Sufi 1

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BBC: SUFISM

Last updated 2009-09-08

Sufism is Islamic mysticism. This article provides a description of Sufism and information about its history and practice.


Introduction

Sufism

Sufism, or Tasawwuf as it is known in the Muslim world, is Islamic mysticism (Lings, Martin, What is Sufism?, The Islamic Texts Society, 1999, pg 15).

Non-Muslims often mistake Sufism as a sect of Islam. Sufism is more accurately described as an aspect or dimension of Islam. Sufi orders (Tariqas) can be found in Sunni, Shia and other Islamic groups. Ibn Khaldun, the 14th century Arab historian, described Sufism as:

"... dedication to worship, total dedication to Allah most High, disregard for the finery and ornament of the world, abstinence from the pleasure, wealth, and prestige sought by most men, and retiring from others to worship alone."

Ibn Khaldun, quoted in Keller, Nuh Ha Mim, The Place of Tasawwuf in Traditional Islam, www.masud.co.uk, 1995


Ibn Khaldun's words are an accurate description of Sufis today.

Sufis are emphatic that Islamic knowledge should be learned from teachers and not exclusively from books. Tariqas can trace their teachers back through the generations to the Prophet himself. Modelling themselves on their teachers, students hope that they too will glean something of the Prophetic character.

Although Sufis are relatively few in number they have shaped Islamic thought and history. Through the centuries Sufis contributed hugely to Islamic literature for example Rumi, Omar Khayyám and Al-Ghazali's influence extended beyond Muslim lands to be quoted by Western philosophers, writers and theologians. Sufis were influential in spreading Islam particularly to the furthest outposts of the Muslim world in Africa, India and the Far East.

History and theology

Several origins of the word 'sufi' have been suggested. It may derive from the word for 'wool' and the woollen garments worn by early Sufis. It may also have connections with the word for 'purity' and another suggestion is that it has links with the Greek 'sophia' or wisdom.

However throughout history a Sufi was most often understood to be a person of religious learning who aspires to be close to Allah. They understand their purpose in life from the verse of the Qur'an:

"I created the Jinns and humankind only that they may worship me"

Quran 51:56


In pursuit of this goal of worshipping Allah, Sufis belong to Tariqas, or orders, established in the first few centuries after the Prophet's death. These orders have a master who will teach sacred knowledge to others in the group.

Although Tariqas have a long history, in recent times some Muslims have questioned the necessity of Tariqas arguing that they were alien to the Prophet himself. Sufis make a convincing defence from the Qur'an and Sunna (what the Prophet said, did, agreed to or condemned).

Sufis acknowledge that Tariqas were not established at the time of the Prophet. They consider that the Prophet his companions and their immediate successors, the first three generations, embodied Islamic mysticism but the phenomenon was too general to have a specific name. Later generations of Muslims became distracted by worldliness and so those, now in the minority, that were dedicated to worshipping Allah were given the name Sufi. This turn of events was eloquently described in the 10th Century by Abu l-Hasan Fushanji who said:

"Today Sufism is a name without a reality. It was once a reality without a name."

Abu l-Hasan Fushanji, quoted in Lings, Martin, What is Sufism?, The Islamic Texts Society, 1999, pg 45


Although the word Sufism is absent from prophetic speech, it's believed Sufism's place in Islam is described by the Prophet:

Umar ibn al-Khattab, a companion of the prophet, said:

"One day we were sitting in the company of Allah's Apostle (peace be upon him) when there appeared before us a man dressed in pure white clothes, his hair extraordinarily black. There were no signs of travel on him. None amongst us recognized him. At last he sat with the Apostle (peace be upon him). He knelt before him placed his palms on his thighs and said: Muhammad, inform me about Islam.

"The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: Islam implies that you testify that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah, and you establish prayer, pay Zakat, observe the fast of Ramadan, and perform pilgrimage to the (House) if you are solvent enough (to bear the expense of) the journey. He (the inquirer) said: You have told the truth.

