Ep277: Master of the Way - Prof William Rory Dickson 2
Dr. William Rory Dickson an associate professor of Islamic Religion and Culture at The University of Winnipeg and author of “Dissolving into Being: The Wisdom of Sufi Philosophy”.
Available on Youtube, iTunes, SoundCloud & Spotify – search ‘Guru Viking Podcast’.
Professor Dickson discusses Ibn ‘Arabi (1165–1240), an important Sufi poet and philosopher. Ibn ‘Arabi was described as the greatest master of the Way but has increasingly been seen as a controversial and heterodox figure by some within Islam.
Professor Dickson explores the historical tensions between the mystic and the cleric, describes Sufi meditation methods and the struggle to realisation, and considers extra-Islamic influences on Sufism throughout history.
Professor Dickson also reflects on Sufism’s interaction with American culture including the universalist new age movement, the failure of utopian models of worldwide religious harmony, and the retraditionalisation of religious orders such as the Inayatiyya.
00:00 - Intro
01:14 - Orthodox to heterodox
05:44 - Who was Ibn ‘Arabi?
06:49 - A spiritual prodigy
10:34 - Leaving Andalusia and arriving in Damascus
12:33 - The greatest master of the Way
14:57 - Mystic vs cleric
17:23 - Political executions of sufis
19:12 - The need to read the room
19:54 - Periods of tension and integration
21:37 - The influence of patronage
24:18 - The struggle for spiritual realisation
27:47 - The visions and practice of Ibn ‘Arabi
29:12 - Embodying the 99 names of God
32:11 - Sufi meditation on the names of God
35:36 - The state of dhikr
36:20 - Ascetic practices
37:53 - Extra-Islamic influences on Sufi practice, historical and modern
46:54 - God brings prophets to all people
49:09 - Pir Vilayat Inayat Khan, Lex Hixon, and the New Age
58:04 - History of the Inayatiyya order
01:03:00 - Reformulating Sufism for an American audience
01:05:13 - Retraditionalisation in Inayatiyya
01:06:43 - The failure of modernist universalism
01:09:48 - Death of optimism
01:11:28 - Postmodernism vs perennialism
01:12:24 - Does Ibn ‘Arabi offer a synthesis of modern and post-modern perspectives?
01:16:17 - Rumi and the controversy of Coleman Barks
Previous episode with Professor William Rory DIckson:
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Music ‘Deva Dasi’ by Steve James