The Grey Falcon : New,
'Life & Teachings of
Shaykh Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani'
[A5+] Hardback - 261 pages
by Hamza Malik,
**Published by EJ Brill, Netherlands.
Description :
In The Grey Falcon, Hamza Malik offers an account of the life and teaching of the twelfth century scholar and Sufi of Baghdad, and eponym of the Qadiri order, Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (1077-1166), may Allah be pleased with him.
The question of whether al-Jīlānī was a Sufi, or simply a scholar appropriated by later Sufis as has been sometimes suggested, is tackled through an analysis of his three most popular works, the Ghunya li Ṭālibī Ṭarīq al-Ḥaqq, the Futūḥ al-Ghayb, and the Fatḥ al-Rabbānī.
Malik identifies and presents al-Jīlānī’s Sufi thought and theological stance, and furthermore attempts to paint a picture of the character and personality of al-Jīlānī, as might be ascertained solely from the works analysed.
Extract from the Introduction :
" In the summer of 2007 while the rest of Baghdad was engulfed under the oppression of daily car bombings and unyielding sectarian violence, there was an area of the city where the pervasive ferocity of the aggressive mood seemed all but absent. This was an area where the local residents felt safe enough to venture out and about, relax at the local cafes, and mingle with other people, regardless of their sect or religious persuasion.
The centrepiece of this area, the Gaylani Mosque, has stood in the same location for more than nine hundred years and houses the shrine of its patron, Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī, after whose epithet the entire area takes its name. Many of the residents of Bāb al-Shaykh put down this incredible blessing as a clear manifestation of the baraka of who, for them, was their pride and local saint.
Their belief was further confirmed for them by the scores of pilgrims who arrived daily to visit this shrine, despite the dire political situation. For the visitors, as for the residents, the feeling of safety in the protection of their destiny was provided by their celebrated benefactor, the Ghawth al-Aʿẓam.
The importance of Shaykh ʿAbd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī to the Muslim world is unquestionable; not only is he esteemed and revered as the founder of the largest Sufi order in the world today, the Qādiriyya, but he is also hailed as a pious scholar and formidable preacher even by those not concerned with the Qādirī order or Sufism in general. While the average Muslim individual might not be familiar with a well-known Muslim scholar from the past such as Abū Ḥāmid al-Ghazālī (d. 505/1111), they are likely to be aware of Shaykh Abd al-Qadir al-Jīlānī. "
More related books: Shaykh 'Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani.
Dimensions : 24 x 16cm.
**E.J. Brill publishes primarily for the academic library market and isn't particularly interested in selling large quantities. Because the cost is spread over a lot fewer sales, the price needs to be higher to recoup costs, and to turn a profit for shareholders. Brill print runs are frequently in the hundreds, rather than thousands.