"It amazed us that he would put the question and then he would himself verify the truth.

"He (the inquirer) said: Inform me about Iman.

"He (the Holy Prophet) replied: That you affirm your faith in Allah, in His angels, in His Books, in His Apostles, in the Day of Judgment, and you affirm your faith in the Divine Decree about good and evil.

"He (the inquirer) said: You have told the truth. He again said: Inform me about Ihsan.

"He (the Holy Prophet) said: That you worship Allah as if you are seeing Him, for though you don't see Him, He, verily, sees you.

"He (the enquirer) again said: Inform me about the hour (of the Doom).

"He (the Holy Prophet) remarked: One who is asked knows no more than the one who is inquiring (about it).

"He (the inquirer) said: Tell me some of its indications.

"He (the Holy Prophet) said: That the slave-girl will give birth to her mistress and master, that you will find barefooted, destitute goat-herds vying with one another in the construction of magnificent buildings.

"Then he (the inquirer) went on his way but I stayed with him (the Holy Prophet) for a long while. He then, said to me: Umar, do you know who this inquirer was? I replied: Allah and His Apostle knows best. He (the Holy Prophet) remarked: He was Gabriel (the angel). He came to you in order to instruct you in matters of religion."

Sahih Muslim, Book 1:Number 1


In this well-known hadith the angel Gabriel asks about pivotal features of the Islamic belief. They included Islam, Iman, and Ihsan. Islam is the outward practice of the religion. Iman is the belief in the unseen and what the prophets have informed us of. Ihsan is to worship Allah as though one sees him. Traditionally scholars were able to teach each of these essential parts of Islam. The Imams of Sharia or 'sacred law' taught at the level of Islam. The Imams of Aqida or 'tenets of faith' taught Iman. The Imams of Sufism taught at the level of Ihsan.

The need to learn from a teacher is based on the Quranic verses:

"Ask those who know if you know not"

Qur'an 16:43

"And follow the path of him who turns unto Me"

Qur'an 31:15


Practice

Sufis could be described as devout Muslims; praying five times a day, giving to charity, fasting etc, they adhere strictly to the outward observance of Islam. But they are distinctive in nurturing theirs and others' spiritual dimension. They are aware that one of the names of the Prophet was Dhikr Allah (Remembrance of God).

Dhikr as practised by Sufis is the invocation of Allah's divine names, verses from the Qur'an, or sayings of the Prophet in order to glorify Allah. Dhikr is encouraged either individually or in groups and is a source of tranquillity for Sufis.

"...hearts become tranquil through the remembrance of Allah"

Qur'an 13:28

Many Sufis have used the metaphor of lovers to describe the state Dhikr leaves them in. Sufis say adherence to the Sharia manifests in the limbs and Dhikr manifests in the heart with the result that the outward is sober, the inner is drunk on divine love. [Source: BBC]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/islam/subdivisions/sufism_1.shtml

Links:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4746019.stm
http://www.sufism.org/society/articles/women.html
http://www.uga.edu/islam/Sufism.html

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Encyclopaedia Britannica

SUFISM

Annemarie Schimmel #

Sufism, also spelled Sufism, Mystical movement within Islam that seeks to find divine love and knowledge through direct personal experience of God.

It consists of a variety of mystical paths that are designed to ascertain the nature of mankind and God and to facilitate the experience of divine love and wisdom in the world. Sufism arose as an organized movement after the death of Muhammad (632 ce), among different groups who found orthodox Islam to be spiritually stifling. The practices of contemporary Sufi orders and suborders vary, but most include the recitation of the name of God or of certain phrases from the Quran as a way to loosen the bonds of the lower self, enabling the soul to experience the higher reality toward which it naturally aspires. Though Sufi practitioners have often been at odds with the mainstream of Islamic theology and law, the importance of Sufism in the history of Islam is incalculable. Sufi literature, especially love poetry, represents a golden age in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Urdu languages. See also Ahmadiyyah; dervish; Malāmatiyyah; tariqa.

