The Timeless Sufi Wisdom of Shaykh Nazim: Second Edition (The Timeless Sufi Wisdom of Shaykh Nazim and A Decade in the Heart of Sufism: A Middle East Odyssey Second Edition. Book 4) Kindle Edition

Shaykh Nazim al-Haqqani was a guide and mentor to thousands of people throughout his long and fruitful life. He was one of the most significant figures in Sufism in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The Shaykh traveled extensively, teaching the Sufi tradition in English to a generation of Western spiritual seekers, as well as in Arabic and Turkish to people from all corners of the Islamic world.Shaykh Nazim expressed his love for his fellow human beings by listening carefully to their observations and concerns and thoughtfully advising them. He would relate ancient wisdom and bring those teachings to life by creating an atmosphere of joyful companionship.The Timeless Sufi Wisdom of Shaykh Nazim is a carefully re-edited and adapted selection from the Mercy Ocean series I published for the Shaykh in the 1980s. This book presents his profound yet accessible teachings on ethical living and spiritual growth, and also delves into Sufi lore, connecting us with a wisdom tradition that has been passed down through the centuries. The chapters are arranged thematically, featuring sections on Sufi teaching stories, World Peace, Cultivating Integrity, and “In the World But not of It.” All of this wisdom from the lives of Sufi saints and the prophets is delivered with the Shaykh Nazim’s distinctive and relentless sense of humor.After the publication of the first edition of this book in April of this year, I was gratified to hear from readers who were deeply moved by it and found the teaching stories enlightening and amusing. Others praised the inclusion of photos and drawings, which add a visual element to the teachings, making them easier to recall and remember. One reader wrote that she keeps the book within reach for guidance in her daily life, and the user-friendly formatting and short chapters make it easy for her to read the lessons she needs. The book is being translated into Spanish, Portuguese, and Finnish by enthusiastic readers who are offering their services for free.After I had published the first edition, I looked back through the original Mercy Oceans books and discovered that I had overlooked many important teachings in my original selection of material for the present book. Thanks to on-demand printing, it has been easy to update the book, although it took me four months of concentrated editing to bring it to you now. This second edition of the book is forty pages longer than the first, featuring new teachings, additional illustrations, and photos. So, even if you already have the first edition, you will benefit from the new chapters as well as from re-reading the rest of the book. The new chapters are:When Cruelty Captures the Hearts of Nations / A Question of Balance / Layla and Majnun: Seeing Perfection in the Beloved / Choose Light upon Light / Living Naturally and Avoiding Waste / Scrapes Serve a Purpose / The Spark of Life / The Whole Universe is Within You / Cash Today, Credit Tomorrow / Unearth Your Underground Spring / Don’t Mix Your Butter With Lard / Giving it Up to God.I hope you will also order a copy of the new second edition of the companion volume to this book, A Decade in the Heart of Sufism: A Middle East Odyssey. I have also included new talks by the Shaykh in that memoir, and I encourage you to read both books in tandem to best feel as though you are receiving the teachings with us in Damascus, Turkey, and all over Europe.Patience Will See Us ThroughEverything that happens to humankind acts like a current that passes through us, affecting our personalities. Some currents help us to shore, while others carry us out to sea. Our challenge is to swim with them all. You may seek to escape from disliked circumstances, but usually, in the course of fleeing, you will come up against an even more formidable challenge. We have a saying: “He fled from the rain to the hail.” You may confirm the truth of this saying from your own experience. Read more