Avicenna's Allegory on the Soul: An Ismaili Interpretation (Ismaili Texts and Translations) - Hardcover

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1784530883 ISBN 13: 9781784530884

Publisher: I.B. Tauris, 2015

Synopsis

I.B.Tauris in association with the Institute of Ismaili Studies The Persian philosopher Ibn Sina (d. 1037), known in Europe as Avicenna, was arguably the greatest master of Aristotelian thought in the Muslim world. The symbolical Poem on the Soul (Qasidat al-nafs), which portrays all earthly human souls as in temporary exile from heaven, is traditionally attributed to Avicenna, and was received with enthusiasm by its commentators. A highly significant commentary on the Qasida was written by ?Ali b. Muhammad b. al-Walid (d. 1215 CE), a major early representative of the Tayyibi Ismaili tradition, which emerged and flourished in medieval Yemen. In his view, the poem encapsulated Tayyibi beliefs, whose doctrines bear striking parallels with late antique Gnosticism. Avicenna s Allegory on the Soul presents the first edition of the Arabic text of Ibn al-Walid s commentary, The Useful Epistle (al-Risala al-mufida), alongside an English translation and extended introduction. It offers invaluable insight into the intricacies of Muslim thought and a deeper understanding of Avicenna s substantial intellectual legacy."

About this title

Product Description:

Avicenna's Allegory on the Soul

About the Author:

Professor Wilferd Madelung is a leading contemporary Islamicist, who has made significant contributions to scholarship on medieval Islamic communities and movements, including those of the Twelver, Ismaili and Zaydi Shi is. He was previously the Laudian Professor of Arabic at the University of Oxford. He is currently a Senior Research Fellow at The Institute of Ismaili Studies."

About this edition

• Publisher: I.B. Tauris
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1784530883
• ISBN 13: 9781784530884
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 224
• Editor: Madelung Wilferd