Al-Ghazali on the Manners Related to Eating: Book XI of the Revival of the Religious Sciences (Ihya Ulum Al-Din) (Ihya’ ‘Ulum al-Din)

DescriptionThe eleventh chapter of the Revival of the Religious Sciences begins the section dealing with man and society. In this volume, concentrating on the manners relating to eating, Ghazali first discusses what a person must uphold when eating by himself: that the food is lawful, that both the person and the surroundings should be clean, that one must be content with what is available, and how the person should conduct himself while eating and after eating. Ghazali then proceeds to discuss eating in company and says that to all the above should be added the necessity of courtesy, conversation and the proper presentation of food. Finally, Ghazali expounds the virtues of hospitality and generosity and the conduct of the host as well as that of the guest.Other topics that are discussed are: abstention from food, fasting and general health.In this new edition, the Islamic Texts Society has included a translation of Imam Ghazali’s own Introduction to the Revival of the Religious Sciences which gives the reasons that caused him to write the work, the structure of the whole of the Revival, and places each of the chapters in the context of the others.Table of ContentsWhat is Necessary for a Person Eating AloneAdditional Manners of Eating when in CompanyManners to Be Adopted when Presenting FoodThe Manners of HospitalityA Section Combining Miscellaneous Good Manners and Legal ProhibitionsAppendix I: Persons Cited in TextIndex to Qur’anic QuotationsBibliographyGeneral IndexAuthors BiographyAbu Hamid Muhammad Al-Ghazali (1058-111), theologian, logician, jurist and mystic, was born and died in Tus in Central Asia, but spent much of his life lecturing at Baghdad or leading the life of a wandering dervish. His most celebrated work, Revival of the Religious Sciences, has exercised a profound influence on Muslim intellectual history by exploring the mystical significance of the practices and beliefs of Islamic orthodoxy, earning him the title of Hujjat-al-Islam, the Proof of Islam.Denys Johnson-Davies is a well-known translator having published more than twenty-five volumes of short stories. He is the joint translator of “Forty Hadith” and “Forty Hadith Qudsi.”