A seminar on the writings of al-Niffari
Little is known of the life of the 10th century mystic Muhammad Ibn ‘Abdi-‘l Jabbar al-Niffari. He was born in the marshlands of the Euphrates and remained a solitary wanderer all his life, shunning the company of others. His visionary insights, which he wrote down on scraps of paper, were only collected into book form after his death. In his “Spiritual Addresses” and “Stayings” can be found essential intuitions about the spiritual quest, expressed in extraordinarily direct yet subtle language. Compared with other mystical writings there are few time-bound cultural references in his work and this gives to the writings of Niffari a very contemporary feel.
In this seminar we shall be reading and contemplating some of Niffari’s “Spiritual Addresses” in a new English translation by Angela Jaffray, and exploring their relevance to us in the present moment.
Some extracts from Niffari’s writings are here.
