Samer Akkach <br/><br/>
Cosmology and Architecture in Premodern Islam  An Architectural Reading of Mystical Ideas 

 -  State University of New York Press  2005 
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<br/><br/>   Illustrations viiNote to the Reader xiPreface xiiiIntroduction xviiAbbreviations xxvChapter 1. Discursive Order 1Cosmology: An Overview 1Symbolism: A Critical Review 4History and Symbolism 13Sufism 18Symbolism: A Sufi Perspective 25Chapter 2. Metaphysical Order 55Being and Presence 55The Primordial Presence 63The Divine Presence 67The Human Presence 82The Presence of the Word 95The Geometry of Being 109vChapter 3. Cosmic Order 113The Original Idea 113Creative Breathing 115The “Cloud” and Cosmic Forms 119The World of Command 120The World of Creation 124Chapter 4. Architectural Order 149Gazing at the Sky 149Ordering Spaces 151Architecture and the Sacred 162The Kaba: The First House 179The Mosque and the Spatiality of Prayer 193Afterword: Architecture and Cosmic Habitat 207Notes 211List of Arabic Manuscripts Cited 237Selected Bibliography 239Index 255