Tales of the Dervishes: Teaching-stories of the Sufi Masters Over the Past Thousand Years, Idries Shah, Octagon Press Ltd, 1967, 0900860472, 9780900860478, 221 pages. A mysterious chest is buried unopened. A wondrous caravan brings fortune to a simple cobbler. An outcast princess creates a new life in the wilderness. Some of the 78 tales in this remarkable book first appeared in print over a thousand years ago; others are medieval classics. Yet each has a special relevance for us at the dawn of the 21st century. All are told with Idries Shah's distinctive wit and grace and the author's own commentary notes. These are teaching stories in the Sufi tradition. Those who probe beyond the surface will find multiple meanings to challenge assumptions and foster new ways of thinking and perceiving. Tales of the Dervishes is essential reading for anyone interested in Sufi thought, the significance and history of tales, or simply superb entertainment.. DOWNLOAD HERE The blind men and the elephant an old tale from the land of India, Lillian Fox Quigley, 1959, Social Science, 30 pages. Six blind men each feel a different part of the elephant and then try to describe what he is like.. A Perfumed Scorpion , Idries Shah, Oct 1, 2000, Philosophy, 193 pages. Using the powerful approach of classical teachers, Shah has crafted a contemporary teaching tool that blends a fastpaced look at today's world with the timeless teachings of .... The Pleasantries of the Incredible Mulla Nasrudin , Idries Shah, 1983, Philosophy, 169 pages. God's unruly friends dervish groups in the Islamic later middle period, 1200-1550, Ahmet T. Karamustafa, 1994, History, 159 pages. The Way of the Sufi , Idries Shah, 2004, Philosophy, 288 pages. Special Illumination The Sufi Use of Humour, Idries Shah, Jan 1, 1977, Humor, 64 pages. These lines by the great teacher and mystic Jalaludin Rumi indicate the many-faceted role of humor in Sufi teaching. Shah writes: "As a shock-applier and tension-releaser and .... Favorite Folktales from Around the World , Jane Yolen, 1988, Fiction, 498 pages. A one volume collection of 160 tales from over 40 cultures and traditions, containing both classics and lesser known tales.. The Exploits of the Incomparable Mulla Nasrudin , Idries Shah, 1983, Philosophy, 107 pages. Collected stories about a popular figure in the folklore of many Asian and European countries.. The Man And the Fox , Idries Shah, Jun 1, 2006, , 32 pages. Relates how a clever fox outwits the man who set a trap for him by promising him a chicken.. Quantum Theory , David Bohm, 1951, Science, 646 pages. This advanced undergraduate-level text presents the quantum theory in terms of qualitative and imaginative concepts, followed by specific applications worked out in .... Mystical Islam An Introduction to Sufism, Julian Baldick, 2000, Sufism, 208 pages. Sufism is Islam's principal mystical tradition. To its followers it provides the inner, esoteric or purely spiritual dimension of the faith. It is a centuries-old path to .... Fearless Girls, Wise Women, and Beloved Sisters Heroines in Folktales from Around the World, Kathleen Ragan, 1998, Fiction, 450 pages. Retells more than a hundred folktales form Europe, the Americas, Asia, the Pacific, Africa, and the Middle East that feature active heroines of all types.. The Commanding Self , Idries Shah, 1994, Philosophy, 332 pages. A mixture of primitive and conditioned responses, common to everyone, which inhibits and distorts human progress and understanding.. Wisdom of the Idiots , Idries Shah, Jan 1, 1989, Philosophy, 179 pages. A carefully chosen collection of illustrative anecdotes and stories used in Sufi teaching.. Knowing How to Know A Practical Philosophy in the Sufi Tradition, Idries Shah, 1998, , 343 pages. Contemporary esoteric systems almost invariably play on the desire of mankind to seek or acquire knowledge. Almost universally neglected in such systems are barriers-often .... Thinkers of the East Studies in Experientialism, Idries Shah, 1971, Philosophy, 198 pages. Drawn from teachings of more than a hundred sages from three continents, Thinkers of the East is a book of enormous breadth and depth, the impact and vitality of which is .... Reflections , Idries Shah, 1983, Social Science, 147 pages. This pocket-size collection of sayings and stories from real life, and from the author's observations of our mental processes, is a perfect gift book. It's contemporary, fun to .... A mysterious chest is buried unopened. A wondrous caravan brings fortune to a simple cobbler. An outcast princess creates a new life in the wilderness. Some of the 78 tales in this remarkable book first appeared in print over a thousand years ago; others are medieval classics. Yet, each has a special relevance for us on the eve of the 21st century. All are told with Idries Shah's distinctive wit and grace and the author's own commentary notes. These are teaching stories in the Sufi tradition. Those who probe beyond the surface will find multiple meanings to challenge assumptions and foster new ways of thinking and perceiving. As the urgency of our global situation becomes apparent, more and more readers are turning to the books of writer Idries Shah as a way to train new capacities and new ways of thinking. Shah has been described as "the most significant worker adapting classical spiritual thought to the modern world." His lively contemporary books have sold more than 15 million copies in 12 languages worldwide. They have been reviewed positively by The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Times (London), The Tribune, The Telegraph, and numerous other international journals and newspapers. "The most interesting books in the English language." New York Times The instrumental function of Shah's work is now well established among people from all walks of life. Stockbrokers, scientists, lawyers, managers, writers, physicians, and diplomats have found Shah's literature for human development "extraordinary." "It presents a blueprint of the human mental structure." Tales of the Dervishes was my first experience of Shah's works. People sometimes describe a book as "having changed their lives." This was my experience with Shah and more. The concept of a book that "does" something is not common to our culture. Shah has the abililty to place the reader in a "paralell" world as it were; a world where our typical expectations and assumptions about cause and effect no longer operate. It is a world organized at a more subtle yet powerful level. Shah's work introduces his reader to that world in ways the reader himself cannot imagine at the time. I highly recommend this, and Shah's others books. Tales of the Dervishes is just that, Sufi tales dating back almost 2000 years. Lovers of first-rate storytelling will find this collection especially enjoyable. These stories, many of them written by classical masters, have been masterfully retold by Shah in his usual elegant precise prose. However these engaging tales are also Sufi teaching-stories, specially constructed to impart and preserve Sufi concepts. Many of the stories in this collection are followed by brief comments by Shah adding historical perspective and/or insight to the particular purpose of the tale. As with everything Shah writes, these appealing stories keep delivering insights and entertainment even after many readings. They stand comparison in wit, construction and piquancy with the finest stories of any culture, yet their true function as Sufi teaching stories is so little known in the modern world that no technical or popular term exist to describe them. For centuries, dervish masters have instructed their disciples by means of these tales, which are held to convey powers of increasing perception unknown to the ordinary man. Shah was educated in both the East and West, by private tutors and through wide-ranging travel and personal encounters - the series of journeys which characterize Sufi education and development. In keeping with Sufi tradition, his life was essentially one of service. His knowledge and interests appeared limitless, and his activities and accomplishments took place in many different countries and in numerous fields of endeavor. Shah was Director of Studies of the Institute for Cultural Research, an educational organization sponsoring interdisciplinary and crosscultural studies of human thought; a founding member of the Club of Rome; a Governor of the Royal Humane Society and the Royal Hospital and Home for Incurables; and the founder of publishing house Octagon Press. Shah's landmark book, "The Sufis", invited readers to approach Sufi ideas and test them out. The evident and common sense made it clear that here was a sane, authoritative voice in the wilderness of the gobbledegookish mysticism of the sixties. The lively, contemporary books on traditional psychologies, literature, philosophy and Sufi thought that followed established a broad historical and cultural context for Sufi thought and action. These have so far sold over 15 million copies in 12 languages worldwide and have been awarded many prizes. They have been reviewed by The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Times, The Tribune, The Telegraph, and numerous other international journals and newspapers. In 1969, Idries Shah was awarded the Dictionary of International Biography's Certificate of Merit for Distinguished Service to Human Thought. Other honors included a Two Thousand Men of Achievement award (1971), Six First Prizes awarded by the UNESCO International Book Year (1972), and the International Who's Who in Poetry's Gold Medal for Poetry (1975). Stories that will shake your assumptions and strict belief in the established, conventional, trusted and safe relationship between cause and effect. These stories, if nothing else, open your mind to a different way of thinking. By doing that, it awakens parts of your brain that normally stay dormant. A fresh look at everyday occurrences, unquestioned practices and established thought-processes.