In "Sufi Lyrics in the Egyptian Desert" Martin Bidney departs from the “dialogic” format of most of his earlier volumes of poetry, notably his "Shakespair: Sonnet Replies to the 154 Sonnets", in which he writes a sonnet of his own in response to each of Shakespeare’s, the poems printed side by side. He declines, as he says, to move to the back of the bus in deference to great predecessors but speaks to them in words of his own. Not a prideful competitor, he comes over as a fellow human being seeking truth through poetic language, one poem giving rise to another. Other poets he engages in this way have included Rumi, Goethe, Mickiewicz, Pushkin, and Rilke. .

"Sufi Lyrics" is only implicitly in dialogue with FitzGerald’s "The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam," whose stanzaic form Bidney slightly modifies. These are stand-alone lyrics, four quatrains each, that embody Bidney’s understanding of Sufism, as he seeks to uncover a communality of thought and feeling among the three Abrahamic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—commonly thought to be at each other’s throats throughout their brutal histories. Bidney notes that his poems express a somewhat more cheerful view of life than found in "The Rubaiyat," whatever its celebratory and hedonistic moments, famously that damned jug of wine, loaf of bread, and thou singing in the wilderness.

Readers of poetry might enjoy a break from the free verse that dominates the current scene. Bidney approaches poetry as a craft where older conventions—from rhyme to meter to stanzas—are anchored in a felt human appetite for poetic form. Their antiquity is ample evidence in itself of their potential for reinvigoration by this contemporary master.

I found this book to be incredibly insightful and educational. The author has an incredible knack for writing poetry and lends his style and rhythm to the great poets from which he writes his replies. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has an interest in poetry, Sufism or a general love of reading exceptional work.

So many riches in this book! For Rumi lovers, it is a wealth of poetic wisdom from the Sufi master. For Sufism scholars, an informed journey through Sufi thought in verse. And for poetry lovers, a celebration of beauty through multiple poetic and spiritual traditions!

This may be one of the most important books in those times we live in. It's focus is an the similarities as well as the stories shared by the three abrahamic religions in form of a dialogue with the Qur'an. Reading the Suras in an excellent translation, one can follow up with a lyrical choir of jewish, christian and muslim voices, singing together as one unified voice to praise peace and love for each other.

The author is an exceptional poet himself. Skilled in as many lyrical forms you can think of, he opens up the mind by using graphic metaphors. It seems like he is not only talking to the Suras but with the reader as well.
If you want to learn more about the similarities between Judaism, Christianity and Islam or if you want to view the Qur'an from a lyrical point of view, this book suits you right. But most importantly, if you want to understand the three great religions and find a way how one can live peacefully with each other, this book is a must-have.

This book offers surprising insights into Islam, as well as Judaism and Christianity, by a writer who has taken an unusual path. Most people aren't aware that the Qur'an is largely filled with stories about central Jewish and Christian scriptural figures. Prof. Bidney asks: What happens when these people enter the Qur'an? It turns out that the Islamic scripture offers enthralling narratives about figures from Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Pharao's wife, David, and Solomon to Jesus, Mary, and John the Baptist. We see how their new stories are parables illustrating Qur'anic virtues, all expressions of Love. Example: the story of Joseph's miracle shirt which cured his father Jacob's blindness after the old man had cried his eyes out over the loss of his boy is itself worth the price of the book!

I have belonged to an organization called "The Children of Abraham" for some time now and I am so happy that Martin Bidney has written this book, which not only talks about the 4 virtues espoused by the Qur'an and how the Jewish and Christian holy books mirror these sentiments, but also gifts us with his "lyrical responses" to the verses in the Qu'ran. Martin Bidney is a poet.

If you'd like to stop, to pause, and to wait awhile to have your soul touched and your heart refurbished, I recommend Martin Bidney's A Unifying Light: lyrical responses to the Qur'an. Though most of the 140 responses are no longer than a page, I suggest you read them aloud to gain the full appeal of their measured cadences, rhythms, balance, and varying rhyme schemes. A few moments of giving yourself to these lyrical verses will allow you enrichment in myriad ways. The book is an unusual delight, a supreme pleasure, and unmitigated experience.

For me, A Unifying Light is a highly educational and inspirational read. At a time when the politics of violence and incessant, deafeningly shrill discourse takes center stage as a substitute for earnest dialogue between and among Christians, Muslims and Jews, Dr. Bidney’s quiet, deeply felt, highly reflective poetic responses to Qur’anic passages in this book are refreshing and hopeful. A birthright Christian, I am neither a poet nor a scholar, but I have been fascinated by Dr. Bidney’s ability to identify and exalt the very powerful, and as the title suggests, profoundly spiritual message common to these three religious traditions with his tightly-woven, evocative responses.

What a great gift these sonnets are to any lover of life and art. The combination of beautiful calligraphy and delightful poetry left me inspired and happy. There is a heart beating here and it's encouraging the hopeful and open-minded to enter a world of love and unity.

Martin again amazes us with his prolific, insightful, deeply creative and humorous poetry. Keep it near your favorite chair and read a few each day. You will smile!