East-West Poetry
A Western Poet Responds to Islamic Tradition in Sonnets, Hymns, and Songs
Poetry that responds to the Qur’an and to the tradition it created.
Description
Written for the general reader and the specialist, Muslim and non-Muslim, East-West Poetry responds to the Qur'an, scriptural heart of Islam, and to the tradition it created. An introduction relates the Qur'an to Hebrew and Christian biblical writing and to Rumi, who illumined the Qur'an with Sufi mystic wisdom; and we sample earlier Western poetic celebrations of Islamic culture.
Martin Bidney is Professor Emeritus of English and Comparative Literature at Binghamton University. His books include Blake and Geothe, Patterns of Epiphany, and A Poetic Dialogue with Adam Mickiewicz.
Reviews
"Rarely has a book been so timely as this one. It is an East-West collection that comes at just the right moment in our cultural history, now that America is reawakening to the plenitude of its varied traditions. The double role of the book's author as researcher and poet benefits the reader of the 140 Islam-related lyrics offered here. " — Katharina Mommsen
"Martin Bidney … has [brought] the Christian Gospel and the Muslim Qur'an … together with the Torah to form a luminous torch of … love and understanding. " — Khalil Semaan