Papers by W. Sasson Chahanovich
Harvard Theological Review, 2021
Abstract of the Dissertation "Ottoman Eschatological Enthusiasm: Ps.-Ibn al-'Arabi's The Tree of ... more Abstract of the Dissertation "Ottoman Eschatological Enthusiasm: Ps.-Ibn al-'Arabi's The Tree of Nu'man as an Early Modern Islamic Esoteric Apocalypse in the Service of Empire" (Harvard University, 2021)
Jerusalem Studies in Arabic and Islam, 2020
In this essay, I will assess the motif of kissing and flirting at the Kaʿba and its sanctified en... more In this essay, I will assess the motif of kissing and flirting at the Kaʿba and its sanctified environs (e.g., al-Ṣafā, al-Marwa, Minā, al-Muzdalifah), specifically. I will also generally treat the employment of Islamic religious language (astaghfiru ʼllāh, ayyām ʿaẓīmat al-ḥurma), intimate spaces (miḥrāb, masjid), and symbols (al-ḥajar, al-maqām) in the articulation of (sensual) love in Umayyad Arabic ghazal poetry. This particular motif and subject matter can be observed for comparative purposes in several early prominent poets — e.g., Abū Nuwās (d. between 198/813 and 200/815) and Ibn al-Rūmī (ca. 283/896). For now, one is best served by approaching the problem chronologically. As a case study for examining the admixture of amorous activity and religious space, I herewith focus exclusively on the poetry of ʿUmar b. Abī Rabīʿa, the prince of the Ḥijāzī school of ghazal, as he praises, pursues, and even kisses women within the Kaʿba precinct.
Correspondences, 2019
This article addresses a desideratum in Islamic intellectual history concerning apocalyptic escha... more This article addresses a desideratum in Islamic intellectual history concerning apocalyptic eschatology. I propose to focus on the Islamic revelatory genre par excellence known as jafr which as a textual tradition comprises the fusion of eschatology and esotericism. As a case study, I have chosen to examine an Ottoman apocalypse known as The Tree of Nu'mān Concerning the Ottoman Empire (al-Shajara al-nu'māniyya fi al-dawla al-'uthmāniyya). This complex revelatory text was composed at some point in the late sixteenth or early seventeenth century and was pseudepigraphically attributed to Ibn al-ʿArabī (d. 1240), the "Great Doctor" (al-shaykh al-akbar) of Sufism. Importantly, The Tree of Nu'mān shows us that eschatological predictions were central to bolstering Ottoman imperial claims to universal sovereignty, this being an historical phenomenon that permeated Islamic dynasties following the collapse of the central Abbasid Caliphate in 1258. More specifically, end-of-times tractates like The Tree of Nu'mān highlight the reliance of revelatory propaganda on the esoteric sciences of lettrism (ʿilm al-ḥurūf) and astrology (ʿilm al-falak). With these two esoteric pillars, I argue that Pseudo-Ibn al-ʿArabī secured the validity and appeal of his pseudepigraphic apocalypse. A further important contribution of this essay is a new, critical definition of jafr that expands on previous scholarly attempts at understanding this immanently Islamic eschatological genre.
Essays and Commentary by W. Sasson Chahanovich
The coffee bean has come a long way from its humble beginnings in Ethiopia and Yemen, but seldom ... more The coffee bean has come a long way from its humble beginnings in Ethiopia and Yemen, but seldom does the average bibulous caffeine freak ponder its origins. Whether it is a “cup o’ joe” enjoyed in a cream-colored breakfast nook, an espresso del pomeriggio knocked back in a local bar tucked behind the Duomo, or a frothy finjan slowly sipped at the wharf while waiting for the next Bosporus ferry, around the world we all spend a lot of time drinking coffee. It seems, therefore, all the more pertinent in our first issue, “Idle Days,” to delve into the origins of one of the world’s favorite ways to savor those rare and precious pauses in the day.
Coffee is, arguably, a post-modern religion, at least for me. Levinsky 41, however, takes this ho... more Coffee is, arguably, a post-modern religion, at least for me. Levinsky 41, however, takes this holy rite to an entirely new level of religious devotion.
W.S. Chahanovich discusses the definition and interpretation of a single term – madaniyya – as it... more W.S. Chahanovich discusses the definition and interpretation of a single term – madaniyya – as it figured in Egypt's parliamentary debates about a new, post-revolutionary Egyptian constitution.
Conference Presentations by W. Sasson Chahanovich
Living in a Magic World: Inner Lives, 1300-1900, Oxford University, St. Anne’s College, UK. 17-19... more Living in a Magic World: Inner Lives, 1300-1900, Oxford University, St. Anne’s College, UK. 17-19 Sept. 2018.
Unity and Disunity in Mathematical Magic Squares across Cultures and Languages, European Society ... more Unity and Disunity in Mathematical Magic Squares across Cultures and Languages, European Society for the History of Science & British Society for the History of Science, University College of London, UK. 15-17 Sept. 2018.
