Ibn Arabi's Small Death

The novel imagines the life of the Sufi mystic Muhyi al-Din Ibn Arabi, from his birth in al-Andalus in the middle of the sixth Islamic century to his last years in Damascus. It is a life of constant departure: from al-Andalus in the west to Azerbaijan in the east, by way of the Maghreb, Egypt, the Hijaz, the Levant, Iraq and Anatolia. Through invented states and events, wars and many cities and people, he carries a deep mystical experience in a restless soul, guided by a series of spiritual masters. Along the way come his first wife Maryam, his teacher Fatima bint al-Muthanna, an encounter with Ibn Rushd, and his great love Nizam, daughter of Sheikh Zahir al-Isfahani.

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About the book

Form

Novel

Length

591 pages in the original

Genres

Historical (assigned by AI)

Set in

Spain, Morocco, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iraq, Türkiye, Azerbaijan, 12th–13th century

First published

2016 by Dar al-Saqi

Author's age

37 when first published

ISBN

9786144259276 (original)

9781477324301 (Center for Middle Eastern Studies, University of Texas at Austin, United States)

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Wikidata