Sufism, also spelled Sufism, mystical Islāmic belief and practice in which Muslims seek to find the truth of divine love and knowledge through direct personal experience of God. It consists of a variety of mystical paths that are designed to ascertain the nature of man and God and to facilitate the experience of the presence of divine love and wisdom in the world.

Islāmic mysticism is called tasawwuf (literally, “to dress in wool”) in Arabic, but it has been called Sufism in Western languages since the early 19th century. An abstract word, Sufism derives from the Arabic term for a mystic, Sufi, which is in turn derived from Suf, “wool,” plausibly a reference to the woollen garment of early Islāmic ascetics. The Sufis are also generally known as “the poor,” fuqarāh, plural of the Arabic faqīr, in Persian darvīsh, whence the English words fakir and dervish.

Though the roots of Islāmic mysticism formerly were supposed to have stemmed from various non-Islāmic sources in ancient Europe and even India, it now seems established that the movement grew out of early Islāmic asceticism that developed as a counterweight to the increasing worldiness of the expanding Muslim community; only later were foreign elements that were compatible with mystical theology and practices adopted and made to conform to Islām.

By educating the masses and deepening the spiritual concerns of the Muslims, Sufism has played an important role in the formation of Muslim society. Opposed to the dry casuistry of the lawyer-divines, the mystics nevertheless scrupulously observed the commands of the divine law. The Sufis have been further responsible for a large-scale missionary activity all over the world, which still continues. Sufis have elaborated the image of the prophet Muhammad—the founder of Islām—and have thus largely influenced Muslim piety by their Muhammad-mysticism. Without the Sufi vocabulary, Persian and other literatures related to it, such as Turkish, Urdu, Sindhi, Pashto, and Panjabi, would lack their special charms. Through the poetry of these literatures mystical ideas spread widely among the Muslims. In some countries Sufi leaders were also active politically.

History

Islāmic mysticism had several stages of growth, including (1) the appearance of early asceticism, (2) the development of a classical mysticism of divine love, and (3) the rise and proliferation of fraternal orders of mystics. Despite these general stages, however, the history of Islāmic mysticism is largely a history of individual mystic experience.

The first stage of Sufism appeared in pious circles as a reaction against the worldliness of the early Umayyad period (ad 661–749). From their practice of constantly meditating on the Quranic words about Doomsday, the ascetics became known as “those who always weep” and those who considered this world “a hut of sorrows.” They were distinguished by their scrupulous fulfillment of the injunctions of the Quran and tradition, by many acts of piety, and especially by a predilection for night prayers.

Rise of fraternal orders

Slightly later, mystical orders (fraternal groups centring around the teachings of a leader-founder) began to crystallize. The 13th century, though politically overshadowed by the invasion of the Mongols into the Eastern lands of Islām and the end of the Abbāsid caliphate, was also the golden age of Sufism: the Spanish-born Ibn al Arabī created a comprehensive theosophical system (concerning the relation of God and the world) that was to become the cornerstone for a theory of “Unity of Being.” According to this theory all existence is one, a manifestation of the underlying divine reality. His Egyptian contemporary wrote the finest mystical poems in Arabic. Two other important mystics, who died 1220, were a Persian poet, Farīd od-Dīn Athar, one of the most fertile writers on mystical topics, and a Central Asian master, Najmuddīn Kubrā, who presented elaborate discussions of the psychological experiences through which the mystic adept has to pass.

Sufi literature

Though a prophetic saying (Hadīth) claims that “he who knows God becomes silent,” the Sufis have produced a literature of impressive extent and could defend their writing activities with another hadīth: “He who knows God talks much.” The first systematic books explaining the tenets of Sufism date from the 10th century; but earlier, Muḥāsibī had already written about spiritual education, Hallāj had composed meditations in highly concentrated language, and many Sufis had used poetry for conveying their experiences of the ineffable mystery or had instructed their disciples in letters of cryptographic density. The accounts of Sufism by Sarrāj and his followers, as well as the (biographical works) by Sulamī, Abū Nuaym al-Isfahānī, and others, together with some biographies of individual masters, are the sources for knowledge of early Sufism.

