"...the Imagination (or love, or sympathy, or any other sentiment) induces knowledge, and knowledge of an 'object' which is proper to it..."
Henry Corbin (1903-1978) was a scholar, philosopher and theologian. He was a champion of the transformative power of the Imagination and of the transcendent reality of the individual in a world threatened by totalitarianisms of all kinds. One of the 20th century’s most prolific scholars of Islamic mysticism, Corbin was Professor of Islam & Islamic Philosophy at the Sorbonne in Paris and at the University of Teheran. He was a major figure at the Eranos Conferences in Switzerland. He introduced the concept of the mundus imaginalis into contemporary thought. His work has provided a foundation for archetypal psychology as developed by James Hillman and influenced countless poets and artists worldwide. But Corbin’s central project was to provide a framework for understanding the unity of the religions of the Book: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. His great work Alone with the Alone: Creative Imagination in the Sufism of Ibn ‘Arabi is a classic initiatory text of visionary spirituality that transcends the tragic divisions among the three great monotheisms. Corbin’s life was devoted to the struggle to free the religious imagination from fundamentalisms of every kind. His work marks a watershed in our understanding of the religions of the West and makes a profound contribution to the study of the place of the imagination in human life.

Search The Legacy of Henry Corbin: Over 800 Posts

Thursday, September 24, 2009

UPDATED
The New York Open Center and the Muhyiddin Ibn ’Arabi Society present



A C O N F E R E N C E
F R I D AY – S ATURDAY, N O V E M B E R 6 & 7

William C. Chittick, Stephen Hirtenstein, Salman Bashier,
Sachiko Murata and Mohamed Haj Yousef

This groundbreaking event, held at the beautiful Gothic cathedral of the historic interdenominational Riverside Church, will explore the wisdom and contemporary relevance of the 13th century mystic and teacher Ibn ’Arabi, who is considered the greatest master of Gnostic and philosophical Sufism.

It will bring together some of the world’s leading Ibn ’Arabi scholars, and will include talks, workshops, Sufi musicians from the US and the UK, poetry, and three films presented by the award-winning Tunisian director, Nacer Khemir. The conference will include presentations such as: Ibn ’Arabi and the Quest for Human Perfection; How Ibn al-Arabi’s Mystical Love Can Overcome Fundamentalism; Ibn ’Arabi in Dialogue with the Confucian Tradition, and much more.

Ibn ’Arabi was born in Medieval Spain, then home to an extraordinarily enlightened culture of religious tolerance among Muslims, Jews and Christians, a period that can serve us today as an inspiring example of the possibility of fruitful co-existence and cooperation among different cultures. As one of history’s greatest universal mystics and interpreters of the human condition, Ibn ’Arabi’s teachings can offer us a window into a form of Islam that we in the West are rarely exposed to, as well as a more sophisticated understanding of the more exalted aspects of the Islamic cultural heritage.

Please join us for this exceptional presentation of cross-cultural dialogue and come deepen your awareness of the very important part of the Islamic tradition that is one of humanity’s richest veins of mystical spirit and ecstatic beauty.

Post-Conference Events
Tunisian filmmaker Nacer Khemir will be presenting his highly acclaimed series of films, the Desert Trilogy, of which the most well-known is “Bab’Aziz.” The films are filled with exquisite scenery and elements of a mystical fairy tale, showing us a more open, tolerant and friendly view of Islamic culture, full of love and wisdom.


Friday–Saturday, November 6 & 7 $145 (after October 8)
Early Bird Price $125 by October 8

A conference co-sponsored with Riverside Church of New York
and The Middle East Institute at Columbia University.

For details visit: www.opencenter.org
and the Conference Website
or call 212-219-2527 ext. 2


Sufi Brochure EDITS 09-10(5)
Posted by Tom Cheetham at 5:29 AM

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