Niyāzī-i Miṣrī’s Sufi Eschatology: Critical Edition and English Translation of al-Dawra al-ʿarshiyya fī l-aḥkām al-farshiyya and the Eşrāṭ-ı sāʿat-ı enfüsī

Authors : Hiroaki Kawanishi

Pages : 219-267

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Publication Date : 2025-12-30

Article Type : Research Paper

Abstract :The present article offers a critical edition and English translation of the Khalwatī Sūfi scholar Niyāzī-i Miṣrī’s (d. 1105/1694) two apocalyptic treatises titled, al-Dawra al-ʿarshiyya fī l-aḥkām al-farshiyya (‘The Heavenly Circulation in the Earthly Rules’) and the Eşrāṭ-ı sāʿat-ı enfüsī (‘The Inward Portents of the Hour’). In these treatises, Miṣrī explores the apocalyptic portents and discloses their correspondences within individual human beings. His elaboration of Islamic eschatology in accordance with the mystical doctrine of macrocosm-microcosm is a central theme highlighted throughout the two treatises. By shedding light on Miṣrī’s mystical interpretation, this article aims to enhance our understanding of an eschatological discussion within late Ottoman Islāmic thought, an area of research that remains largely overlooked in the field of Islāmic Studies. While offering an understudied historical debate on Islāmic eschatology, this research also contributes to contemporary theological discussions. Although the edited texts were written more than three centuries ago, eschatology is still relevant to scholars of our time. Miṣrī’s novel interpretation of the apocalypse and his reference to macrocosm-microcosm dichotomy are distinctive in both past and contemporary eschatological discourses. Although there is currently no critical edition of the two treatises, Miṣrī’s apocalyptic understanding deserves serious attention for our exploration of Islamic eschatology from multiple perspectives. This study aspires to make Miṣrī’s eschatological thought accessible to a wider audience, including experts in Islamic Studies and those interested in eschatology. To this end, this article pays special attention to the preparation of its edition and translation. Specifically, this critical edition selected three manuscripts of each text according to their copied dates and textual accuracy in order to make the edited texts as close as possible to the original ones authored by Miṣrī. This article also translates the two treatises into modern English with a careful effort to preserve the mystical nuances Miṣrī conveys. As the two texts deal with the theme of eschatology, Miṣrī often employs philosophical and kalām terminology. In such cases, the present translation borrows conventional English terms commonly used for their translations. Regarding some technical expressions, this translation provides Arabic and Ottoman transliterations in brackets alongside the translations.
Keywords : Tasavvuf, Niyâzî-i Mısrî, Kıyâmet, Makrokozmos, Mikrokozmos

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