A treasury of proverbs, sayings, short stories, humour, and nuggets of wisdom – drawn from the rich and varied traditions of the East – this series spans cultures and centuries.

Collected during his life by the writer and thinker Idries Shah, the material carries the weight of long experience, and encapsulates truths with elegance, irony, and piercing insight.

From the pithy humour of Nasrudin, to the contemplative depth of the Sufi Masters – the pieces showcased are not merely fragments of speech, but fragments of a way of seeing with fresh eyes.

Some are sharp as scimitars, others as gentle as drifting snow, yet all are designed to provoke reflection and to upend expectation. And, in doing so, they are designed to stir the reader toward a deeper understanding of human nature.

A volume to be dipped into, returned to, and lived with – this is a book whose impact grows as it settles into the reader’s mind.

More than a compilation, The Words of Wisdom Series offers a window into the way Sufis convey knowledge – not through explanation, but through subtlety and distillation.