Ibn ‘Arabi: al-Futūḥāt al-Makkiyya, Ch. 372
Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi
Mystic, philosopher, poet, sage, Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi (1165–1240) was one of the world’s great spiritual teachers.
Ibn Arabi was born in Murcia in Arab al-Andalus, and his writings had an immense impact throughout the Islamic world and beyond. The universal ideas underlying his thought are of immediate relevance today.
The Society
The Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi Society (MIAS) was founded in 1977 to promote a greater understanding of the work of Ibn Arabi and his followers.
It is represented by non-profit organisations in Oxford, England and in Berkeley, California. The Society is funded by the annual subscriptions of its members. It collaborates with affiliated societies in Spain and Australia.
Activities
» Publications: The Society has published a Journal since 1982, which is now peer-reviewed and appears twice a year. It has published books, particularly a translation into English of the Fuṣūṣ al-ḥikam. Its website provides over 200 articles, mainly from the Journal.
» Events: The Society has organised conferences in the UK and the USA since 1984. Podcasts and videos of more than 100 talks from Society events are available on this website.
» Historic manuscript project: Since 2002 the Society has been engaged in collecting copies of historic manuscripts of the works of Ibn Arabi. A version of the catalogue is available on this website.
Society Membership
If you are interested in Muhyiddin Ibn Arabi, his work and his teachings, you are welcome to join the Society. Among other benefits, Members receive the Society Journal, have discounted entry to Society events, and free admission to live online talks.
Supporting the Society
For information about some of the Society’s planned developments over the next three years, and how it makes use of regular donations, one-off gifts and bequests, please see the page on supporting the Society.
Recently Added Quotation
Futūḥāt Translation Project
7 January 2025
There is no good path in declaring an expert wrong in some interpretation (of the Qurʿān) that the phrasing supports, because it will be the one declaring him wrong who will be shown to have the utmost shortfall in knowledge. But it is unnecessary to argue for it or to put this interpretation into practice; it is only for the case of that interpreter alone and whoever follows him.
Book 13, Chapter 73
Go to the Quotations page
Featured Article
William C Chittick
The Religion of Love Revisited”
“Ibn al-ʿArabī and Rūmī – not to mention countless other teachers, Muslim and non-Muslim – looked at human beings as works in progress. Many of them would have been happy to call the path of becoming fully human ‘the religion of love.’” This article reviews ‘the religion of love’ in Ibn ʿArabī and three other authors, and relates it finally to what Ibn ‘Arabi says about the “Station of No Station”.
List of all articles
Featured Podcast
Éric Geoffroy
Spiritual Realization (al-tahqiq) through Daily Awakening
This is a meditation on the meaning of al-tahqiq (verification or realisation) which is central to the writing of Ibn ‘Arabi, and drawing on the writings of Sufis before Ibn ‘Arabi, such as Junayd (d. 911 AD, the “Leader of the Sufis”, sayyid al-ta’ifa), and others after him, such as Shaykh al-‘Alawi. Junayd said, “I have achieved al-tahqiq by staying in the presence of God for thirty years under these stairs”, by which he meant the stairs of his house. The paper later published in the Journal of the Society can be found here.
List of all podcasts
Latest News
Online course – January 25-26 2025
Meeting Ibn Arabi: His Life and Teaching
A guided group exploration of Ibn Arabi´s life and teachings over one weekend, based on the book by Claude Addas, The Voyage of No Return. Offered by the MIAS Education Team.
More information
Online course – Feb 4 – Apr 15 2025
“Like the Break of Dawn”
An online MIAS Education course exploring dreams in a selection of texts by Ibn Arabi.
More information
July 25 – 26, 2025 London
The Body as Metaphor of Divine Self-Revelation
A two-day MIAS symposium will be held in 2025 under the title “Mirrors of the Transcendent in the Cosmos of Ibn Arabi: The Body as Metaphor of Divine Self-Revelation” at the Warburg Institute, London.
More information
Online courses 2025
Education Courses Calendar
Upcoming MIAS Education courses and events are listed on the Courses Calendar page.
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January 2025
Society Journal, Volume 76
Volume 76 of the Journal of the Muhyiddin Ibn ‘Arabi Society (the second issue for 2024) is running slightly late, and should be dispatched towards the end of January.
More about the Society Journal
April 2024
Young Writer Award
The judges have announced the results of Young Writer competition for 2023
About the young writers
December 2023
The Futuhat Foundation
Dr Eric Winkel is engaged in a translation into English of Ibn al-‘Arabi’s Futūḥāt al-Makkīyah, from beginning to end. It is being published progressively by the Pir Press, and Volume 4 was published in 2022 and further volumes are expected in 2023.
More information
Social Media
The Society in the USA maintains a Facebook Page, and the Society in the UK maintains a Facebook Group. Both provide news about Society events, and the Facebook Group can be a good place to ask questions.
Contact
The Society is administered from two centres: Oxford (UK) and Berkeley (USA). The Society in the UK is responsible for everywhere outside North America.
Making a Donation
As a non-profit organisation, the Society welcomes donations of any size. Donations help underwrite the many activities of the Society.
Donate to the Society in the UK
Donate to the Society in the USA