ABSTRACT
IhavealreadyreferredtotheworkofIbnu'!-'Arabi, bearingatitlewhichmayberendered"TheBezelsofDivine Wisdom,"andhavepointedoutthatitssubject-matter coincides,toalargeextent,withthatoftheInsdnu'l-Kdmil, whileboth\vritersarenotonlyinspiredbythesamemystical philosophybutusesimilarmethodsinordertodeveloptheir ideas2•Thefollowingnotes,inadequateastheyare,willat leastshowthemagnitudeofJili'sdebttohispredecessor, besidesmakingclearersomefundamentalprincipleswhichin theInsdnu'l-Kdmilareassumedratherthanexpounded.The Fu$U$purportstobeatreatiseonthenatureofGodas manifestedthroughprophecy,eachofits27chaptersbeing attachedtothelogos(kalima)ofaprophettypifyinga particularDivineattribute.SinceGoddoesnotreveal HimselfcompletelyexceptinMan,thefirstchaptertreatsof Adamasthemicrocosm,thePerfectMan,theabsolutemirror ofDivinity.OftenIbnu'!-'ArabitakesatextoftheKoran andelicitshisdoctrinefromitinafashionwellknov.m.to studentsofPhiloandOrigen.Thetheoriessetforthinthe Fu$U$aredifficulttounderstandandevenmoredifficultto explain.ManyyearsagoItranslatedthegreaterpartofthe work,withthecommentaryby'Abdu'1-Razzaqal-Kashfmi, formyownuse,buttheauthor'slanguageissotechnical, figurative,andinvolvedthataliteralreproductionwould conveyverylittle.Ontheotherhand,ifwerejecthis terminology,weshallfinditimpossibletoformanyprecise notionofhisideas.Bycollectingandarrangingillustrative passagesandbyavailingmyselfofthecommentator'said Imay,perhaps,throwsomelightonapeculiarlyrecondite phaseofmysticalscholasticism.
