The Seal of the Saints

Michel Chodkiewicz's "The Seal of the Saints: Prophethood and Sainthood in the Doctrine of Ibn Arabi" explores for the first time the Greatest Sufi Master's `hagiology' or teaching on sainthood. Founded on a careful analysis of the relevant texts, "The Seal of the Saints" examines this essential aspect of Ibn Arabi's doctrine of sainthood, defining the nature and function of sainthood, while also specifying the criteria for a typology of saints based on the notion of prophetic inheritance. In "The Seal of the Saints", Chodkiewicz also includes a detailed description of the two phases of the initiatory journey, the ascent to God, followed by the descent to created beings which, once accomplished, makes a saint the necessary mediator between Heaven and Earth. "The Seal of the Saints" greatly enhances knowledge of Ibn Arabi's metaphysics and his doctrine of sainthood which has had a profound effect on Sufism ever since.