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Dar Ul Thaqafah
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Al-Qushayri's Epistle on Sufism - Al-Risala Al Qushayriyya Fi 'ilm Al-Tasawwuf Paperback – September 27, 2020

by Abu 'l-Qasim Al-Qushayri (Author), professor alexander d. knysh (Translator), dr muhammad eissa (Contributor),
4.4 out of 5 stars 36 ratings
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The author of the Epistle on Sufism, Abu ’l-Qasim al-Qushayri (376/986–465/1074), was a famous Sunni scholar and mystic (Sufi) from Khurasan in Iran. His Epistle is probably the most popular Sufi manual ever .

Written in 437/1045, it has served as a primary textbook for many generations of Sufi novices down to the present. In it, Al-Qushayri gives us an illuminating insight into the everyday lives of Sufi devotees of the eighth to eleventh centuries C.E. and the moral and ethical dilemmas they were facing in trying to strike a delicate balance between their ascetic and mystical convictions and the exigencies of life in a society governed by rank, wealth, and military power.

In al-Qushayri’s narrative, the Sufi ‘friends of God’ (awaliya’) are depicted as the true, if uncrowned, ‘kings’ of this world, not those worldly rulers who appear to be lording it over the common herd of believers. Yet, even the most advanced Sufi masters should not take salvation for granted. Miracle-working, no matter how spectacular, cannot guarantee the Sufi a ‘favourite outcome’ in the afterlife, for it may be but a ruse on the part of God who wants to test the moral integrity of his servant. In the Epistle these and many other Sufi motifs are illustrated by the anecdotes and parables that show al-Qushayri’s fellow Sufis in a wide variety of contexts: suffering from hunger and thirst in the desert, while performing pilgrimage to Mecca, participating in ‘spiritual concerts’, reciting the Qur’an, waging war against the ‘infidel’ enemy and their own desires, earning their livelihood, meditating in a retreat, praying, working miracles, interacting with the ‘people of the market-place’, their family members and peers, dreaming, and dying.

About The Author

Abul Qasim Al-Qushayri was the student of the Shaykh Abu `Ali al-Daqqaq, He was a muhaddith who transmitted hadith to pupils by the thousands in Naysabur, in which he fought the Mu`tazila until he flew to Makkah to protect his life, He was also a mufassir who wrote a complete commentary of the Qur'an entitled Lata'if al-isharat bi tafsir al-Qur'an (The subtleties and allusions in the commentary of the Qur'an).

This works is his most famous work, which is one of the early complete manuals of the science of tasawwuf.

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  1. Print length
    488 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    September 27, 2020
  4. Dimensions
    6.69 x 1.1 x 9.61 inches
  5. ISBN-13
    979-8691128585
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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B08KH3T568
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Independently published
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ September 27, 2020
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 488 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 979-8691128585
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.7 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.69 x 1.1 x 9.61 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 out of 5 stars 36 ratings

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  1. Dar Ul Thaqafah

    Dar Ul Thaqafah

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  2. ʻAbd al-Karīm ibn Hawāzin Qushayrī

    ʻAbd al-Karīm ibn Hawāzin Qushayrī

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  3. Alexander D. Knysh

    Alexander D. Knysh

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    Alexander (Sasha) Knysh. I was trained as an Arabist and historian of the Islamic Middle East in the former Soviet Union (at the Lenigrad State University, then the Soviet Academy of Sciences). I combine expertise in Arabic literature (both pre-modern and modern) with the knowledge of the history, religions, and cultures of the Middle East and Eurasia. I have been teaching and conducting research in these fields of academic endeavor over the past thirty years. I came to the US from the former Soviet Union in 1991 on a fellowship of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, NJ. In 1992-1993, I was a Rockefeller fellow in the Humanties at the Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1994, I joined the Department of Near Eastern Studies at the University of Michigan as an Assistant Professor. In 1998, I was promoted to the rank of Professor of Islamic Studies at the above university. From 1998 until 2004, I served as chair of the department. In 1997-1998, I held the Sharjah Chair of Islamic Studies at the Department of Arabic and Middle East Studies, University of Exeter, UK. Although this was a permanent academic appointment, I chose to return to Michigan after one year in England.

    More recently, I have been working on several academic projects, including the history of Islam in Yemen and a study of the changing representations of Islam and the Muslims in Russian academic and popular discourses and mass media following the collapse of the former Soviet Union. My latest project, "Islam and Empire in the Northern Caucasus," explores the history and ideological underpinnings of Muslim resistance to the Russian conquest and subsequent domination of the Northern Caucasus in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Simultaneously, I continue to pursue my longstanding interest in the history of Sufi movements and thought in Islam. I currently serve as the section editor for “Sufism” on the Editorial Board of the Encyclopedia of Islam (3rd edition), E.J. Brill, Leiden, the Netherlands.

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Top reviews from the United States

  • Zack
    2.0 out of 5 stars Poor translation from unreliable source
    Reviewed in the United States on December 31, 2011
    Verified Purchase
    I have sat with shaykhs who have often referenced the original manuscript, who have been authorized to teach such texts. What I have heard from they, who have taken the text from someone who took the text from someone who took... all the way back to the original author, has been very different than that which I found in Knysh's translation. There does not seem to be any evidence suggesting that the translator is a Muslim. An unbeliever translating a book about experiential knowledge of Allah would be quite absurd. For an orientalist writing book reports who doesn't care about what Muslims believe or what the original author (Al-Qushayri) intended, this may be fine. For a Muslim, taking one's deen (religion) from such sources is problematic. Sama should not have been translated as music, but rather audition. I do not know what word the author was translating, but he insinuated that 'longing,' as opposed to having 'hope,' for the mercy of Allah is blameworthy. Tell that to the vast majority of English-speaking sufi shaykhs who use the word longing in a positive connotation when speaking about love, in longing to return to one's Lord. This is just after a few glances through the book. Add it to another long list of failed attempts at translating this classic.
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  • Buyer
    3.0 out of 5 stars Stampa e carta scadente.
    Reviewed in Italy on June 15, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    Si tratta di un testo canonico per chi è interessato a conoscere il sufismo. Purtroppo la stampa è scadente, i caratteri sono di un grigio sbiadito e la carta è decisamente spessa. In genere non uso occhiali da lettura, ma in questo caso non se ne può fare a meno se si vuole evitare di sforzare gli occhi.
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Recommended reading for anyone interested in understanding the Sufi traditions ...
    Reviewed in Canada on October 28, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Recommended reading for anyone interested in understanding the Sufi traditions in early Islamic history. Reader will gain an appreciation for the great depth of the Islamic science of Tasawwuf.
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  • Thekhandiary
    5.0 out of 5 stars Not for the weak..
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 30, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    Once you begin reading this, you will be left dumbfounded, personally I think it's a good idea to study with a qualified scholar or teacher, because simply reading this will not suffice, there is an ocean of hidden treasures in this book. That being said, anyone looking to go on an inward journey towards Allah Subhanahu wat'ala needs to read and implement these teachings. May Allah Subhanahu Wat'ala grant the translator and all those behind these amazing works with the greatest of rewards and tawfiq, bi'ithnillah.
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  • Mary
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 30, 2015
    Verified Purchase
    Brilliant book
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  • Amazon Customer
    1.0 out of 5 stars Misprinting
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 7, 2022
    Verified Purchase
    On my copy, first 100 or so right hand pages have line 2 missing.
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