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Volumn 39, Issue 2, 2007, Pages 229-247

The book of visions: Dreams, poetry, and prophecy in contemporary Egypt

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

CULTURAL INFLUENCE; CULTURAL TRADITION; FASTING; RELIGION;

EID: 34248326513     PISSN: 00207438     EISSN: 14716380     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1017/S0020743807070080     Document Type: Article
Times cited : (19)

References (70)
  • 1
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    • Shaykh Salah al-Din al-Qusi was in his middle sixties at the time of my fieldwork in 2003 and 2004. He is originally from Upper Egypt and traces his ancestry to Imam al-Husayn, the Prophet's grandson. For many years he worked in the fields of chemistry and geology until being subjected to a spiritual calling in Saudi Arabia in the early 1990s. A group of followers called al-Ashraf al-Mahdiyya (the Guided Honors) subsequently formed around him. In addition to holding biweekly dhikr gatherings and participating in saint-day celebrations, the group organizes a mā'idat al-rahmān during Ramadan and serves food to hundreds of people in need or away from home.
    • Shaykh Salah al-Din al-Qusi was in his middle sixties at the time of my fieldwork in 2003 and 2004. He is originally from Upper Egypt and traces his ancestry to Imam al-Husayn, the Prophet's grandson. For many years he worked in the fields of chemistry and geology until being subjected to a spiritual calling in Saudi Arabia in the early 1990s. A group of followers called al-Ashraf al-Mahdiyya (the Guided Honors) subsequently formed around him. In addition to holding biweekly dhikr gatherings and participating in saint-day celebrations, the group organizes a mā'idat al-rahmān during Ramadan and serves food to hundreds of people in need or away from home.
  • 2
    • 85009389675 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • A ru'yā can be seen while one is awake or asleep. Whereas psychologists sharply distinguish between dreams and hallucinations seen in the waking state, the line between dream vision and waking vision is blurry in Muslim discourses in Egypt. Sometimes it is not even specified whether the person who saw the vision was awake or asleep. In this article I use the term vision to refer to both truthful dream visions and waking visions.
    • A ru'yā can be seen while one is awake or asleep. Whereas psychologists sharply distinguish between dreams and hallucinations seen in the waking state, the line between dream vision and waking vision is blurry in Muslim discourses in Egypt. Sometimes it is not even specified whether the person who saw the vision was awake or asleep. In this article I use the term "vision" to refer to both truthful dream visions and waking visions.
  • 3
    • 85009373595 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Muhammad Muhsin Khan, trans., The Translation of the Meanings of Sahih al-Bukhari, 9, nos. 119, 96 (Chicago: Kazi Publications, 1979), 98, 116.
    • Muhammad Muhsin Khan, trans., The Translation of the Meanings of Sahih al-Bukhari, vol. 9, nos. 119, 96 (Chicago: Kazi Publications, 1979), 98, 116.
  • 4
    • 85009383870 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • The awliyā' are literally the friends of God or those close to God. A number of the Prophet's descendants are buried in Egypt and are revered as saints. Although translating awliyā' as saints is problematic because of the latter term's Christian connotations, I use the words interchangeably in this article for the sake of readability.
    • The awliyā' are literally the friends of God or those close to God. A number of the Prophet's descendants are buried in Egypt and are revered as saints. Although translating awliyā' as "saints" is problematic because of the latter term's Christian connotations, I use the words interchangeably in this article for the sake of readability.
  • 5
    • 0009923706 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • The Role of Visions in Contemporary Egyptian Religious Life
    • 45-64
    • Valerie Hoffman, "The Role of Visions in Contemporary Egyptian Religious Life," Religion 27 (1997): 45-64, 48.
