The Tarjuman al-Ashwaq
Muhyi al-Din Muhammad ibn 'Ali Ibn al-'Arabi
With the Arabic text, translated by Reynold A. Nicholson together with a partial translation of the commentary by Ibn 'Arabi155 pp. Paper ISBN 0722951337 £6.99
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The Tarjuman al-Ashwaq or "Interpreter of Desires" by Ibn 'Arabi is acknowledged as one of the major works of Sufi literature, alongside those of the great Persian poets Attar, Jalaluddin Rumi, Hafiz and Jami.
In keeping with the poetical tradition of Islam, there is a continuing ambiguity in the verses as to whether they are love poems disguised as mystical odes, or mystical odes expressed in the language of human love. The timeless beauty and imagery of the verses cannot be denied, and may be interpreted at many levels. "Gnostics," says Ibn 'Arabi, "cannot impart their feelings to other men; they can only indicate them symbolically to those who have begun to experience the like." In response to the accusation by a religious scholar that these were just sensual poems, Ibn 'Arabi wrote a commentary on the Tarjuman which is partially translated here.
This was one of the first translations of a book by Ibn 'Arabi into a European langauage, made by the great translator of Rumi's Mathnawi, Reynold A. Nicholson. In both cases his translation was of such outstanding quality that it was more than fifty years before other translators began to try their hands at these texts, and his translations still stand the test of time.