Sufi thought and practice

Important aspects

The mystics drew their vocabulary largely from the Quran, which for Muslims contains all divine wisdom and has to be interpreted with ever-increasing insight. In the Quran, mystics found the threat of the Last Judgment, but they also found the statement that God “loves them and they love him,” which became the basis for love-mysticism. Strict obedience to the religious law and imitation of the Prophet were basic for the mystics. By rigid introspection and mental struggle the mystic tried to purify his baser self from even the smallest signs of selfishness, thus attaining , absolute purity of intention and act. (trust in God) was sometimes practiced to such an extent that every thought of tomorrow was considered irreligious. “Little sleep, little talk, little food” were fundamental; fasting became one of the most important preparations for the spiritual life.

The path

The path (Tarīqah) begins with repentance. A mystical guide (shaykh, pīr) accepts the seeker as disciple (murīd), orders him to follow strict ascetic practices, and suggests certain formulas for meditation. It is said that the disciple should be in the hands of the master “like a corpse in the hand of the washer.” The master teaches him constant struggle (the real “Holy War”) against the lower soul, often represented as a black dog, which should, however, not be killed but merely tamed and used in the way of God. The mystic dwells in a number of spiritual stations, which are described in varying sequence, and, after the initial repentance, comprise abstinence, renunciation, and —according to Muhammad’s saying, “Poverty is my pride”; poverty was sometimes interpreted as having no interest in anything apart from God, the Rich One, but the concrete meaning of poverty prevailed, which is why the mystic is often denoted as “poor,” fakir or dervish. Patience and gratitude belong to higher stations of the path, and consent is the loving acceptance of every affliction.

Symbolism in Sufism

The divine truth was at times revealed to the mystic in visions, auditions, and dreams, in colours and sounds, but to convey these nonrational and ineffable experiences to others the mystic had to rely upon such terminology of worldly experience as that of love and intoxication—often objectionable from the orthodox viewpoint. The symbolism of wine, cup, and cupbearer, first expressed by Abū Yazīd al-Bistāmī in the 9th century, became popular everywhere, whether in the verses of the Arab Ibn al-Fārid, or the Persian Irāqī, or the Turk Yunus Emre, and their followers. The hope for the union of the soul with the divine had to be expressed through images of human yearning and love. The love for lovely boys in which the divine beauty manifests itself—according to the alleged Hadīth “I saw my Lord in the shape of a youth with a cap awry”—was commonplace in Persian poetry. Union was described as the submersion of the drop in the ocean, the state of the iron in the fire, the vision of penetrating light, or the burning of the moth in the candle (first used by Hallāj). Worldly phenomena were seen as black tresses veiling the radiant beauty of the divine countenance. The mystery of unity and diversity was symbolized, for example, under the image of mirrors that reflect the different aspects of the divine, or as prisms colouring the pure light. Every aspect of nature was seen in relation to God. The symbol of the soulbird—in which the human soul is likened to a flying bird—known everywhere, was the centre of Athar’s (“The Birds’ Conversation”). The predilection of the mystical poets for the symbolism of the nightingale and rose (the red rose = God’s perfect beauty; nightingale = soul; first used by Baqli [died 1206]) stems from the soul-bird symbolism. For spiritual education, symbols taken from medicine (healing of the sick soul) and alchemy (changing of base matter into gold) were also used. Many descriptions that were originally applied to God as the goal of love were, in later times, used also for the Prophet, who is said to be like the “dawn between the darkness of the material world and the sun of Reality.”

