The Subtle Blessings in the Saintly Lives of Abu al-Abbas al-Mur

Laţā'if al-Minan ("Subtle Graces") by Ibn 'Aţā' Allāh (d. 709 AH) might be described as a tribute by the author to the two great shaykhs who molded his spiritual life and vision, namely, Abū al-Ĥasan al-Shādhilī (d. 656 AH) and Abū al-'Abbās al-Mursī (d. 686 AH), the latter of whom Ibn 'Aţā' Allāh describes as "our master and companion, the pole of gnostics, the signpost of the rightly guided, the supreme apologist for Sufism, the travelers' guide, the rescuer of the perishing?he who speaks by the light of his flawless spiritual insight into [people's] secret thoughts?he who unveils the suns of knowledge after they have set and the secrets of subtle intimations after they have departed, he who has arrived in God and who assists others in doing the same."
Filled with anecdotes illustrating the shaykhs' spiritual gifts and insights, Laţā'if al-Minan is Ibn 'Aţā' Allāh's attempt to convey to his readers not only the beauty and inspiration of these men's lives and their utter devotion to God, but to help his readers themselves to enter into this same life of devotion and to experience its inimitable blessings.
For anyone desiring a vivid, lively exposition of the Sufi path as embodied in the lives of God's friends, the saints, together with their expositions of the prophetic traditions and Qur'anic passages which stayed their feet along the path, explanations of the divine realities, mystical stations and related enigmas, as well as specific phrases of divine remembrance (dhikr) which Abū al-'Abbās used for himself and his disciples, Laţā'if al-Minan offers a delightful excursion through this inviting, albeit arduous, realm of body and spirit. Translated from the Arabic, this volume follows The Book of Illumination: Kitab al-Tanwir in the Fons Vitae Ibn 'Ata' Allah Series. This deeply personal reminiscence of one man's growth in Islamic mysticism is a tribute to the two great shaykhs who molded his spiritual life and vision. Filled with anecdotes illustrating the shaykhs' spiritual gifts and insights, the text not only conveys the beauty and inspiration of these men's lives and their utter devotion to God, but also helps readers to enter this same life of devotion and experience its inimitable blessings. Sufi interpretations of Qur'anic passages and traditional Sufi spiritual litanies are included.