Nuh Ha Mim Keller
Encyclopedia
Nuh Ha Mim Keller is an American Muslim
translator of Islam
ic books and a specialist in Islamic law
, as well as being authorised by Abd al-Rahman al-Shaghouri
as a sheikh
in sufism
in the Shadhili
Order. He is one of the foremost Muslim theologians and experts on Sufism in the West.
.
He studied philosophy
and Arabic
at the American University of Chicago
, located in Chicago
, Illinois
, and the American University of California, Los Angeles
, located in Los Angeles
, California
. Keller converted to Islam
from Christianity
in 1977.
manual of Shariah. It is the first Islamic legal work in a European language to receive the certification of Al-Azhar University
. This translation has led to this work becoming influential among Western Muslims.
Nuh Ha Mim Keller possesses ijazas, or "certificates of authorisation", in Islamic jurisprudence from sheikhs in Syria
and Jordan
.
His other works include:
In addition to the above, he has produced the following books in Arabic:
He has also written numerous articles and is a regular contributor to Islamica Magazine
and the website masud.co.uk.
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
translator of Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic books and a specialist in Islamic law
Sharia
Sharia law, is the moral code and religious law of Islam. Sharia is derived from two primary sources of Islamic law: the precepts set forth in the Quran, and the example set by the Islamic prophet Muhammad in the Sunnah. Fiqh jurisprudence interprets and extends the application of sharia to...
, as well as being authorised by Abd al-Rahman al-Shaghouri
Abd al-Rahman al-Shaghouri
Abd al-Rahman al-Shaghouri عبد الرحمن الشاغوري was a Syrian Sufi master of the Hashimi-Darqawi branch of the Shadhili tariqa, as well as poet, textile worker, and trade unionist. Born in Homs in 1912, he was soon orphaned and moved to Damascus with his brother...
as a sheikh
Sheikh
Not to be confused with sikhSheikh — also spelled Sheik or Shaikh, or transliterated as Shaykh — is an honorific in the Arabic language that literally means "elder" and carries the meaning "leader and/or governor"...
in sufism
Sufism
Sufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...
in the Shadhili
Shadhili
The Shadhili Tariqa is a Sufi order of Sunni Islam founded by Abul Hasan Ali ash-Shadhili. Followers of the Shadhiliya are known as Shadhilis....
Order. He is one of the foremost Muslim theologians and experts on Sufism in the West.
Early life, education and religious conversion
Keller was born in 1954 in the Northwestern United StatesNorthwestern United States
The Northwestern United States comprise the northwestern states up to the western Great Plains regions of the United States, and consistently include the states of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, to which part of southeast Alaska is also sometimes included...
.
He studied philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
and Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
at the American University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
, located in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, and the American University of California, Los Angeles
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles is a public research university located in the Westwood neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, USA. It was founded in 1919 as the "Southern Branch" of the University of California and is the second oldest of the ten campuses...
, located in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Keller converted to Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
from Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
in 1977.
Books
His English translation of Umdat al-Salik, Reliance of the Traveller, (Sunna Books, 1991) is a Shafi'iShafi'i
The Shafi'i madhhab is one of the schools of fiqh, or religious law, within the Sunni branch of Islam. The Shafi'i school of fiqh is named after Imām ash-Shafi'i.-Principles:...
manual of Shariah. It is the first Islamic legal work in a European language to receive the certification of Al-Azhar University
Al-Azhar University
Al-Azhar University is an educational institute in Cairo, Egypt. Founded in 970~972 as a madrasa, it is the chief centre of Arabic literature and Islamic learning in the world. It is the oldest degree-granting university in Egypt. In 1961 non-religious subjects were added to its curriculum.It is...
. This translation has led to this work becoming influential among Western Muslims.
Nuh Ha Mim Keller possesses ijazas, or "certificates of authorisation", in Islamic jurisprudence from sheikhs in Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
.
His other works include:
- Sea Without Shore: A Manual of the Sufi Path, an extensive treatment of the science of tasawwuf. It is an expansion of an earlier work entitled Tariqa Notes (of which it has replaced), which comprises the second part of the book. In addition, this work includes biographies of five accomplished Sufis that the author met, along with a series of articles in question/answer format providing answers to contemporary philosophical problems.
- Al-Maqasid: Imam Nawawi's Manual of Islam, a translation of a concise manual of Shafi'i fiqh.
- EvolutionEvolutionEvolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
Theory in Islam.
- A Port in the Storm: A Fiqh Solution to the QiblaQiblaThe Qiblah , also transliterated as Qibla, Kiblah or Kibla, is the direction that should be faced when a Muslim prays during salah...
of North America, a detailed study of the most sound position on which direction North American Muslims should face to pray.
- The Sunni Path: A Handbook of Islamic Belief.
In addition to the above, he has produced the following books in Arabic:
- Awrad al-Tariqa al-Shadhiliyya, which is primarily a collection of the most frequently recited litanies in the Shadhili Sufi order, done in a hand-written calligraphic script of which two editions have been published. It also has been produced into a bi-lingual translation entitled "Invocations of the Shadhili Order", which Nuh Keller has himself translated.
- Dala'il al-KhayratDala'il al-KhayratDala'il al-Khayrat or Dalaail u'l Khayraat Wa Shawaariq u'l Anwaar Fee Zikri's Salaat Alan Nabiyyi'l Mukhtaar is a famous collection of prayers for Islamic prophet Muhammad, which was written by the Moroccan Sunni Sufi and Islamic Scholar Muhammad al-Jazuli...
, a classic collection of prayers upon the Prophet Muhammad (known as commonly as durood) originally compiled by Muhammad al-JazuliMuhammad al-JazuliSidi Muhammad ibn Sulayman al-Jazuli al-Simlali , often known as "Imam al-Jazuli", was a Moroccan Sufi leader of the Berber tribe of the Jazulah. He is especially famous for compiling the Dala'il al-Khayrat, an extremely popular Muslim prayer book...
, which through the comparison of ninety-five different manuscripts, is the most authenticated copy that has been produced in the modern world. It has also been done in a hand-written calligraphy.
He has also written numerous articles and is a regular contributor to Islamica Magazine
Islamica Magazine
Islamica Magazine was a quarterly magazine in the United States with editorial offices in Amman, Jordan, Cambridge, MA and London, UK., dedicated to presenting various perspectives and opinions on Islam and the Muslim world...
and the website masud.co.uk.
See also
- Ahmad al-AlawiAhmad al-AlawiAhmad al-Alawi , , was the founder of a popular modern Sufi order, the Darqawiyya Alawiyya, a branch of the Shadhiliyya.-Biography:...
- List of University of California, Los Angeles people
- List of University of Chicago alumni
- Muhammad al-Arabi al-Darqawi
- Paul Ricœur
- ShadhiliShadhiliThe Shadhili Tariqa is a Sufi order of Sunni Islam founded by Abul Hasan Ali ash-Shadhili. Followers of the Shadhiliya are known as Shadhilis....
Writings and speeches
- The Shadhili Tariqa
- Shadhili Teachings
- A number of articles and audio-lectures by Nuh Keller on masud.co.uk