This is an excellent work that is a must read for anyone interested in the history of Sufism, the history of Iran and Central Asia, the role of the body in Islam, and the nature of religious authority in Islamic society. A superb book that is not at all likely to be replaced as an authoritative source for many years to come. -- Jamal Elias, University of Pennsylvania Sufi Bodies is an innovative treatment of Sufi materials that will find a large readership not only in the field of Sufism but also more broadly in the fields of comparative mysticism, religious studies, and the history of sexuality. A paradigm shifting book that is a pleasure to read. -- Kathryn Babayan, University of Michigan Sufi Bodies provides a very useful, alternative view of Sufi issues, such as love and discipleship, that are often treated in abstract and ethereal-in a word, disembodied-terms. It will prove valuable for a range of audiences and courses. -- Marion Katz, New York University In Sufi Bodies, Shahzad Bashir, like a litterateur turned detective, exhumes and examines the hidden physicality of premodern Persian Sufism. From food and women to grave sites, he weaves a tapestry of connections to the social and intellectual world of Sufis, with emotive, affective and spiritual messages registered through the body and bodily activities. At once forensic and lyrical, this book provides an interior journey that is inseparable from its external traces in the literary treasure of Sufi adepts. It both complements and exceeds other studies of a pivotal period in Islamic spirituality. -- Bruce B. Lawrence, Duke University
Acknowledgments Note on Transliteration Abbreviations Chronology Introduction and Shaking Hands 1 Framing Sufi Ideas and Practices 1. Bodies Inside Out 2. Befriending God Corporeally 3. Saintly Socialites 2 Sufi Bodies in Motion 4. Bonds of Love 5. Engendered Desires 6. Miraculous Food 7. Corpses in Morticians' Hands Epilogue Notes Bibliography Index
Shahzad Bashir is the Lysbeth Warren Anderson Professor in Islamic Studies at Stanford University. He is the author of Messianic Hopes and Mystical Visions: The Nurbakhshiya Between Medieval and Modern Islam and Fazlallah Astarabadi and the Hurufis.
An immensely rich resource for persons interested in medieval Islamic civilization. Choice A groundbreaking work in the study of Sufism. -- Laury Silvers International Journal of Middle East Studies A remarkable study of embodiment in a Sufi and Islamic idiom. -- Scott Kugle Journal of Sufi Studies [A] pathbreaking book... I hope that more scholars follow Shahzad Bashir's lead and contribute to this critically important field of inquiry in Islamic studies. History of Religions
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