Chers Amis,
In an effort to help promote Sufism for Western Seekers: Path of the Spiritual Traveler in Everyday Life by Dr Stewart Bitkoff, a fellow contributor on the blog and a personal friend I am giving away 3 brand new copies of the paperback edition to three lucky readers who are willing to write a brief blurb on Amazon for the book. Just email me: Dave.FromtheBlog@gmail.com with the Subject Line: Sufism for Western Seekers and let me know if you would like a copy and I will set it up. Here is a brief Blurb I wrote for Amazon about the book.
My Amazon Review
It is often difficult for those with a sincere interest in Sufism to navigate through all the different opinions and views on what Sufism is and who is a real Sufi. In the West unfortunately it is all too common to simply reduce Sufism, a centuries old complex social, historical, religious, and cultural entity, down to either Mohammedan Mysticism or some ‘free-floating universalist cult free from religious trappings. While there are grains of truth in both these polarized assertions there is an entire world of experience and possibilities that few would be aware of if not for books like Sufism for the Western Seeker by Dr Stewart Bitkoff.
Moving forward from his previous award winning A Commuter’s Guide to Enlightenment , Spirituality and Practice ‘s Best Spiritual Books of 2008, Dr. Bitkoff gives us another rare gem. If I had to describe the book, its message and its approach I could do none better than to quote from Bahauddin Naqshband the eponymous Master of the Naqshbandi Sufi Way where he says: ” Today the doors of shaykh-hood are closed and the door of spiritual friendship has opened.” In this book Dr Bitkoff shares his life with us from a space of friendship. The question and answer/dialogue format of the book ropes us in and makes us a participant to this almost eternal exchange between the spiritual traveler and his guide. In doing so the readers gets to see Sufism in action within the context of a Western setting, which to me is extremely important because it shows that long exotic journeys and foreign terminology are not needed to live one’s spiritual longing. If we are open to the needs of the moment, as the author has so poignantly said in his many articles: we will find that we have been given enough for the journey. I highly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in Sufism, especially Western Seekers.
Related articles
- The Great Awakening by Dr. Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- Other Sufism for Western Seekers By Dr. Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- Everyday Spirituality: Life as Prayer by Dr Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- Path of the Spiritual Traveler in Every Day Life by Dr. Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- Higher Knowledge & Spiritual Experience: What to Buy? by Dr. Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- Going & Doing by Dr. Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- To Become a Sufi: Do I Need to Join a Sufi Order? by Dr. Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- Tears Along The Way By Dr. Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- Remember by Dr. Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- The Secret Protects Itself by Dr. Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- Healthy Activity: Antidote to Life Problems by Dr. Stewart Bitkoff (mycaravanofdreams.com)
- What should one do, Turn a blind eye ? – At what point is Spirituality more than Reading books? (mycaravanofdreams.com)
