The Grey Falcon: The Life and Teaching of Shaykh ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani

In The Grey Falcon, Hamza Malik offers an account of the life and teaching of the twelfth century scholar and Sufi of Baghdad, and eponym of the Qadiri order, Shaykh ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani (1077-1166). The question of whether Jilani was a Sufi, or simply a scholar appropriated by later Sufis as has been sometimes suggested, is tackled through an analysis of his three most popular works, the Ghunya li Talibi Tariq al-Haqq, the Futuh al-Ghayb, and the Fath al-Rabbani. Malik identifies and presents Jilani’s Sufi thought and theological stance, and furthermore attempts to paint a picture of the character and personality of Jilani, as might be ascertained solely from the works analysed.