1.9.7 - Shaykh Muhyiddin and other Sufi Ways

As we introduced above about Sufism in general, many scholars make the same mistake by considering that Shaykh Muhyiddin Ibn al-Arabi had been influenced by other intellectual and philosophical doctrines, such as modern Platonism and othersfootnote{See, for example, the investigation of Abu al-Ula Afifi for the book of the Bezels of Wisdom, Dar al-Kitab al-Arabi, Beirut: 2002. See his prolonged introduction and extended comments.. There is no doubt that there is some similarity between the sciences of the Great Shaykh and some of these doctrines, but this does not mean that he was influenced by them, because it has been proven by his words that he does not write from his own thought, but from what Allah has taught him through direct inspiration. In the Meccan Revelations, he says:

I speak only by way of permission, and I will stop by the limit set for me, the composition of this and other books of us do not follow the course of authoring, and we do not follow the course of the authors. Each author is under his own choice, although they are actually driven to choose, or they may be under their knowledge, so they may broadcast what they want and hold when they want, or according to the issue they are covering, so that they can make it clear. In our composition, we are not like that at all, but our hearts are on the door of the divine presence, watching for what the door reveal to them, poor and free of all knowledge. If they are asked anything in such state, they will not even hear, because they lost the sense, but whatever emerged from behind the veil they will commence and write it according to the limits set for them. [Futuhat: I.59]

In any case, this does not mean that Shaykh Muhyiddin did not read the other books, although in fact he never studied anything except the Koran and the Hadith, as we will see in the following chapter. He had never done any formal reading in the theoretical sciences such as philosophy and jurisprudence, or others.

As for the other Sufi doctrines, Shaykh Muhyiddin was also not affected by any of them, in the sense that he did not adhere to any particular doctrine. Again, there is no doubt that he followed the general rule of the people of God, such as practicing commemoration, asceticism, seclusion or solitude, and other known methods in the Way of Sufism. As we will see in the following chapter, Shaykh Muhyiddin, may Allah be pleased with him, has already gained the opening before any contemplation, so he did not follow the Way of Sufism to start with, and he did not go through the long stages of commitment and devotion usually followed by the worshipers until they reach the opening. Hor him, it was the opposite, because he was sought before being a seeker.

Nevertheless, the Greatest Shaykh, was educated by the well-known mystics of his time, as we will mention them shortly in the second chapter, but he was not much affected by any former Sufis, although he often quoted their words. This is in contrast to what Asin Plathius attempted to prove in his books that Shaykh Muhyiddin was influenced by the Sufi schools that were prevalent in Andalusia, such as Almeria school, or by Ibn Masarra (269/883-319/931), although he sometimes cites his words.