Sufism

Sufism(also known asTassawuf) is a group or branch inIslamwith amysticpath or system. Someone who practices Sufism is called a Sufi, and may be aDervishor aFakir.

Origins

At first, Sufism only meant making Islam more personal and internal. Some say it first came from constantly reciting theQur'an,meditating,and through experience. Others believe that Sufism is trying to live as the Islamic prophetMuhammaddid, to be closer to God. This is how the Prophet taught his disciples.Additionally, the Muslim conquests had brought large numbers ofChristianmonksandhermits,especially inSyriaandEgypt,under Muslim rule.They believed in a deeply spiritual and mystical (even 'Platonic') way of life and many of their ways became part of early Sufism.

Some of these teachings were summarized in texts (inArabicinitially). Important contributions in writing are attributed toUwais al-Qarni,Harrm bin Hian,Hasan Basriand Sayid ibn al-Mussib, who are regarded as among the first Sufis in the earliest generations of Islam.Harith al-Muhasibiwas the first one to write aboutmoral psychology.Rabia Basriwas a Sufi known for her love and passion for God, expressed through her poetry.Bayazid Bastamiwas among the first theorists of Sufism.

Sufism already had a long history when some teachers began to set up formal schools or orders (TarikaorTariqah) in the earlyMiddle Ages.Almost all existing Sufi orders today trace their roots and chain of transmission (silsila) back to Muhammad, via one of these orders.

Sufi ideas and principles

The main idea in Sufism is that people can have 'personal knowledge' or oneness with God in their lives.In order to be one with God, you have to destroy your idea of yourself, or yourego.This is known asfanaa(annihilation).Apart from saying Sufi prayers, that vary according to different orders, you should be humble, considerate, and only act in order to control yourdesires.

Afterfanaais achieved, you arerebornto live with, in, through and for God, (baqaa,permanency). This is the state where you have achieved the divine love of God, and come ever closer to a unity with God.You should now strive to be one with God. A person who has crossed the various Sufi 'stages' and achieved this sort of mystic union with Allah, is called aWali(asaintor friend of God) and the state is termedWilayat(friendship/union).

Sufic Orders

In Sufism there exist many different orders (tarikas), that were founded from the 12th and13th centuriesuntil today/contemporary times. Some of the major Sufi orders are:

• QadiriorQadiriyya;
• ChishtiorChishtiyya;
• SuhrawardiorSuhrawardiyya;
• NaqshbandiorNaqshbandiyya;
• MevleviorMevleviyya;
• RifaiorRifaiyya;
• SaifiaorSaifiya;
• BektashiorBektashiya;
• QurayshiorQuraishiya;

Notable Sufis

Some of the major, notable Sufis in history, from the 'classical age' of Sufism, include:

• Uwais al-Qarni
• Dhul Nun Misri
• Junaid of Baghdad
• Rabia Basri
• Hasan Basri
• Bayazid Bastami
• Ibn ul-Arabi
• Al-Ghazali
• Abd al-Qadir al-Gillani
• Ahmed Ar-Rifai
• Shahab-ud-din Suhrawardi
• Farid-ud-din Attar
• Baha-ud-din Naqshband
• Ali al-Hajvery
• Jalal-ud-din Rumi
• Moin-ud-din Chishti
• Farid-ud-din Ganj Shakar
• Nizam-ud-din Auliya
• Lal Shahbaz Qalandar
• HakimOmar Khayyam

Modernpractitioners,who have achieved the degree ofsheikh(Master/Preceptor) and are accounted to have a high spiritual status, are still found in various places.

Sufism and Islamic orthodoxy

Sufipracticesare usuallydefinedwithin the basic tenets of Islam, theSharia(orShariah) although some orders includesinginganddancingin the love of God, something some Muslimsdisapproveof. Some Muslims of a moreorthodoxmind-setbelieve that any actions outside the scope ofSharia,or Sufi activities practised by non-Muslims are wrong. For a non-Muslim the most important ideas in Sufism are love for fellow human beings (which reflects one's love of God) and living ones life in such a way where all actions are against the self. This starts the path offanaa.In terms ofdiscipleshipand training, almost all the major Sufi orders are willing to take students who are not Muslims.

There are some Muslim schools of thought, such as theWahhabi,who oppose Sufism because they feel itobliteratesthe difference between God and man and bypasses the common method ofsalvationin their interpretations ofSharia.Although there are non-Islamic versions of Sufism too (generally defined as 'Universal Sufism')puritanicaland rigid people in Islam don't like them. As a result, we often see a great deal of misunderstanding and conflict regarding Sufism and Sufic practices.

Orthodox Islam, especiallyfundamentalistgroups like the Wahhabi andSalafihave been the mostintolerantandviolentagainst what they think of as 'Deviant Sufism'.They havepersecutedtheKharijites,theIsmailiShiacult (sometimes termed the 'Assassins'), theAhmadiyyamovement and several other groups and individuals with Sufi-like mystical tendencies and practices. During the laterMughal EmpireinIndia,even the earlygurusofSikhismwere persecuted by orthodox Islamicmullahssince they had chosen to put some of the ideas and poetic verses of the Sufi saintBaba Faridinto theirscriptures.Over the last twodecades,considerable persecution has been made of the spiritual reformer andsageRiaz Ahmed Gohar Shahiand his followers inPakistan.He was opposed and threatened and forced to flee the country and his books banned there, and anyone publicly supporting him is liable to immediatearrest.

Even proper, formal Sufi orders have suffered persecution for various reasons. In recent times Sufism wasbannedinIran.This happened in spite of the famousAmman Message,a joint declaration made by over 200 of the most noted moderate Islamic scholars in a conference inAmman,Jordan,in 2005, stressing that Sufism is very much 'part' of Islam.

Further reading

Some volumes for further reading on Sufism include:

• Abu-Nasr, J (2007)Muslim Communities of Grace:Sufi Brotherhoods in IslamLondon;
• Burckhardt, T (1963)An Introduction to Sufi DoctrineLahore;
• Godlas, A (2000)Sufism's Many PathsU of Georgia Press;
• Shah, Idries (1971)The SufisNew York;
• Schimmel, A (1983)Mystical Dimensions of IslamChapel Hill: U of North Carolina Press;
• Smoley, Richard & Kinney, Jay. 2006.Hidden wisdom: a guide to the western inner traditions.2nd ed; Wheaton, Illinois: Quest Books.ISBN978-0-8356-0844-2(Chapter 10 deals with Sufism in the West)
• Chopra, R. M., "SUFISM" (Origin, Growth, Eclipse, Resurgence), 2016, Anuradha Prakashan, New Delhi,ISBN978-93-85083-52-5.