Select texts of Shaykh Aḥmad al-Aḥsā’ī and his successors on the Isra'-Mi`raj of the Prophet Muhammad.
The first two Shaykhi leaders made numerous comments and expositions of aspects of the Isra-Mi`raj of the Prophet Muhammad. Many subsequent Kirmani Shaykhi and other leading Shaykhis also dealt, sometimes extensively, with this long controversial subject. The central figure Shaykh Aḥmad al-Aḥsā’ī was criticzed during his own lifetime for his sometimes non-literal interpretations of the Mi`raj. After his passing in 1241/1826 his spiritualistic interpretations of this night journey and ascent have frequently been criticized in Islamic circles even though many Sunni and Shi`i mystical and Sufi thinkers have offered similar interpretations without being accused of heresy or heterodoxy.
