The back cover sheds light of its contents.Ĭonsidered to be the spiritual last will and testament of al-Ghazali, Letter to the Disciple is a summary of the spiritual teachings of he who was regarded as the ‘Proof of Islam’. Written towards the end of his life, Letter to a Disciple was composed in response to the request by a disciple for the master to write down a few pages, a summary of all his teachings.

The main ideas running throughout the work is on acquiring knowledge which is of spiritual benefit, purifying the intention, and acting on the basis of acquired knowledge. Referring extensively to the example of the Prophet and to that of the early Sufis, al-Ghazali gives us a work of great depth, beauty and simplicity. This new translation is presented here as a bilingual English-Arabic edition.

The first few pages of the book summarizes the intent of the disciple: The Arabic text is fully vocalised and the whole book is therefore suitable as a reader for students of Arabic. Know that one of the advanced students devoted himself to the service of the master, the Imam, the Ornament of Religion and Proof of Islam, Abu Hamid ibn Muhammad al-Ghazali (May God sanctify his spirit) and occupied himself with the acquisition and study of knowledge under him, until he mastered the details of the sciences and filled out the good qualities of the soul. Then one day he considered his situation, and it occurred to him, ‘I have studied various kinds of science, and I have spent my life learning and mastering them. As God’s Messenger (God bless him and give him peace) said, ‘O God, I take refuge in Thee from knowledge which is not useful!.’ I now ought to find out which kind will be of use to me on the morrow, to keep my company in my grave, and those which are not of use to me, so that I may give them up.

The first letter is very unique, embodying the humility of Imam al-Ghazali and his reverence for the Beloved of Allah, the Noble Prophet (peace be upon him): This thought persisted to the point that he wrote to the honourable master, the Proof of Islam, Muhammad al-Ghazali (may God the Exalted be merciful to him), seeking a ruling, asking questions, and requesting both advice and a prayer, even though the works of the master such as The Revival [of the Religious Sciences (Ihya Ulum al-din) and others contain the answers to my questions, what I want is for the master to write down what I need in a few pages to be with me for the rest of my life, and I will act in accordance with what is in them during my term, if God the Exalted wills.’ So the master wrote him this reply, and God knows best.

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