    • (1997) Religion , vol.27 , pp. 48
    • Hoffman, V.1
  • 9
    • 0344532835 scopus 로고
    • The shaykh's rejection of an affiliation with Sufism has to do in part with Egypt's contemporary political landscape and with prevalent derogatory stereotypes surrounding Sufis. On contestations of Sufism, see, for example, Oxford: Clarendon Press
    • The shaykh's rejection of an affiliation with Sufism has to do in part with Egypt's contemporary political landscape and with prevalent derogatory stereotypes surrounding Sufis. On contestations of Sufism, see, for example, Julian Johansen, Sufism and Islamic Reform in Egypt (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1995),
    • (1995) Sufism and Islamic Reform in Egypt
    • Johansen, J.1
  • 10
    • 85009410443 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • and Frederick De Jong, Opposition to Sufism in Twentieth Century Egypt (1900-1970): A Preliminary Survey, in Islamic Mysticism Contested: Thirteen Centuries of Controversies and Polemics, ed. F. De Jong and B. Radtke (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1999), 310-23.
    • and Frederick De Jong, "Opposition to Sufism in Twentieth Century Egypt (1900-1970): A Preliminary Survey," in Islamic Mysticism Contested: Thirteen Centuries of Controversies and Polemics, ed. F. De Jong and B. Radtke (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1999), 310-23.
  • 12
    • 85009373594 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Historians and Islamicists who have written about dreams in Islam include Taoufiq Fahd, La divination arabe: Études religieuses, sociologiques et folkloriques sur le milieu natif de l'Islam (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1966);
    • Historians and Islamicists who have written about dreams in Islam include Taoufiq Fahd, La divination arabe: Études religieuses, sociologiques et folkloriques sur le milieu natif de l'Islam (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1966);
  • 14
    • 33749436464 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • The Religious and Cultural Role of Dreams and Visions in Islam
    • Nile Green, "The Religious and Cultural Role of Dreams and Visions in Islam," Journal of Royal Asiatic Society 13 (2003): 287-313;
    • (2003) Journal of Royal Asiatic Society , vol.13 , pp. 287-313
    • Green, N.1
  • 15
    • 85167943627 scopus 로고
    • Introduction: The Cultural Function of the Dream as Illustrated by Classical Islam
    • ed. G. E. von Grunebaum and R. Caillois Berkeley, Calif, University of California Press
    • G. E. von Grunebaum, "Introduction: The Cultural Function of the Dream as Illustrated by Classical Islam," in The Dream and Human Society ed. G. E. von Grunebaum and R. Caillois (Berkeley, Calif.: University of California Press, 1966), 3-22;
    • (1966) The Dream and Human Society , pp. 3-22
    • von Grunebaum, G.E.1
  • 20
    • 85009406866 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Sara Sviri, Dreaming Analyzed and Recorded: Dreams in the World of Medieval Islam, in Dream Cultures: Explorations in the Comparative History of Dreaming, ed. David Shulman and G. G. Strousma (New York: Oxford University Press, 1999), 252-73.
    • Sara Sviri, "Dreaming Analyzed and Recorded: Dreams in the World of Medieval Islam," in Dream Cultures: Explorations in the Comparative History of Dreaming, ed. David Shulman and G. G. Strousma (New York: Oxford University Press, 1999), 252-73.
  • 21
    • 0016681935 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Among the anthropologists who have paid attention to Muslim dreams are Vincent Crapanzano, Saints, Jnun, and Dreams: An Essay in Moroccan Ethnopsychology, Psychiatry 38 (1975): 145-59;
    • Among the anthropologists who have paid attention to Muslim dreams are Vincent Crapanzano, "Saints, Jnun, and Dreams: An Essay in Moroccan Ethnopsychology," Psychiatry 38 (1975): 145-59;
  • 22
    • 85009410438 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Katherine Ewing, Arguing Sainthood: Modernity, Psychoanalysis and Islam (Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 1997);
    • Katherine Ewing, Arguing Sainthood: Modernity, Psychoanalysis and Islam (Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 1997);
  • 23
    • 34248383092 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Curing Rites, Dreams and Domestic Politics in a Sumatran Society
    • and James Siegel, "Curing Rites, Dreams and Domestic Politics in a Sumatran Society," Glyph 3 (1997): 18-31.
