كتاب
المُنْتَخَب في أُصُول الرُتَب
في علم التصوّف
عائشة الباعونيّة
The Principles of Sufism
ʿĀʾishah al-Bāʿūniyyah
edited and translated by
Th. Emil Homerin
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York and London
Table of Contents
Letter from the General Editor
Abbreviations
Acknowledgments
Introduction
A Note on the Text
The First Principle: Repentance (Tawbah)
The Second Principle: Sincerity (Ikhlāṣ)
The Third Principle: Remembrance (Dhikr)
The Fourth Principle: Love (Maḥabbah)
Glossary of Names and Terms
Bibliography
Further Reading
About the NYU Abu Dhabi Institute
About this E-book
About the Editor-Translator
Library of Arabic Literature
Editorial Board
General Editor
Philip F. Kennedy, New York University
Executive Editors
James E. Montgomery, University of Cambridge
Shawkat M. Toorawa, Cornell University
Editors
Julia Bray, University of Oxford
Michael Cooperson, University of California, Los Angeles
Joseph E. Lowry, University of Pennsylvania
Tahera Qutbuddin, University of Chicago
Devin J. Stewart, Emory University
Managing Editor
Chip Rossetti
Volume Editor
Shawkat M. Toorawa
Letter from the General Editor
The Library of Arabic Literature is a new series offering Arabic editions and English translations of key works of classical and premodern Arabic literature, as well as anthologies and thematic readers. Books in the series are edited and translated by distinguished scholars of Arabic and Islamic studies, and are published in parallel-text format with Arabic and English on facing pages. The Library of Arabic Literature includes texts from the pre-Islamic era to the cusp of the modern period, and will encompass a wide range of genres, including poetry, poetics, fiction, religion, philosophy, law, science, history, and historiography.
Supported by a grant from the New York University Abu Dhabi Institute, and established in partnership with NYU Press, the Library of Arabic Literature will produce authoritative Arabic editions and modern, lucid English translations, with the goal of introducing the Arabic literary heritage to scholars and students, as well as to a general audience of readers.
Philip F. Kennedy
General Editor, Library of Arabic Literature
In memory of
Farouk Mustafa
dedicated teacher, master translator, respected colleague,
and a very kind man.
“To live in hearts we leave behind is not to die.”
Thomas Campbell
Abbreviations
| Ar. | Arabic |
| ca. | circa, approximately |
| d. | died |
| EI | Encyclopaedia of Islam, 1st edition |
| EI2 | Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd edition |
| EI3 | Encyclopaedia of Islam Three, 3rd edition |
| EQ | Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān |
| fl. | flourished |
| r. | ruled |
Acknowledgments
This project has taken shape over a number of years, and has had the support of many institutions and foundations. I am grateful for the support of the Fulbright Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the American Research Center in Egypt, and the University of Rochester. In Egypt, I was greatly assisted by Dār al-Kutub al-Miṣriyyah, the Netherlands-Flemish Institute in Cairo, the American University in Cairo, and the American Research Center in Egypt. I would also like to acknowledge the dedicated work of the editors of the Library of Arabic Literature, especially Tahera Qutbuddin and Shawkat Toorawa, who proofread the entire manuscript and made valuable corrections and suggestions. I also wish to thank a number of friends and colleagues who have also graciously given me their support for this project, including Fatima Bawany, Daniel Beaumont, Kenneth Cuno, Bruce Craig, Li Guo, Aḥmad Harīdī, Carl Petry, Marlis Saleh, John Swanson, Edward Wierenga, and, with love, Nora Walter.
Introduction
ʿĀʾishah al-Bāʿūniyyah (d. 923/1517) was an exceptional Muslim scholar. She was a mystic, and a prolific poet and writer, composing more works in Arabic than any other woman prior to the twentieth century. In her writings, ʿĀʾishah often speaks of her abiding love for God and His prophet Muḥammad, and her quest for mystical union. These concerns are central to The Principles of Sufism, a mystical guide book that ʿĀʾishah compiled to help others on this spiritual path. Drawing lessons and readings from a centuries-old Sufi tradition, ʿĀʾishah advises the seeker to repent of selfishness and turn to a sincere life of love. Fundamental to this transformation is the recollection of both human limitations and God’s limitless love. In The Principles of Sufism, ʿĀʾishah recounts important stages and states on the path toward mystical union, as she urges her readers to surrender themselves to God and willingly accept His loving grace.
Life
ʿĀʾishah al-Bāʿūniyyah was born