Description:
The headlines are filled with the politics of Islam, but there is another side to the world's fastest-growing religion. Sufism is the poetry and mysticism of Islam. This mystical movement from the early ninth century rejects worship motivated by the desire for heavenly reward or the fear of punishment, insisting rather on the love of God as the only valid form of adoration. Sufism has made significant contributions to Islamic civilization in music and philosophy, dance and literature. The Sufi poet Rumi is the bestselling poet in America. But in recent centuries Sufism has been a target for some extremist Islamic movements as well as many modernists. The Garden of Truth presents the beliefs and vision of the mystical heart of Islam, along with a history of Sufi saints and schools of thought.
In a world threatened by religious wars, depleting natural resources, a crumbling ecosystem, and alienation and isolation, what has happened to our humanity? Who are we and what are we doing here? The Sufi path offers a journey toward truth, to a knowledge that transcends our mundane concerns, selfish desires, and fears. In Sufism we find a wisdom that brings peace and a relationship with God that nurtures the best in us and in others.
Noted scholar Seyyed Hossein Nasr helps you learn the secret wisdom tradition of Islam and enter what the ancient mystics call the "garden of truth." Here, liberate your mind, experience peace, discover your purpose, fall in love with the Divine, and find your true, best self.
Brief description:
Seyyed Hossein Nasr is university professor of Islamic Studies at George Washington University. Author of over fifty books, Professor Nasr is a well-known and highly respected intellectual figure both in the West and in the Islamic world. Born in Tehran, raised from the age of twelve in the United States, and a graduate of MIT and Harvard University, Nasr is well qualified to explain Islam to a Western audience. He appears frequently on Meet the Press, as well as other national news shows.
Review Quotes:
"There is a difference writing about honey, and having a taste of it in one's mouth. There is a difference between describing light, and being illuminated. Likewise, there is a vast difference between merely describing the mystical tradition of Islam as one socio-historical trend among others, and producing the sweet illuminated fruit of having lived this life for decades. Seyyed Hossein Nasr's book, perhaps more than any of his previous writings, gives a taste of this lived wisdom. This is the kind of book that can only be written after having lived with these illuminated and illuminating teachings for decades. If the goal of the Sufi path is to remind us of what we as human beings have been all along, shaped and nurtured by God, then this book can serve as a lovely roadmap for those who are eager to find their Destination back to their celestial Home." - Omid Safi
"Despite the popularity of Sufism, few books provide an overview of this mystical branch of Islam-- a void Nasr fills nicely with this concise primer. . . . a wise and tantalizing overview." - Publishers Weekly
"If, as Keats pointed out, 'beauty is truth, truth beauty, ' mysticism bears this out. For just as it appears to be impossible to compose a second-rate Requiem, so likewise it seems to be impossible for a mystical text not to be beautiful. This book is the latest testament to this fact. I have seen the most beautiful gardens in the world, and The Garden of Truth reads like the archetype of those gardens. This is a truly beautiful book." - Huston Smith
"Only Professor Nasr could have given us such a beautiful and authoritative book on Sufism, its genesis, practices, disciplines and states, both historically as well as practically. The divine light of unity shines through every page where information points towards transformation. This modern classic will challenge the serious reader to realise and experience directly the ever-present inner garden of eternal truth. A brilliant gift to a confused world." - Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri, Sufi Master, author and founder of the Academy of Self Knowledge (ASK).
The Sufi mystical heart of Islam is one of the few antidotes to fundamentalism in the Muslim world, and here Nasr looks at the human spiritual quest for the paradisiacal divine garden from a Sufi perspective . . . Eloquent, elegant, and lucid. - Library Journal