The Written Word in the Medieval Arabic Lands

Abstract

̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a would contract marriages during his stay in a given place and divorce his wives once he decided to travel to his next destination. Waines illustrates how Ibn Bat ̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a revelled in the fact that marriage in the Maldives “is really a sort of temporary marriage” (p. 163). While acting as a judge on the islands, he tried to force women to wear Islamic dress, but without success. In another example of his flexible attitudes, Ibn Bat ̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a chastised others for the immoral act of buying Greek slave girls for prostitution, but continuously purchased slave girls throughout his travels when he could afford it. Waines also points out that Ibn Bat ̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a was scandalised by the fact that he came across matrilineal societies in sub-Saharan Africa, where women and men had platonic relationships. In the second half of the fifth chapter, Waines discusses Ibn Bat ̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a’s relationship with religious and racial “others”. He outlines a number of encounters between Ibn Bat ̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a and practitioners of Islamic legal schools other than his own Mālikı̄ school and also includes a section on Ibn Bat ̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a’s interaction with Shiʿite Muslims. Following the practice of Ibn Bat ̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a, Waines uses the terms “dissidents” and “Rāfı̄d ̇ ı̄s” (lit. rejectionists) to describe Shiʿites. In all, Waines suggests that, although Ibn Bat ̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a detested the “extreme Rāfı̄d ̇ ı̄s”, he admired their piety and hospitality. The Odyssey is a must-read for Ibn Bat ̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a enthusiasts, especially those who happen to be foodies and enjoy fantastical stories. The discerning reader is left wondering, though, whether the tales presented by Waines are a true window on the medieval world or simply a product of Ibn Bat ̇ t ̇ ūt ̇ a’s imagination. Either way, Waines has written a fascinating study of one of history’s most renowned world travellers.