Who are sufi muslims and why do some extremists hate them. The foundation of sufism and relation of ismailism to. Oct 23, 2014 f ifty years ago this autumn, idries shah published the sufis. Your contribution will help us to continue to offer our work. Almost all practices of sufism are apocryphal to islam and thus unislamic but it does not mean they are antiislamic.
Oct 16, 2016 sufis basically are very particular on this matter. Contents page introduction prooemium chapter how the sufis account for their being called sufis ii. These secret instructions are acted upon by a disciple with perfect. There is a antisufi hadith that is clearly fabricated. My interest in ismailism was a result of my daily attendance to jamatkhana from childhood. Rizvi instituteof ismaili studies,london sufis and antisufis. He was a scholar of jurisprudence faqih in the school madhhab of dawud alisfahani d. It also considers the efforts of a few significant muslim intellectuals to contemplate a future for a mystical approach to islam without traditional sufism. Decline and continuity 140 the tariqas and the contemporary islamic revival 145 state anti sufism 153 radical rethinking of the way 161 conclusion. Persecution of sufis and sufism has included destruction of sufi shrines and mosques, suppression of orders, and discrimination against adherents in a number of muslimmajority countries. Sufism, being the marrow of the bone or the inner dimension of the islamic revelation, is the means par excellence whereby tawhid is achieved. Meaning the substance of sufism is the truth and the meaning of sufism is the selfless experiencing and actualization of the truth.
This volume assesses the evolution of antisufism since the middle of the eighteenth century and sufi strategies for survival. In order to guide spiritual travellers and to express the states of consciousness experienced on this journey, sufis produced an enormously rich body of literature, often using a specialized technical vocabulary, some of the terms of. Tracing sufisms relation to islam sufisms place in islam is one of the most contested topics in contemporary. In the five decades since its release, the book has. Sufism is a mystical form of islam, a school of practice that. Understanding the concept of islamic sufism shahida bilqies research scholar, shahihamadan institute of islamic studies university of kashmir, srinagar190006 jammu and kashmir, india. Sufism evokes considerable interest amongst people mainly because of the mysticism associated with it and also because not much is known about the secrets of their knowledge. Iqbal analyzed the foundational beliefs of those religions which in his view affected islam most i. Sufism news, research and analysis the conversation page 1. The defense, rethinking and rejection of sufism in the modern world. Many ways towards the one 173 bibliography 176 index 183 viii.
The doctrine of the sufis kitab altaarruf limadhhab ahl altasawwuf translated from the arabic of abu bakr alkalabadhi by arthur john arberry, m. Later sufis such as rumi still speak with favor of alhallaj, including his famous statement praise be to me. Burning away tension and hurt alghaffar from the sufi book of life. How the sufis account for their being called sufis ii. Fearless tenderness huddersfield circle, tue 26th feb, 20. The sufis large print edition by idries shah, paperback.
Ernst sufism describes the traditions of spiritual and ethical practice that have flourished in muslim societies for over a thousand years. If you wish to download the files for offline reading click the diskette icon on left of the top bar of the open pdf. It would seem that understanding the origin of sufism, either the school or the word it denotes, is as mysterious as the whole practice of the sufis. This is just one of those books that wanted to jump on the sufi anti sufi debate bandwaggon looking for a peice of the cash cow. The defence, rethinking and rejection of sufism in the modern world, elizabethsirriyeh. I am almost 90 years old and belong to the manchester uk jamat. Sufis which is what practioners of sufism are calledsee themselves to be on a spiritual journey toward god. Hassan abu hanieh december 2011 susm and su orders. It was also reported that his name was ruwaym ibn muhammad ibn ahmad and that his kunyawas abu bakr.
One of the files of the committee for religious affairs in the former uzbek soviet. Hazrat inayat khan on the sufi path we are given practices that help us to identify with our divine essence, the qualities of our soul. Classical sufi texts, which stressed certain teachings and practices of the quran and the sunnah. Look into the heart of a sufi, if you want to see the reality, you would find there nothing but, the true reflection of the almighty. This volume assesses the evolution of antisufism since the mid18th century and sufi strategies for survival. Book launch and course sufism for nonsufis translation of.
