Citizendia

Idries Shah

Born16 June 1924
Died23 November 1996
MovementSufism
WorksThe Sufis

The Subtleties of the Inimitable Mulla Nasrudin

The Book of the Book

Learning how to Learn

Kara Kush

Idries Shah (16 June 1924–23 November 1996) (Persian: ادریس شاه), also known as Idris Shah, né Sayyid Idris al-Hashimi (Arabic: سيد إدريس الهاشمي), was an author and teacher in the Sufi tradition who wrote several dozen critically acclaimed books on topics ranging from psychology and spirituality to travelogues and culture studies. Events 1487 - Battle of Stoke Field, the last dying breath of the Wars of the Roses. Year 1924 ( MCMXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 800 - Charlemagne arrives at Rome to investigate the alleged crimes of Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) Sufism ( تصوّف - taṣawwuf, Persian: صوفی‌گری sufigari, Turkish: tasavvuf, Urdu: تصوف Events 1487 - Battle of Stoke Field, the last dying breath of the Wars of the Roses. Year 1924 ( MCMXXIV) was a Leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 800 - Charlemagne arrives at Rome to investigate the alleged crimes of Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) For the Lost character please see Sayid Jarrah Sayyid ( ar سيد) (plural Saadah is an Honorific title Hashemite is the Latinate version of the Arabic: هاشمي ( Transliteration: Hāšimī and traditionally refers to those belonging to the Banu Hashim An author is defined both as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created Sufism ( تصوّف - taṣawwuf, Persian: صوفی‌گری sufigari, Turkish: tasavvuf, Urdu: تصوف He founded a publishing company, Octagon Press, which has published classics from the Sufi tradition as well as many of his own works. He is perhaps best known for his collections of Mulla Nasrudin stories. Nasreddin ( Turkish "Nasreddin Hoca", Persian ملا نصرالدین, Arabic: جحا transl

Contents

Life

Idries Shah was born in Simla, India, to an Afghan-Indian father and Scottish mother into a revered family of Saadat (= Arabic plural of Sayyid) who had their ancestral home near the Paghman Gardens[1] of Kabul. Shimla [ʃɪmla] ( Hindi: शिमला originally called Simla, is a city in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Pashtuns ( Pashto: پښتون Paṣtūn, Paxtūn, also rendered as Pushtuns, Pakhtuns, Pukhtuns) also called India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. For the Lost character please see Sayid Jarrah Sayyid ( ar سيد) (plural Saadah is an Honorific title Paghman Gardens is a popular place near Afghanistan 's capital city Kabul. } Kābul ( Persian and Pashto: کابل, IPA:) is the Capital and largest city of Afghanistan, with His paternal grandfather, Sayyid Amjad Ali Shah, was Nawab of the Jagir of Sardhana, near Meerut, north of Delhi (Uttar Pradesh). A Nawab or Nawaab ( Urdu: نواب Hindi: नवाब was originally the Subedar (provincial governor or viceroy of a In Pakistan and India, a Jagir was a small territory granted by the ruler to an army chieftain in fairly short terms usually of three years but not extending beyond WikipediaWikiProject Indian cities for details --> Sardhana is a city and a Municipal board in Meerut district in the Indian state Meerut ( Hindi: मेरठ Urdu: میرٹھ is a city and a Municipal corporation in Meerut district in the Indian Delhi (दिल्ली ਦਿੱਲੀ دلی d̪ɪlːiː sometimes referred to as Dilli) is the second largest metropolis of India, with a population Uttar Pradesh (उत्तर प्रदेश اتر پردیش pronounced, Translation: Northern Province) referred to as '''U [2][3] Shah's early years were mainly spent in Afghanistan, India and England, and his upbringing bridged East and West. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland He was educated, as his father before him, by private tutors in Europe and the Middle East, and through wide-ranging travel—the series of journeys, in fact, that characterise Sufi education and development. The Middle East is a Subcontinent with no clear boundaries often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East. Sufism ( تصوّف - taṣawwuf, Persian: صوفی‌گری sufigari, Turkish: tasavvuf, Urdu: تصوف

Shah married Cynthia (Kashfi) Kabraji in 1958, and fathered one son, Tahir Shah, and two daughters, Saira and Safia. Year 1958 ( MCMLVIII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Tahir Shah (born 16 November 1966 in London) is an Anglo - Afghan author journalist and documentary maker Saira Shah (born 5 October 1964) is an author reporter and documentary filmmaker [4] One of the daughters, Saira Shah, reported on women's rights in Afghanistan in her documentary Beneath the Veil. Afghanistan /æfˈgænɪstæn/ officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ( Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت, [5] Shah's brother, Omar Ali-Shah, was also a writer and teacher of Sufism. Omar Ali-Shah (1922–2005 was a prominent exponent of modern Naqshbandi Sufism.

