{"product_id":"neither-belief-nor-unbelief-sona-grigoryan-9783110772531","title":"Neither Belief Nor Unbelief: Intentional Ambivalence in Al-Ma\u0026#703;arr\u0026#299;'s Luz\u0026#363;m","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe book re-examines the religious thought and receptions of the Syrian poet Abū l-ʿAlāʾ al-Maʿarrī (d.1057) and one of his best known works - \u003cem\u003eLuzūm mā lā yalzam (The Self-Imposed Unnecessity)\u003c\/em\u003e, a collection of poems, which, although widely studied, needs a thorough re-evaluation regarding matters of (un)belief. Given the contradictory nature of al-Maʿarrī's \u003cem\u003eoeuvre\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eLuzūm\u003c\/em\u003e in particular, there have been two major trends in assessing al-Maʿarrī's religious thought in modern scholarship. One presented al-Maʿarrī as an unbeliever and a freethinker arguing that through contradictions, he practiced \u003cem\u003etaqīya\u003c\/em\u003e, i.e., dissimulation in order to avoid persecution. The other, often apologetically, presented al-Maʿarrī as a sincere Muslim. This study proposes that the notion of ambivalence is a more appropriate analytical tool to apply to the reading of \u003cem\u003eLuzūm\u003c\/em\u003e, specifically in matters of belief. This ambivalence is directly conditioned by the historical and intellectual circumstances al-Maʿarrī lived in and he intentionally left it unsolved and intense as a robust stance against claims of certainty. Going beyond reductive interpretations, the notion of ambivalence allows for an integrative paradigm in dealing with contradictions and dissonance. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Sona Grigoryan\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 3110772531\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9783110772531\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e de Gruyter\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 12\/19\/2022\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 215\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 1.14lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.21h x 6.14w x 0.63d","brand":"Sona Grigoryan","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":44069286576383,"sku":"9783110772531","price":137.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_085b7d1f-f720-452a-a455-9acd3cb17226.jpg?v=1685423880","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/neither-belief-nor-unbelief-sona-grigoryan-9783110772531","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}