    • (1997) Glyph , vol.3 , pp. 18-31
    • Siegel, J.1
  • 24
    • 34248344096 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • The Cleanest on Predestination: A Bit on Ibn Taymiyya
    • See, for instance, Leiden: E. J. Brill
    • See, for instance, Fritz Meier, "The Cleanest on Predestination: A Bit on Ibn Taymiyya," Essays on Islamic Piety and Mysticism (Leiden: E. J. Brill, 1999), 309-34.
    • (1999) Essays on Islamic Piety and Mysticism , pp. 309-334
    • Meier, F.1
  • 26
    • 85009389660 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • 'Abd al-Hakim al-'Afifi, al-Ahlam wa-l-kawabis: Tafsir 'ilmi wa-dini (Cairo: Dar al-Misriyya al-Lubnaniyya, 1993);
    • 'Abd al-Hakim al-'Afifi, al-Ahlam wa-l-kawabis: Tafsir 'ilmi wa-dini (Cairo: Dar al-Misriyya al-Lubnaniyya, 1993);
  • 27
    • 85009389662 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • 'Abd al-Mun'im Badr and Ahmad al-Sabahi, Tafsir al-ahlam al-dini wa-l-'ilmi (Cairo: Dar al-Sha'b, n.d.);
    • 'Abd al-Mun'im Badr and Ahmad al-Sabahi, Tafsir al-ahlam al-dini wa-l-'ilmi (Cairo: Dar al-Sha'b, n.d.);
  • 28
    • 85009389661 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • 'Ali al-Wardi, al-Ahlam bayna al-'ilm wa-l-'aqida (Cairo: Dar al-Kufan, 1994).
    • 'Ali al-Wardi, al-Ahlam bayna al-'ilm wa-l-'aqida (Cairo: Dar al-Kufan, 1994).
  • 29
    • 62649158408 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • These institutions and scholars obviously represent different perspectives. Here, I am simply pointing to a broader discursive shift and an intensified mistrust toward the dream's prophetic potential. An informative article on reformist skepticism toward dreams is Elizabeth Sirriyeh's Dreams of the Holy Dead: Traditional Islamic Oneirocriticism Versus Salafi Skepticism, Journal of Semitic Studies XLV, no. 1 (2000): 115-30.
    • These institutions and scholars obviously represent different perspectives. Here, I am simply pointing to a broader discursive shift and an intensified mistrust toward the dream's prophetic potential. An informative article on reformist skepticism toward dreams is Elizabeth Sirriyeh's "Dreams of the Holy Dead: Traditional Islamic Oneirocriticism Versus Salafi Skepticism," Journal of Semitic Studies XLV, no. 1 (2000): 115-30.
  • 30
    • 85009383849 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • An interesting primary source that also discusses Hasan al-Banna's take on dreams is Yusuf al-Qardawi, Mawqif al-Islam min al-ilham wa-l-kashf wa-l-ru'a wa min al-tama'im wa-l-kahana wa-l-raqa Beirut: al-Risala, 1996
    • An interesting primary source that also discusses Hasan al-Banna's take on dreams is Yusuf al-Qardawi, Mawqif al-Islam min al-ilham wa-l-kashf wa-l-ru'a wa min al-tama'im wa-l-kahana wa-l-raqa (Beirut: al-Risala, 1996).
  • 31
    • 85009423547 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • This anecdote is taken from Walter Benjamin, Dream Kirsch: Gloss on Surrealism, Selected Writings Cambridge, Mass, Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1996, 2:2-4, 4
    • This anecdote is taken from Walter Benjamin, "Dream Kirsch: Gloss on Surrealism," Selected Writings (Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1996), 2:2-4, 4.
