The New Encyclopedia of Islam

Rating:
Summary: A Treasure
Review: Cyril Glasse has produced a treasury of encyclopedic definitions which explore concepts within the Islamic tradition with a depth unknown by your common Islamist or scholar. His treatment of such topics as the doctrine of al-hadarat al-ilayhiyyah al-khams (the five Divine presences) and wahdat al-wujud (unity of being) reach the profundity and majesty of such master metaphysicians as Frithjof Schuon and Seyyed Hussein Nasr.
He also discusses almost every relevant sects and school of thought with brilliant tree diagrams showing how and when certain movements broke away from more "orthodox" positions, etc...
I have found very few works which even touch the metaphysical dimensions of Islam as this one has. Mr. Glasse is certainly within the realm of the Perennial Philosophy (his articulations are certainly Schuonian) when he discusses the thought of key figures such as Ibn Arabi and Suhrawardi.
As the reviewer above mentioned, this work will have you pouring over its entries for hours, as one entery lead you to another. Even if you know the defintion of a certain topic it is enjoyable to read Mr. Glasse's insightful take on the matter. I recommend this for anyone interested in Islam, specialist or non-specialist.
In 'Sufi Rituals' (2000, Curzon Press) Ian Netton (author) cites the opinion of Dr. Heshem El-Essawy who criticizes this work in the following way: 'Like many converts from the excessively materialistic society in the West, Mr Glasse seems more attacted to the excessively spiritual mysticism of Sufism. In fact, the book reads more like a Who's Who of the Sufi World than anything else. I have a problem with Sufism: one can enjoy the trip, but the higher you fly, the more detached you get from the ground.'
Dr. El-Essawy's comments reflect a very superficial understanding of the dimensionality of Islam. First he seeks to categorize the author as some sort of beguiled Western admirer of Sufism as to discredit the thoroughly researched work. Then he goes even further and states that Sufism is excessively spiritual. I wonder what standard he is judging with here and what kind of 'spirituality' he would deem normative. Then Dr. El-Essawy states that Sufism takes you away from the ground, which is about as vague a statement as one can imagine. What does he mean by ground? Does he mean the conceptualization of reality that he ascribes to, or is limited to? All in all this criticism represents the short-sightedness of those self-appointed spokesmen for Islam who wish to limit the expression of it's doctrine and truth to some sort of mundane religious institution. Glasse's work represents the substance of Islam in the sense that Sufism constitutes the esoteric dimension of the Islamic teaching. One can pick up any encyclodedia on Islam which focus on mundane aspects like the culture and history and the like, but Glasse's work is unique in that it'f focus is on the metaphysical doctrine's at the heart of the Prophet's teaching.
One criticism I can level at this work is that it sometimes engages in Sunni polemics, which is tiresome and unworthy of its scope.

Rating:
Summary: The New Encyclopedia Of Islam
Review: First of all, I'd like to say "BRAVO" and "EXCELLENT JOB" to the Author and international lecturer Mr. Cyril Glasse.

I used the 1989 edition to find some information about a few entries. I thought i'll just find the entries, read about them, and close the book. But it didn't happen. Each enrty lead me to other entries which were more interesting and so on.

I really enjoyed every second I spent using this encyclopedia. That's what I call a "quality time". That is because I am interested in comparative religion and I like reading about Christianity, Judaism, Freemasonry, and Islam. And this is a very nice addition to my small library of cool books.

Highly recommended...