Common and Comparative Esotericism: Western, Islamic, and Jewish, Fondazione Giorgio Cini, Venice... more Common and Comparative Esotericism: Western, Islamic, and Jewish, Fondazione Giorgio Cini, Venice. 12-14 June 2018.
Conference presentation for Les mots de désir at the Institut du Monde Arabe (Paris), 6 May, 2016.
Book Reviews by W. Sasson Chahanovich
Journal of Qur'anic Studies, 2019
Review of Todd Lawson's book "Quran: Epic and Apocalypse", printed in the Journal of Qur'anic Stu... more Review of Todd Lawson's book "Quran: Epic and Apocalypse", printed in the Journal of Qur'anic Studies, vol. 21.2 (2019), pp. 149-154.
The present volume, Les origines du Coran, le Coran des origins, is an important publication in t... more The present volume, Les origines du Coran, le Coran des origins, is an important publication in the field of Qurʾanic Studies and a worthy purchase for any university library. Not only does Les origines testify to the robust tradition of European qurʾanic scholarship, it also provides the reader with focused contributions touching on several primary subfields in qurʾanic philology, i.e. history of religion, paleography, epigraphy, and codicology. The emphasis falls on European academic partnership and how these manifold philological specializations mutually inform one another, and the project is successful thanks to the editors' choice of a relevant, unifying, and inspiring theme. Comprised of fourteen articles -nine French, one German, three English -Les origines is the result of a conference held in 2011 in France that honored the 150 th anniversary of the publication of the first edition of Theodor Nöldeke's groundbreaking work Die Geschichte des Qorâns (1860). Contributors were, hence, encouraged to draw inspiration from Nöldeke's career and provide, "un panorama de la recherche sur la genèse du texte du Coran au cours d'une période qui s'étend des deux siècles qui précèdent l'apostolat de Muhammad à ceux au cours desquels la transmission manuscrite" (p. ii). The following review provides a précis of each chapter in order to demonstrate how well the volume honors Nöldeke, fulfills the goals of the avantpropos, and reflects the vivacity of dialogue among European scholars of Qurʾanic Studies.
Kritische Edition der ʽUyūn al-aǧwiba fῑ funūn al-asʾila. Vorgelegt und mit einer Einleitung vers... more Kritische Edition der ʽUyūn al-aǧwiba fῑ funūn al-asʾila. Vorgelegt und mit einer Einleitung versehen. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz 2012. X, 158 S., 7 Taf. Brosch. 38,00 €. ISBN 978-3-447-06720-1.
The State of the Arts in the Middle East: Volume IV (pp 110-112):
W. S. Chahanovich (with Paulin... more The State of the Arts in the Middle East: Volume IV (pp 110-112):
W. S. Chahanovich (with Pauline Pannier) discusses the memoirs of the Moroccan-born writer Abdellah Taïa. The essay reveals how Taïa challenges the identity of a male Arab author. The essay is ultimately about the transformational role that memory can play in shaping individual and collective identity.
The State of the Arts in the Middle East: Volume III (pp. 90-92)
W.S. Chahanovich explores the p... more The State of the Arts in the Middle East: Volume III (pp. 90-92)
W.S. Chahanovich explores the prose of pre-revolutionary Shabab (Youth) literature in Egypt as exemplified by Mo-stafa Fathi's World of Boys. Herein, Chahanovich analyzes how Fathi has condensed greater socio-economic and cultural problems in Egypt through a focused story about a young man from the poor neighborhood of Bulaq al-Dakroor and his self-discovery.
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Papers by W. Sasson Chahanovich
Essays and Commentary by W. Sasson Chahanovich
Conference Presentations by W. Sasson Chahanovich
Book Reviews by W. Sasson Chahanovich
W. S. Chahanovich (with Pauline Pannier) discusses the memoirs of the Moroccan-born writer Abdellah Taïa. The essay reveals how Taïa challenges the identity of a male Arab author. The essay is ultimately about the transformational role that memory can play in shaping individual and collective identity.
W.S. Chahanovich explores the prose of pre-revolutionary Shabab (Youth) literature in Egypt as exemplified by Mo-stafa Fathi's World of Boys. Herein, Chahanovich analyzes how Fathi has condensed greater socio-economic and cultural problems in Egypt through a focused story about a young man from the poor neighborhood of Bulaq al-Dakroor and his self-discovery.
W. S. Chahanovich (with Pauline Pannier) discusses the memoirs of the Moroccan-born writer Abdellah Taïa. The essay reveals how Taïa challenges the identity of a male Arab author. The essay is ultimately about the transformational role that memory can play in shaping individual and collective identity.
W.S. Chahanovich explores the prose of pre-revolutionary Shabab (Youth) literature in Egypt as exemplified by Mo-stafa Fathi's World of Boys. Herein, Chahanovich analyzes how Fathi has condensed greater socio-economic and cultural problems in Egypt through a focused story about a young man from the poor neighborhood of Bulaq al-Dakroor and his self-discovery.