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The al-ism al-a`zam in the writings Muhammad Muḥyī al-Dīn, Ibn al-`Arabī, (d. 638/1240) and his devotees

The tomb of the mystic Ibn al-‘Arabi (Murcia, 1165 – Damascus, 1240) in the Syrian capital, in a quarter of the former suburb of Salihiyya

The al-ism al-a`zam in the writings of Ibn al-`Arabī, Shaykh Muḥyī al-Dīn (d. 638/1240)..

The great philosopher, mystic,  theologian and seer, Muhammad ibn. 'Ali Ibn 'Arabi wrote something in excess of  350 works some of which contain deeply theological disclosures centering on theophanic dimensions of the Names of God. He occasionally makes reference to the the mystery of His al-ism al-a`zam, the All-Powerful, Mightiest Name of God.

 

The al-Futûhât al-Makkiyya (Meccan Revelations).

The Arabic word baha' or various derivitives from the same Arabic root, occurs between twenty and thirty time in the massive al-Futûhât al-Makkiyya (The Meccan Revelations or Openings) of Ibn al-`Arabi.

The Diwân Tarjumân al-Ashwâq (The Conveyor of Mystical Ecstacy)...

The Fusûs al-Hikam,  revelations centering on the mystical interpretations of the wisdom of the twenty-eight or so Islamo-biblical prophets.

 Muhammad b. 'Ali Ibn 'Arabi

  • al-Futūḥāt al-Makkiyya. (`The Meccan Revelations [Openings]', 4 Vols.) Beirut: Dār Ṣadir n.d. [1968 = Cairo Ed. 1911].
  • Ibn ‘Arabî: Les Illuminations de la Mecque, Sinbad, Pais, 1988 (esp.  section “La Science des Lettres”, traducido y comentado por D. Gril,...)...
  • Kashf al-ma'ná an sirr asma' Allah al-husná. ed. and introd., Beneito, Pablo + Hasan Mamduhi. Qum: Bakhshayish, 1419/ 1998. 200pp.  ISBN 9649063633

`Abd al-Razzaq al-Kashani

Tafsir in the tradition of Ibn al-`Arani  ...

In his Istilihat al-Sufiyya ("Technical Terms of the Sufis") he writes:

I4. THE GREATEST NAME

The Name that sums up all the Names in one. It has been said by some to be the word Allah (God), since this is the name of the aforementioned Essence in all its Attributes. In other words, it is that to which all the other names refer. That is why `Divine Presence' is the designation given to the presence of the Essence together with all the Names. According to us, however, it is the name for the Holy Essence just as it is - that is to say, the Absolute, the True - whether it be with all or some or none of the Names.

`Abd al‑Razzÿq al‑Kashani, A Glossary of Sufi Technical Terms   trans. Nabil Safwat, rev. & ed. David Pendlebury (London: Octogon Press Ltd. 1991). p.5

 

 
 
 
al-Jīlī, `Abd al-Karīm ibn Ibrāhīm ( d. c. 832/1428).

• Insan Kamil = al-Insān al-kāmil fī ma`rifat al-awākhir wa'l-awā'il. 2 vols in 1.
Cairo: Muatāfa al-Bābī al-Ḥalabī, 1375/1956.
• Qasida = Qaṣīda al-nādirāt al-`ayniyya. Beirut: Dār al-Jīl, 1408/1988.

  • L’Alchemie du bonheur (Ch. 167 of al-Futuhat al-Makkiyya).

Anawati, G.

  •  "L'Alchimie du Bonheur, d'Ibn 'Arabi"  in Revue de Institut Dominicain d'Éudes Orientales da Caire, Mélanges 6 (Cairo. 1959 - 61), 353 - 386. = Trans. of al-Futuhat al-Makkiyya Ch. 167.
     

Ruspoli, Stephane 

  • L'alchimie du bonheur parfait Paris: Berg International, 1981=  another  trans. of chapter 167 of the Futûhât (14 pp. of Arabic) (151pp.). 

Ibn al-ʿArabī.

  • Qurʿah Sharīfah : Hādhihi al-qurʿah al-mubārakah al-maimūnah wa-al-durrah al-thamīnah al-maṣūnah li-al-Shaykh al-Akbar etc.
    Publisher/year Bombay : Fatḥ al-Karīm Press, 1883.  ( 32 p.p.)
    "A series of tables for divination ascribed to Ibn ʿArabī. Followed (p. 27) by a chapter on divination and omens (Faṣl fī al-faʾl wa-al-zajr) from the end of the Kanz al-ʿulūm wa-al-durr al manẓūm of Ibn Tūmart.

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Amulets and Talismans

 

Canaan, T.

  • "The Decipherment of Arabic Talismans", Berytus, IV, 1937, p. 69-110 ; V, 1938, p. 141-151.

Fodor, A

  • Amulets from the Islamic World: Catalogue of the Exhibition held in Budapest in 1988  =
  • The Arabist. Budapest Studies in Arabic, 2  Budapest, 1990.

Schienerl, P.W.

  • Schmuck und Amulett in Antike und Islam [Acta Culturologica, 4] (Aachen, 1988);

 Kriss, R., and H. Kriss-Heinrich,

  • Volksglaube im Bereich des Islam. Band II: Amulette, Zauberformeln und Beschwörungen (Wiesbaden, 1962);

 

 

 

Magic Squares and Cubes

  •  'Buduh' in EI, 2nd edition, suppl. 153-4.
  • 'Djadwal' in EI, 2nd edition, vol. 2: 370.
  •  

Cammann, Schuyler.

  • Islamic and Indian Magic Squares. Part I  History of Religions, Vol. 8, No. 3 (Feb., 1969),181-209
  • Islamic and Indian Magic Squares. Part II History of Religions, Vol. 8, No. 4 (May, 1969), 271-299
     

 Jacqes Sesiano,

  •  Un traité medieval sur les carres magiques: De l'arrangement harmonieux des nombres, Lausanne: Presses Polytechniques et Universitaires Romandes, 1996;

 

F. Maddison and E. Savage-Smith,

  •    Science, Tools & Magic [Khalili Collection of Islamic Art, 12] (Oxford: Oxford University Press / London: Azimuth Editions, 1997) pp. 106-7.

Andrews, W. S

  • Magic Squares and Cubes. With Chapters by Paul Carus, L. S. Frierson, C. A. Browne, Jr., and an Introduction by Paul Carus : Chicago, The Open Court Publishing Company, 1908. vi + 199 pp.
  • Magic Squares and Cubes. Dover [Books explaining Science and Mathematics] edition New York, 1960, 419pp.

 

Review: W. S. Andrews, Magic Squares and Cubes G. A. Miller Source: Bull. Amer. Math. Soc. Volume 16, Number 2 (1909), 85-87.

Sesiano, Jacques,

  • `Magic Squares for Daily Life' in  Charles Burnett et. al. (eds), Studies in the History of the Exact Sciences  in Honour of David Pingree (Islamic Philosophy, Theology, and Science, vol. LIV , Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2004 ),  pp.714-734. 
  • `Construction of Magic Squares Using the Knight’s Move in Islamic Mathematics' in Journal Archive for History of Exact Sciences (Springer Berlin / Heidelberg = ISSN 0003-9519 (Print) 1432-0657 (Online), Volume 58, No. 1 (November, 2003), 1-20. 

 

GENERAL BIBLIOGRAPHY

 

Alchemy:

  • Jabir ibn Hayyān: URL
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Ashraf, Muḥammad - Salar Jung Museum and Library

  • A concise descriptive catalogue of the Persian manuscripts in the Salar Jung Museum & Library. Vol. XI: Concerning 249 manuscripts on the arts, agriculture, technology, music, games, divination, astrology, alchemy, magic, jafr, manuscripts of mixed contents,Turkish, Pushtu works and calligraphic panels.  : Salar Jung Museum and Library, Hyderabad (India), 1997 (pp. 326).

Beeston, A.F.L.

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Bosworth, C. E.

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Casanova.  P.

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Cortese, D.

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Dawkins, J. Mc. G.,

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De Smet, Daniel.

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Dornseiff, F.

  • Das Alphabet in Mystik und Magie, Leipzig/ Berlin, 1925.

Fahd, Toufic.

  • Le Divination Arabe. Leiden: [Brill],1966.
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  • La Magie Comme "Source" de la Sagesse D'Apres L'Oeuvred'al-Būnī' in Charms et Sortileges Magie et Magiciens (= Res Orientales XIV)  Bures-sur-Yvette 2002, pp.61-108. *

Farrukh, O.A.

  •  "Ikhwān al-Safã'", dans M.M. Sharif (éd.), A History of Muslim Philosophy, Wiesbaden, Otto Harrassowitz, 1963,1, p. 289-310.

 al-Fãrũqî, I. R.

  • "On the Ethics of the Brethren of Purity". Muslim World, L, 1960, p. 109-121, 193-198. 252-258.

Fyzee, A.A.

  •  "The Study of the Literature of the Fatimid Da'wcľ՝, dans G. Makdisi (éd.), Arabic and Islamic Studies in Honour of H.A.R. Gibb, Leyde 1965, p. 232-249.

Gacek, A.

  • Catalogue of Arabic Manuscripts in the Library of The Institute of Ismaili Studies. Volume One, London, Islamic Publications, 1984. *

Gālib, M.

  • Ga'far b. Manşür al-Yaman. Kitāb al-Kashf, Beyrouth, Dar al֊ Andalus, 1984.
  • ar-Risāla al-Gāmi'a. Tāg Rasā՝il Ikwan aş-Şafa՝ UY/ Hullam al-Wafa', Beyrouth. Dar al֊ Andalús, 1984.

Griffini,  E.

  • "Die jüngste ambrosianische Sammlung arabischer Handschriften", Zeitschrift der Deutsclien Morgenländischen Gesellschaft, LXIX, 1915, p. 63-88.

