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Sufi Gnosis (1/16/2014)

Reflecting on the themes of "consciousness aware of itself" and the characteristics of the Sufi perspective.

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In considering how the human being can embody both self and selflessness, let's begin with a metaphysical perspective on the position that human consciousness occupies in cosmic existence. The human consciousness is a presence suspended between the Divine Absolute and a Cosmic-Life-Force that is associated with our intention, thoughts, and feelings. That's a mouthful, I know. It's meaning will become clearer, I hope, through the course of this article.

Nights in Damascus with Asad Ali

The following excerpt is from the forthcoming book, Civilization of Paradise, Revelation Poems (Fons Vitae 2014), by Asad Ali. The book contains 90 poems, each associated with a Surah of the Qur'an, as well as 60 pages of introductory materials, including transcripts of three nights during which Kabir and Mahmoud Mostafa visited Dr. Ali's home in 2005. This long awaited book completes the cycle of 114 Poems that began with Happiness without Death (Threshold Books, 1991), by Asad Ali. Annemarie Schimmel, one of the greatest scholars of Sufism of the 20th Century, wrote of Asad Ali's poetry: "if carefully read as it deserves, it can help Westerners understand the grandeur and power of pristine Islam."