The Polished Mirror: Storytelling and the Pursuit of Virtue in Islamic Philosophy and Sufism

How are virtue ethics presented in Islamic writings? Focusing on two pre-modern scholarly traditions central to contemplating virtue – philosophy and Sufism – The Polished Mirror presents the thinkers, metaphysicians, saints, poets and mystics who contributed to the pursuit of the perfection of character. From the relationship between law and virtue to the struggles of the soul to transcend the body and its desires, Cyrus Ali Zargar examines key ethical questions from Islamic intellectual history. With new interpretations of passages from key Arabic and Persian texts, and keen analyses of the ethical implications therein, The Polished Mirror invites readers to reconsider the place of virtue ethics in Islam – a subject which has been given insufficient attention in academic study.

Table of Contents:
Introduction   Part One Islamic Philosophy Chapter One: The Humors (al-akhlāṭ) and Character Traits (al-akhlāq) According to the Brethren of Purity Chapter Two: Virtue Ethics in Avicenna’s Philosophical Allegories Chapter Three: The Virtues, from Philosophy to Scripture: Refining Character Traits in Miskawayh and Ghazālī Chapter Four: Reason, Revelation, and Discovering the Virtuous in Ibn Ṭufayl’s Literary Thought Experiment Chapter Five: From Humors to Pure Light: Knowledge and Virtue in the Allegories of Suhrawardī   Part Two Sufism Chapter Six: The Soul’s Constant Returning: Repentance (Tawba) in the Sufi Legacy of Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq Chapter Seven: Distancing Oneself from the Worldly: Renunciation (Zuhd) According to al-Muḥāsibī and al-Sarrāj Chapter Eight: Self-Awareness that Leads to Self-Loss: Futuwwa as a Compound Virtue in the Legacy of Anṣārī Chapter Nine: The Completion of Ethics: Self-Annihilation (Fanāʾ) Through the Lens of ʿAṭṭār Chapter Ten: Virtue in the Narrative Poetry of Rūmī   Conclusion: A Brief Case for Relevance Acknowledgments Bibliography Index

About the Author :
Cyrus Ali Zargar is Associate Professor in Religion at Augustana College, in Rock Island, Illinois, where his primary research interest is the literature of medieval Sufism in Arabic and Persian.

Review :
‘The Polished Mirror is the perfect title for Zargar’s erudite and eloquent book, for it reflects with superb analytical clarity the views of a wide range of thinkers on the subject of ethics. Justifiably going beyond writings that explicitly deal with the topic, he draws together various strands of Islamic tradition, clarifying both the links and similarities that join them and the distinctions that separate them. A major contribution to Islamic studies, from which both established scholars and those new to the field stand to gain significantly.’ ‘Students of Islamic ethics have long felt the need for a more sustained and unified insight into the rich history of reflection on the virtues in the Islamic world. Ambitious in scope yet accessible throughout, this book explores the distinctive contributions of a number of key figures working across both sides of the permeable boundary between philosophy and Sufism. Anyone with an interest in how thinkers in the medieval Islamic world engaged with the “science of the states of the heart” – in its many permutations – will find a valuable companion in Cyrus Ali Zargar’s book.’ ‘Comprehensive in its scope, and drawing on intellectual luminaries ranging from Muḥāsibī to Avicenna, Zargar’s erudite study offers the first major analysis of virtue ethics in classical Islam. It will set the stage for future research in the field.’ ‘This fine study, supported by careful analysis of primary texts, illustrates the congruence of Islamic philosophy and Sufism on the issue of achieving self-perfection, to which human beings are called both by prophetic wisdom and by rational acumen.’  ‘Far too much of previous scholarship on Muslim ethics has obsessed over the question of its indebtedness to Greek (and Persian) antecedents. Cyrus Zargar’s The Polished Mirror is a brilliant way of reframing the conversation about ethics in the spiritual and intellectual cosmos of Islamic thought. Zargar masterfully navigates the worlds of ethics, philosophy, mysticism, narrative, and poetry to offer us a rich tapestry. The result is far more than merely a groundbreaking way of rethinking ethics in Islam. It is a groundbreaking study of the interconnectedness of the Islamic spiritual, ethical, and intellectual universes through studying Ibn Sina, Rumi, Brethren of Purity, Ghazali, Suhrawardi, and others. Enthusiastically recommended for all students of Islamic studies, ethics, and mysticism.’ ‘The Polished Mirror is an incredible, even paradigm-shifting work in Islamic Studies.’