Muhammad bin Ali Ibn Arabi, known as Mohiyidin, was a Sufi, mystic, philosopher, scholar, poet, and one of the greatest Sufi masters of Tasawwuf (Islamic spirituality). Ibn Arabi’s writings and teachings have inspired millions of Muslims over the centuries, including leading Sufis like Sadruddin Al Qunawi, Jalaluddin Rumi, Khwaja Ghulam Farid, Shah Waliullah and many others. He is known as Shaikh-e-Akbar (The Greatest Sufi Master) in the Muslim world.
Ibn Arabi was born in 1165 A.D. in Andalusia, modern-day Spain. Born into an affluent family of jurists and nobles, his spiritual qualities were evident from a very young age. Ibn Arabi is known for his astute understanding of Islamic spirituality and his magnificent Sufi works that are a combination of Kalaam (theology), Tasawwuf (Sufism), and Falsafa (philosophy). Fond of wisdom and spirituality, Ibn Arabi had the company of remarkable Sufi men and women throughout his life in Andalusia, Mecca, Turkey, and modern-day Syria. These meetings inculcated in him a unique intellect of spiritual aptitude and mystical sensibility. To broaden his spiritual horizon, he continued his meetings with remarkable men and women for years to come and would mention them in his monumental works. Ibn Arabi traveled extensively throughout his life. These travels were bursting with spiritual inquiry, aesthetics, and vision. In Sufism, traveling is considered to be one of the most important pillars of spirituality. Be it the journey within or outside of oneself, the seeker explores the realms of spirituality through experience. This is how a Sufi explores different dimensions of self-actualization and self-realization. This was precisely what Ibn Arabi worked on. From Spain to Mecca, and from Turkey to finally his resting place in Syria, Ibn Arabi gleamed upon the lands of East and West like a triumphal sun. It was through his travels that his ideas became known in different parts of the world.
His most celebrated books like Futuhat-e-Makkiya (Secrets Revealed in Makkah) and Fusul Al Hikam (Ringstones of wisdom) are not only books of Sufism, but monumental works of Islamic literature and philosophy. They remain one the greatest recognized works of Tassawuf till date. These works are truly the outcome of Ibn Arabi’s unparalleled genius and literary vision and talent. A glance into these masterful manuscripts brings out the intellectual genius of Ibn Arabi who weaves spiritual narrative by using references from Quran and Hadith and the life of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). His book Fusus Al Hikam is a tour de force. The book is divided into 27 chapters, each named after a Prophet. Every chapter brings out one or several divine qualities of that Prophet. Ibn Arabi then links the divine quality and virtue of that Prophet with the virtues that need to be recognized, understood, and spiritually internalized by a seeker and a Sufi.
Ibn Arabi is thought to have produced more than 300 books. Among them, many have not survived and around 100 of them have been well-known and translated. His books are considered to be difficult to translate, even difficult to fathom, because of the intricate and complex nature of their philosophical and spiritual inclination. Over the centuries his books have been taught and read by Muslim scholars and the public alike. His works are as intricate as works of philosophy are in general. Moreover, understanding his works generally requires the guidance of a Sufi master who himself is well versed in Quran and Hadith and practitioner of the Sufi teachings, especially of Ibn Arabi and his philosophy. Ibn Arabi traveled extensively, his life and travels can be understood mainly into three phases; his birth and time spent in Maghrib (Andalusia and North Africa), his life in Hejaz (Makkah and Medina), and finally his time in Mashriq (Contemporary Turkey, Anatolia and Syria). His journey to Anatolia was the result of his meeting with one of the viziers of Saljuk Sultan, Ishaq Al Rumi, who impressed by Ibn Arabi’s scholarship and intelligence invited and persuaded him to move to Anatolia, Turkey. This is where Ibn Arabi also accepted Ishaq’s son Sadruddin Qunawi into his discipleship. Qunawi later became the foremost interpreter and popularizer of Ibn Arabi’s works.
In modern times, much has been written about him. His major works have been translated and published. In Urdu, his monumental work Fusus Al Hikam has been translated by another renowned Sufi sage of modern times Baba Zaheen Shah Taji of Karachi. His translation and explanation of Ibn Arabi is perhaps one of the most profound works in Urdu language. Among others are Abdul Qadeer Siddiqui’s translation of Fusus in Urdu. Siddiqui too was a Sufi Master from Hyderabad Deccan. Among Western scholars and orientalists, who popularized his works in recent times are Michel Chodkiewicz, Claude Addas, Michel Valsan and Martin Lings.
Ibn Arabi’s masterly legacy lives on through his works and through Sufis who have practiced his spiritual teachings according to their times and environments.
Ibn Arabi moved to Damascus around 1223 A.D, where students and disciples assembled around him to quench their thirst for the deeper meaning of Islam. He passed at the age of 75. He spent his last years in Damascus And Was Buried There. His Shrine Is Flocked By Visitors From Around The Globe For Blessings.
Ibn Arabi is the manifestation of the epitome and essence of Islamic spirituality. He stands in the league of Sufis who devoted their life to Islam and in manifesting and spreading the light of Maarifat-e-Ilahiya (Higher mystical sensibilities). He is rightly remembered as Shaik-e-Akbar, the greatest Sufi master. His teachings have been valued, incorporated and practiced by all the leading Sufi orders of the day in one way or another.
Dr. Taimur Shamil
The writer holds a PhD in International relations. He has a special interest in the scholarship of Hadith and Tassawuf. He is based in New York. He tweets @ShamilTaimur.