Dhūl-Nūn Abū l-Fayḍ Thawbān b. Ibrāhīm al-Miṣrī | |
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Born | 796 Akhmim, Upper Egypt |
Died | 245/859 or 248/862 Giza |
Resting place | Cairo's City of the Dead |
Other names | Dhūl-Nūn al-Miṣrī, Zūl-Nūn al-Miṣrī |
Education | Scholastic disciplines of alchemy, medicine, and Greek philosophy |
Known for | Muslim mystic and ascetic |
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Dhūl-Nūn Abū l-Fayḍ Thawbān b. Ibrāhīm al-Miṣrī (Arabic: ذو النون المصري; d. Giza, in 245/859 or 248/862), often referred to as Dhūl-Nūn al-Miṣrī or Zūl-Nūn al-Miṣrī for short, was an early Egyptian Muslim mystic and ascetic.[1] His surname "al Misri" means "The Egyptian". He was born in Akhmim,[2] Upper Egypt in 796 and is said to be of Nubian[3] descent. Dhul-Nun is said to have made some study of the scholastic disciplines of alchemy, medicine, and Greek philosophy in his early life,[1] before coming under the mentorship of the mystic Saʿdūn of Cairo, who is described in traditional accounts of Dhul-Nun's life as both "his teacher and spiritual director."[1] Celebrated for his legendary wisdom both in his own life and by later Islamic thinkers,[4] Dhul-Nun has been venerated in traditional Sunni Islam as one of the greatest saints of the early era of Sufism.[1]