Works

Idries Shah's writings greatly extended the western knowledge[6] of Sufi teachings. He profoundly influenced several intellectuals, notably the novelist Doris Lessing[7] and the Stanford University psychology professor Robert Ornstein. Doris May Lessing, CH, OBE (née Tayler; born 22 October 1919) is a British Writer, author of works such Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly known as Stanford University or simply Stanford, is a private Research university located in Dr Robert Evans Ornstein is a psychologist writer professor at Stanford University, and chairman of the Institute for the Study of Human Knowledge (ISHK [8]

Shah's definition of Sufism was liberal in that he was of the opinion that it predated Islam and did not depend on the Qur'an, but was universal in source, scope and relevance (see Sufi studies). Sufism ( تصوّف - taṣawwuf, Persian: صوفی‌گری sufigari, Turkish: tasavvuf, Urdu: تصوف For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. The Qur’an ( القرآن, literally "the recitation" also sometimes transliterated as Qur’ān, Koran, Alcoran Sufi studies: a particular branch of comparative studies that uses a

Shah maintained that spiritual teachings should be presented in forms and terms that are familiar in the community where they are to take root. He believed that students should be given work based on their individual capacities, and rejected systems that apply the same exercises to all. In his own work he used teaching stories and humour[9] to great effect. Teaching stories is a term introduced by Idries Shah to describe stories and anecdotes that have been deliberately created as vehicles for the transmission of wisdom

Shah's earliest published works reflected his interest in magic, witchcraft and occultism: Oriental Magic[10] (London 1956), and The Secret Lore of Magic: Book of the Sorcerers (London 1957). London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Year 1956 ( MCMLVI) was a Leap year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Year 1957 ( MCMLVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link displays the 1957 Gregorian calendar) In 1960, Octagon Press published its first title Gerald Gardner: Witch[11], the biography of a leading figure in the British witchcraft revival of the 1950s. Gerald Brousseau Gardner ( June 13 1884 - February 12 1964) was an English civil servant amateur anthropologist Witchcraft, in various historical anthropological religious and mythological contexts is the use of certain kinds of Supernatural or magical powers The 1950s Decade refers to the years of 1950 to 1959 inclusive Attributed to "Jack L. Bracelin", it is believed to have been ghost-written by Shah, who was Gardner's secretary at the time of writing (see F. Lamond, Fifty Years of Wicca, 2004). "MMIV" redirects here For the Modest Mouse album see " Baron von Bullshit Rides Again " [12] Shah developed Octagon Press as a means of publishing and distributing Sufi books that might otherwise have gone out of print. His desire was to have these always available to each generation. The books range from traditional Sufi manuals to contemporary works. Several books feature the Mulla Nasrudin character, sometimes with illustrations provided by Richard Williams. Nasreddin ( Turkish "Nasreddin Hoca", Persian ملا نصرالدین, Arabic: جحا transl Richard Williams (born on March 19, 1933 in Toronto, Ontario) is a Canadian Animator, Animation director These humorous teaching stories are said to have the ability to act as a mirror to human foibles, aiding philosophical self-examination.

Shah started the "Society for Understanding the Foundations of Ideas" (or "SUFI") in London in the mid-1960s. This was renamed the "Institute for Cultural Research", alongside a more esoteric "Society for Sufi Studies", also founded by Shah. The ICR, currently based in London, hosts lectures and seminars on topics related to aspects of human nature, while the SSS has ceased its activities.

Shah's books have sold over 15 million copies in 12 languages worldwide and have been reviewed in numerous international journals and newspapers. [13] His best-selling novel Kara Kush was based on fact, incorporating Shah's first-hand knowledge of the courage of the Afghan people, and the atrocities inflicted upon them. Afghanistan /æfˈgænɪstæn/ officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ( Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت,

About a year after his last visit to Afghanistan in late spring of 1987, Shah suffered two successive and massive heart attacks. Year 1987 ( MCMLXXXVII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link displays 1987 Gregorian calendar) He died in London on November 23, 1996, at the age of 72. Events 800 - Charlemagne arrives at Rome to investigate the alleged crimes of Year 1996 ( MCMXCVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar) According to the obituary in The Daily Telegraph, Idries Shah was a collaborator with Mujahideen in the Afghan-Soviet war, a Director of Studies for the Institute for Cultural Research and a Governor of the Royal Humane Society and the Royal Hospital and Home for Incurables. A Mujahid (Arabic ar مجاهد, literally "struggler" is a Muslim involved in a Jihad, id est fighting in a war or Afghanistan /æfˈgænɪstæn/ officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan ( Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت, The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR was a constitutionally Socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991 The Royal Humane Society was founded in England in 1774 as the Society for the Recovery of Persons Apparently Drowned, for the purpose of rendering "first aid" The Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability, in Putney in southwest London, is an independent Medical charity which undertakes research and provides specialist

Idries Shah considered his books his legacy. In themselves, they would fulfil the function he had fulfilled when he could no longer be there. [14]

Psychology

In reply to Elisabeth Hall who interviewed him for "Psychology Today", Juli 1975:– "For the sake of humanity, what would you like to see happen?" Idries Shah said: "What I would really want, in case anybody is listening, is for the products of the last 50 years of psychological research to be studied by the public, by everybody, so that the findings become part of their way of thinking (. Psychology (from Greek grc ψῡχή psȳkhē, "breath life soul" and grc -λογία -logia) is an Academic and . . ) they have this great body of psychological information and refuse to use it. "[15]

Reception and controversies

Appraisal by book critics and academics

Idries Shah's books achieved considerable critical acclaim, several of his works being chosen as "Outstanding Book of the Year" by the BBC's "The Critics" programme. [16] Academics, however, were often hostile. Most notable among his academic critics was L. P. Elwell-Sutton from Edinburgh University, who in a very caustic review described Shah's books as "trivial", replete with errors of fact, slovenly and inaccurate translations and even misspellings of Oriental names and words – "a muddle of platitudes, irrelevancies and plain mumbo-jumbo", adding for good measure that Shah had "a remarkable opinion of his own importance". The University of Edinburgh (Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann founded in 1582 is a renowned centre for teaching and research in Edinburgh, Scotland, UK. [17]

Shah published, through Octagon Press, works by Hafiz, Rumi, Ibn Arabi, Mahmud Shabistari, Attar, Jami, Khayyam, Al-Ghazali and others. TemplateInfobox Muslim scholars --> Ibn Arabi (ابن عربي ( July 28, 1165 - November 10, 1240) was an Mahmud Shabistari (1288 &ndash 1340 is one of the most celebrated Persian Sufi Poets of the 14th century. Nur ad-Din Abd ar-Rahman Jami (نورالدین عبدالرحمن جامی ( August 18, 1414 &ndash November 19, 1492) was one of the greatest For the Thoroughbred racehorse see Omar Khayyam (horse Ghiyās od-Dīn Abol-Fath Omār ibn Ebrāhīm Khayyām Neyshābūri (غیاث الدین Abū Ḥāmid Muḥammad ibn Muḥammad al-Ghazālī (1058-1111 ( ابو حامد محمد ابن محمد الغزالی or امام محمد غزالی was born and died He presented these works as tools for self-development that were of practical relevance to people of today, rather than as works fit merely for study by orientalists. Orientalism refers to the imitation or depiction of aspects of Eastern cultures in the West by writers designers and artists and can also refer to a sympathetic stance [18][19] This contributed to the fierce criticism from some academics,[19] an issue adressed by Shah in "The Study of Sufism in the West".

Bennett controversy

At the start of this publishing work (1962), he received invaluable aid from John G. Bennett, who put some important real estate assets at his disposal. John Godolphin Bennett, ( 8 June 1897 - 13 December 1974) was a British mathematician scientist technologist industrial research director [20] After Idries Shah sold the assets, destroying the Djamichunatra (a nine-sided study hall designed and built by J. G. Bennett and his pupils, including the architect Robert Whiffen, in 1956[21]) at Coombe Springs in the process, this matter developed into something of a controversy. [22][23] Apparently, though, it was not a problem to John Bennett, who dealt with the issue in some detail in his autobiography[24]

Graves controversy

Idries Shah was also criticised over his dealing with the matter of the elusive Jan Fishan Khan manuscript of Khayyam, upon which the new translation of the Rubaiyat by Robert Graves and Omar Ali Shah was allegedly based. For the Thoroughbred racehorse see Omar Khayyam (horse Ghiyās od-Dīn Abol-Fath Omār ibn Ebrāhīm Khayyām Neyshābūri (غیاث الدین Robert Graves (24 July 1895 &ndash 7 December 1985 was an English Poet, Translator and Novelist. Omar Ali-Shah (1922–2005 was a prominent exponent of modern Naqshbandi Sufism. When the actual presentation of the manuscript was compromised by the death of Ikbal Ali Shah (the father of Idries and Omar Ali, who was supposed to have known the exact whereabouts of the manuscript) in a car accident in Tangier, Robert Graves asked Idries Shah, with whom he had developed a close friendship,[25] for help. Much to Graves' surprise, Shah concluded his reply: "The manuscript, as you know, is not in my possession. If it were, I would have no hesitation at all in refusing to show it to anyone under any circumstances at any time whatever. "[26] This caused Robert Graves' biographer, Richard Perceval Graves, to muse, "In practice, the manuscript was never produced; and after all these years it is difficult to believe, in view of the Shahs' numerous obligations to Graves, that they would have continued to withhold it had it ever existed in the first place. "[27] Elwell-Sutton likewise expressed his conviction that the manuscript had never existed. [17] According to his widow, however, Graves himself never doubted the authenticity of the manuscript. [28]

As a response to the attacks on Shah, twenty-four scholars and writers, drawn from both East and West, compiled a Festschrift in honour of his services to sufi studies ("Sufi Studies, East and West", 1973). [19] [3]

