Shadows of the Prophet: Martial Arts and Sufi Mysticism

This is the first in—depth study of the Malay martial art, silat, and the first ethnographic account of the Haqqani Islamic Sufi Order. Drawing on 12 years of research and practice in Malaysia, Singapore, and England, social anthropologist and martial arts expert D.S. Farrer considers Malay silat through the transnational Sufi silat group called Seni Silat Haqq, an off—shoot of the Haqqani—Naqshbandi Sufi Order.

This account combines theories from the anthropology of art, embodiment, encha...