Shaikh Omar ibn Mohammed Al-Yafi, the prominent philosopher and sufi poet, was born in the Mediterranean Coast city of Yafa in 1759 AD. He spent
most of his life in Damascus teaching in the Ummayad Mosque where he held his classes and meetings in a large room known until today as "Mashhad al-Yafi ." He died and was buried in Damascus in 1818 AD.
Throughout his lifetime he extensively travelled in search of knowledge and religious education from one Arab area to another until he finally settled in As-Sham area. He became one of the most prominent scholars of the
Arabic language sciences and mastered the sciences of Hadith (the sayings, teachings and traditions of Prophet Mohammed ). Shaikh Al-Yafi wrote numerous peoms, most of which were in priase of the Prophet (Muwashshahat)
and were characterized by the Islamic sufi trend which was wide-spreading at that time.
The first edition of Diwan al-Yafi was printed in Beirut over a century ago (in 1894 AD /1311 AH) and included a limited
collection of his poems.
The new second edition is considered to be a collector's item and a masterpiece. All contents have been hand-written by one of the mos talented Arabic calligraphers. Only 1000 copies have been
printed in Holland using the best and most sophisticated facilities and material quality.