 Halm, H.

  • Kosmologie und Heilslehre der frühen isma'iliya [Abhandlungen für die Kunde des Morgenlandes 44, 1], Wiesbaden, Franz Steiner, 1978. *
  •  "Der Treuhänder Gottes. Die Edikte des Kalifen al-Hākim", Der Ìslam 63, 1986, p. 11-72.
  •  Die Schia, Darmstadt, Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1988.

Hammer, J.

  • Ancient Alphabets and Hieroglyphic Characters explained, with an account of the Egyptian priests, their classes, initiation, and sacrifices, in the Arabic language by Ahmad bin Abubekr bin Wahshih, and in English by Joseph Hammer, Londres, 1806.

Ibn Washiyya, Abu Bakr  (d. 318/931).

  • See URL

Hameen-Anttila, Jaakko

  • `Ibn Wahshiyya and Magic'   Revista: Anaquel de Estudios Arabes, 1999; 39-48. 

Khan. Mesrop Nevton.

  •  "Talismanic Superstitions of Persia," Gunter's Magazine VI/2 (September, 1907), 179-93
     

Krišs & H. Kriss-Heinrich, R.

  • Volksglaube im Bereich des Islam. Band II. Amulette, Zauberformeln und Beschwörungen, Wiesbaden, Otto Harrassowitz, 1962.

Lemay, Richard 

  • Books of Magic in translation from the Arabie and the birth of a theology of the Sacraments of the Church in the twelfth century' in Charms et Sortileges Magie et Magiciens (= Res Orientales XIV)  Bures-sur-Yvette 2002, pp.165-192.
     

Lory, Pierre,

  •  "Science des lettres. Islam", dans J. Servier, Dictionnaire critique de l՝esoterisme, Paris, 1998, pp. 1164-1167.

Naveh, J.

  • Early History oį the Alphabet. An Introduction to West Semitic Epigraphy and Palaeography, Jérusalem-Leyde, The Magnes Press-E.J. Brill, 1982. *

Netton, Ian R.

  • Muslim Neoplatonists. An Introduction to the Thought of the Brethren of Purity [Islamic Surveys 19], Edinburgh, Edinburgh University Press, 1991.  *

Phillot, D.C.

  •  "Bibliomancy, divination, superstitions among the Persians," Journal of the Asiatic Society of Bengal 2 (1906), pp. 339-42.
     

Pielow, D. A. M.

  • Die Quellen der Weisheit. Die arabische Magie im Spiegel des Usûl al-Hikma von Ahmad 'Alî al-Būnī [Arabische Texte und Studien 8], Hildesheim, Georg Olms, 1995.

Porter, Venetia,

  • `Islamic Seals: Magical or Practical' in Alan Jones (ed) University Lectures in Islamic Studies vol. 2 (London: Alatair World of Islamic Trust, 1988), pp.135-149.

Ritter, Helmut,

  • Pseudo-Magriţi. Das Ziel des Weisen [Studien der Bibliothek Marburg 12], Berlin-Leipzig, Teubner, 1933.

Robin, Chr.

  • "Les écritures de l'Arabie avant l'Islam", Revue du Monde Musulman et de la Méditerrannée, LXI, 1991, p. 127-137.

Sáliba, G.

  • ar-Risāla al-čāmi'a, al-mansūba li l-Hakim al-Magriţi, 2 vols., Damas, 1949.

Savage-Smith, Emile. (ed.)

  • Magic and Divination in Early Islam.   Aldershot:   Journal of Islamic Studies.  17 (2006) No. 3 pp. 366-368

Stern, S.M.

  • "The Earliest Cosmological Doctrines of Isma'īlism", in S. M. Stern, Studies in Early Ismā'īlism, Jerusalem-Leyde, The Magnes Press-E.J. Brill, 1983, p. 3-29. *

R. Strothmann,

  • Gnosis-Texte der Ismailiten [Abh. cl. Akad. d. Wiss. in Göttingen. Philol.-hist. Kl. HI/28], Göttingen, Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1943.
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  • Kitābu'l Kashf of Ja'far b. Manşüri՝l Yaman [Islamic Research Association Series 13], London & Bombay, Geoffrey Cumberlege & Oxford University Press, 1952.

 Van Reeth, Jan

  • `Les magazii de Amrît et la Table d'Emeraude' in Charms et Sortileges Magie et Magiciens (= Res Orientales XIV)  Bures-sur-Yvette 2002, pp.283-292.  *

Winkler, H.

  • Siegel und Charaktere in der Muhammedanischen Zauberei, Berlin-Leipzig, Walter de Gruyter, 1930. *

Winnet, F.V.

  • A Study of the Lihyanite and Thamudic Inscriptions [University of Toronto Studies. Oriental Series 3], Toronto, 1937.

 Yamauchi, Edwin M. 

  • Aramaic Magic Bowls' Journal of the American Oriental Society, Vol. 85, No. 4 (Oct. - Dec., 1965), 511-523