The Mystics of Islam

What it is

This is a book by Reynold Alleyne Nicholson, a lecturer on Persian at Cambridge University, published in 1914 as part of The Quest Series. It introduces Sufism and Islamic mysticism to general readers.

Why it matters

Nicholson was one of the most important Western scholars of Persian literature and Sufism, and his writing helped introduce figures like Rumi to English-speaking readers in the early twentieth century. This book places Rumi within the broader tradition of Islamic mystical thought, showing how later scholars studied and interpreted his legacy.

Look closer

• Why might a Western scholar in 1914 have wanted to explain Sufism to English readers?
• What does it mean that this book is a secondary source about Rumi, rather than something he wrote himself?
• How might the author's own background and time period shape how he describes Sufi mysticism?