1
POPSA book about the life and thought of Ibn 'Arabi
Ibn 'Arabi is also known as the Shaykh al-Akbar, the greatest Shaykh. He was born in Al-Andalus in the mid twelfth century and lived half his life there before travelling east. He wrote prodigiously and claimed never to write anything he had not experienced personally. His influence on the development of Sufism was immense. What I appreciate so much about this biography by Stephen Hirtenstein is the way he introduces the reader to the thought of Ibn 'Arabi and also describes the historical context in which he lived, wrote, and pursued his spiritual path. Many scholars see Ibn 'Arabi as being equally significant to our present day concerns alonside the work of Jalaluddin Rumi. To read this book is like stepping into the times of Ibn 'Arabi in Al-Andalus and bathing in his spiritual wisdom. Having lived in Andaluci I often had a sense of his presence in the places he had been whether in the mosque of Cordoba, the port of Adra, or under the mulberry trees in the Alpujarran mountains.
3
POPSThe coming EURABIA~ Globalization and its resulting demographic movement explains the physical movement. The bigger question is what flavor, let's say, will the changes ultimately bring. Remember, March 10,2004, it was not viewed as a threat or a negative, in the same way Europeans viewed it on March 12th, anyway.