{"product_id":"the-epistle-of-forgiveness-volume-two-or-a-pardon-to-enter-the-garden-hypocrites-heretics-and-other-sinners-hardcover","title":"The Epistle of Forgiveness, Volume Two: Or, a Pardon to Enter the Garden: Hypocrites, Heretics, and Other Sinners - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eAbū L-ʿa Al-Maʿarrī\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eGeert Jan Van Gelder\u003c\/b\u003e (Editor), \u003cb\u003eGeert Jan Van Gelder\u003c\/b\u003e (Translator)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOne of the most unusual books in classical Arabic literature, \u003ci\u003eThe Epistle of Forgiveness\u003c\/i\u003e is the lengthy reply by the prolific Syrian poet and prose writer, Abu l-'Ala' al-Ma'arri (d. 449\/1057), to a letter by an obscure grammarian, Ibn al-Qarih. With biting irony, \u003ci\u003eThe Epistle of Forgiveness\u003c\/i\u003e mocks Ibn al-Qarih's hypocrisy and sycophancy by imagining he has died and arrived with some difficulty in Heaven, where he meets famous poets and philologists from the past. He also glimpses Hell, and converses with the Devil and various heretics. Al-Ma'arri--a maverick, a vegan, and often branded a heretic himself--seems to mock popular ideas about the Hereafter. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThis second volume is a point-by-point reply to Ibn al-Qarih's letter using al-Ma'arri's characteristic mixture of erudition, irony, and admonition, enlivened with anecdotes and poems. Among other things, he writes about hypocrites; heretical poets, princes, rebels, and mystics; apostates; piety; superstition; the plight of men of letters; collaborative authorship; wine-drinking; old age; repentance; pre-Islamic pilgrimage customs; and money. This remarkable book is the first complete translation in any language, all the more impressive because of al-Ma'arri's highly ornate and difficult style, his use of rhymed prose, and numerous obscure words and\u003cbr\u003eexpressions. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eA bilingual Arabic-English edition.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbū l-ʿAlāʾ al-Maʿarrī (Author) \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eAbū l-ʿAlāʾ al-Maʿarrī\u003c\/b\u003e (363-449\/973-1058) was a major poet and prose writer of the late Abbasid period. Born near Aleppo, Syria, he lost his eyesight in childhood and was renowned for his asceticism. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eGeert Jan van Gelder (Edited and Translated by) \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eGeert Jan van Gelder\u003c\/b\u003e was Laudian Professor of Arabic at the University of Oxford from 1998 to 2012. He is the author of several books on classical Arabic literature, including Beyond the Line: Classical Arabic Literary Critics on the Coherence and Unity of the Poem and Of Dishes and Discourse: Classical Arabic Literary Representations of Food. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eGregor Schoeler (Edited and Translated by) \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cb\u003eGregor Schoeler\u003c\/b\u003e was the chair of Islamic Studies at the University of Basel from 1982 to 2009. His books in the fields of Islamic Studies and classical Arabic literature include The Oral and the Written in Early Islam, and Paradies und Holle, a partial German translation of The Epistle of Forgiveness. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 360\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.3 x 9.1 x 6.1 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e January 03, 2014\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Books by splitShops","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51817308291360,"sku":"9780814771945","price":92.34,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0974\/9764\/5344\/files\/05d8ef3efe5f6453f2264351c67f9ef8.webp?v=1781100101","url":"https:\/\/ebocreations.com\/products\/the-epistle-of-forgiveness-volume-two-or-a-pardon-to-enter-the-garden-hypocrites-heretics-and-other-sinners-hardcover","provider":"The E-Book Oasis LLC","version":"1.0","type":"link"}