THE BOOK OF CONTEMPLATION: ISLAM AND THE CRUSADES PDF, EPUB, EBOOK Usamah Ibn Munqidh,Paul M. Cobb | 400 pages | 01 Oct 2008 | Penguin Books Ltd | 9780140455137 | English | London, United Kingdom Islam and the Crusades: The Writings of Usama ibn Munqidh by Usamah ibn Munqidh A treasure that could change the world. In search of The invaluable book View Product. The second volume in the internationally Finish This Book. One dark and stormy night, author Keri Smith found some strange scattered pages abandoned in a park. She collected and assembled them, trying to The Lucifer Gospel. Young archaeologist Finn Ryan and charismatic pilot and photographer Virgil Hilts are scouring the Sahara Young archaeologist Finn Ryan and charismatic pilot and photographer Virgil Hilts are scouring the Sahara for the long-lost tomb of an apostle. Michelangelo's Notebook. Life may imitate art While studying art history at New York University, brilliant While studying art history at New York University, brilliant and beautiful Finn Ryan makes a startling discovery: a Michelangelo drawing of a dissected corpse-supposedly from the artist's near-mythical notebook. But that very night, someone Monodies and On the Relics of Saints: The. The first Western autobiography since Augustine's Confessions, the Monodies is set against the backdrop of The first Western autobiography since Augustine's Confessions, the Monodies is set against the backdrop of the First Crusade and offers stunning insights into medieval society. As Guibert of Nogent intimately recounts his early years, monastic life, and the bloody uprising Mozart: A Life. A highly accessible initial foray into an astonishing, and inexhaustible, A highly accessible initial foray into an astonishing, and inexhaustible, subject. Elementary Secondary Higher Ed. Toggle navigation Higher Education. Download high-resolution cover. Introduction by Paul M. Translated by Paul M. Notes by Paul M. Add to Wish List. On sale Sep 30, Pages Add to cart Add to list Exam Copies. The Crusades as seen through the eyes of Muslims A significant contribution to the understanding of the medieval holy wars between Christians and Muslims, this volume brings together the best and most complete eyewitness account of the Crusades from the perspective of a medieval Muslim writer. Focusing on twelfth- century Arab aristocrat Usama ibn Munqidh's Book of Contemplation but also including extracts from The Book of the Staff and Kernels of Refinement , this volume offers a strikingly human portrayal of Islamic perspectives on day-to-day existence, warfare, and the curious European invaders. The Book of Contemplation For a better shopping experience, please upgrade now. Javascript is not enabled in your browser. Enabling JavaScript in your browser will allow you to experience all the features of our site. Learn how to enable JavaScript on your browser. NOOK Book. Usama ibn Munqidh was born on 4 July, in northern Syria. In the last decades of his life he concentrated on writing, collecting his scattered poems into a much-praised Diwan , but specialising in topical anthologies of poetry and prose like The Book of the Staff or Kernels of Refinement. Usama's last patron was the mighty sultan Saladin, to whom he intended his most famous work, the Book of Contemplation. He died in Damascus in Paul Cobb, Associate Professor of Arabic and Islamic History at the University of Pennsylvania, has been engaged on a long-term project involving Muslim views of the Crusades and the writings of Usama ibn Munqidh in particular. Home 1 Books 2. Add to Wishlist. Sign in to Purchase Instantly. Explore Now. Buy As Gift. Overview The volume comprises lightly annotated translation of a key medieval Arabic text that bears directly on the Crusades and Crusader society and the Muslim experience of them. Product Details About the Author. Related Searches. The Aztec Heresy. An ancient secret. A lost city. A treasure that could change the world. In search of I intentionally retain the inaccuracy. The siege lasted from 28 April until 31 May. So I rode out and reached Shayzar: The remainder of this passage is nearly illegible in the original and has vexed all editors and translators. My own translation is a compromise and mostly follows the readings of Samarrai p. But Gibb p. Miquel, p. As we shall see, Usama remained in Shayzar for the siege and then deserted Zangi and sought service in Damascus. Perhaps they were not major engagements. But the exact circumstances are very vague. See Cobb, pp. The fighting began on 23 September Al-Hafiz was overwhelmed by all this: Reading, with Miquel p. Ibn Masal was effectively in control of Fatimid affairs even before being named vizier. On him, see