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.

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