Sufism

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Allthings are butmasksatGod's beck and call,
They aresymbolsthat instruct us thatGod is all.~Attar

Sufism(Arabic:ٱلصُّوفِيَّة‎), also known asTasawwuf(Arabic: ٱلتَّصَوُّف‎), ismysticisminIslam.Practitioners of Sufism are referred to asSufis(Arabic: صُوفِيّ‎,ṣūfīy).

Quotes

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'Aliis acclaimed as the "Father of Sufism". Most of the Sufi orders claim their descent from Ali.
Statements of the Sufi traditions sorted Alpha betically by author or source
TheSeawill be the Sea
Whatever the drop'sphilosophy.~Attar
"You all are right, you all are wrong," we hear thecareless Soofisay, "For each believes his glimm'ering lamp to be the gorgeous light of day." ~Richard Francis Burton
To a Sufi,revelationis the inherent property of everysoul.There is an unceasing flow of the divine stream, which has neither beginning nor end. ~Inayat Khan
Sell your cleverness and buy bewilderment. Cleverness is mereopinion,bewilderment isintuition.~Rumi
Come, seek, for search is the foundation of fortune:
everysuccessdepends upon focusing theheart.~Rumi
  • TheSea
    Will be the Sea
    Whatever the drop'sphilosophy.
    • Attar of Nishapur,as quoted inThe Sun at Midnight: The Revealed Mysteries of the Ahlul Bayt Sufis(2003) by Laurence Galian
  • When doctors differ who decides amid the milliard-headed throng?
    Who save the madman dares to cry: "'Tis I am right, you all are wrong"?
    "You all are right, you all are wrong," we hear thecareless Soofisay,
    "For each believes his glimm'ering lamp to be the gorgeous light of day."
    "Thyfaithwhy false,myfaith why true? 'tis all the work of Thine and Mine,
    "The fond and foolish love ofselfthat makes the Mine excel the Thine. "
    Cease then to mumble rotten bones; and strive to clothe with flesh and blood
    The skel'eton; and to shape a Form that all shall hail as fair andgood.
  • The mysticism of Islam is known as Sufism. "Sufis believe that the world can never remain without aqutbupon whom depends the preservation of the faith and the guidance of human beings. He is nearest to God, the guardian of the faith and receives instructions from Allah directly. "
  • A Sufi is he, who not only wears coarse woolen garment, but, at the same time has a heart which is pure and filled with the love ofGod.
    • Md. Sirajul Islam, inSufism and Bakhti: A Comparative Study(2004), Ch. 1: Origins and Development of Sufism, p. 4
  • Asceticismis an important part in the origination of gradual development of Sufism. Some say it is the seed or root of Sufism.
    • Md. Sirajul Islam, inSufism and Bakhti: A Comparative Study(2004), Ch. 1: Origins and Development of Sufism, p. 9
  • To a Sufi the Teacher is never absent, whether he comes in one form or in a thousand forms he is always one to him, and the same One he recognizes to be in all, and all Teachers he sees in his one Teacher alone.For a Sufi, the self within, the self without, the kingdom of the earth, the kingdom of heaven, the whole being is his teacher, and his every moment is engaged in acquiring knowledge.For some, the Teacher has already come and gone, for others the Teacher may still come, but for a Sufi the Teacher has always been and will remain with him forever.
  • The religion of the Sufi is not separate from the religions of the world. People have fought in vain about the names and lives of their saviors, and have named their religions after the name of their savior, instead of uniting with each other in the truth that is taught.This truth can be traced in all religions, whether one community calls another pagan or infidel or heathen. Such persons claim that theirs is the only scripture, and their place of worship the only abode of God. Sufism is a name applied to a certain philosophy by those who do not accept the philosophy; hence it cannot really be described as a religion; it contains a religion but is not itself a religion.Sufism is a religion if one wishes to learn religion from it. But it is beyond religion, for it is the light, the sustenance of every soul, raising the mortal being to immortality.
    • Inayat Khan,inThe Spiritual Message of Hazrat Inayat Khan,Vol. I,The Way of Illumination,Section I - The Way of Illumination, Part III: The Sufi
  • Is a Sufi a follower of Islam?The wordIslammeans 'peace'; this is the Arabic word. The Hebrew word isSalem(Jeru-salem). Peace and its attainment in all directions is the goal of the world.
    But if the following of Islam is understood to mean the obligatory adherence to a certain rite; if being a Muslim means conforming to certain restrictions, how can the Sufi be placed in that category, seeing that the Sufi is beyond all limitations of this kind? So, far from not accepting the Quran, the Sufi recognizes scriptures which others disregard. But the Sufi does not follow any special book. The shining ones, such as 'Attar,Shams-i Tabriz,Rumi,Sadi, and Hafiz, have expressed their free thought with a complete liberty of language.To a Sufi, revelation is the inherent property of everysoul.There is an unceasing flow of the divine stream, which has neither beginning nor end.
    • Inayat Khan,inThe Spiritual Message of Hazrat Inayat Khan,Vol. I,The Way of Illumination,Section I - The Way of Illumination, Part III: The Sufi
  • Strangeas it may seem to our Westernegoism,the prospect of sharing in the general, impersonal immortality of the humansoulkindles in the Sufi anenthusiasmas deep and triumphant as that of the most ardent believer in a personallifecontinuing beyond the grave.Jalaluddin,after describing theevolutionof man in the materialworldand anticipating his further growth in the spiritualuniverse,utters a heartfeltprayer— for what? —for self-annihilation in theoceanof theGodhead.
  • Sufism on its theosophical side is mainly a product of Greek speculation.
    • Reynold A. Nicholson,as quoted inSufism and Bakhti: A Comparative Study(2004) by Md. Sirajul Islam, Ch. 1: Origins and Development of Sufism, p. 11
  • You must go toMahometanism,toBuddhism,to the East, to the Sufis & Fakirs, toPantheism,for the right growth ofmysticism.
    • Florence Nightingale,in a letter of 2 March 1853, quoted inSuggestions for Thought: Selections and Commentaries(1994), edited by Michael D. Calabria and Janet A. MacRae, p. xiii
  • Loveis the ark appointed for therighteous,
    Which annuls thedangerand provides a way of escape.
    Sell your cleverness and buy bewilderment.
    Cleverness is mereopinion,bewildermentintuition.
    • Rumi,in theMasnavi,Book IV, Story II, as translated inMasnavi I Ma'navi: The Spiritual Couplets of Maulána Jalálu-'d-Dín Muhammad Rúmí(1898) byEdward Henry Whinfield
    • Variant: Sell your cleverness and buy bewilderment.
      Cleverness is mere opinion, bewilderment is intuition.
  • Reasonis like an officer when the King appears;
    The officer then loses his power and hides himself.
    Reason is theshadowcast byGod;God is thesun.
    • Rumi,as translated inMasnavi I Ma'navi: The Spiritual Couplets of Maulána Jalálu-'d-Dín Muhammad Rúmí(1898) edited byEdward Henry WhinfieldBook IV, Story IV: "Bayazidand his impious sayings when beside himself "
  • This is what issignifiedby thewordsAnā l-Ḥaqq,"I amGod."Peopleimagine that it is a presumptuous claim, whereas it is really a presumptuous claim to sayAna 'l-'abd,"I am the slave of God"; andAnā l-Ḥaqq,"I am God" is an expression of greathumility.The man who saysAna 'l-'abd,"I am the servant of God" affirms two existences, his own and God's, but he that saysAnā l-Ḥaqq,"I am God" hasmade himself non-existentand has given himself up and says "I am God", that is,"I am naught, He isall;there is no being but God's. "This is the extreme of humility and self-abasement.
    • Rumi,commenting on the famous expression ofMansur al-Hallaj,for which al-Hallaj was executed as a blasphemer, inThe Mathnawí of Jalálu'ddín Rúmí,Vol. 4, part 7, edited by Reynold Alleyne Nicholson (1940) p. 248
    • Variant translation: People imagine that it is a presumptive claim, whereas it is really a presumtive claim to say "I am the slave of God"; and "I am God" is an expression of great humility. The man who says "I am the slave of God" affirms two existences, his own and God's, but he that says "I am God" has made himself non-existent and has given himself up and says "I am God", that is,"I am naught, He is all; there is no being but God's."This is the extreme of humility and self-abasement.
  • Come, seek, for search is the foundation of fortune:
    every success depends upon focusing the heart.
    • Rumi,as translated inJewels of Remembrance(1996) III, 2302-5
  • He that is purified by Love is pure (Safi), and he who is purified by the Beloved in Sufi.
  • Aliis acclaimed as the "Father of Sufism". Most of the Sufi orders claim their descent from Ali.According toAli Hajjweri,the rank of Ali is very high in the line up of Sufism. According toJunayd of Baghdad,Ali is the Shaykh as regards the principles and practices of Sufism.… The roots of Sufism lie embedded in Islam itself. There are numerous passages in the HolyQuranwhich are of a mystical character.The Holy Prophetof Islam (peace be on him) himself displayed mystical inclinations and he very often retired to the cave of Hirah for the purpose of devotions, meditation and contemplation. The Holy Prophet was recipient of two types of revelations, one embodied in the Holy Quran, and the other that illuminated his heart. The former was meant for all, the latter for a selected few whose hearts could be illuminated with the Divine Light. The knowledge of the Holy Prophet was thus book knowledge (ilm-i-Safina), and heart knowledge (ilm-i-Sina). Ali got this heart knowledge from the Holy Prophet.

See also

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