In Arabic literature and philosophy, mysticism is one of the most significant traditions. The fountainhead of Sufism in Islam is still a debatable issue. The Persians had many famous mystic poets. Arabic literature has only one great mystical poet of pure Arabic descent worthy to stand next to the Persian masters: Sharaf ad-Din 'Umar Ibn 'Ali as-Sa'di, known as Ibn al-Farid, or the Notary's Son (1181-1253), who was born in Cairo. He was dedicated...