About this ebook
The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Islamic Spirituality is an authoritative reference work comprising twenty-eight scholarly essays that explore the expressive and performative dimensions of Islamic spirituality. Edited by two of its most prominent scholars, and bringing together a stellar cast of contributors, this wide-ranging volume covers religious practices, sacred texts, history and places, gender, music, poetry, the visual arts, and politics.
Spirituality has had a long and important history in Islam, where a focus on spirituality is required of every believer. Each Muslim is asked to achieve a state of devotion through prayer, fasting, supplications, recitations, pilgrimage, and ascetic practices. The essays in this volume explain the role of spirituality in Islam—from its beginnings, through the development of its institutions, and into the present day. They also reflect important new research, and discuss contemporary debates and issues affecting Islamic spirituality such as the Internet, social justice, the role of women, ethics, and religious fundamentalism.
Offering readers a thought-provoking way to engage with the topic, this comprehensive work includes:
- The spirituality of words and letters, including the Qur’an, prophetic traditions in Islam, and litanies, invocations, and devotional texts
- Devotional practices in Islam, including the spirituality of prayer, ascetic spirituality, Qur’an recitation, and spirituality of the Sufi path
- Spirituality in literature, including Arabic and Persian poetry, spirituality in the modern novel, and the art of translation
- Spirituality in the arts, including the visual arts, music, song, and film
- Islamic spirituality and post-modern practices, including the Internet, Islamic hip-hop, and Salafism
From the personal to the political, The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Islamic Spirituality offers a fresh and revitalized view of all aspects of spirituality in Islam. It is a must-have scholarly resource for advanced undergraduates, graduate students, instructors and scholars studying Islam, spirituality, and Asian and Middle Eastern history as well as general readers with an interest in the subject.
About the author
Vincent J. Cornell is Asa Griggs Candler Professor of Middle East and Islamic Studies and Chair of the Department of Middle Eastern and South Asian Studies at Emory University. He is the author of many books and articles, including Realm of the Saint: Power and Authority in Moroccan Sufism (1998) and The Way of Abu Madyan (1996), and is the editor is the five-volume Voices of Islam (2007). His research interests cover the entire spectrum of Islamic thought from the doctrinal and social history of Sufism to theology and political philosophy.
Bruce B. Lawrence is Nancy and Jeffrey Marcus Professor of Islamic Studies Emeritus at Duke University, and Adjunct Professor at Fatih Sultan Mehmet Vakif University, Turkey. He has taught at Duke for over 40 years, specializing in Islamic spirituality throughout Afro-Eurasia. His most recent books include On Violence: A Reader, co-edited with Aisha Karim (2007), The Qur’an: A Biography (2006), and Messages to the World: The Statements of Osama Bin Laden (2005). His research interests include the comparative study of religious movements; institutional Islam, especially in Asia; Indo-Persian Sufism; and the religious masks of violence.
