8vo. 57 pp of English text, 59 pp of Arabic text, publisher’s original wrappers, NEW, Al-Furqan Islamic Heritage Foundation, London, 2003.

Synopsis

This volume comprises the text of a lecture delivered by Professor Annemarie Schimmel in English at al-Furqān’s Eagle House together with an Arabic translation. Based on an outstanding knowledge of Arabic and all major Asian Muslim languages, Professor Schimmel brought together and thoroughly examined an immense volume of new data from a wide range of sources. This book demonstrates how Muslim sufi poets throughout the Islamic world have been fascinated by the animal kingdom believing that animals can be considered to be symbols of spiritual truth.