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World-renowned Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges’ previously unpublished lecture notes on Islam have been brought to light by Turkish researcher Nesrin Karavar. The notes, which Borges titled “Islamic Mystics” and used in lectures he gave between 1949 and 1952 at the Colegio Libre de Estudios Superiores in Buenos Aires, were found at a research center at the University of Texas. Discovered in three pages by Karavar, a researcher at the University of Barcelona in Spain, the writings reveal the famous author’s interest in Islam.
While some cliched orientalist and inaccurate statements about Islam are repeated in the texts, it is also seen that emphasis is placed on the life of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and on Muslim mystics.
Speaking to Türkiye daily, Nesrin Karavar says: “Borges’ lecture notes titled ‘Islamic Mystics’ were kept inside a green-covered notebook at the Harry Ransom Research Center at the University of Texas. I discovered the notes in 2020 while doing my doctorate on Hazreti Mevlana at the University of Barcelona. His wife, Maria Kodama, confirmed before her death that the writings belonged to Borges. For years, either no one paid attention to these notes, or someone did not want to bring them to light. I think the second possibility is more likely.”
Saying that “these notes both offer a new perspective on Borges and show the Argentine writer’s interest in Islam, while also revealing Mevlana’s influence in the West,” Karavar continues as follows: “In these handwritten notes, along with information about Islam, there is also knowledge about Sufism and the Mevlevi order. Borges compares these with beliefs in the West. After presenting the harsh interpretations of European orientalists such as Dante, Borges also offers his own more moderate interpretations. He describes the Quran and Sufi figures in a literary language. He states that Hazreti Mevlana is one of the founding figures of Sufism. The text mentions the names of Sufis such as Fariduddin Attar, Bayezid-i Bistami, and Omar Khayyam. Although orientalist influences are present in Borges’ text, a perspective that goes beyond Orientalism stands out.”
Nesrin Karavar published the texts, which include these lecture notes by the author, in Argentina under the title “Borges: Orientalism and Beyond.”
Stating that Borges had a deep interest in Islam and Sufism, Karavar says, “In fact, Islam has always been a recurring theme in Borges’ works. However, for some reason, this has not been sufficiently researched in the West.” Karavar also notes that she will soon begin research in Borges’ personal library.
It is known that Borges began learning Arabic in the final years of his life. The writer also argued that the Quran cannot be properly translated into other languages.
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