dedicated to preserving in print for future generations the extraordinarily important work of Titus Burckhardt, who devoted his life to the exposition of Universal Truth, that wisdom "uncreate" in the realm of metaphysics, cosmology, and sacred art. In addition to Burckhardt's Alchemy: Science of the Cosmos, Letters of a Sufi Master, and Moorish Culture in Spain, Fons Vitae is honored to add to the series Sacred Art, East and West, Mystical Astrology according to lbn 'Arabi, and Mirror of the Intellect.

An eminent Swiss metaphysician and scholar of oriental languages, Titus Burckhardt (1908-1984) devoted his life to the timeless and universal wisdom present in Sufism, Vedanta, Taoism, Platonism, and the other great esoteric and sapiential traditions. Though an art historian like his great uncle, the renowned Jacob Burckhardt, his main interest was the spiritual use and meaning to be found in Eastern and Western art and architecture, and the expression of the sacred in the lives of saints.

This is a virtually complete collection of Burckhardt's essays, originally published throughout his long life in a variety of German and French journals. Their range is tremendous -- from sacred cosmology and modern science through Christianity and Islam to symbolism and mythology. The chief virtue of the collection is precisely its comprehensiveness; both quantitatively and qualitatively it is extremely rich.

"Classics in a classic collection...clearly a must for all libraries, from the university to the small town, and for all readers interested in spirituality..." Religious Studies Review Ibn Al' Arabi: The Bezels of Wisdom translation and introduction by R.W.J. Austin, preface by Titus Burckardt "It is from God, so hear! And to god do you return! When you hear what I bring, learn! Then with understanding see The details in the whole And also see them as part of the whole. Then give it to those Who seek it, and stint not. This is the mercy that Encompasses you; so extend it. Ibn Al-'Arabi, 1165-1240 Called by Moslems "the greatest master," Ibn Al-'Arabi was a Sufi born in twelfth-century Spain. The Bezels of Wisdom was written during the author's later years and was intended to be a synthesis of his spiritual doctrine. Bezel means a setting in which a gem, engraved with one's name, is set to make a seal ring. The setting in which Ibn Al-'Arabi has placed his spiritual wisdom are the lives of the prophets. It was in Damascus that he had the vision that prompted him to write this book. He describes it in his preface: "I saw the Apostle of God in a visitation...He had in his hand a book and he said to me, 'This is the book of the bezels of Wisdom; take it and bring it to men that they might benefit from it.'" The book portrays the wisdom of love through Abraham, of the unseen through Job, of light through Joseph, of intimacy through Elias and so on. Ibn Al-'Arabi invites us in these pages to explore the inner spiritual meanings of the Quran, its heartful meanings. In one of his poems he stated, "Love is the creed I hold: wherever turns His camels, Love is still my creed and faith."

Fons Vitae is dedicated to preserving in print for future generations the extraordinarily important work of Titus Burckhardt, who devoted his life to the exposition of Universal Truth, that wisdom "uncreate" in the realm of metaphysics, cosmology, and sacred art. In addition to Burckhardt's Alchemy: Science of the Cosmos, Letters of a Sufi Master, and Moorish Culture in Spain, Fons Vitae is honored to add to the series Sacred Art, East and West, Mystical Astrology according to lbn 'Arabi, and Mirror of the Intellect.

An eminent Swiss metaphysician and scholar of oriental languages, Titus Burckhardt (1908-1984) devoted his life to the timeless and universal wisdom present in Sufism, Vedanta, Taoism, Platonism, and the other great esoteric and sapiential traditions. Though an art historian like his great uncle, the renowned Jacob Burckhardt, his main interest was the spiritual use and meaning to be found in Eastern and Western art and architecture, and the expression of the sacred in the lives of saints.

A unique work, providing the underlying spiritual principles (from the point of view of one of the greatest Sufi masters who ever lived) lacking in most modern books of astrology. It will complement and deepen anyone's personal library or collection of works on astrology.

Titus Burckhardt (1908-1984) was a leading member of the "traditionalist" or "perennialist" school of comparative religious thought, well-known for its espousal of the "transcendent unity of religions." Burckhardt was also an expert on Islam, Islamic arts and crafts and its spiritual dimension, Sufism. It was his first-hand knowledge of Sufism that qualified him to undertake pioneering and authoritative translations of Sufi classics by renowned authors such as Ibn al-Arabi, Abd al-Karim al-Jili and Mulay al-Arabi ad-Darqawi. Burckhardt's little masterpiece, INTRODUCTION TO SUFI DOCTRINE, first published in French in 1959, is a distillation of the essence of Sufism, presenting its central doctrines and methods to a Western audience in a highly intelligible form.

This text provide a concise and comparative study of the art of the world's great religions: Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam and Taoism. It illustrated the unanimity of traditional forms and symbols and explains how sacred art can be identified by style and method. Burckhardt believed that the function of sacred art was to lead men to true freedom - and the release of the spirit from earthly bonds. This can be contrasted with post-Renaissance art, with its progressive abandonment of the soul.