Islam and the Divine Comedy

When first published in 1926 this book aroused much controversy. The theory expounded in the book was that Islamic sources in general, and the writings of Ibn al-‘Arabi in particular, formed the basis of Dante’s poem Divine Comedy, the poem which symbolised the whole culture of medieval Christianity. The book shows how fundamental Muslim legends of the nocturnal journey and of the ascension of the Prophet Muhammed appear in Dante’s writings.