About The Book

Through the story of the universal tree, representing the complete human being, and the four birds, representing the four essential aspects of existence, Ibn 'Arabi explains his teaching on the nature and meaning of union with God.

Providing an excellent initiation into the often complex works of Ibn 'Arabi, this brief, delightful tale is the first English translation of an important, early work, complete with Arabic text, commentary, and notes.

About The Author

Muhyiddin ibn Arabi (25 July 1165 – 8 November 1240) was an Arab Andalusian Sufi mystic and philosopher. He is renowned by some practitioners of Sufism as "the greatest master" and also as a genuine saint. Ibn ‘Arabī’s intellectual training began in Seville in 578 AH. Most of his teachers were the clergy of the Almohad era and some of them held the official posts of Qadir or Khatib. His spiritual mentor in Fes was Mohammed ibn Qasim al-Tamimi.

Later in 604 AH he returned to Mecca where he continued to study and write, spending his time with his friend Abū Shujā bin Rustem and family, including the beautiful Nizam (II, 376; Hirtenstein 181). The next 4 to 5 years of Ibn ‘Arabī’s life were spent in these lands and he also kept travelling and holding the reading sessions of his works in his own presence.