The Book of Wisdoms: Kitab Al-Hikam (A Collection of Sufi Aphorisms)

Shaykh Ibn ‘Ata’illah al-Iskandari (d. 709/1309) lived in Egypt during the reign of the Mamluks. Originally from Alexandria, he moved to Cairo, where his professional life involved teaching Sacred Law in various institutions including the Al-Azhar Mosque. He also led a concurrent existence as a Master for disciples of Islamic spirituality. The Hikam is his principal work, one that has attracted universal approval from his own time up to the present day.

Shaykh ‘Abdullah Gangohi (d. 1329/1921) was a teacher in various seminaries in the Indian Sub-Continent, during an era of great academic and spiritual achievement in the region. His main area of expertise was the Arabic language, and some of his works have become part of the core syllabus in ­numerous seminaries. He took the spiritual path from the famous hadith scholar and Sufi master Mawlana Khalil Ahmad Saharanpuri (d. 1346/1927), who instructed him to write this commentary and eventually made him a master of the path in his own right.

Victor Danner (d. 1410/1990) was an American academic noted for his beautiful translation of the Hikam. He taught various subjects, including the Arabic Language, Classical Arabic Literature, and Sufism, at Indiana University.