The Wisdom of the Sufis

by Kenneth Cragg

In his introduction to the anthology The Wisdom of the Sufis, Kenneth Cragg offers the Western reader valuable insight into the religion and richly poetic literature of the Middle East, and the esoteric, deeply experiential inner tradition of Islam. Bishop Cragg's selections of prayers and legends concern the task, search, and goal of the Sufi mystic-the dervish-and his introduction explains the unlikely growth of mysticism out of medieval orthodox Islam.

94 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 1976

Reviews

[Kathleen McKim]

This is a 1976 introductory compilation of Sufi thought and poetry divided into 4 categories: I, Thou, We and Thou Lord of the Worlds. The introduction does explain how Sufism could arise from Islamic belief and is at core a search for unity with God. My only question is where the actual selections of prayers and wisdom come from. Besides the references to Koran, there are no other manuscripts mentioned. There is no doubt, when you read the selections, that they are Sufi, but it would be nice to know who wrote them. Maybe I'm missing something.