Rose Library › Sufism

The Tarjumán al-Ashwáq: A Collection of Mystical Odes

Muḥyi’ddín Ibn al-‘Arabí · tr. Reynold A. Nicholson · 1911 · 36,019 words

Ibn ‘Arabí’s sixty-one love odes, “The Interpreter of Desires”, with his own commentary showing how the beloved, the ruined camp and the journey of the caravan speak of the soul and God.

Read it now

Opening

The Tarjumán Al-Ashwáq

Although Ibn al-‘Arabí (560-638 A.H.) is the most celebrated of all Muḥammadan mystics, the only one of his 150 extant works that has hitherto appeared in a European edition is the brief glossary of Ṣúfí technical terms (###) which was published by Fluegel in 1845, together with the Ta‘rífat of Jurjání, under the title of Definitiones theosophi Mohji-ed-dín Mohammed ben Ali vulgo Ibn Arabi dicti. So far as I am aware, none of his books has been translated into any European language, and no trustworthy account can yet be given of his vast theosophical speculations, which produced an extraordinary impression throughout the Moslem world. By far the larger portion of his writings is in prose, but the poetical remnant includes a Díwán of about 450 pages (published at Búláq in 1271 A.H.) and several smaller collections. One of these is the Tarjumán al-Ashwáq or 'Interpreter of Desires'. The fact that it is accompanied by a commentary, in which the author himself explains the meaning of almost every verse, was the principal motive that induced me to study it; its brevity was a strong recommendation; and something, I suppose, may be attributed to my possessing an excellent MS., which, as is noted on the last page, has twice undergone collation and correction.

Continue reading in the Rose Library →

Contents

  1. Preface
  2. The Tarjumán Al-Ashwáq
  3. Ode I
  4. Ode II
  5. Ode III
  6. Ode IV
  7. Ode V
  8. Ode VI
  9. Ode VII
  10. Ode VIII
  11. Ode IX
  12. Ode X
  13. Ode XI
  14. Ode XII
  15. Ode XIII
  16. Ode XIV
  17. Ode XV
  18. Ode XVI
  19. Ode XVII
  20. Ode XVIII
  21. Ode XIX
  22. Ode XX
  23. Ode XXI
  24. Ode XXII
  25. Ode XXIII
  26. Ode XXIV
  27. Ode XXV
  28. Ode XXVI
  29. Ode XXVII
  30. Ode XXVIII
  31. Ode XXIX
  32. Ode XXX
  33. Ode XXXI
  34. Ode XXXII
  35. Ode XXXIII
  36. Ode XXXIV
  37. Ode XXXV
  38. Ode XXXVI
  39. Ode XXXVII
  40. Ode XXXVIII
  41. Ode XXXIX
  42. Ode XL
  43. Ode XLI
  44. Ode XLII
  45. Ode XLIII
  46. Ode XLIV
  47. Ode XLV
  48. Ode XLVI
  49. Ode XLVII
  50. Ode XLVIII
  51. Ode XLIX
  52. Ode L
  53. Ode LI
  54. Ode LII
  55. Ode LIII
  56. Ode LIV
  57. Ode LV
  58. Ode LVI
  59. Ode LVII
  60. Ode LVIII
  61. Ode LIX
  62. Ode LX
  63. Ode LXI
  64. Ode I

About this edition

Source: Internet Sacred Text Archive

Public domain: Public domain worldwide (1911; Nicholson died 1945).

What’s included: Nicholson’s preface and introduction, and his translation of all sixty-one odes with his abridgement of Ibn ‘Arabí’s commentary. The Arabic text is not included.

In the Rose Library you can search every word of this book, have it read aloud, and save it to read offline.