Spring 2009
HIS 364G • Sufism and Atlantic Mysticism
| Unique | Days | Time | Location | Instructor |
| 39280 |
F |
-TBA--TBA |
|
Hyder |
Course Description
This class explores Sufism and other Islamic mystical traditions as they infused cultural milieus spanning four continents and fourteen centuries. The first half of the semester will focus on the historical developments in Islamic theosophical traditions of the Arab and Persian worlds. We will concentrate on the prose and verse traditions tied to Ali b. Abi Talib, Jafar as-Sadiq, Mansur al-Hallaj, Rabia al-Basri, Suhrawardi Maqtul, Ibn Arabi, Ibn al-Farid, Sanai, Attar, and Rumi. In the second half of the semester, we will move to a discussion of Islamic mysticisms growth over time and beyond the porous borders of Arabia and Iran. The relationship between Sufism and modernism, Sufism and colonialism, and Sufism and post-colonial resistance movements will also constitute a significant part of this course. Issues of gender, sexuality, globalization and pluralism will be discussed throughout the semester. This class assumes no prior knowledge of Islam.
Grading Policy
3 Exams (75%) 1 Book Report (15%) Class Attendance & Participation (10%)
Texts
Schimmel, Mystical Dimensions of Islam Attar, Conference of the Birds Course Packet from Speedway
