Rel/CompLit 251
COMPARATIVE MYSTICAL LITERATURE
INSTRUCTOR: Michael A Sells, Office: Gest 201, ex.
1027
Time: T-Th 2:30-4:00, Room: Hall 106
(tentative)
A Study of Jewish, Islamic and Christian Mystical Literature, with an emphasis on the the Dominican Meister Eckhart (d. 1327), Beguine Mystics Hadewijch of Antwerp and Margarete Porete (d. 1310), Sufi "Grand Master" Ibn 'Arabi (1165-1240), and the author of The Zohar, Moses de Léon (d. 1305).
Each of the three traditions will be treated in a separate section of the course. We will not engage in extended comparisons among the three traditions (we will have plenty to do with what we have), but the similarities and contrasts will inform the course. The tradition of apophatic mysticism (sometimes called negative theology) will be the concern of this course and we will focus on the 12th and 13th centuries CE when apophatic mysticism reached its culmination. We will on close readings of primary texts and the discussion, in class, of those texts. For this reason, it is a course requirement to have a copy of the required books and to bring the relevant book to class when it is being discussed (see supplementary page on books).
Requirements:
Required Texts:
Recommended Texts:
Preliminary Syllabus
Reading Assigments are usually given by week, not by class day. Weekly assignments are expected to be read read by Tuesday. Class discussions on Tuesday will make clear which texts need to be reviewed for discussion on Thursday. Thus, for example, the readings for the third week 9/18, 9/21 should all be read by class on Tuesday, the 18th.
Week 1 (9/4, 9/6): Introduction, The Apophatic Mystical Tradition in Judaism, Christianity and Islam, Meister Eckhart. Eckhart.
Week 2 (9/11, 9/13): The Birth of the Son in the Soul: Eckhart and Christian Apophatic Mysticism
Week 3 (9/20): Nobility and Poverty of the Spirit. On 9/18, Tuesday, there will be no class.
Week 4 (9/25, 9/27): Beatrice of Nazareth, Hadewijch of Antwerp, Hadewijch II (Pseudo-Hadewijch?)
Week 5 (10/2, 10/4): Marguerite Porete and The Mirror of the Simple Souls
Week 6a (10/9): Review
Week 6b (10/11): Introduction to Ibn `Arabi and the Sufi Tradition
Happy Vacation, Fall Break: Week of 10/16, 10/18)
Week 7 (10/23, 10/25): The Polished Mirror and the Complete Human Being (al-Insan al-Kamil)
Week 8 (10/30, 11/1): The Heart Receptive of Every Form
Week 9 (11/6, 11/8): Human and Divine Interpermeation (takhallul)
Recommended: Bezels of Wisdom, Isaac and Ishmael 96-110
Week 10 (11/13, 11/15): Ecstatic and Theurgic Kabbalah
Week 11 (11/20): American Academy of Religion Conference, no class, Readings:
11/22: Happy Thanksgiving
Week 12 (11/27, 11/29): Sefirot and the Dynamic Polarity of Male and Female
Week 13 (12/4, 12/6): Healing the World (Tikkun)
Thursday, 12/6: The times (1 hour) *** TAKE HOME ESSAY ON THE ZOHAR *** will be distributed in class.
Week 14 (12/11, 12/13): Class discussions, Review, Theoretical
and Comparative Remarks, and Discussion of Final Paper.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Does the final paper have to take up more than
one tradition.
A: No. In fact, it is preferable, in the vast majority of cases, to
focus upon one of the three traditions'
Q: Is regular class participation really
required
Y: Yes. If you miss several classes or consecutive classes, send me
an email explaining why.
Q: What is the policy on extenstions.
A: No extensions except in cases of emergency ( such a serious
illness, family emergency), attested to by a note or call from the
dean. All other late work will be penalized (according to the wisdom
of the instructor). No oral discussions with students will take place
on extenuating circumstances. If there are extenuating circumstances
(which may mitigate but not eliminate the penalty for non-emergency
(as defined above) late work, the explanation should be made in
written form, by email or campus mail.
All books required or recommended for my classes are available at the Haverford College bookstore. If the book is not available, please contact me immediately, through email or by mentioning the problem in class.
Class books make up only a tiny percentage of the overall cost of a course at Haverford, but the book budget appears to be one of the only areas where a student has some sense of control. As an instructor, I am responsible each year to turn into the bookstore manager a list of required books and a list of recommended books. In general I attempt:
A) To keep the cost of books to the absolute minimum needed
B) To avoid expensive general textbooks published by large commercial firms
C) To require only books that are absolutely needed for the course and also have enduring value
D) To avoid driving the already harried bookstore folks crazy with changes or with orders of books that are not purchased
E) To avoid ripping off authors and publishers by abusing photocopiers
F) At the same time, to make a photocopy packet of small selections from a number of books, selections needed for the class. Unfortunately, the religion department has no budget to provide subsidize such reading packets. There we must charge students for the cost of the packets. I hate charging anybody for anything at anytime anywhere. But if we do not requirement reimbursements, we then go over our budget and get into trouble with the authorities.
For complex institution reasons, courses at Haverford do not have a reserve shelf at Bryn Mawr libraries (and vice-versa). I attempt to be particularly careful in assigning reserve readings. However, in some cases it is necessary to rely on reserves. In such cases, if a book is very important (such a Scholem's Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism in Comparative Mystical Literature), but not central enough to require purchase, I strongly recommend that Bryn Mawr students (and any other students) who find it inconvenient to use the reserve purchase the volume.
My courses are focused upon intensive readings of primary texts. For this reason books on the required list are, really, required. (Of course, sometimes we forget to bring a book or text to class, which is understandable and these remarks are directed only to those cases where a student does not in fact have a copy of the book at all). In the past, students who have tried to get by without a required book have seriously damaged their ability to get the most out of the course (along with their performance in the courses). For this reason, it is now a course requirement to have a copy of the books required for the class and to bring it to class during discussion. Using a library copy is risky, because it can be recalled at any time, leaving you a bad situation.
When there are multiple copies of a translation, only the translation listed on the syllabus is suitable for use in class. Otherwise, there is chaos in attempting to discuss a particular page or passage together as a class. Of course, consulting and comparing other translations outside of class is always encouraged.
Occasionally, I assign books authored by myself for courses. I consider it unethical for an instructor to profit from requiring students to purchase his book. An author of an academic book generally receives a royalty of about a dollar or two for each book sold. When books of mine are required, I donate the amount of royalties received (generally in the range of $25-$75) to charity. I therefore take no profit from books authored by myself when they are required readings.
It is almost impossible for an instructor to know whether the his book requirements are burdening the students financially more than is reasonable. For this reason, if the cost of books required for any of my courses exceeds the reasonable norm for a course, please let me know.
On of the most rewarding parts of my college experience took place after graduation. In some cases I had kept books that I had appreciated, had not (for a variety of reasons, including the depth and complexity of the book involved) fully exhausted my interest in it. When later, at a given moment I had a chance to reread the book, the reading experiences were somes at a level of particular depth and fascination. Clearly, one cannot move from place to place with an entire library, but I would personally recommend keeping a few such books to come back to in later years.