The Book of Contemplation: Islam and the Crusades

by Usama ibn Munqidh

Other authorsPaul M. Cobb (Editor), Paul M. Cobb (Translator), Paul M. Cobb (Introduction)
Paperback, 2008

Status

Available

Call number

956

Tags

Penguin Classics, Penguin black 3, Middle Ages, Islam, Crusades, Arabic literature, fiction

Genres

Collection

Your library

Publication

Penguin Classics (2008), Paperback, 400 pages

Description

Islam and the Crusadescontains the autobiographical works of Usama ibn Munqidh, a twelfth-century Arab aristocrat. Full of detail, wit and melancholy, Usama's narrative anecdotes illustrate the inscrutability of God's will in life, as well as providing a memorable record of Islam's long encounter with the Crusaders, known to Usama only as the Franks. This edition focuses on The Book of Contemplation, but also uses extracts from The Book of the Staffand Kernels of Refinementto produce a complete and human portrayal of Islamic perspectives on a day-to-day existence, warfare, and the curious European invaders. Paul M. Cobb's accessible translation is accompanied by an introduction that places Usama's writings in their historical and literary context, explains the poetry of his language and examines the divisions between Islamic sects at the time. This edition also contains maps, a chronology of the author's life, a family tree, suggested further reading and a glossary.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member Brasidas
This book is marketed as a Muslim perspective on the Frankish invasions of the 12 century (i.e. the Crusades). There is certainly much in it about specific battles against the Christian invaders, but it's very much an "on the ground" perspective. It's no survey text. But if you've read your
Show More
 Runciman first, you can distinguish the various battles and periods of Western advance and retreat, and the writer's engagement with the major players of that time. But the book is much more than just a commentary on the Crusades. Usama ibn Munqidh had this astonishing life as part of a rich, affluent Arab aristocracy. We get not only his view of the battles against the "Franks," as he calls them, but also the battles he was involved in against his Arab brother. For this was an era of municipalities reminiscent of the Greek city states around the time of the Peloponnesian War, and there was frequent conflict. There's an especially vivid sequence of hunting tales from his youth in and around his hometown of Shayzar. I had trepidations when I noticed that the hunting stories were next, but they are in many ways the most fascinating texts in the book. They hunt with hawk, peregrine and cheetah. The tales are deeply moving. Munqidh's father would sleep with the cheetah in his room. That's how close he was to the animal. There are also episodes of lion hunting, or rather extermination, for such an animal close to populated areas was always a threat. There are also these incredibly moving reflections on old age. Munqidh lived to be over 90, and commentary on the loss of vitality and stamina at that age. The book operates on the reader very much in the way a good novel with a non-linear timeline would. In one vignette he's a lad on his pony following his father on the hunt. In another, in middle-age, he's marching with Nur al-Din, one of the greatest of all Arab military minds, into battle against the "infidel." I highly recommend this astonishing book for all readers with an interest in the medieval middle east.
Show Less

Language

English

Original language

Arabic

Physical description

400 p.; 7.7 inches

ISBN

0140455132 / 9780140455137

Similar in this library

More

Amazon.comLibraryThingMARC view
Page: 0.1798 seconds