Free Public Book Reading
w/ Pir Zia in conversation with Humera Afridi
In collaboration with Shaykha Fariha and the Nur Ashki Jerrahi Community
Sufi Lodge, Tribeca, New York
May 8, 2026, 7:00 – 9:00 pm ET
We invite you to share an evening with us to celebrate the new book, Tears from the Mother of the Sun, written by Pir Zia Inayat Khan, featuring striking artwork by Amruta Patil. In this globe-spanning chronicle, Pir Zia sets forth an astonishing sequence of legends revealing little-known connections between ancient cultures and spiritual lineages, resulting in an unexpected marriage of myth and history.
Following a reading, Humera Afridi will set the stage for a conversation about the book, the relationship between art and spirituality, Divine play, and magic, mysticism, and alchemy on the Sufi path. The evening will conclude with a short meditation, welcoming guidance from the illuminated souls called upon in the book. All are welcome.
Books: Tears from the Mother of the Sun
In this globe-spanning chronicle, Pir Zia presents an astonishing sequence of legends revealing connections between ancient cultures and spiritual lineages. Written as a novella interspersed with metered quatrains, in the tradition of medieval Persian belles-lettres, readers will learn of the creation of the universe, the war of the angels and the jinns, the exile of Adam and Eve, and the deeds of Melchizedek and Enoch. They will also explore the rise of the Nephilim, the advent of ancient civilizations, the origins of the Abrahamic faiths, and the history of the Grail and Emerald Tablet. The cumulative effect of the traditions synthesized here is a re-sacralization of the human experience across time, space, and cultures, achieved through an unexpected marriage of myth and history. Beautiful paintings by Amruta Patil bring the legends to life.
Guests can bring their book to be signed or reserve a signed copy to pick up upon arrival. A limited number of copies will be available at the event, as supplies last.Â
–> To purchase a book online: https://pirzia.org/tears-from-the-mother-of-the-sun/
Additional Events
On Saturday, May 9th, we invite the Inayatiyya and Nur Ashki Jerrahi communities to join us for a special collaboration between Pir Zia Inayat Khan, mystic, scholar, and teacher of the Inayatiyya, and Shaykha Fariha, dervish and spiritual guide of the Nur Ashki Jerrahi Sufi Order. You can find out more and Register here.
To see other stops on the Book & Teachings Tour in New York, Washington DC, Boston MA and Berkeley CA, click here.
Speakers
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Pir Zia Inayat KhanPir Zia Inayat Khan, PhD, is a scholar of religion and teacher of Sufism in the universalist Sufi lineage of his grandfather, Hazrat Inayat Khan. Pir Zia is president of the Inayatiyya and founder of Sulūk Academy, a school of Sufi contemplative study and practice.
He is author of Tears from the Mother of the Sun with visual artist Amruta Patil, Immortality: A Traveler’s Guide; Mingled Waters: Sufism and the Mystical Unity of Religions; and Saracen Chivalry: Counsels on Valor, Generosity and the Mystical Quest. Pir Zia divides his time between Richmond, Virginia and Suresnes, France. -
Humera AfridiHumera Afridiâs stories and essays have appeared in Granta, Guernica, The Kenyon Review, and The New York Times among other publications. She is a recipient of a New York Foundation for the Arts Fellowship in Nonfiction Literature. Humera is currently writing a biography of World War II heroine Noor Inayat Khan, a project that draws on extensive archival research conducted across Europe. On a 2022 visit to The Hague, Humera discovered in the archives, one of Noorâs most powerful and imaginative stories thought to have been lost during the war. Humeraâs work inhabits the intersections of cultural history, spirituality, and literary nonfiction. A student of both Shaykha Fariha and Pir Zia, Humera is deeply engaged in questions of spiritual lineage, inner life, and the transmission of sacred storiesâthreads that inform both her writing and her conversation today.
