A Sufi-Jewish Dialogue

Philosophy and Mysticism in Bahya ibn Paquda's "Duties of the Heart"

Nonfiction, Religion & Spirituality, Judaism, History, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science
Cover of the book A Sufi-Jewish Dialogue by Diana Lobel, University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Diana Lobel ISBN: 9780812202656
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc. Publication: March 1, 2013
Imprint: University of Pennsylvania Press Language: English
Author: Diana Lobel
ISBN: 9780812202656
Publisher: University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.
Publication: March 1, 2013
Imprint: University of Pennsylvania Press
Language: English

Written in Judeo-Arabic in eleventh-century Muslim Spain but quickly translated into Hebrew, Bahya Ibn Paquda's Duties of the Heart is 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. In A Sufi-Jewish Dialogue, Diana Lobel explores the full extent to which Duties of the Heart marks 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 Dialogue is 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.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Written in Judeo-Arabic in eleventh-century Muslim Spain but quickly translated into Hebrew, Bahya Ibn Paquda's Duties of the Heart is 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. In A Sufi-Jewish Dialogue, Diana Lobel explores the full extent to which Duties of the Heart marks 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 Dialogue is 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.

More books from University of Pennsylvania Press, Inc.

Cover of the book The Jet Sex by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Strange Bedfellows by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Mourning Glory by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book After the Black Death by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Musically Speaking by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Russian Jews Between the Reds and the Whites, 1917-1920 by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Frontier Cities by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Out of Sorts by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book The Medieval Craft of Memory by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book The Sports Franchise Game by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Hopeful Journeys by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Uncommon Tongues by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Displacing Democracy by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Between Christian and Jew by Diana Lobel
Cover of the book Keeping Up with the Joneses by Diana Lobel
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy