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56-474: He was described as one of the most prolific writers of the Middle Ages and is recognized today as one of the most prolific authors of all Islamic literature . Al-Suyuti wrote approximately one thousand works. His biographical dictionary Bughyat al-Wuʻāh fī Ṭabaqāt al-Lughawīyīn wa-al-Nuḥāh contains valuable accounts of prominent figures in the early development of Arabic philology. He was also in his time

112-481: A mujtahid (an authority on source interpretation who gives legal statements on jurisprudence, hadith studies , and Arabic language ). "I did not mean that I was similar to one of the Four Imams, but only that I was an affiliated mujtahid (mujtahid muntasib). For, when I reached the level of tarjih or distinguishing the best fatwa inside the school, I did not contravene Al-Nawawi 's tarjih. And, when I reached

168-610: A non-fiction form of Islamic advice literature , and various fictional literary genres . The definition of Islamic literature is a matter of debate, with some definitions categorizing anything written in a majority-Muslim nation as "Islamic" so long as the work can be appropriated into an Islamic framework, even if the work is not authored by a Muslim. By this definition, categories like Indonesian literature , Somali literature , Pakistani literature , and Persian literature would all qualify as Islamic literature. A second definition focuses on all works authored by Muslims, regardless of

224-466: A wali of Allah (saint of God or spiritual leader of Muslims) - and they are correct - such as Ibn 'Ata' Allah al-Sakandari and 'Afif al-Din al-Yafi'i  [ ar ] , another considering him a heretic - such as a large number of the jurists - while others expressed doubts concerning him, among them al-Dhahabi in al-Mizan . Two opposed verdicts are reported from Shaykh ' Izz al-Din ibn 'Abd al-Salam , one attacking him, and one describing him as

280-430: A 1995 survey put the figure between 500 and 981. However, these include short pamphlets, and legal opinions . He wrote his first book, Sharh Al-Isti'aadha wal-Basmalah , in 866 AH, at the age of seventeen. In Ḥusn al-Muḥaḍarah al-Suyuti lists 283 of his works on subjects from religion to medicine. As with Abu'l-Faraj ibn al-Jawzi in his medicinal works, he writes almost exclusively on prophetic medicine, rather than

336-639: A book called Tanbih al-Ghabi fi Takhti'at Ibn 'Arabi translated in English 'Warning to the Dolt That Faults Ibn 'Arabi'. Both epistles have been made widely available. In his writing, Al-Suyuti presented that he considered Ibn 'Arabi a Wali (Friend of Allah) whose books are prohibited to those who read them without first learning the sophisticated terms used by the Sufis. He quotes from Ibn Hajar 's list in his book called Anba' al-Gh which mention

392-459: A messenger [whom they reject]' (al-Isra' 17: 15). Our Ash'arī Imams, among those in kalam, usul, and fiqh, agree on the statement that one who dies while da'wah has not reached him, dies saved. This has been explained by Imam Al-Shafi'i as follows: 'some of the fuqaha' explained that the reason for the above is, such a person follows fitra (primordial disposition), and has not stubbornly refused nor rejected any Messenger." Al-Suyuti claimed to be

448-577: A number of tales are known in Europe as "Arabian Nights", despite existing in no Arabic manuscript. This compilation has been influential in the West since it was first translated by Antoine Galland in the 18th century. Many imitations were written, especially in France. In the 12th century, Ibn Tufail wrote the novel Hayy ibn Yaqdhan , or Philosophus Autodidactus ( The Self-Taught Philosopher ), as

504-466: A response to al-Ghazali 's The Incoherence of the Philosophers . The novel, which features a protagonist who has been spontaneously generated on an island, demonstrates the harmony of religion and philosophy and the virtues of an inquiring soul. In the same century, Ibn al-Nafis wrote the novel Theologus Autodidactus ( The Self-Taught Theologian ) in response to Ibn Tufail’s work; the novel

560-663: A tolerant, intellectual island where I can deal with Dostoyevsky and Sartre, both great influences for me". The International Prize for Arabic Fiction is a literary prize managed in association with the Booker Prize Foundation in London and supported by the Emirates Foundation in Abu Dhabi . The prize is for prose fiction by Arabic authors. Each year, the winner of the prize receives US$ 50,000 and

616-429: A vowel followed by a single-rhyming letter. The most common form of Persian poetry comes in the ghazal, a love-themed short poem made of seven to twelve verses and composed in the monorhyme scheme. Urdu poetry is known for its richness, multiple genres, traditions of live public performances through Mushairas , Qawwali and Ghazal singing in modern times. Ferdowsi 's Shahnameh , the national epic poem of Iran ,

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672-804: Is a booklet written by the Shafi'i - Ash'ari scholar Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti (d. 911/1505) as a response to the book Tanbih al-Ghabi ila Takfir Ibn 'Arabi  [ ar ] ( Arabic : تنبيه الغبي إلى تكفير ابن عربي , lit.   'Warning to the Dolt/Fool Concerning Ibn Arabi's Heresy/Apostasy') by Burhan al-Din al-Biqa'i  [ ar ] (d. 885/1480) in which al-Suyuti defended Ibn 'Arabi (d. 637/1240) against his critics in general, and against accusations of heresy and unbelief by al-Biqa'i in particular. Al-Suyuti said: The scholars past and present have differed concerning Ibn 'Arabi, one group considering him

728-792: Is a defense of the rationality of prophetic revelation. The protagonists of both these narratives were feral children (Hayy in Hayy ibn Yaqdhan and Kamil in Theologus Autodidactus ) who were autodidactic (self-taught) and living in seclusion on a desert island . A Latin translation of Philosophus Autodidactus first appeared in 1671, prepared by Edward Pococke the Younger, followed by an English translation by Simon Ockley in 1708, as well as German and Dutch translations. Robert Boyle 's own philosophical novel set on an island, The Aspiring Naturalist , may have been inspired by

784-558: Is a mythical and heroic retelling of Persian history . Amir Arsalan was also a popular mythical Persian story. Beginning in the 15th century Bengali poetry , originating depicts the themes of internal conflict with the nafs , Islamic cosmology , historical battles, love and existential ideas concerning one’s relationship with society. The historical works of Shah Muhammad Sagir , Alaol , Abdul Hakim , Syed Sultan and Daulat Qazi mixed Bengali folk poetry with Perso-Arabian stories and themes, and are considered an important part of

840-581: The Arabic language and Arabic literature ; science ; and medicine . Three of the prizes are widely considered as the most prestigious awards in the Muslim world. Tanbih al-Ghabi bi-Tabri%27at Ibn %27Arabi Tanbih al-Ghabi bi-Tabri'at Ibn 'Arabi ( Arabic : تنبيه الغبي بتبرئة ابن عربي , lit.   ' Warning to the Dolt/Fool Concerning Ibn 'Arabi's Vindication ')

896-686: The Muslim culture of Bengal. Ginans are devotional hymns or poems recited by Shia Ismaili Muslims . Dante Alighieri 's Divine Comedy , considered the greatest epic of Italian literature , derived many features of and episodes about the hereafter directly or indirectly from Arabic works on Islamic eschatology : the Hadith and the Kitab al-Miraj (translated into Latin in 1264 or shortly before as Liber scalae Machometi , "The Book of Muhammad's Ladder") concerning Muhammad 's ascension to Heaven, and

952-714: The Tanzimat period of the 19th century. Cultural Muslim poetry is influenced by both Islamic metaphors and local poetic forms of various regions including the Arabic tradition of Qasida actually beginning since ancient pre-Islamic times. Some Sufi traditions are known for their devotional poetry . Arab poetry influenced the rest of Muslim poetry world over. Likewise Persian poetry too shared its influences beyond borders of modern-day Iran particularly in south Asian languages like Urdu Bengali etc.. Genres present in classical Persian poetry vary and are determined by rhyme, which consists of

1008-520: The category of Islamic law dealing with etiquette , or a gesture of greeting . According to Issa J. Boullata, Adab material had been growing in volume in Arabia before Islam and had been transmitted orally for the most part. With the advent of Islam, its growth continued and it became increasingly diversified. It was gradually collected and written down in books, ayrab literature other material adapted from Persian, Sanskrit, Greek, and other tongues as

1064-596: The 25th and the 40th anniversary of the prize. In 1989, in an interview following the fatwa against him for alleged blaspheme in his novel The Satanic Verses , Rushdie said that he was in a sense a lapsed Muslim, though "shaped by Muslim culture more than any other", and a student of Islam. Oman author Jokha Alharthi (b.1978) was the first Arabic-language writer to win the Man Booker International Prize in 2019 with her novel Celestial Bodies . The book focuses on three Omani sisters and

1120-509: The Ages), the scholars who praised Ibn 'Arabi and/or considered him one of the righteous saints of God, such as the following: The Hanafi scholar Ibrahim al-Halabi (d. 956/1549) wrote a critical reply to al-Suyuti, entitled Tasfih al-Ghabi fi Tanzih Ibn 'Arabi ( Arabic : تسفيه الغبي في تنزيه ابن عربي ) against the latter's defense of Ibn 'Arabi. The Sufis work within a technical framework and mean by their terms things which are not known to

1176-470: The Arab world and beyond, is responsible for appointing six new judges each year, and for the overall management of the prize. The King Faisal Prize ( Arabic : جائزة الملك فيصل ) is an annual award sponsored by King Faisal Foundation presented to "dedicated men and women whose contributions make a positive difference". The foundation awards prizes in five categories: Service to Islam ; Islamic studies ;

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1232-561: The Arabic language spread with the expansion of Islam's political dominion in the world. It included stories and saying from the Bible, the Qur’ān, and the Ḥadīth. Eventually, the heritage of adab became so large that philologists and other scholars had to make selections, therefore, each according to his interests and his plans to meet the needs of particular readers, such as students seeking learning and cultural refinement, or persons associated with

1288-510: The Islamic state such as viziers, courtiers, chancellors, judges, and government secretaries seeking useful knowledge and success in polished quarters. Key early adab anthologies were the al-Mufaḍḍaliyyāt of Al-Mufaḍḍal al-Ḍabbī (d. c. 780 CE); Abū Tammām 's Dīwān al-Ḥamāsa (d. 846 CE); ʿUyūn al-Akhbār , compiled by Ibn Qutayba (d. 889 CE); and Ibn ʿAbd Rabbih 's al-ʿIqd al-Farīd (d. 940 CE). Some scholar's studies attribute

1344-473: The Islamic-Greek synthesis of medicinal tradition found in the works of Al-Dhahabi . He focuses on diet and natural remedies for serious ailments such as rabies and smallpox , and for simple conditions such as headaches and nosebleeds, and mentions the cosmology behind the principles of medical ethics. Al-Suyuti also wrote a number of Islamic sexual education manuscripts that represent major works in

1400-491: The Prophet's ﷺ greeting. After that, Shaykh 'Izz al-Din humbled himself and began to sit in al-Shadhili's gatherings... In this book, al-Suyuti refuted the criticisms and accusations against Ibn 'Arabi, which, according to him, were caused due to misunderstandings and misinterpretations, or due to the distortion and alteration of Ibn 'Arabi's books and statements by the heretics and blasphemers . Al-Suyuti tried to demonstrate

1456-466: The Quran and hadith. An alternate definition states that Islamic literature is any literature about Muslims and their pious deeds. Some academics have moved beyond evaluations of differences between Islamic and non-Islamic literature to studies such as comparisons of the novelization of various contemporary Islamic literatures and points of confluence with political themes, such as nationalism . Over

1512-588: The Spiritual Pole (al- Qutb ). What reconciles them is indicated by Shaykh Taj al-Din ibn 'Ata' Allah in Lata'if al-Minan  [ ar ] , namely, that Shaykh 'Izz al-Din at the beginning acted in the fashion of jurists in passing quick judgment on the Sufis . When Shaykh Abu al-Hasan al-Shadhili went to pilgrimage and returned, he came to Shaykh 'Izz al-Din before entering his own house and conveyed to him

1568-706: The best known works of fiction from the Islamic world is The Book of One Thousand and One Nights ( Arabian Nights ), a compilation of many earlier folk tales set in a frame story of being told serially by the Persian Queen Scheherazade . The compilation took form in the 10th century and reached its final form by the 14th century; the number and type of tales have varied from one manuscript to another. Many other Arabian fantasy tales were often called "Arabian Nights" when translated into English , regardless of whether they appeared in any version of The Book of One Thousand and One Nights or not, and

1624-414: The centuries, there have been numerous bibliographies and biographical dictionaries attempting to list authors of Islamic literature, including India -born scholar Maulana Mahmud Hasan Khan of Rajasthan , who passed away in 1946 and whose 60-volume M'ojam-ul-Musannifin (Dictionary of Authors) in Arabic provides the biographical sketches of some 40,000 writers from all over the Islamic world. Among

1680-591: The country's history of slavery. The 1988 Nobel Prize in Literature was given to the Egyptian author Naguib Mahfouz (1911–2006), "who, through works rich in nuance—now clear-sightedly realistic, now evocatively ambiguous—has formed an Arabian narrative art that applies to all mankind". He was the first Muslim author to receive such a prize. With regard to religion Mahfouz describes himself as, "a pious moslem believer". The 2006 Nobel Prize in Literature

1736-734: The genre, which began in the 10th-century in Baghdad. The most significant of these works is Al-Wishāḥ fī Fawāʾid al-Nikāḥ ("The Sash on the Merits of Wedlock"), but other examples of such manuscripts include Shaqāʾiq al-Utrunj fī Raqāʾiq al-Ghunj , Nawāḍir al-Ayk fī Maʻrifat al-Nayk and Nuzhat al-Mutaʾammil . Islamic literature Islamic literature is literature written by Muslim people, influenced by an Islamic cultural perspective, or literature that portrays Islam . It can be written in any language and portray any country or region. It includes many literary forms including adabs ,

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1792-590: The head master of Hadith at the Shaykhuniyya school in Cairo, at the suggestion of Imam Kamal al-Din ibn al-Humam . In 1486, Sultan Qaitbay appointed him shaykh at the Khanqah of Baybars II , a Sufi lodge , but was sacked due to protests from other scholars whom he had replaced. After this incident, he gave up teaching and was fed up of others being jealous of him. In his late forties, al-Suyuti began avoiding

1848-663: The leading authority of the Shafi'i school of thought ( madhhab ). Al-Suyuti was born to a family of Persian descent on 3 October 1445 AD (1 Rajab 849 AH) in Cairo in the Mamluk Sultanate . According to al-Suyuti his ancestors came from al-Khudayriyya in Baghdad . His family moved to Asyut , hence the nisba "al-Suyuti". His father taught Shafi'i law at the Mosque and Khanqah of Shaykhu in Cairo, but died when al-Suyuti

1904-483: The leading scholars of each sacred Islamic science of their time. In his thirst for quest for knowledge, Al-Suyuti travelled to Syria , Hejaz ( Mecca & Medina ), Yemen , Iraq , India , Tunisia , Morocco , and Mali as well as to educational hubs in Egypt such as Mahalla , Dumyat, and Fayyum . He started teaching Shafi'i jurisprudence at the age of 18, at the same mosque as his father did. Al-Suyuti became

1960-400: The level of ijtihad mutlaq, I did not contravene Al-Shafi'i 's school." Al-Suyuti claimed he reached the same level as the major Imams of Hadith and Fiqh. "When I went on hajj, I drank Zamzam Water water for several matters. Among them was that I reach the level of Sheikh Siraj al-Din al-Bulqini in fiqh, and in hadith, that of Hafiz Ibn Hajar Al-Asqalani .'" Al-Suyuti also claimed there

2016-467: The mainstream view amongst scholars of Hadith, despite also being a respected opinion of Ahmad Bin Hanbal . Considered the greatest scholar of his century, he continued publishing books of his scholarly writings until he died on 18 October 1505 at the age of sixty two. Ibn al-ʿImād writes: "Most of his works become world famous in his lifetime." Renowned as a prolific writer, his student Dawudi said: "I

2072-548: The matters which the Imams of Shariah have criticized in Sufis, and I did not see a single true Sufi holding such positions. Rather, they are held by the people of innovation and the extremists who have claimed for themselves the title of Sufi while in reality they are not.'" In his book entitled Tashyid, Al-Suyuti demonstrates a narrative chains of transmission by providing evidence that Hasan al-Basri did in indeed receive narrations directly from Ali ibn Abi Talib . This goes against

2128-609: The public when he argued with the Sufis in the Baybarsiyyah lodge, he disagreed their claim to be Sufis and were not following the path of saints in terms of manners and ethics, he was thus dismissed. Ibn Iyas, in his book called Tarikh Misr, said that when al-Suyuti became forty years of age, he left the company of men for the solitude of the garden of al-Miqyas, close to the River Nile , where he abandoned his friends and former co-workers as if he had never met them before. It

2184-478: The religion while not believing in a personal connection to God. When asked if he considered himself a Muslim, Pamuk replied: ": "I consider myself a person who comes from a Muslim culture. In any case, I would not say that I'm an atheist. So I'm a Muslim who associates historical and cultural identification with this religion. I do not believe in a personal connection to God; that's where it gets transcendental. I identify with my culture, but I am happy to be living on

2240-410: The religious content or lack thereof within those works. Proponents of the second definition suggest that the Islamic identity of Muslim authors cannot be divorced from the evaluation of their works, even if they did not intend to infuse their works with religious meaning. Still other definitions emphasize works with a focus on Islamic values, or those that focus on events, people, and places mentioned in

2296-522: The role of Islamisation of Muslim individuals and communities, social, cultural and political behavior by legitimization through various genres like Muslim historiographies , Islamic advice literature and other Islamic literature. The British Indian novelist and essayist Salman Rushdie 's (b.1947) second novel, Midnight's Children won the Booker Prize in 1981 and was deemed to be "the best novel of all winners" on two separate occasions, marking

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2352-450: The science should be studied by scholars who meet the necessary requirements to administer the appropriate dosages as bitter medicine to people who are in dire need. Al-Suyuti was Ash'ari in his creed, as presented in many of his works. In Masalik al-Hunafa fi Walidayy al-Mustafa he said: "The parents of the Prophet died before he attained Prophethood, and there is no punishment for them. The Qur'an says 'We never punish until We send

2408-438: The six shortlisted authors receive US$ 10,000 each. The aim of the award is to recognise and reward excellence in contemporary Arabic fiction writing and to encourage wider readership of good-quality Arabic literature in the region and internationally. The prize is also designed to encourage the translation and promotion of Arabic language literature into other major world languages. An independent board of trustees, drawn from across

2464-478: The spiritual writings of Ibn Arabi . One term for Islamic literature is al-adab al-islami , or adab . Although today adab denotes literature generally, in earlier times its meaning included all that a well-informed person had to know in order to pass in society as a cultured and refined individual. This meaning started with the basic idea that adab was the socially accepted ethical and moral quality of an urbane and courteous person'; thus adab can also denote

2520-422: The trustworthy and respected scholars who kept a positive opinion of Ibn Arabi or even recognized him to be an Wali . In terms of his theological positions, Al-Suyuti had a contempt feeling towards speculative theology ( kalam ) and pushed for strict submission ( tafwid ). He opposed the use of logic in the Islamic sciences. He does, however, agree with Al-Ghazali 's conservative view of kalam, which states that

2576-558: The veracity of the sainthood of Ibn 'Arabi and stated that, though Ibn 'Arabi was a great saint , but the reading of his writings should be forbidden to incompetent people and disciples ignorant of Sufi terminology  [ ar ] . Al-Suyuti cites from Ibn Hajar al-'Asqalani 's list in Inba' al-Ghumr bi-Anba' al-'Umr  [ ar ] (Tidings of the Abundance in the News of

2632-582: The work. Beginning in the 19th century, fictional novels and short stories became popular within the literary circles of the Ottoman Empire . An early example, the romance novel Taaşuk-u Tal'at ve Fitnat (تعشق طلعت و فطنت; "Tal'at and Fitnat in Love"), was published in 1872 by Şemsettin Sami . Other important novels of the period included Muhayyelât by Ali Aziz Efendi , which consists of three parts and

