Transcending Otherness: Overcoming Obstacles in the Mystical Journey in Shabestarī’s Rose Garden of Mystery

Document Type : Research Paper

Author

Ph.D. Candidate of Philosophy of Religion Department, Istanbul University, Turkey; Department of Mysticism, University of Religions and Denominations, Iran

Abstract

This study explores the distinguished Persian Sufi mystic Shaykh Maḥmūd Shabestarī’s Golshan-e Rāz, or The Rose Garden of Mystery. Adopting a hermeneutic approach, it scrutinizes the intricate spiritual journey towards divine realization delineated in Shabestarī’s poetry, utilizing qualitative content analysis of original texts and interpretations by scholars such as Lāhījī and Ibn Turka Iṣfahānī. The main question the paper addresses is this: “How can the spiritual journeyer overcome obstacles—particularly ‘otherness’—and achieve unity with the divine Essence within the framework of Islamic mysticism, as interpreted through Shabestarī’s teachings in Golshan-e Rāz?” To answer this inquiry, the paper addresses pivotal questions concerning Shabestarī’s depiction of the spiritual journeyer’s path, its stages and challenges, and the critical role of the human form in divine manifestation. The study underscores the necessity of overcoming duality and distinction, alluding to the transformative nature of the journey that necessitates self-purification and the cessation of otherness. Findings from this study provide an enriched understanding of Shabestarī’s thought, contributing to the discourse on Islamic metaphysics. It presents valuable insights into the spiritual journeyer’s path, offering a comprehensive interpretation of the challenges, practices, and transformative experiences leading to divine realization and unity.

Keywords

Main Subjects

References

Algar, H. (2012). GOLŠAN-E RĀZ. In Encyclopædia Iranica, XI/1, 109-111. [Retrieved in 2023]. https://iranicaonline.org/articles/golsan-e-raz
Anṣārī, A. (1996). Waystations of the Travelers. 1st editon, Dar al-ilm Publications. (In Arabic )
Baḥr al-ʿUlūm, S. M. M. (2007). Treatise of Spiritual Journey Attributed to Baḥr al-ʿUlūm, Edited by S. M. Ḥ. Ḥusseinī Ṭehrānī, Nur Malakut Quran. (In persian)
Chittick, W. (2019). Sufism: A Beginner’s Guide. Onework Publications.
Demirli, E. (2017). God and Human in Islamic Metaphysics. Alfa Publication. (In Turkish)
Fayḍ Kāshānī, M. M. (1992). Ten Essays of the Grand Scholar Fayḍ Kāshānī, Edited by R. Jafarian, Center for Religious and Scientific Research. (In persian)
Fayḍ Kāshānī, M. M., Iṣfahānī, S. Ḥ. ʿAlī, & al-Thānī, S. (1998). Secrets of Prayer, Edited by R. Marandi, Farahani Publication. (In persian)
Ibn ʿArabī, A. A. M. (1999). The Meccan Openings, Vol. 1, Dar al-Kotob al-Ilmiya. (In Arabic)
Ibn ʿArabī, A. A. M. (2006). The Seals of Wisdom , translated by M. A. Muwahhid, Edited by S. Muwahhid, Nashr Karnameh Publications. (In Arabic and Farsi)
Ibn Turka Iṣfahānī, S. D. (1996). The Rose Garden of Mystery’s Commentary, Edited by K. Dezfoulian, Afarinesh Publications. (In persian)
Jaʿfarī Tabrīzī, M. T. (2022). Islamic Gnosticism, Edited by A. Nasri, Islamic Culture Broadcasting Institute. (In persian)
Lāhījī, S. D. M. (2016). Keys of Miracles in The Rose Garden of Mystery Edited by B. K. Mohammad Reza & E. Karbasi, Zawwar Publications. (In persian)
Lewisohn, L. (1995). Beyond Faith and Infidelity: The Sufi Poetry and Teachings of Maḥmūd Shabistarī. Richmond, Surrey, Curzon Press.
Lewisohn, L. (1999). The Transcendental Unity of Polytheism and Monotheism in the Sufism of Shabistarī. In L. Lewisohn (Ed.), The Heritage of Sufism: Legacy of Medieval Persian Sufism Vol.2, pp. 379-407. Oneworld Publications.
Nasr, S. H. & et al. (2015). The Study Quran: A New Translation and Commentary, HarperCollins Publishers.
O’Brien, E. (1964). The Essential Plotinus. Indianapolis, IN. Hackett Publishing Company.
Qunawī, Ṣ. a.-D. (2014a). The Unity of Existence and Its Principles, translated by E. Demirli, Türkiye. Kapı Publications. (In Turkish)
Qunawī, Ṣ. a.-D. (2014b). Commentary on God’s Most Beautiful Names, translated by E. Demirli, Türkiye. Kapı Publications. (In Turkish)
Rahbari Ghazani, R. & Aydın Topaloğlu. (2023). Mystical Contemplation or Rational Reflection? The Double Meaning of Tafakkur in Shabistarī’s Rose Garden of Mystery. Islam and the Contemporary World 1(1), 9-30. https://doi.org/10.22034/icwj.2023.397182.1001
Rahbari Ghazani, R. & Saliha Uysal. (2023a.) A Journey in Search of “I”: The Self in Shabistarī’s Rose Garden of Mystery (Gulshan-i Rāz). Journal of Ilahiyat Researches 1(59), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.5152/ilted.2023.22270
Rahbari Ghazani, R. & Saliha Uysal. (2023b.) Rūmī’s Asceticism Explored: A Comparative Glimpse into Meister Eckhart’s Thought. Religions, 14(10). https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.3390/rel14101254
Whinfield, E. H. (1880). Golshan I Raz: The Mystic Rose Garden of Saʿd Ud Din Mahmud Shabistari (The Persian Text, With an English Translation, Notes, Chiefly From the Commentary of Muhammad Bin Yayha Lahiji). Trübner & Co.
Send comment about this article
CAPTCHA Image
Journal of Philosophical Investigations
Volume 17, Issue 45 - Serial Number 45
Articles
2024
Pages 267-282

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics