This book is filled with surprises for thoughtful, adventurous readers who value questioning their assumptions about people and society. It helped me begin to see the perfume and the scorpion: the overlay and reality; the hypocrisy and self-deception in ourselves and our institutions. Compelling arguments, imagery and illustrative anecdotes from contemporary life appear to be scattered about haphazardly. But it’s deliberate. It switches our attention and helps foster flexibility. The modern content set in a non-linear traditional structure also gives us a glimpse of the atmosphere and methods of the classic books by the Asian greats like Rumi, Jami and Hafiz. At the same time, it provides a clear direct exposition of the Sufi way.
