The Alchemy of Happiness

Anyone into the religious sciences and an interest in Sufism or imam ghazali works should absolutely read this book. Written in the medieval era yet evidently so applicable to the 21st century! Gives a real insight and thought provoking nature of the heart. Very easy to read and not so many pages like the Ihya. Would definitely recommend.

Just amazing! A masterpiece of insight into universal spirituality. Hamza Yusuf made a great job at explaining the complex and powerful vision of Al-Ghazali! A must-listen-to for everybody interested in Islam and spirituality as a whole.

Highly informative, truly grabs the attention from the reader and goes into depth with each part. May Allah bless the author Al ghazali.

This is a wonderful book by a well knowledgeable man, its a short read, I do feel happier after reading this book. There are a few minor spelling mistakes but it does tell you in the description but its easy to know what the actual word is. I'm happy with this purchase and would buy from forgotten books again.

A thought provoking read to say the least. Through this short book of less than 100 pages it caused me to re-read some of the most complicated concepts which Ghazali (may God be please with him) explains with the most simple of allegories that even the average minded can begin to understand. A book which undoubtedly demonstrates why he is known by many as the greatest scholar of his religion. A must read for anyone wanting to discover true happiness.

Spirituality motivating to read. Beautiful language used. A taste of Imam Ghazali's work without being too intense. Highly recommended. .

This book is interesting for a reader who wants to have a different perspective on teachings of islam. Highly recommended.

This is a reasonable translation of an excellent piece of work but the book doesn’t give any background of the translator, the context of his translation, any reference to his other translatory works. It presents it as a direct piece of work rather than introducing this as a meagre translation.

This book is totally a masterpiece. It is like a road map to your soal. Al-Gazzali (R. A) has put all his indept understanding of the soul and God in this wonderful work. May Allah have mercy on his soul. Once you start reading this book, it grabs the attention of the reader in such a powerful way that it is almost impossible to think about anything else. Gazzali (ra) makes the use of allegories to grab the attention and to give a bigger picture of the things that otherwise would be difficult to understand. I can't summarise what is written in this book. But anyone who could have summarised this book in a beautiful manner was Al-Gazzali himself. And we can easily see the summary of this book ( and of all his work) in his own last words before death. ************************************************ Imam Ghazali woke up one early morning and as usual offered his prayers and then enquired what day it was, his younger brother, Ahmad Ghazali replied,"Monday." He asked him to bring his white shroud, kissed it, stretched himself full length and saying "Lord, I obey willingly," breathed his last. And underneath his head rest they found the following verses; composed by him, probably, during the night. "Say to my friends, when they look upon me, dead Weeping for me and mourning me in sorrow Do not believe that this corpse you see is myself In the name of God, I tell you, it is not I, I am a spirit, and this is naught but flesh It was my abode and my garment for a time. I am a treasure, by a talisman kept hid, Fashioned of dust, which served me as a shrine, I am a pearl, which has left it's shell deserted, I am a bird, and this body was my cage Whence I have now floron forth and it is left as a token Praise to God, who hath now set me free And prepared for me my place in the highest of the heaven, Until today I was dead, though alive in your midst. Now I live in truth, with the grave - clothes discarded. Today I hold converse with the saints above, With no veil between, I see God face to face. I look upon "Loh-i-Mahfuz" and there in I read Whatever was and is and all that is to be. Let my house fall in ruins, lay my cage in the ground, Cast away the talisman, it is a token, no more Lay aside my cloak, it was but my outer garment. Place them all in the grave, let them be forgotten, I have passed on my way and you are left behind Your place of abode was no deweling place for me. Think not that death is death, nay, it is life, A life that surpasses all we could dream of here, While in this world, here we are granted sleep, Death is but sleep, sleep that shall be prolonged Be not frightened when death draweth night, It is but the departure for this blessed home Think of the mercy and love of your Lord, Give thanks for His Grace and come without fear. What I am now, even so shall you be For I know that you are even as I am The souls of all men come forth from God The bodies of all are compounded alike Good and evil, alike it was ours I give you now a message of good cheer May God's peace and joy for evermore be yours."

One of the great medieval thinkers; Islam's answer to the Greek philosophers. He even foreshadows Freud and Jung in some places. This is actually el Ghazali's own sampler of his much larger work on Greek philosophy.

This has been the most transformative spiritual text I've ever read, and it's a short read -- just a handful of chapters. However, it's something you'll come back to over and over again as you digest individual passages with new understandings you gain on your journey. This is also my favorite translation by far. Imam Gazzali is truly an enlightened individual and a saint for creating such amazing and instructive works. Don't be deterred if you don't come from the Islamic tradition. He answers burning questions that truth seeker might have about truth and purpose.

Classic Al-Ghazali. Loved this book!

je trouve que la traduction manque de précision, notemment les concepts de Aql, Nafs, Rouh. en plus de la confusion, des passages entiers sont retirée de l'oeuvre originel dans cette traduction. pour un public étranger à la pensée islamique, cela reste une introduction peu juste mais passable à ce grand maitre spirituel.