  • 33
    • 85009389658 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Before appearing in book form, the dream stories were published in the magazine Nisf al-dunya. See Naguib Mahfouz, The Dreams (Cairo: American University of Cairo Press, 2005). In 1982 Mahfouz also published a collection of short stories entitled Ra'aytu fima yara al-na'im (I Saw as the Sleeper Sees), one of which includes a series of seventeen short dreams.
    • Before appearing in book form, the dream stories were published in the magazine Nisf al-dunya. See Naguib Mahfouz, The Dreams (Cairo: American University of Cairo Press, 2005). In 1982 Mahfouz also published a collection of short stories entitled Ra'aytu fima yara al-na'im (I Saw as the Sleeper Sees), one of which includes a series of seventeen short dreams.
  • 34
    • 34248393799 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Interview
    • 24-30 January
    • Naguib Mahfouz, "Interview," Al-Ahram Weekly, 24-30 January 2002.
    • (2002) Al-Ahram Weekly
    • Mahfouz, N.1
  • 35
    • 33749821352 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Signs of Truth: Enchantment, Modernity and the Dreams of Peasant Women
    • Michael Gilsenan, "Signs of Truth: Enchantment, Modernity and the Dreams of Peasant Women," Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 6 (2000): 597-615.
    • (2000) Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute , vol.6 , pp. 597-615
    • Gilsenan, M.1
  • 37
    • 0035538245 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • The Ethics of Listening: Cassette-Sermon Audition in Contemporary Egypt
    • 623-49
    • Charles Hirschkind, "The Ethics of Listening: Cassette-Sermon Audition in Contemporary Egypt," American Ethnologist 28 (2001): 623-49, 624.
    • (2001) American Ethnologist , vol.28 , pp. 624
    • Hirschkind, C.1
  • 38
    • 85009410439 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Talal Asad, The Idea of an Anthropology of Islam, Occasional Paper Series of the Center for Contemporary Studies, Georgetown University (Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University, Center for Contemporary Studies, 1984), 14.
    • Talal Asad, The Idea of an Anthropology of Islam, Occasional Paper Series of the Center for Contemporary Studies, Georgetown University (Washington, D.C.: Georgetown University, Center for Contemporary Studies, 1984), 14.
  • 39
    • 85009356099 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Salah al-Din al-Qusi, Alfiyyat Muhammad (Cairo: N.p., 2004), 267. All translations are mine unless otherwise noted.
    • Salah al-Din al-Qusi, Alfiyyat Muhammad (Cairo: N.p., 2004), 267. All translations are mine unless otherwise noted.
  • 41
    • 85009387474 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Al-Khidr (also Khadir) usually appears in green and is associated with a Qur'anic story (18:60-82). For details on the figure, see Peter Franke, Begegnung mit Khidr: Quellenstudie zum Imaginären im Traditionellen Islam (Beirut: Beiruter Texte and Studien, 2000).
    • Al-Khidr (also Khadir) usually appears in green and is associated with a Qur'anic story (18:60-82). For details on the figure, see Peter Franke, Begegnung mit Khidr: Quellenstudie zum Imaginären im Traditionellen Islam (Beirut: Beiruter Texte and Studien, 2000).
  • 42
    • 85009423550 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Qur'an 23:100, Muhammad Asad's translation.
    • Qur'an 23:100, Muhammad Asad's translation.
  • 43
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    • Dreams, the Blind and the Semiotics of the Biographical Notice
    • 137-62
    • Fedwa Malti-Douglas, "Dreams, the Blind and the Semiotics of the Biographical Notice," Studia Islamica 51 (1980): 137-62, 159.
