Early Sufi master Abū Bakr al-Shiblī (d. 946) is both famous and unknown. One of the pioneers of Islamic mysticism, he left no writings, but his legacy was passed down orally, and he has been acclaimed from his own time to the present. Accounts of Shiblī present a fascinating figure: an eccentric with a showy red beard, a lover of poetry and wit, an ascetic who embraced altered states of consciousness, and, for a time, a disturbed man confined to an insane asylum. Kenneth Avery offers a contemporary interpretation of Shiblī's thought and his importance in the history of Sufism. This book surveys the major sources for Shiblī's life and work from both Arabic and Persian traditions, detailing the main facets of his biography and teachings and documenting the evolving figure of a Sufi saint. Shiblī's relationships with his more famous colleague Junayd and his infamous colleague Ḥallāj are discussed, along with his Qur'ānic spirituality, his poetry, and the question of his periodic insanity.
Avery explores the psychology of altered states among the early Sufis. It examines samâ` - listening to ritual recitation, music and certain other aural phenomena - and its effect in inducing unusual states of consciousness and behaviours. The focus is on the earliest personalities of the Islamic mystical tradition, as mediated by texts from the tenth to the twelfth centuries C.E. These unusual states are interpreted in the light of current research in Western psychology, and also in terms of their integration into historical Islamic culture. A Psychology of Early Sufi Samâ` provides new insights into the work of five Sufi authors, and a fresh approach to the relation between historical accounts of altered states and current psychological thinking.
The genesis of Haiku for Professionals is the simple mental exercise performed when deep in thought or when concentrating on an issue of importance. Ancient Japanese thinkers and poets alike used the art of Haiku to shed away all pretense, overt obscurity and window dressing to express the root of a thought, belief or feeling. Haiku is simply a concentration of thought. There is usually a reference, in some form, to nature. In business, as in Haiku, the less is more' principle, holds true. Often concepts get lost in a sea of useless business-speak.' It's a challenging mental exercise to take a thought and concentrate it into three lines. When you do this, you use your mind to create a highly insightful focus, within the form of an ancient art form. There is a spiritual element that arises as well. This highly insightful focus is often referred to as a Haiku Moment.' This is common with an exceptional Haiku. As you read one or create one, there may come a moment of deeper understanding or revelation. It is when you think to yourself, "Oh yes, that's it exactly!" This is the Haiku Moment. The fulfillment of a Haiku Moment is taking the understanding or revelation into action toward a more fulfilling life.
Open this book and enter the world of Jimmy Wingate. The time is the Great Depression. The place, the small southern enclave of Collin Hill. It is the old south where separate is a fact, but equality a myth; where the halls of justice can be as unfair to a white man as a black man; where the times have corrupted those in high places and justice has to be bought; where no one goes to grandma's for Thanksgiving because more than one generation lives under the same roof in paint bare houses that smell of tobacco and emit the soft voices of black servants; where welfare is a benevolent white man and where men do men things and women do women things. It is also a world of personal privilege for Jimmy, although as seen through his eyes, it is often a world of bullies, insensitive adults, deep disappointments and despair.. His father has prospered despite the depression and though poverty stricken and maligned as a young man, he has made the Wingates one of the foremost families of Collin Hill. Mr. Wingate, is a good man, who challenges long held traditions, but nevertheless remains a true son of the south. But Jimmy knows little of his fathers benevolence or anything else about his father, who gives little of his time or himself to his family. But as the book unfolds, he learns bit by bit his father has repeatedly extended a helping hand, to blacks and whites alike, even to those who once resented his presence in their community. Meet among others, Jimmy's sadistic first grade teacher; the bullying Moore brothers who cause Jimmy nothing but grief, until one night they all accidentally meet and get drunk; Joyce Dollar, Jimmy's first 'hot' date; Gussie the Wingate cook, whose conversations with Jimmy lets us know the races were not always separate in the segregated south; Dancer, the legless peanut vender who has a strange relationship to the Wingate family; Monk Morton, a self styled small town blue-blood who never works and ingratiates himself to the Wingate family; Lydia Cochran, the pretty girl next door who becomes Jimmy's best older friend, whose father mysteriously disappears after gambling away his hardware business; the ebullient Earl Ramsey, man about town, who takes Jimmy for his first visit to a house of ill-repute; and the brilliant, but deformed, Olin Pritchard, Jimmy's best friend who bares his innermost secrets with Jimmy, knowledge that casts a dark shadow over Jimmy's young life. Their discussions on life and death leaves Jimmy in a philosophical quandary, questioning traditional notions about life and religion in general and the existence of God in particular. Haunted by a keen sense of injustice in this world, Jimmy nevertheless retains a vision of hope in this story filled with harsh realism blended with dramatic poignancy. As he muddles through numerous moral dilemmas and tribulations, he ultimately comes to terms with his father's past, dark secrets about Olin, and the subtle and not so subtle snobbery some folks harbor against the Wingates, and learns life must be dealt with on its own terms.
The 13th century Sufi poet Farid al-Din Attar is renowned as an author of short lyrics written in the Persian language. Dealing with themes of love, passion and mysticism, this book presents the English versions of Attar's poetry. It also offers an analysis of Attar's poetic language and thought.
TRB's National Cooperative Highway Research Program (NCHRP) Report 801: Proposed Practice for Alternative Bidding of Highway Drainage Systems explores the application of a performance-based process for selection of drainage pipe systems. The selection process is based on satisfying performance criteria for the drainage system while considering the full range of suitable pipe materials." -- Publisher's description.
This study guide is an individually available part of the authors' "Lead Like Jesus" kit. Only one study guide is included in the initial kit, but churches or organizations can buy as many study guides as needed for their leadership groups. There is plenty of room for writing as the concepts are explored via group and individual activities.
An exciting and fast paced adventure story based in colonial America. Written from the viewpoint of a fictional friend of the Historic Robert Rodgers, famed in America as the leader of 'Rodgers' Rangers' a guerrilla squadron harassing the English forces throughout the American War of Independence. Many of the earliest books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. We are republishing these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.
Thank you for visiting our website. Would you like to provide feedback on how we could improve your experience?
This site does not use any third party cookies with one exception — it uses cookies from Google to deliver its services and to analyze traffic.Learn More.