Shams al-Ma'arif al-Kubra The Complete English Translation

Shams al-Ma'arif in English: The Full Book

If you have been looking for Shams al-Ma'arif in English, this is the full book: a complete English translation of Shams al-Ma'arif al-Kubra (شمس المعارف الكبرى), the Arabic grimoire attributed to Ahmad ibn Ali al-Buni (d. 622 AH / 1225 CE). It is translated from the 1927 printed Arabic edition — the most widely circulated recension of the text — and presents all four parts in full, with Arabic terms in IJMES romanization and barbarous names transliterated alongside the original Arabic script.

What the Title Means

Shams means “sun,” al-ma'arif means “knowledges” or gnosis, and al-kubra means “the Greater.” Hence the English rendering on the cover of this edition, The Complete Sun of Divine Knowledge. Despite the shared word, the book is not a commentary on Surah al-Shams (Qur'an 91), although that surah's opening, “By the sun and its brightness,” is among the recitations it prescribes during a forty-day fast. In the preface the author gives the book's full title, Shams al-Ma'arif wa-Lata'if al-'Awarif, and the heading of Part One calls it The Greater Sun of Knowledge and the Subtleties of Gnosis.

Inside the Four Parts and Forty Chapters

Part One (Chapters 1–14) covers the letters and their secrets, breaking and expansion and the timing of works by hours, the judgments of the twenty-eight lunar mansions and the twelve zodiac signs, the Basmalah, seclusion and retreat, the names by which Jesus revived the dead, the Fatiha, and the Greatest Name of God.

Part Two (Chapters 15–20) turns to the Beautiful Names of God and their tested magic squares, the letters Kaf Ha Ya ‘Ayn Sad, the Throne Verse, talismans, and Surat Ya Sin. Part Three (Chapters 21–37) arranges the Beautiful Names in ten lines, then treats the Arabic letters with their planets and servants, the zayirjah, and the works of simiya. Part Four (Chapters 38–40) closes with the uses of the letters, an explanation of the Most Beautiful Names, and invocations for every night and time.

For a chapter-by-chapter overview, see our essay on the first complete Shams al-Ma'arif English translation; for the book's history and reputation, read Shams al-Ma'arif explained and why the book was banned and burned. The theory of letters behind these chapters is set out at length in the collection's book of ilm al-huruf.

Shams al-Ma'arif Pages, Seals, and Book Cover

The paperback runs to 818 pages. Its talismanic seals and magic squares are reproduced as images from the source, and where the source is illegible the translator notes the gap rather than inventing content. The Shams al-Ma'arif book cover carries the Arabic title شمس المعارف الكبرى above the English subtitle; use the Read Free Sample button above to see the first pages before you buy.