    • (1980) Studia Islamica , vol.51 , pp. 159
    • Malti-Douglas, F.1
  • 44
    • 0012629966 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • For details on eschatological beliefs in the Islamic tradition, see, Albany, N.Y, State University of New York Press
    • For details on eschatological beliefs in the Islamic tradition, see Jane Smith and Yvonne Haddad, The Islamic Understanding of Death and Resurrection (Albany, N.Y.: State University of New York Press, 2002)
    • (2002) The Islamic Understanding of Death and Resurrection
    • Smith, J.1    Haddad, Y.2
  • 45
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    • Concourse between the Living and the Dead in Islamic Eschatological Literatures
    • and Jane Smith, "Concourse between the Living and the Dead in Islamic Eschatological Literatures," History of Religions 19 (1979): 224-36.
    • (1979) History of Religions , vol.19 , pp. 224-236
    • Smith, J.1
  • 47
    • 85009423549 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • I am drawing on Foucault's concept of authorship. Michel Foucault, What is an Author? Language, Counter-Memory, Practice: Selected Essays and Interviews (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1977), 113-38.
    • I am drawing on Foucault's concept of authorship. Michel Foucault, "What is an Author?" Language, Counter-Memory, Practice: Selected Essays and Interviews (Ithaca, N.Y.: Cornell University Press, 1977), 113-38.
  • 51
    • 85009421009 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Salah al-Din al-Qusi, Alfiyyat Muhammad, 260.
    • Salah al-Din al-Qusi, Alfiyyat Muhammad, 260.
  • 53
    • 85009356097 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • The case of Shaykh al-Qusi is also distinct from the founder of a Shadhiliyya order in Egypt during the 1920s. Although this founder himself was inspired by a vision, confirmatory visions played little or no role in his legitimization, which happened mostly through miracles. Michael Gilsenan, Saint and Sufi in Modern Egypt: An Essay in the Sociology of Religion Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1973, 20-35
    • The case of Shaykh al-Qusi is also distinct from the founder of a Shadhiliyya order in Egypt during the 1920s. Although this founder himself was inspired by a vision, confirmatory visions played little or no role in his legitimization, which happened mostly through miracles. Michael Gilsenan, Saint and Sufi in Modern Egypt: An Essay in the Sociology of Religion (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1973), 20-35.
  • 54
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    • Eine Auferstehung Mohammeds bei Suyūtī
    • See
    • See Fritz Meier, "Eine Auferstehung Mohammeds bei Suyūtī," Der Islam 62 (1985): 20-58.
    • (1985) Der Islam , vol.62 , pp. 20-58
    • Meier, F.1
  • 55
    • 85009421010 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Sahih al-Bukhari, 9, no. 123, 104. My translation. What exactly seeing the Prophet means, however, is debatable. The famous dream interpreter Ibn Sirin (d. 728) argued that it is only really the Prophet if his appearance in the dream corresponds precisely to what the Prophet actually looked like. Ibn Sirin would thus make dreamers describe the Prophet's appearance, and if their description did not correspond to the Prophet's true image, the dream would fall into the category of confused, meaningless dreams (adghāth). The dream interpreter al-Nabulusi (d. 1731), by contrast, held that the Prophet is always seen depending on the condition of the dreamer.
    • Sahih al-Bukhari, vol. 9, no. 123, 104. My translation. What exactly seeing the Prophet means, however, is debatable. The famous dream interpreter Ibn Sirin (d. 728) argued that it is only really the Prophet if his appearance in the dream corresponds precisely to what the Prophet actually looked like. Ibn Sirin would thus make dreamers describe the Prophet's appearance, and if their description did not correspond to the Prophet's true image, the dream would fall into the category of confused, meaningless dreams (adghāth). The dream interpreter al-Nabulusi (d. 1731), by contrast, held that the Prophet is always seen depending on the condition of the dreamer.
  • 56
    • 85009389663 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Sahih al-Bukhari, 9, nos. 165, 167, 134ff.
    • Sahih al-Bukhari, vol. 9, nos. 165, 167, 134ff.
