A Sufi-Jewish Dialogue

by Lobel, Diana

• ISBN13: 9780812239539
• ISBN10: 0812239539
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2006-12-05
• Publisher: Univ of Pennsylvania Pr

Summary

Written in Judeo-Arabic in eleventh-century Muslim Spain but quickly translated into Hebrew, Bahya Ibn Paquda'sDuties of the Heartis a profound guidebook of Jewish spirituality that has enjoyed tremendous popularity and influence to the present day. Readers who know the book primarily in its Hebrew version have likely lost sight of the work's original Arabic context and its immersion in Islamic mystical literature. InA Sufi-Jewish Dialogue, Diana Lobel explores the full extent to whichDuties of the Heartmarks the flowering of the "Jewish-Arab symbiosis," the interpenetration of Islamic and Jewish civilizations. Lobel reveals Bahya as a maverick who integrates abstract negative theology, devotion to the inner life, and an intimate relationship with a personal God. Bahya emerges from her analysis as a figure so steeped in Islamic traditions that an Arabic reader could easily think he was a Muslim, yet the traditional Jewish seeker has always looked to him as a fountainhead of Jewish devotion. Indeed, Bahya represents a genuine bridge between religious cultures. He brings together, as well, a rationalist, philosophical approach and a strain of Sufi mysticism, paving the way for the integration of philosophy and spirituality in the thought of Moses Maimonides.A Sufi-Jewish Dialogueis the first scholarly book in English about a tremendously influential work of medieval Jewish thought and will be of interest to readers working in comparative literature, philosophy, and religious studies, particularly as reflected in the interplay of the civilizations of the Middle East. Readers will discover an extraordinary time when Jewish, Christian, and Islamic thinkers participated in a common spiritual quest, across traditions and cultural boundaries.

Author Biography

Diana Lobel is Associate Professor of Religion at Boston University.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. ix
Introduction: Bahya's Work in Its Judeo-Arabic Context	p. 1
Philosophical Mysticism in Eleventh-Century Spain: Bahya and Ibn Gabirol	p. 21
On the Lookout: The Exegesis of a Sufi Tale	p. 35
Creation	p. 51
The One	p. 66
Speaking about God: Divine Attributes, Biblical Language, and Biblical Exegesis	p. 96
The Contemplation of Creation (I'tibar)	p. 117
Wholehearted Devotion (Ikhlas): Purification of Unity (Ikhlas al-Tawhid), Purification of Intention in Action (Ikhlas al-'Amal)	p. 146
Reason, Law, and the Way of the Spirit	p. 177
The Spirituality of the Law	p. 196
Awareness, Love, and Reverence (Muraqaba, Mahabba, Hayba/Yir'ah)	p. 219
List of Abbreviations	p. 243
Notes	p. 245
Bibliography	p. 323
Index	p. 345
Acknowledgments	p. 361
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