2688-659: Was 5 or 6 years old. Al-Suyuti grew up in an orphanage in Cairo. He became a Ḥāfiẓ of the Qu'ran at the age of eight years, followed by studying the Shafi'i and Hanafi jurisprudence ( fiqh ), traditions ( hadith ), exegesis ( tafsir ), theology, history, rhetoric, philosophy, philology , arithmetic, timekeeping ( miqat ) and medicine. He then dedicated his entire life to master the Sacred Sciences under approximately 150 sheikhs. Among them were renowned scholars who were

2744-506: Was accused for plagiarism which prolific writers were similarly accused of such as Ibn Al-Jawzi and Ibn Taymiyyah but those accusations were later dropped. His most famous clash was with one of his teachers, Burhan al-Din al-Biqa'i, who staunchly criticized Ibn Arabi in his book called Tanbih al-Ghabi ila Takfir Ibn 'Arabi translated in English 'Warning to the Dolt That Ibn Arabi is an Apostate', Al-Suyuti responded with

2800-630: Was at this stage of his life where he authored most of his 600 books and treatises. Rich and Influential Muslims and rulers would visit him with large sums of money and gifts but he rejected their offers and also refused the king many times when he ordered al-Suyuti's to be summoned. He once said to the king's ambassador: "Do not ever come back to us with a gift, for in truth Allah has put an end to all such needs for us." Al-Suyuti had some backlash with some of his contemporaries especially by his own teacher Al-Sakhawi and his fellow student Al-Qastallani who were two major renowned muhaddithuns . Al-Suyuti

2856-527: Was awarded to the Turkish author Orhan Pamuk "(b. 1952) famous for his novels My Name Is Red and Snow , "who in the quest for the melancholic soul of his native city has discovered new symbols for the clash and interlacing of cultures". Pamuk was the first Turk to receive the Nobel Prize, He describes himself as a Cultural Muslim who associates the historical and cultural identification with

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2912-415: Was no scholar at his time who memorized this much. His admirers stated that Al-Suyuti writings reached as far as India during his time on Earth. His learning and more importantly his incredible prolific output were widely seen as miraculous signs from God due to his merit. The Dalil Makhtutat al-Suyuti ("Directory of al-Suyuti's Manuscripts") states that al-Suyuti wrote works on over 700 subjects, while

2968-515: Was no scholar on Earth more knowledgeable than him: "There is no one in our time, on the face of the earth, from East to West, more knowledgeable than me in Hadith and the Arabic language , save Al-Khidr or the Pole of saints or some other wali - none of whom do I include into my statement - and Allah knows best." This brought huge attention and heavy criticism by scholars of his contemporaries as he

3024-592: Was portrayed by them as an arrogant scholar who viewed himself to be superior and wiser than others. However, Al-Suyuti defended himself stating he was only speaking the truth so that people can benefit from his vast knowledge and accept his rulings (fatwas). Al-Suyuti was a Sufi of the Shadhili order. Al-Suyuti's chain in Tasawwuf goes way back to Sheikh Abdul Qadir Gilani . Al-Suyuti defended Sufis in his book entitled Tashyid al-Haqiqa al-Aliyya: "I have looked at

3080-545: Was with the Shaykh Suyuti once, and he wrote three volumes on that day. He could dictate annotations on ĥadīth , and answer my objections at the same time. In his time he was the foremost scholar of the ĥadīth and associated sciences, of the narrators including the uncommon ones, the hadith matn (text), isnad (chain of narrators), the derivation of hadith rulings. He has himself told me, that he had memorized over two hundred thousand (200,000) hadiths." Adding that there

3136-436: Was written in a laconical style contrasting with its content, where djinns and fairies surge from within contexts drawn from ordinary real life situations. Inspired by a much older story written both in Arabic and Assyrian , the author also displays in his work his deep knowledge of sufism , hurufism and Bektashi traditions. Muhayyelât is considered to be an early precursor of the new Turkish literature to emerge in

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