New and Forthcoming Titles from Fons Vitae books

The Subtleties of the Ascension: Early Mystical sayings on Muhammad’s Heavenly Journey - Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman Sulami -NEW	Symbol and Archetype: A Study in the Meaning of Existence - Martin Lings -NEW	The Sufi Science of Self-Realization by Shaykh Muhammad Hisham Kabbani -NEW
Two Who Attained: Twentieth Century Sufi Saints - Shaykh Ahmad al-'Alawi and Fatima al-Yashrutiyyah	A Return to The Spirit ; Questions and Answers - Martin Lings - NEW	The Origin of the Buddha Image and Elements of Buddhist Iconography -NEW
The Book of Illumination- Ibn 'Ata'Illah	The Reflective Heart: Discovering Spiritual Intelligence in Ibn Arabi’s ‘Meccan Illuminations’ - NEW	The Subtle Blessings in the Lives of Abu al-Abbas al-Mursi and His Master Abu al-Hasan al-Shadhili - Ibn Ata'Illah
The Animals Lawsuit against Humanity-Ikhwan al-Safa	Sufi Sage of Arabia - Imam al-Haddad	The Thomas Merton Annual
The Books of Assistance - Imam Abdallah Ibn Alawi Al-Haddad	Me and Rumi - Autobiography of Shems-i Tabrizi - William Chittick	The Book of Assistance - Imam Abdallah Ibn Alawi Al-Haddad (New Edition)
The Universal Meaning of the Kabbalah	Guardians of the Sundoor: Late Iconographic Essays	Alone with the Alone in The Name - NEW

What is the Spiritual Significance of Civilization? by Martin Lings

My work in the Department of Oriental manuscripts and Printed Books at the British Museum often brought me into contact with Islamic institutions in London, the more so since I was myself the Museum Arabist in charge of the Arabic manuscripts and books. As a result I came to know fairly well the director of The Islamic Cultural Centre, who one day sent me a message telling me that he had just received instructions from Egypt to choose an English Muslim to represent England at an International Islamic Congress which was being planned by the Azhar University in Cairo. He added: “Can you not obtain permission from The British Museum to attend this congress, all expenses paid?” My first impulse was to say no because of my dislike for congresses, that is, dislike of the obligation to sit and listen to talk after talk, many of which are likely to be without interest. Moreover and above all, as will I think be deductible from the previous chapters of this book, I am not the sort of person that is qualified to “represent England”, because I am deliberately “out of touch” with people. I knew that reporters would come and ask me how many Muslims live in England and how many of these are recent converts, and I neither know nor want to know what is the answer. Socially speaking, I want to be left alone to lead a quiet life, and I have always made a point of living, if possible, in an “out of the way” place so that my privacy will be less in danger of being invaded.

On the other hand, as the result of having been for over twelve years a lecturer on English Literature (mainly Shakespeare) at the University of Cairo, I had been accustomed to visit the tombs of the great Saints who are buried in the older parts of the city, and I am always happy to revisit them.

Cairo also has in it perhaps more mosques of exquisite beauty, both large and small, than any other city in the world. I knew also that the National Library of Egypt has an unsurpassed collection of marvellously illuminated manuscripts of the Qur’an, a collection which is as far as I can tell only equalled by one or two collections in Istanbul and in Iran. Moreover the director of my department in the British Museum encouraged me to go, and obtained permission for me to accept the invitation, which I finally did. READ MORE