When it first appeared in 1964, the sufis was welcomed as the decisive work on the subject of sufi thought. Mulla nasrudin, the wise fool of eastern folklore, holds a special place in sufi studies. Sufis are sometimes associated with bidaa, corrupt innovations in religion, and even shirk, associating partners with god. Decline and continuity 140 the tariqas and the contemporary islamic revival 145 state antisufism 153 radical rethinking of the way 161 conclusion. The work on our spiritual journey is to learn how to. A list of the famous men among the sufis a list of the sufis who published the sciences of allusion in books and treatises iv. There are thousands of books written on this genre. This was from the year 1931 to 1941 when i was 5 to 15 years old. Ibn ata allah alsakandaris taj alarus shows the effort of a renowned sufi master d. The term is taken from the root word in arabic suf which means wool. Sufism for nonsufis ibn ata allah alsakandaris taj alarus shows the effort of a renowned sufi master d. Yet, in the face of the modern muslim tendency to limit islams deployment to the emphatically political, few expressions of the religion could be more central to its spiritual vitality in the modern world. Sufi or sufism is derived from suf which means undyed garments of wool worn as a mark of personal penitence and poverty.
Even though many efforts have been made to discover the origin of the word, they do not give us a clear understanding about the word tasawouf. Muhammad alawi almaliki, while at the same time providing an overall defence of sufis and sufism, significantly including the positive opinions of ibn taymiyya, ibn qayyim al. The original arabic term tasawwuf means becoming a sufi, and it points to ideals of sincerity, purity, community, and discipline. Download masnavi rumi, saadi, hafiz, khayam, attar in pdf format presents masterpieces of literature by sufis and saints which can be downloaded in ebook format pdf. The sufis were heirs to a tradition of islamic mysticism, and they have generally been viewed as standing more or less apart from the social order. In his translation and analysis of ibn ata allah alsakandaris taj. Sep 12, 2019 the nasir ol molk mosque in shiraz, iran. The superlative degree of irfan and tasawwuf demonstrated by our 12 imams is enough to overlook any well known sufi tradition. Sufis were persecuted in iran under khomeini, but many sunnis persecuted them too.
Sufis assimilated both trends and developed the formula further from will and thought to love, which for them was the supreme principle in creation. On the other hand, a many nonsufi muslims are familiar with sufiism and have respect for it, and read some of the sufi poetry. F ifty years ago this autumn, idries shah published the sufis. The qadiriyya and sanussi orders in algeria and libya doi 10. The sufis originally drew their ideas from certain verses of the quran and hadith i. Despite its continuing appeal in the muslim world, sufism australias leading bookseller for 141 years.
Ibriziana a pdf file which you can read if you have adobe acrobat. Rich in scope, author idries shah explained clearly the traditions and philosophy of the sufis to a western audience for the first time. When it first appeared in 1964, the sufis was welcomed as the decisive work on the subject. In this article, i examine the role of sufism and sufi leaders as they relate to anticolonial political and military resistance movements. In the five decades since its release, the book has been translated into dozens of languages, and has found a wide readership in both. Sufis and anti sufis 6 contemporary sufism and anti sufism 140 sufi tariqas, 1950sl960s. Persecution of sufis and sufism has included destruction of sufi shrines and mosques. Sufi practices have their foundation in purity of life, strict obedience to islamic law and imitation of the prophet. Few forms of classical islam are more controversial among modern muslims than the spiritual discipline known as sufism. The origin of the word tasawouf international association. Drunken sufism has always been popular among muslims of all classes and persuasions, and even the most literalminded jurists are likely to enjoy the poetry while condemning the ideas for a good study of the role of poetry and music in contemporary sufism, see earl h. Sufis and antisufis 6 contemporary sufism and antisufism 140 sufi tariqas, 1950sl960s.
Gods spiritual paths adaptation and renewal in the context of modernization. Professor eaton contends to the contrary that the sufis were an integral part of their society, and that an understanding of their interaction with it is essential to an understanding of the sufis. It is the narrative of how one dedicated seeker of true knowledge and salvation, having probed various systems of thought and differing paths of learning and enlightenment, discovered the peace of the inner life and discipline of. June 10end of december calendar photo piromurshid inayat khan 18821927 heart and wings complete works of piro. Sufism for nonsufis ibn ata allah alsakandaris taj. Dec 08, 2007 sufi practices have their foundation in purity of life, strict obedience to islamic law and imitation of the prophet.
But documents recovered in northern mali revealed that the militants in mali had. By will we mean the capacity to choose consciously. Mumtaz qadri, the selfconfessed killer of salmaan taseer, is said to be associated with the dawateislami, a nonviolent, nonpolitical, sufiinspired group of the barelvi school of thought. Below you will find a number of books that have been collected over the internet and hosted at our website.
Teresa of avila, roger bacon, geber, hindu vendantist teachings, the troubadours, in shakespeare, the. As been said in the quran and hadith that halal and haraam matters are very obvious and can easily be identified. The sufis, who believe that deep intuition is the only real guide to knowledge, use the humorous stories of nasrudins adventures almost like exercises. Unlike common thought, the vast majority of sufis are true blooded muslims not buddhist saints who combine islam in their religion. Early sufis such as alhallaj were outspoken in saying that they were god. This text has long been recognized as not only an islamic classic, but also as a great spiritual autobiography of one of the worlds greatest religious thinkers. While the book could have provided some insight into the debate regarding sufism it rather goes for the safe ground and covers well known figures who have already been studied and it must be said, with far better. I am the stream that feeds the fountain of your mind. The turkish republican state banned all sufi orders and abolished their institutions in 1925 after sufis opposed the new secular order. Sudanic africa is an online scholarly journal containing, among other things, numerous articles on sufism in islamic africa. Sufism for nonsufis ibn ata allah alsakandaris taj al.
Below you will find a number of books that have been collected over the. Despite its continuing appeal in the muslim world, sufism has faced challenges in the last 250 years. Sufism usually gets traced to iran or the late periods of iraq before islamic conquest. The foundation of sufism and relation of ismailism to sufism preface i was born in karachi near garden jamatkhana. Sufis and antisufis the defence, rethinking and rejection of.
Ruwaym ruwaym ibn ahmad ibn yazid, abu muhammad, albaghdadi d. Study notes on sufism and bhakti movement history discussion. It presumes that we have to some extent developed a healthy capacity for will. Why is sufism criticized and underrated by many islamic. Sufism evokes considerable interest amongst people mainly because of the mysticism associated with it and also because not much is. The arabic term sufi has been used in islamic literature with a wide range of meanings, by both proponents and opponents of sufism. Sufiswhich is what practioners of sufism are calledsee themselves to be on a spiritual journey toward god. The history and methodology of sufism sufism is an esoteric doctrine transmitted by word of mouth, and sometimes without even a spoken or written word, by an authorized teacher to a disciple, and from disciple to another disciple, in confidence. Annual report of the united states commission on international religious freedom. Through selfdenial, careful introspection and mental struggle, sufis hope to purify the self from all selfishness, thus attaining ikhlas, absolute purity of intention and act. Sufism sufis sufi orders sufi orders and their shaykhs.
Sufism and anticolonial violent resistance movements. Farida khanam sufism tasawwuf is the name given to mysticism in islam. Islamic architecture is one of the gems of persian culture, as is its traditional music. I can only provide a shia point of view here and it is pretty simple.
942 178 1318 417 1508 489 309 1492 726 578 1142 1322 159 830 656 891 1401 1396 584 1487 727 1069 1162 994 1295 406 688 495 535 183 550 752 456