The principal sources used in this book are the Nahj al-balagha and the Ghurar al-hikam. The Nahj, by far the most important source of sayings, sermons, and letters of the Imam, was compiled by al-Sharif al-Radi (d. 406/1016), a renowned Shi‘i scholar of ‘Abbasid Baghdad.
The book begins with a Prologue in which the question of the authenticity of this work is discussed. The main body of the work consists of three chapters. The first, ‘Introducing Imam ‘Ali and his Spiritual Ethos’ was written specially for this publication, the two following chapters are expanded versions of conference papers: ‘A Sacred Conception of Justice in the Letter of Imam ‘Ali to Malik al-Ashtar’, and ‘Realisation through Remembrance: Imam ‘Ali and the Mystical Tradition of Islam’.
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