Intellectualist Mysticism in al-Andalus Baḥya Ibn Paqūda and Ibn Khamīs al-Yāburī

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Abstract

The aim of this essay is to shed light on the possible background against which Bahya Ibn Paqūda wrote his famous Book of Guidance to the Commandments of the Hearts (Kitāb al-hidāya ilā farā’id al-qulūb; Heb.: Sefer torat @hovot ha-levavot), by highlighting the similarities between this work and the much less-known Al-gharīb al-muntaqā min kalām ahl al-tuqā (Selected extraordinary sayings of the God-fearing ones), by Abū ‘Abd Allāh Muhammad Ibn Sa‘īd Ibn Khamīs al-Yāburī (d. 503/1109–10). The analysis of various passages from these two works will demonstrate that the Jewish Bahya and the Muslim Ibn Khamīs, who both hailed from al-Andalus/Sepharad and were active in more or less the same period (the second half of the eleventh century), shared a very similar mystical worldview. Specifically, the Hidāya and the Muntaqā reflect an intriguing fusion between, on the one hand, theological and psychological-ethical teachings inspired by al-Hārith al-Muhāsibī (d. 243/857), the well-known theologian-mystic from Baghdad, and, on the other hand, philosophical-Neoplatonic concepts, derived most likely from the renowned Rasā’il ikhwān al-safā’ (The epistles of the sincere brethren/brethren of purity). This is yet another example of how vital the comparative reading of Jewish and Islamic sources is for reconstructing the history of Andalusī/Sephardic thought.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)197-231
Number of pages35
JournalJewish Quarterly Review
Volume115
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 2025
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Cultural Studies
  • History
  • Religious studies

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