This is a good book in comparing Moslem mysticism with that of Taoism. The author seem to have a good understanding of the topic. After reading some other popular book showing a kinship between modern physics and eastern philosophies by some over excited writers, one has to be careful drawing too much conclusions on these type of comparative studies even if it is done by a skillful writer.
An excellent comparative analysis of the ideas of Ibn Arabi and Lao Tzu. Izutsu very clearly and sytematically presents the underlying metaphysical concepts which serve as the substrate for IA's and LT's respective world-views. Relying on Qashani, a classical Ibn Arabi interpretor, to expound IA's otherwise elliptical and obscure theosophy, the author suceeds in simplifying IA's difficult and mind-boggling ontology which has riddled Muslim scholars for centuries. By bringing to light the profound similarites between IA's and LT's doctrines, some interesting questions are raised which probably can't be answered exclusively by historical scholarship.
