- Hardcover: 143 pages
- Publisher: Octagon Press (1969)
- ASIN: B0000EF0ID
- Product Dimensions: 22.9 x 15.2 x 2.5 cm
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 2,402,940 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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9 reviews
29 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Filling In The Blanks
3 Dec 1999
Format:Hardcover
Those who see, within the world's great religions, traces of representations of inner truth and methods of attunement toward it, among great blank spaces filled with outworn ritual and self-serving platitudes, may find that Wisdom of the Idiots goes a long way toward filling in the blanks. Wisdom of the Idiots is full of tales and narratives, most under two pages long, showing religious psychology in action. More than that, they shift our perspective for a moment so that we can see more clearly how attitudes and assumptions disable perceptions and thwart development, in the individual, the group and the community. Once we see this, the way toward a more realistic perception of humanity is left open.
28 of 28 people found the following review helpful
Tales that have an impact on the reader's consciousness
31 Oct 1998
Format:Paperback
This collection of 94 concise tales trains a spotlight on an array of human foibles and follies, and one reading of them is just not enough. You'll find yourself opening the book again and again--to savor the delicious humor of some selections, to study others you seem to have missed before, to ponder the significance of those whose interpretation isn't obvious. Gradually you realize that the tales have multiple levels of meaning, that they open up new pathways of perception, and that they promote insights not only about other people but also about your own patterns of thought and behavior. When you find yourself wondering just what "wisdom" really is and just who the "idiots" in this world really are, you'll realize how great an impact on your consciousness this little book has made.
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful
Such Idiots!
27 Nov 2001
Format:Paperback
Sufis have been called idiots because their knowledge can appear idiotic to peole who are limited to appearances. To learn from this "idiocy" one must go deeper into matters. Wisdom of the Idiots seems to me a course on how to be a successful student. It is also an introduction to Sufi experience. Shah has crafted his book from teaching stories, essays, explanations and quips of Sufi teachers of the last 1,000 years. He works with and through this material producing a Sufi document usable and useful to people of our times and culture.
The material is non-dogmatic and non-moralistic, by turns gentle and gritty. It is thought provoking and funny. I recommend Wisdom of the Idiots if you are a student, formal or otherwise, or if you are considering becoming one.
Excerpts:
Fidelity
Najmaini ('The Man of the Two Stars') dismissed a student with the words: 'Your fidelity has been tested. I find it so unshakeable that you must go.'
The student said: 'Go I shall, but I cannot understand how fidelity can be a ground for dimissal.'
Najmaini said: 'For three years we have tested your fidelity. Your fidelity to useless knowledge and superficial judgments is complete. That is why you must go.'
Fantiasies
O man! If you only knew how many of the false fantasies of the imagination were nearer to the Truth than the careful conclusions of the cautious. And how these truths are of no service until the imaginer, having done his work with the imagination, has become less imaginative. Shab-Parak
Scraps
The scraps from the meal of the Emir are larger than the gifts of halwa from the merchant. Timur Razil
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