Thinkers of the East

"Thinkers of the East" is a compilation of timeless Sufi teaching stories hand-picked by the late Idries Shah. These potent teaching narratives, traditionally, have been prescribed based on time/awareness/development of a student, by a competent Sufi teacher as a means of facilitating the interminable process of self-discovery. Treading the Sufi path without a guide is as advisable as trying a critical case in court without the legal guidance; doing heavy excercising at a gym without a well-respected trainer; taking a course examination without any time spent getting clarifications from an esteemed professor; or performing life-altering surgery on oneself by oneself. It is certainly possible to do these things by oneself and avoiding trusting another with one's best interest. But which would produce better results? Listening to a teacher reciting these stories in real-time (replete with pauses, inflections), or receiving them as a written/ or visual message, is a very different experience than reading these linearly by oneself. Nevertheless, this title, like most other writings on Sufism, is a wonderful "snapshot" in the picture album labelled "Sufism". In my understanding of Sufism, "Trust", "Leaps of Faith", and "Surrender" are critical in progressing on this path, as much as excercising "care" and "good sense" are. This much cannot be easily executed in the framework of minds that have known only to trust their own limiting, relativist perceptions. It is quite likely there is a well-reasoned fear that the assumed end-result of such talk is likely some crazed idolization of a teaching figure-head. What's more, in the real world, this type of thing happens all the time -- Shah speaks of this frankly and frequently. Nevertheless, there still exist cases, wherein, those attained on the Path are freed from idolizing anyone or anything because the focus of their world-view isn't only about their egoic selves. Sufism is all about "Love", a state which does not adhere consistently with any mental constructs, or help one escape from any other unmentioned aspect of life. It is all about living Life, experiencing all aspects of it, finding the lessons, and recognizing "The Face of The Beloved".

These tales encompass beauty, humor, teaching situations, fantastic adventure and even occasional sadness. They provoke me to re-examine my own experience to understand the implications of a tale. Some remain puzzling.Shah wrote this book of 'Eastern practical philosophy' for those who want to enlarge and enrich their perception and experience of what it is to be human. He states in the preface, "This book contains, arranged in a manner commanded by the tradition.... the materials belonging to the Sufi teaching, selected in accordance with the needs of the time. It might be termed applied specific experientialism."Enjoy the stories for their obvious content. Then re-read them for possible other qualities and effects. Sometimes a second interpretation will jump out at you. Sometimes a smile or a sense of wonder or possibiliy will lodge in your heart.Sample story: I'll Make You RememberOne day Latif the Theif ambushed the commander of the Royal Guard, captured him and took him to a cave.'I am going to say something that, no matter how much you try, you will be unable to forget,' he told the infuriated officer.Latif made his prisoner take off all his clothes. Then he tied him, facing backwards, on a donkey.'You may be able to make a fool of me,' screamed the soldier, 'but you'll never make me think of something if I want to keep it out of my mind.''You have not yet heard the phrase which I want you to remember,' said Latif. 'I am turning you loose now, for the donkey to take back to town. And the phrase is: I'll catch and kill Latif the Thief, if it takes me the rest of my life.'

Anyone interested in a new way of understanding their mind and culture couldn't do better than begin with this book. Shah has distilled the collected teachings of more than a hundred eastern sages from three continents all in one slim volume, presented for our time. In a clear and entertaining style, it covers subjects such as learning, knowledge, mysticism, human motivation, and the "Sufi Secret." Many of the stories are layered -- that is, they may be read simply as amusing tales. At another level they reveal facets of our thinking we must address if we wish to be free of the cognitive errors found in many social psychology textbooks. Although centuries old, many of these stories uncannily anticipate current ideas. Fans of Edward De Bono may be pleasantly astonished to find stories paralleling his "lateral thinking" technique or, in the words of Shah, "problem-solving using non-linear methods." Ancient or not, these stories provide a vital introduction to the current thought of the Sufi tradition.

I originally found this book in the bargain bin of my college bookstore, and was attracted by the title. It certainly was about the East, but not the one I expected. It was about the wisdom of the East stripped of the exotic and sentimental, leaving intensely practical tales and anecdotes in colloquial English - and usually surprising for the angle with which they approached things.I had never heard of the Sufis before finding this book, and now I wanted to learn much more about these people, who seemed to truly understand what religion and wisdom were, to know how reality was constructed.The second book I found was Caravan of Dreams, but that's for another review!

Those familiar with Idries Shah's other books on Sufism will know what to expect: a compilation of wise and humorous remarks, stories, poems, and sayings made by the great Sufis of old. In _Thinkers of the East_, his participation is kept to a bare minimum of introductory notes; for the majority of the book, he lets the source material speak for itself. My favourite, said to have been related by Imam Muhammed Baqir:"Finding I could speak the language of ants, I approached one and inquired, 'What is God like? Does he resemble the ant?' He answered, 'God? No, indeed! We have only a single sting, but God, he has _two!_'"