Description: Considers what is known of acclaimed early Sufi master Abū Bakr al-Shiblī and how he was characterized in various times and places.
Brief description: Kenneth Avery received his PhD in Islamic Studies from the University of Melbourne in Australia. His books include Fifty Poems of 'Aār and A Psychology of Early Sufi samā': Listening and Altered States.
Review Quotes:
"...Avery's monograph presents us with a pioneering attempt to use a better and much fresher method, derived from the existing hagiographies, to reconstruct Shiblī's image and spirituality through the different phases of Sufism." -- Journal of Sufi Studies
"A very fine contribution to the history of Sufism." -- John Renard, editor of Fighting Words: Religion, Violence, and the Interpretation of Sacred Texts