  • 57
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    • Mass Higher Education and Religious Imagination in Contemporary Arab Societies
    • On the notion of a new Muslim reading public see, for example
    • On the notion of a new Muslim reading public see, for example, Dale Eickelman, "Mass Higher Education and Religious Imagination in Contemporary Arab Societies," American Ethnologist 19, no. 4 (1992): 1-13;
    • (1992) American Ethnologist , vol.19 , Issue.4 , pp. 1-13
    • Eickelman, D.1
  • 59
    • 34248399885 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • The Birth of Tradition and Modernity in 18th and 19th Century Islamic Culture - The Case of Printing
    • Reinhard Schulze, "The Birth of Tradition and Modernity in 18th and 19th Century Islamic Culture - The Case of Printing," Culture and History 16 (1997): 29-71;
    • (1997) Culture and History , vol.16 , pp. 29-71
    • Schulze, R.1
  • 61
    • 85009414188 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Qur'an, 26:224. Muhammad Asad's translation.
    • Qur'an, 26:224. Muhammad Asad's translation.
  • 62
    • 0002222921 scopus 로고
    • The Death of the Author
    • New York: Hill and Wang
    • Roland Barthes, "The Death of the Author," Image. Music. Text (New York: Hill and Wang, 1977), 142-69, 146.
    • (1977) Image. Music. Text , vol.142 -69 , pp. 146
    • Barthes, R.1
  • 63
    • 84979326172 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • The term wahy in the Qur'an generally refers to a putting in the heart of, prompting or inspiring. See Richard Bell, Muhammad's Visions, The Moslem World XXIV (1934): 145-54.
    • The term wahy in the Qur'an generally refers to a "putting in the heart of," "prompting" or "inspiring." See Richard Bell, "Muhammad's Visions," The Moslem World XXIV (1934): 145-54.
  • 64
    • 85009376517 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Already in Ibn al-Hajj's Madkhal, written in the 14th century, and in Nabulusi's (d. 173 1) famous dream manual. See also Katz, Dreams, Sufism, and Sainthood, 220.
    • Already in Ibn al-Hajj's Madkhal, written in the 14th century, and in Nabulusi's (d. 173 1) famous dream manual. See also Katz, Dreams, Sufism, and Sainthood, 220.
  • 65
    • 85009373438 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • For a contemporary discussion of this question, see 'Ali Gum'a, Mada hujjiyat al-ru'yā 'inda al-usuliyyin (Cairo: Dar al-Nahar, 2002).
    • For a contemporary discussion of this question, see 'Ali Gum'a, Mada hujjiyat al-ru'yā 'inda al-usuliyyin (Cairo: Dar al-Nahar, 2002).
  • 66
    • 85009410441 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • On the shatahāt, see Carl W. Ernst, Words of Ecstasy in Sufism (Albany, N.Y.: State University of New York Press, 1985),
    • On the shatahāt, see Carl W. Ernst, Words of Ecstasy in Sufism (Albany, N.Y.: State University of New York Press, 1985),
  • 67
    • 85009373583 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • and on the hadīth qudsī, William A. Graham, Divine Word and Prophetic Word in Early Islam: A Reconsideration of the Sources with Special Reference to the Divine Saying or Hadith Quasi (The Hague: Mouton, 1977).
    • and on the hadīth qudsī, William A. Graham, Divine Word and Prophetic Word in Early Islam: A Reconsideration of the Sources with Special Reference to the Divine Saying or Hadith Quasi (The Hague: Mouton, 1977).
  • 68
    • 85009414187 scopus 로고    scopus 로고
    • Sahih al-Bukhari, 1, book 4, no. 140. My emphasis.
    • Sahih al-Bukhari, vol. 1, book 4, no. 140. My emphasis.
  • 69
    • 3042771069 scopus 로고
    • New York: Pantheon Books
    • Maxine Rodinson, Muhammad (New York: Pantheon Books, 1980).
    • (1980) Muhammad
    • Rodinson, M.1


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