The Legacy of Henry Corbin: Illuminated Verses

"...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.

Friday, April 22, 2011

Illuminated Verses - NYC

Illuminated Verses explores some of the rich and varied poetic traditions of the Islamic world. This series of programs, organized by Poets House and City Lore, runs through May 7. The series continues our exploration of humanity's shared poetic legacy and our celebration of poetic traditions from around the globe.

Organized by Poets House & City Lore and presented in conjunction with the Asia Society & Borough of Manhattan Community College (BMCC), Illuminated Verses is made possible through a special Bridging Cultures grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities, with additional support from the Nathan Cummings Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts.