Love is mysterious and many splendored—the source of our greatest joys and deepest sorrows; easy to talk and sing about, but impossible to define. "One who defines love has not known it, and one who has not tasted it by drinking it down, has not known it," writes Ibn al-'Arabi.
While Rumi is more associated with love in the contemporary imagination, love is ... Show More
Aug 2023
Ibn al-Farid - The Mystical Poet of Love
Explore the mystical world of Sufi poetry with Ibn al-Farid, one of the greatest poets of the genre. In this episode, we delve into the life and works of this revered 13th-century poet, examining the spiritual and philosophical themes that make his poetry so enduring. From his fa ... Show More
36m 58s
Oct 2022
You Have Been Loved Into Being
Friends, our first reading from the book of Wisdom makes an extraordinarily important observation that’s of both theological and philosophical significance—namely, that the very fact that something exists means that it has been loved into being. In light of that, we can read our ... Show More
15m 35s
May 2021
Muhyiddin Ibn 'Arabi, "The Translator of Desires: Poems" (Princeton UP, 2021)
In this ground-breaking work, Michael Sells (the Barrows Professor Emeritus of the History and Literature of Islam and Professor emeritus of comparative literature at the University of Chicago) translates sixty-one poems that form the Tarjuman al-ashwaq or The Translator of Desir ... Show More
1h 6m
May 2024
Muẓaffar ‘Alī Shāh: A Ni‘matullāhī Sufi Master, Shi'ite Philosopher and Akbarian Philosopher by Dr Reza Tabandeh and Dr Mina Khademolfoghara
The revival of Shi‘ite Sufism, after the destruction of Safavid empire, occurred during the Zand dynasty (1163-1209/1750-1794) and continued through the Qājār era. As Zarrīnkub has pointed out, the Qājār era was a time of nostalgia for the noble past. Of course, their mystical ph ... Show More
21m 14s
Jun 2024
Abū Ḥayyān al-Tawḥīdī and Abū ʿAlī Miskawayh, "The Philosopher Responds: An Intellectual Correspondence from the Tenth Century" (NYU Press, 2019/22)
Today I talked to James Montgomery, one of the translators of The Philosopher Responds: An Intellectual Correspondence from the Tenth Century, two volumes (NYU Press, 2019 and 2022). About the book: Why is laughter contagious? Why do mountains exist? Why do we long for the past, ... Show More
1h 28m