EI2, s. He was governor of Alexandria at this time. Go out to al-Hawf: That is, the eastern Delta region of Egypt, an area used by the rulers of Egypt to settle and recruit Arab tribesmen since early Islamic times. Nur al-Din: Nur al-Din Mahmud r. Gaza: A prominent town of southern Palestine, conquered by the Franks. Ascalon: A coastal town in southern Palestine. As it was located just a few kilometres north of Frankish-held Gaza, it was largely isolated except by sea. Dabiq was a town precise location unknown of the Nile Delta noted for its gold brocades and colourful linens. Ciclatoun Arabic siqlatun is an undefined luxury cloth, perhaps of silk and gold; Chaucer mentions it in the Tale of Sir Thopas. Squirrel-fur was a luxury imported from the northern steppes and much prized in the south. Dimyat is better known as Damietta, a principal town of the Delta that was, like Dabiq, renowned for its finely woven cloth. Mahri camels: The region of Mahra in southern Arabia was famed for its noble and swift camels, prized in battle. Or at least he is pretending to do so. In accordance with Islamic law, Muslims are allowed to shorten and combine prayers normally said at intervals throughout the day when travelling. The bridle certainly seems out of place in this list of treasure unless it is precious. The reader should take note that a single gold dinar weighed, in the ideal, about 4. Bosra: An ancient city Roman Bostra of the Hawran region of central Syria, km south of Damascus, the site of striking Roman ruins, including an amphitheatre that was used as a fortress in the Middle Ages. He was also the uncle of the future sultan Saladin. In this case, Usama uses the idiom out of a somewhat pretentious humility to avoid mentioning his own name in his text. It is not clear that Nur al-Din sent him with Usama out of ill- will, as Miquel p. But the exact location is never specified, leaving the exegetes to assign various locales. Usama is indulging in bravado here. Bayt Jibril: Better known as Bayt Jibrin, a small town about halfway between Gaza and Jerusalem, controlled by the Franks and, since , a base for the Frankish military order of the Knights Hospitaller. The castle there was built between and As for the unrest… it happened like this: On this confusing sequence of events, see Vie pp. Bilbays to defend the country from the Franks: Once the principal city of the eastern Delta, Bilbays was an important Fatimid garrison on the invasion route into and out of Palestine. They are here contrasted with the public chambers dar al-salam , where guests were received and lodged. Then the caliph ignored him… ropes: In this whole passage, the Arabic pronouns are indeterminate: it could well be Nasr, playing coy, who is ignoring the caliph. The use of the dual in the Arabic indicates two victims, one Abu al-Baqa, the other clearly Yusuf, who thus cannot have been decapitated see note above. Ibn Ruzzik: Governor in Upper Egypt who would become as Usama chronicles here the last of the truly powerful Fatimid viziers, holding the post from to On him and the events being described by Usama, see EI2, s. Barqiya: In the eastern part of Cairo, named after Barqa, the north African region where many of the troops came from. Victory Gate: Arabic Bab al-Nasr the principal north gate of the old city walls of Cairo, which still stands. Kum Afshin was about 15 km to the north of Cairo. This is the stunning canyon and area of badlands around Petra, in modern Jordan. Saddle-cloths could indeed be richly sewn and decorated for examples, see the medieval drawings of horsemen collected in Carole Hillenbrand, The Crusades: Islamic Perspectives London: Routledge, , pp. Even so, an embroidered cloth of one pound in weight would be very thin and unkind to its mount. Perhaps Usama refers solely to the weight of the gold used in the embroidery. Hitti, Memoirs, p. He fled to Syria, where Usama met him see below. He is not to be confused with a Ridwan prominent in the early history of the Crusades, Ridwan ibn Tutush, Seljuk lord of Aleppo. Salkhad: A fortified city of the Hawran region of central Syria, some km southeast of Damascus. Amin al-Dawla Gumushtagin al-Atabaki: Gumushtagin was lord of Salkhad and then Bosra beginning in despite Hitti, who misreads the name. Ridwan… putting it to siege: As Usama clarifies below, Ridwan has come to Baalbek seeking military aid from his fellow Fatimid officer in a bid to oust his enemies from Egypt. Here, Ridwan enlists the aid of Gumushtagin in his attempt to return to Egypt and seize power there contrary to what I stated in Cobb, p. Ridwan had returned to Cairo as Zangi was besieging Baalbek in It is thus five years since Ridwan was captured and imprisoned.