Sufi Doctrine of Man

Richard Todd, D.Phil. (2005), University of Oxford, teaches Arabic language and literature at the University of Edinburgh. His research interests include Islamic philosophy, Sufism, and classical Arabic poetry. His latest publication focuses on esoteric interpretations of the Qur'ān.

"... an important contribution to the field of Islamic Studies as there has hitherto been no major published work about Ṣadr al-Dīn al-Qūnawī available in English. Especially for English speaking students of Islamic philosophy and Sufism, this book bridges an important gap. Todd’s analysis of al-Qūnawī’s thought, his description of his works, and sample excerpts succeed in giving a rich introduction and overview and should be a very welcome addition to the field."Kemal Enz Argon in iIlahiyat Studies, Volume 7, No. 1, Winter/Spring 2016."Todd's exposition of al-Qūnawī's ideas is precise and nuanced throughout, [...]. ...an impressive piece of scholarship."Nicolai Sinai in Journal of Islamic Studies 27 (2): 222-225 (2016)."...Richard Todd's monograph is a gracefully written, meticulous and thoughtful contribution to Islamic studies and a welcome addition to previously published works on late medieval Muslim Sufis. It will primarily benefit students and scholars of Sufism, Islamic philosophy and theology and offers incisive observations on the ontology and psychology of Ibn ʿArabī's school. Beyond Islamic studies, a reader who is interested in spirituality and esoteric philosophy might find it very stimulating and suggestive." Abdessamad Belhaj in Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations, 26:3, 405-406 (2015)."Dans cette étude relativement courte mais dense, Richard Todd, rend justice à la personnalité intellectuelle et spirituelle de Ṣadr al-Dīn al-Qūnawī (m. 673/1274), principal continuateur et diffuseur de l'oeuvre de Muhyī l-Dīn Ibn ʿArabī. [...] ...ce travail a le grand mérite d'être la première étude d'ensemble sur Ṣadr al-Dīn. Il est fondé sur une lecture attentive des textes qu'il fait enter en résonance. Son annotation est précieuse et ouvre nombre de pistes de recherche. À la suite des traveux de W. Chittick, il fait entrer définitivement Qūnawī dans l' histoire du soufisme et de la pensée musulmane. Richard Todd apporte ainsi une contribution importante à notre connaissance de la première diffusion de la doctrine d'Ibn al-ʿArabī.Denis Gril in Journal of Sufi Studies 4, 85-98 (2015)."... eine sehr gut lesbare, bisweilen bedauerlicherweise allzu knapp gehaltene Einführung in die Lebens- und Gedankenwelt Qūnawīs...".Elvira Walkelnig, University of Lausanne “In spite of Qunawi’s declared preference of mysticism, Todd notes that in the end what we get of him as an overall portrait is that here we have a religious scholar, and lucid thinker actively involved in the intellectual and spiritual life of the Islamic Near East: his interpreting, systematising and disseminating Ibn Arabi’s doctrines, added to his indoctrination of some of the credos of metaphysics render him not only as mystic but a philosopher as well – albeit a philosopher aware of the limitations of philosophical methodology. Of fundamental importance and great value we think is Todd’s translation in his book of Excerpts from Qunawi’s Epistemonological Texts.”Stavros Nikolaidis

• Acknowledgements Abbreviations Transliteration Introduction 1.Sadr al-Din al-Qunawi 2.Qunawi's anthropology in context 3.The political setting 4.The cultural and intellectual climate 5.Qunawi's biography in medieval sources PART ONE: QUNAWI'S LIFE AND WORK I. Life and Times 1.Early life and education 2.Travels and teaching in the Near East 3.Konya 4.Students and disciples 5.Final years II. Qunawi's Works 1.Qunawi's corpus 2.Qunawi's methodology 3.The Miftah ghayb al-jam' wa tafsili-hi 4.The I'jaz al-bayan fi ta'wil umm al-Qur'an 5.The polemical correspondence with Tusi 6.The Nafthat al-masdur wa tuhfat al-shakur 7.The Risalat al-nusus fi tahqiq al-tawr al-makhsus 8.al-Risala al-murshidiya 9.al-Nafahat al-ilahiya 10.al-Fukuk fi asrar mustanadat hikam al-Fusus 11.The Sharh al-ahadith al-arba'iniya III. Intellectual Currents and Debates 1. Qunawi's work in relation to Ibn 'Arabi's 2. The critique of rational inquiry 3. Qunawi's doctrinal synthesis IV. Cosmology 1.Qunawi's cosmology in context 2.Cosmological questions in Qunawi's letters to Tusi 3.The sublunary world PART TWO: QUNAWI'S ANTHROPOLOGY V. Man's Metaphysical Origins 1. Indeterminacy and determination 2. The cognitive relationship 3. The divine affairs 4. The immutable essences 5. The common measure 6. The barzakh 7. The five presences 8. The divine secret VI. The Human State 1. The perfection of the last 2. The stages of lodging and settling 3. The soul 4. Sustenance 5. The separation of body and soul 6. Man's posthumous states VII. Liberation 1. Providence 2. The law and the way 3. Reorientation 4. Love 5. The spiritual ascent 6. Theophany VIII. The Reception of Qunawi's Thought Conclusion Appendix I: Critical List of Qunawi's works Appendix II: Qunawi's ijaza-s to Farghani and Jandi Appendix III: Translated Excerpts from Qunawi's Epistemological Texts Bibliography Glossary of Philosophical and Sufi Terms Index