BOOK REVIEWS 209 ʻAbd al-Qadir al-Jilani. The Secret of Secrets. Translated by Shaykh Tosun Bayrak al-Jerrahi al-Halveti. Cambridge: Islamic Texts Society, 1992. Pp. xlix+123. Paperback. ISBN: 978 0946621 29 3. The Secret of Secrets is an interpretative translation of a renowned Muslim Sufi ‘Abd al- Qadir al-Jilani’s (1077–1166 CE) original, Sirr al- Asrār. The Secret of Secrets was published in 1992 and is the first English translation of one of the remarkable Sufi contributions of ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani. ‘Abd al-Qadir al-Jilani, the founder of the Qadiriyyah Sufi order, was an expert in Islamic law of Shafi‘i and Ḥanbali schools. He was deeply grounded in Islamic religious tradition merging both law and Sufism. Tosun Bayrak (1926–2018), the translator, belongs to what is called a modern-day Turkey and is famous for his translations of works of Sufis such as Yaḥya b. Ḥabash al-Suhrawardi (d. 1191 CE), Ibn al-‘Arabi (d. 1240 CE), and Muḥammad Birgivi (d. 1573). The author gives us a glimpse of Sufi works of the eleventh/twelfth century, having an esoteric (bāṭinī) approach towards the Qur’anic interpretation during the Golden Age of Islam and emphasizes the inner meanings of the Qur’an and ritual practices. He uses Qur’anic verses, Prophetic sayings, and Divine Names throughout the book and interprets them in a way that uncovers the hidden truths in those verses and sayings. Therefore, this book helps to understand what Sufi thoughts, practices, and ideals looked like during the eleventh/twelfth-century Sufism. Moreover, the author relied less on explaining Sufi stories and narratives of his time. Instead, he discussed the Sufi ideals, symbols, and concepts in a descriptive manner using the Qur’anic and Prophetic symbols which fascinate a modern reader even more. The Secret of Secrets provides a comprehensive explanation of how the secret of secrets is known, understood, practiced, and manifested. The author’s insights into man’s inner experiences, the manifestation of God’s attributes, and yearning to meet the Beloved ensure that such an explanation can only be given by someone who has been through those DOI: https://doi.org/10.52541/isiri.v60i2.1464