Al-Ghazali letters to Nizamuddin Fakhrul Mulk
- Language:
- English
- Status:
- Complete work
- Authorship:
- Written by the author
- Condition of the text:
- No scanning noise detected (automatic measure over the whole text, not checked by hand)
- Extent:
- ~8,000 words · 38 passages
Cite this work
- APAAl-Ghazali. (n.d.). Al-Ghazali letters to Nizamuddin Fakhrul Mulk. Digital reproduction: SigPhi. https://sigphiai.com/en/works/al-ghazali/al-ghazali-letters-to-nizamuddin-fakhrul-mulk
- MLAAl-Ghazali. Al-Ghazali letters to Nizamuddin Fakhrul Mulk. Digital reproduction, SigPhi, https://sigphiai.com/en/works/al-ghazali/al-ghazali-letters-to-nizamuddin-fakhrul-mulk.
- ChicagoAl-Ghazali. Al-Ghazali letters to Nizamuddin Fakhrul Mulk. Digital reproduction, SigPhi. https://sigphiai.com/en/works/al-ghazali/al-ghazali-letters-to-nizamuddin-fakhrul-mulk.
Reference to the edition that SigPhi reproduces: SigPhi is its digital reproduction, not its publisher. The edition's year is not in the metadata (hence "n.d."), and the translator appears only when recorded.
What it is about
Letters to the vizier Fakhr al-Mulk, son of Nizam al-Mulk.
Context and history
The longest set of letters in the group. Fakhr al-Mulk was the man who persuaded al-Ghazali to teach again after eleven years of retreat, which gives this correspondence a biographical weight the others lack. It comes from the Fada'il al-anam, the collection of al-Ghazali's Persian correspondence, and appears in the catalogue as a separate piece. **It is none of his major works**: for those, see The Alchemy of Happiness and The Confessions of al-Ghazzali, also here. The original is Persian; this is an English translation.
Editorial context, not a citable source: unlike the passages of the work itself, these statements cannot be checked against the corpus.
In times of emergency every state seeks protection in its impregnable fortresses from the attack of the enemy. Some politicians are of the opinion that magnificent horses, beautiful carriages and glittering coffers of gold can overpower the aggressors and that the land forces, adequately armed with swords and guns are the best defending forces, while others hold that only states with material resources that have built expensive and majestic fortresses can successfully meet foreign aggression. The third group maintain that it is only through devout prayer that a nation can escape disaster. And, there is no doubt that the belief of the third group is the most sound because we know that true safety lies in a deep sense of religious devotion and that Allah does not withhold protection from men if they steadfastly trust in His Mercy and pray for His Mercy. Others might fall into the harsh crisis but the fakirs with their prayers must not fall. If they work perfectly in accordance with the Planning Will of the All Powerful Lord, they would acquire immense power. It may sound absurd to those who suppose that strength and power are to be found only in great armies and equipment, or in scientific achievements, or in the vastness of economic resources, but as Islamic history reveals their fakirs, who did almost nothing other than making their souls stainless mirrors for Allah, yearning upward in fellowship with Him, made the most effective contribution to the defense of their country against foreign aggression. It is not the might of the armed forces that save a nation from destruction, it is the humble and ardent devotion of a pure heart that can completely liquidate the forces of darkness of all forms and build a new independent and prospering Islamic state.