Sophia Perennis

Sophia Perennis

Analysis of the Influence of Shiite Sufism and Wisdom of Ibn Arabi in the Mathnavi "Bahr al-Asrar"

Document Type : Original Article

Author
Retired from the Ministry of Education
10.22034/iw.2026.556251.1855
Abstract
The study and analysis of Shiite mysticism and wisdom has been the focus of scholars since the very beginning of the emergence of Shiism. In this regard, paying attention to the theological, philosophical, mystical and interpretative thoughts of Shiite is the focus of the attention of thoughtful scholars. Just as wisdom is the certain knowledge of the truths of things within the limits of human ability, and in wisdom, science and action are used together, and knowledge is a rule that contains truths, in Ibn Arabi's theoretical mysticism, these truths, which are the "fixed objects", are related to specific actions. In the Shiite religion, the main subject of wisdom and mysticism is the speaking soul and ultimately reaching the desired perfection within the limits of human ability. To achieve this perfection, man always needs a guide, and the connection of these guides in Shiite wisdom is impossible without paying attention to the foundations of mysticism and Sufism. Mysticism and Sufism are a spiritual experience, and without a discussion about this spiritual experience, which is actually the center of understanding the religion of Islam and the Shiite religion, Shiite wisdom cannot be studied; Because in the main issue of Shiism, namely Imamate and Wilayat, there is a transhistorical and metaphysical reality. In this regard, the decisive and interpretative thoughts of Muhyiddin Ibn al-Arabi, who is considered one of the greats of theoretical mysticism, regardless of the views of many scholars about his Sunni identity, are very effective in advancing the Shiite spiritual-mystical path. The analysis of his thoughts on the definition of the Seal of Wilayat, which he considers to be Christ (PBUH), and the al-Taba’, from the perspective of Shiite mystical thought, is the same Imam; is worthy of reflection and examination. In particular, paying attention to the obvious point that the Twelver Shiite religion, which is full of mysticism and wisdom, is also based on interpretation from a mystical perspective. In this way, after Ibn al-Arabi, many scholars and mystics have emerged and have produced authoritative works that any kind of search and scrutiny in them is somehow related to following the thoughts of Sheikh Akbar. One of these works is the poetic interpretation of Bahr al-Asrar by Muhammad Taqi Muzaffar Kirmani, nicknamed Molavi Sani and Molavi Kirmani, one of the Shiite scholars and mystics of the Qajar period. No independent research has been conducted on this Masnavi, except for its correction, which was the subject of the author's doctoral dissertation, as well as related articles. In this work, Molavi Kirmani has arranged the blessed Surah Hamad in verse based on the thought of Ibn Arabi. In the interpretation of "Allah", the poet pays more attention to "Fus Adami" from the book "Fusus al-Hikam". Of course, the poet mentions Ibn Arabi and his works directly in very few cases; but in many of the verses, his reference to the thoughts of Sheikh Akbar can be seen. The author of this work introduces the entire Surah Hamd as the straight path and the straight path as the perfect human being who is gathered in the form of the Prophet (Khatam al-Mursaleen) and is the Supreme Spirit or the Universal Intellect and introduces the point "B" in "Bismillah al-Rahman al-Raheem" as the guardianship and its head. In this section, the influence of Ibn Arabi's thoughts is clearly seen. Sheikh Akbar in "Faz al-Adi" considers the word Adam to be a manifestation of divine wisdom, which is one of the ontological levels that introduces the name "Allah" as the comprehensive name and attributes that is manifested in the word Adam and is the same universal spirit and origin of the human species - in fact, the same single soul from which the human species was created - Muzaffar Kirmani, using this idea, in two-thirds of this Masnavi, expresses the guardianship dimension of this human species using Shiite mystical teachings. That is, the same concept of guardianship and the face of the guardian and the highest symbol of guardianship, namely "Ali" (AS). The author of this article attempts to analyze and examine the influence of Shiite mysticism and wisdom on this Masnavi based on Ibn Arabi's thought. During this research, it will be clarified what position, from the perspective of Muhammad Taqi Mozaffar Kermani, Shiite mysticism and wisdom occupy in light of Ibn Arabi's theories and what role they play in Shiite jurisprudential thoughts.
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Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 25 February 2026