This thesis will examine how the Islamic concept of tawḥid ("monotheism") was understood, and perhaps more importantly, experienced by the 12th/13th Sufi, Ibn 'Arabi (1165-1240), also known as al-Shaykh al-Akbar ("The Greatest Master"). It has been argued that tawḥid is not simply a belief but also an operation, that is to say, a continual process whereby the literal meaning of tawḥid ("asserting oneness") is upheld. This understanding of tawḥid implies a certain dualism which for Ibn 'Arabi is a reflection of the two perspectives which express God's oneness, namely, tanzih ("transcendence"), which literally means "declaring something to be pure and free of something else," and tashbih ("immanence"), of which the literal meaning is "declaring something to be similar to something else." As can be seen, tanzih and tashbih are mutually contradictory and thus present tawḥid as a paradox. However, for Ibn 'Arabi, it is essential to not ignore any one perspective in favor of the other. For him, the paradox can and must be reconciled through the power of khayal, or imagination, which alone has the ability to combine opposites and thus, bridge the gap between tanzih and tashbih , thereby allowing for the experience of tawḥid .

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This thesis examines the views held by Muh&dotbelow;yi al-Din Ibn al-`Arabi on shari`ah, based for the most part on his magnum opus, al-Futuh&dotbelow;at al-Makkiyyah. It explores his attitude towards the shari`ah as practical religious law and his teachings concerning its sources and interpretation. Despite being misunderstood on account of his s&dotbelow;ufi background and his well-known criticism of the fuqaha' Ibn al-`Arabi's teaching, in fact, advocated a strict and consistent orientation to the shari`ah. This thesis shows how, on the one hand, his criticism of the jurists was due to their inability to achieve the high standards that he set for interpreting the law, and how, on the other, his s&dotbelow;ufi beliefs complemented, rather than weakened, the foundations of the shari`ah. It is clear that the principle underlying his approach to the shari`ah's application was his belief in its being a manifestation of God's mercy. He demonstrates this by pointing to the direct sources of God's law, accepting differences in legal opinion and seeking as much as possible the deeper spiritual and universal meaning of God's intentions in the law.

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This dissertation addresses the question: how might the Sufi master, Muḥyī al-Dīn Ibn al-ʿArabī (1165-1240 CE), have read the Gospel of John? Although the Gospel of John belongs originally to the Christian tradition, this dissertation is a contribution to Islamic Studies, endeavoring to illuminate Ibn al-ʿArabī’s distinctive manner of reading religious texts and to highlight features of his negotiation of a dual heritage from Jesus and Muḥammad. To set Ibn al-ʿArabī’s thought against an Islamic backdrop and situate it in an Islamic context, this dissertation adopts the device of constructing a commentary, guided by seminal passages in Ibn al-ʿArabī’s written corpus, on an Arabic translation of the Gospel of John: the Alexandrian Vulgate, widely circulated in the Arab world during Ibn al-ʿArabī’s time. This amounts not only to a comparison between Johannine doctrines and Ibn al-ʿArabī’s doctrines, but also a comparison between the latter and historical Muslim commentaries on the Christian scriptures—particularly the Biblical commentary (in circulation by the thirteenth century) attributed to the famed Sufi theologian Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazālī, and the fourteenth-century Muslim Biblical commentary by Najm al-Dīn al-Ṭūfī (d. 1316 CE). Part I of the dissertation establishes a foundation for the commentary, inquiring into Ibn al-ʿArabī’s general attitudes towards non-Islamic religions, then considering autobiographical accounts of his relationship to Christianity, the question of his familiarity with the New Testament, and illustrations of his creative engagement with Christian doctrines. Part II of the dissertation constitutes the commentary, considering Ibn al-ʿArabī’s possible views on a number of Johannine doctrines: Jesus’ claim to have been the son of God; Jesus’ claim to have been one with God; the doctrine that Jesus was the embodied Word; the expiatory and epistemic functions of the embodied Word (paralleled by a dialectic relationship between two divergent kinds of witnessing); and the rumor, at the end of the Gospel of John, that the Beloved Disciple would never die.

This study is a comparison of the philosophical systems composed by the Indian philosopher Sankara (788-830 CE), and the Muslim mystic, Ibn Arabi (1165-1240 CE). The primary thesis found in this study is that the conceptual systems constructed by Sankara and Ibn Arabi are not perfectly new creations derived from the core of their mystical realizations. Rather, they contain fundamental pre-existing principles, concepts, and teachings that are expanded upon and placed within a systematic philosophy or theology that is intended to lead others to a state of realization. A selection of these presuppositions are extracted from within each of these thinkers’ philosophical systems and employed as structural indicators. Similarities are highlighted, yet the differences between Sankara and Ibn Arabi’s thought, witnessed within their philosophical systems, lead us to the conclusion that the two mystics inhabited different conceptual space. / iv, 195 leaves ; 29 cm

The present study aims to understand the subject matter of the Shajarat al-Kawn. In the two earlier studies of this text--both translations, the first in English and the second in French with extensive notes--the translators approach the text with specific preconceptions which influence the translations and analyses. In contrast, our approach is to focus on the persons, events and images within the text and thereby to reveal the salient issues and themes. In the analysis we are led to question the authorship of the text, specific details reveal that it may not be by Ibn 'Arabi In spite of this problem, the description of the archetypal figures Muhammad and Iblis--which has elements resembling the description of the same figures by Mansur al-Hallaj and 'Ayn al-Qudat al-Hamadhani-leads us to believe that the Shajarat al-Kawn makes an important contribution toward understanding some of the riddles on how these complex figures are viewed.

Dissertação (mestrado) - Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná, Curitiba, 2008 / Bibliografia: f. 116-120 / A obra de Ibn 'Arabi (1165DC), conhecido por al-Sheikh al-Akbar, o Mestre Maior, bem como sua pessoa, constituem um marco no pensamento místico muçulmano. Sua intensa experiência metafísica aliada a uma extrema plástica no cuidado das palavras e um profun / The works of Ibn 'Arabi (1165AD) known as, Al-Sheikh Al-Akbar, the Greatest of the Masters, as well as his own person, are a reference in the mystical Muslim thought. His intense metaphysical experience added to his extremely pliable use of Arabic words a

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<p>This study is a theoretical research concerning Ibn Arabi's Sufi experience and his philosophy of the &quot / unity of being&quot / (also his poetical talent). I therefore adopted the historical and analytical methodologies to analyse and reply on the questions and suggestions I have raised in this paper. Both of the methodologies reveal the actual status of the Sufism of Ibn Arabi who came with a challenging sufi doctrine. Also, in the theoretical methodology I attempt to define Sufism by giving a panoramic history of it. I have also researched Ibn Arabi's status amongst his contemporaries for example, Al-Hallaj and Ibn Al Farid, and how they influenced him as a Sufi thinker during this time.</p> <p><br /> In the analytical study I explore the poems &quot / Tarjuman al Ashwaq&quot / of Ibn Arabi, of which I have selected some poems to study analytically. Through this I discovered Ibn Arabi's Sufi inclinations and the criticisms of various literary scholars, theologians, philosophers and also sufi thinkers, both from the East and the West. In this analysis I have also focused on the artistic value of the poetry which he utilized to promote his own doctrine &quot / the unity of being.&quot / </p>