Further reading

Sources

Notes

  1. ^ Part of the story of these Saadat of Paghman has been told by Sairah Shah in "The Storytellers Daughter" Michael Joseph ed. 2003
  2. ^ Bashir M. Dervish: "Idris Shah: a contemporary promoter of Islamic Ideas in the West" in: Islamic Culture – an English Quarterly Vol. L, no. 4 October 1976. Published by the Islamic Culture Board, Hyderabad India (Osmania University, Hyderabad)
  3. ^ The nawab is said to have encouraged the establishment and development of research centers linking Eastern and Western thinkers since 1895 (B. M. Dervish 1976). His son Sayyid Ikbal Shah was the first of the lineage to begin writing extensively for the West: e. g. "The General Principles of Sufism" in Hibbert Journal (vol. 20, 1921, 2, pp. 523–535); "Islamic Sufism", London 1933. His work ran parallel with that of Hazrat Inayat Khan, who travelled and taught in the West from 1910 till 1926. Hazrat Inayat Khan ( July 5, 1882 &ndash February 5, 1927) was the founder of Universal Sufism and the Sufi Order International Inayat Khan also had his roots in the Delhi area – heartland of the Mughal empire – through his grandfather Ustad C. The Mughal Empire ( Persian and self-designation گورکانی; مغلیہ سلطنت) was an Islamic imperial power which ruled most G. Khan Maula Bekhs. Although not always appreciated by their respective audiences, they shared a spiritual bond in Hazrat Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti of Ajmer. This article is about the founder of Sufism in India For the preceptor of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, see Moinuddin Chishty (Khuldabad. In his "Islamic Sufism" (1933), where he outlined the various branches of the Naqshbandi Order, Sayyid Ikbal Ali Shah included a chapter: "The Sufi conception of the Chishti Order". See also: "1910-1950: Forty years of Sufism", Special Issue of the Sufi Quarterly, Autumn 1950, Geneva
  4. ^ Article in The Telegraph dated 16 June 2001, p. 2
  5. ^ Article in The Telegraph dated 16 June 2001, pp. 1–3
  6. ^ See for example his closely annotated essay "The Study of Sufism in the West" introductary to The Way of the Sufi (Shah, 1968)for scholarly reference
  7. ^ Shadia S. Fahim: "Doris Lessing: Sufi Equilibrium and the Form of the Novel", St Martins Press, New York 1995; Muge Galin: "Between East and West: Sufism in the Novels of Doris Lessing" SUNY, Albany 1997 – as reported by Marcia Hermansen in "Literary Productions of Western Sufi movements" in "Sufism in the West" Malik and Hinnells ed Routledge 2006
  8. ^ David Westerlund (ed. ): Sufism in Europe and North America. Routledge Curzon, New York, 2004, p. 53.
  9. ^ See for example in Asian Affairs:Journal of the Royal Society For Asian Affairs (formerly The Royal Central Asian Society) Vol. X (Old Series Vol. 66) Part I February 1979 p. 85 for the book review of "Special Illumination" ISBN 090086057X on humour
  10. ^ With an introduction by Louis Marin (1871-1960) [[1]]
  11. ^ ASIN BOOO7J1UEE
  12. ^ see: Jack Bracelin
  13. ^ Reviews collected by Halima Shali and Archer, see Sources above
  14. ^ Tahir Shah, In Arabian Nights, New York: Bantam Dell, pp. 215–216
  15. ^ see also Reza Arasteh :"Psychology of the Sufi Way to Individuation" in "Sufi Studies East and West" Rushbrook Williams ed New York 1973, Jonathan Cape/Octagon 1974. In "Sufi Studies East and West" 24 scholars paid tribute to Idries Shah's service to Sufi studies. See: Pr. Leonard Lewin Ph. D. Feature Book/Sufi Studies in "International Philosophical Quarterly" Fordham University New York, September 1975, pp353-364. For academical work integrating Sufi psychology in Western psychiatry see Reza Arasteh "Final Integration in Adult Personality" [2] Leiden Brill 1965. See also Arthur J. Deikman "Sufism in Psychiatry" and "Report on Mysticism" in "The World of the Sufi" an anthology edited by Idries Shah ISBN 0863040853
  16. ^ Letter by Doris Lessing to the editors of The New York Review of Books, dated 22 October 1970
  17. ^ a b L. Arthur J Deikman is professor of Psychiatry at University of California San Francisco, and a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Humanistic The New York Review of Books (or NYREV or NYRB) is a semimonthly Magazine on Literature, Culture, and current P. Elwell-Sutton: "Mystic-Making", The New York Review of Books, Volume 15, Number 1, July 2, 1970
  18. ^ Cf. the collections of his lectures at various universities: Sussex, Geneva, UCLA, New School for Social Research
  19. ^ a b c Obituary: Idries Shah, The Independent, 26 Nov. The Independent is a British compact Newspaper published by Tony O'Reilly 's Independent News & Media. 1996
  20. ^ "Witness; the autobiography of John G. Bennett" Turnstone Books 1975 ISBN 0855000430 chapter 27: Service and Sacrifice, pp 349-363 (i. e. the enlarged version of the autobiography published shortly after his death in 1974)
  21. ^ The Enneagram: A Developmental Study by James Moore
  22. ^ James Moore: Neo-Sufism and the Case of Idries Shah
  23. ^ answer to Moore
  24. ^ " The period from 1960 (. . . ) to 1967 when I was once again entirely on my own was of the greatest value to me. I had learned to serve and to sacrifice and I knew that I was free from attachments. It happened about the end of the time that I went on business to America and met with Madame de Salzmann in New York. She was very curious about Idries Shah and asked what I had gained from my contact with him. I replied: "Freedom!". (. . . ) Not only had I gained freedom, but I had come to love people whom I could not understand. " Bennett in op. cit. pp 362-363
  25. ^ Cf. Richard Perceval Graves 1995; see also "Between Moon and Moon: Selected Letters of Robert Graves 1946-1972" Paul O'Prey ed. Hutchinson 1984
  26. ^ Idries Shah to Robert Graves 30 Oct. 1970 in: Richard Perceval Graves "Robert Graves and the White Goddess 1940-1985" Weidenfeld and Nicolson 1995 ISBN 0297815342
  27. ^ Richard Perceval Graves (1995) "Robert Graves and the White Goddess" p 472
  28. ^ Letter to The Independent by Beryl Graves dd. The Independent is a British compact Newspaper published by Tony O'Reilly 's Independent News & Media. 7 Dec. 1996

See also

Partial bibliography

External links

Tahir Shah (born 16 November 1966 in London) is an Anglo - Afghan author journalist and documentary maker Saira Shah (born 5 October 1964) is an author reporter and documentary filmmaker Omar Ali-Shah (1922–2005 was a prominent exponent of modern Naqshbandi Sufism. Nasreddin ( Turkish "Nasreddin Hoca", Persian ملا نصرالدین, Arabic: جحا transl
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