This volume presents the seminal treatise of the important Spanish Muslim mystic, Ibn al-‘Arabi, on Islamic sainthood The Book of the Fabulous Gryphon. In highly allusive, symbolic language, the Shaykh al-Akbar reveals his manifesto of the revolutionary significance of sainthood in the person of its timely epitome, the Seal of the saints.
The first part of the book consists of a critical introduction dealing with the biographical, historical and bibliographical background to the Fabulous Gryphon, along with a thorough examination of its concepts, themes and structure. The complete, annotated translation of the Gryphon is followed by further original translations of related texts by Ibn al-'Arabi. Apart from the Fusus al-h ikam, no comparable treatise by this leading figure of Islamic spirituality has ever been presented in its entirety in any western language.