Sophia: The Journal of Traditional Studies

In this thought-provoking issue of Sophia, internationally renowned author and authority in Islamic Studies Seyyed Hossein Nasr discusses the many aspects of the spiritual dimension of Islam. Drawing upon his profound understanding of the French Islamic scholar Henry Corbin, Tom Cheetham, in his "The Test of the Veil," eloquently traces a path through the perilous alternations of darkness and light we face in this life. Acclaimed authority on numerology and harmonics Ernest McClain, in "Children of Abraham," posits that, from an ancient musical perspective, the tension among Jews, Christians and Muslims can be traced in part to the effort of Bible authors to illuminate three very different aspects of the Deity. In "Sketching the Perennial Religion," Patrick Laude writes with deep understanding of the metaphysical and spiritual reality at the core of traditional religions to which this term refers. Other articles include John Herlihy's "Elixir of the Heart," Charles Christopher's "The Purposes of Time," Michelle Kimball's "Shaykh Ahmadou Bamba's Nonviolent Jihad of the Pen," and "Esoterism and Exoterism in the Sermon on the Mount" by Mateus Soares de Azevedo.