Theosophical Sufism

Sufism, in its beginnings a practical method of spiritual education and self-realization, grew slowly into a theosophical system by adopting traditions of Neoplatonism, the Hellenistic world, Gnosticism (an ancient esoteric religiophilosophical movement that viewed matter as evil and spirit as good), and spiritual currents from Iran and various countries in the ancient agricultural lands from the eastern Mediterranean to Iraq. One master who contributed to this development was the Persian as-Suhrawardī, called al-Maqtūl (“killed”), executed in 1191 in Aleppo. To him is attributed the philosophy of ishrāq (“illumination”), and he claimed to unite the Persian (Zoroastrian) and Egyptian (Hermetic) traditions. His didactic and doctrinal works in Arabic among other things taught a complicated angelology (theory of angels); some of his smaller Persian treatises depict the journey of the soul across the cosmos; the “Orient” (East) is the world of pure lights and archangels, the “Occident” (West) that of darkness and matter; and man lives in the “Western exile.”

Sufi orders

Organization

Mystical life was first restricted to the relation between a master and a few disciples; the foundations of a monastic system were laid by the Persian Abū Saīd ebn Abī ol-Kheyr (died 1049), but real orders or fraternities came into existence only from the 12th century onward: Abd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī (died 1166) gathered the first and still most important order around himself; then followed the Suhrawardīyah, and the 13th century saw the formation of large numbers of different orders in the East (for example, Kubrawīya in Khvārezm) and West (Shādhilīyah). Thus, Sufism ceased to be the way of the chosen few and influenced the masses. A strict ritual was elaborated: when the adept had found a master for whom he had to feel a preformed affinity, there was an ceremony in which he swore allegiance into the master’s hand; similarities to the initiation in Ismāʿīlism, the 9th-century sect, and in the guilds suggest a possible interaction. The disciple had to undergo a stern training; he was often ordered to perform the lowest work in the community, to serve the brethren, to go out to beg (many of the old monasteries subsisted upon alms). A seclusion period of 40 days under hard conditions was common for the adepts in most orders.

Discipline and ritual

Each order has peculiarities in its ritual. Most start the instruction with breaking the lower soul; others, such as the later Naqshbandīyah, stress the purification of the heart by constant dhikr (“remembrance”) and by discourse with the master. The forms of dhikr vary in the orders. Many of them use the word Allāh, or the profession of faith with its rhythmical wording, sometimes accompanied by movements of the body, or by breath control up to complete holding of the breath. The Mawlawīs, the whirling dervishes, are famous for their dancing ritual, an organized variation of the earlier practices, which were confined to music and poetry. The Rifādis, the so-called , have become known for their practice of hurting themselves while in an ecstatic state that they reach in performing their loud . (Such practices that might well degenerate into mere jugglery are not approved by most orders.) Some orders also teach the , silent repetition of the formulas, and meditation, concentrating upon certain fixed points of the body; thus the Naqshbandīs do not allow any emotional practices and prefer contemplation to ecstasy, perhaps as a result of Buddhist influence from . Other orders have special given to the disciples, such as the protective (“The protective armour of the sea”; for seafaring people—then extended to all travellers) in the Shādhilīyah order. Most of them prescribe for their disciples additional prayers and meditation at the end of each ritual prayer.

Function and role in Islāmic society

The orders formed an excellent means of bringing together the spiritually interested members of the community. They acted as a counterweight against the influence of hairsplitting lawyer-divines and gave the masses an emotional outlet in enthusiastic celebrations (urs, “marriage”) of the anniversaries of the deaths of founders of mystic orders or similar festivals in which they indulged in music and joy. The orders were adaptable to every social level; thus, some of them were responsible for adapting a number of un-Islāmic folkloristic practices such as veneration of saints. Their way of life often differed so much from Islāmic ideals that one distinguishes in Iran and India between orders (law-bound) and (not following the injunctions of the Quran). Some orders were more fitting for the rural population, such as the Aḥmadīyah (after Ahmad al-Badawī; died 1286) in Egypt. The Ahmadīyah, however, even attracted some Mamlūk rulers. The Turkish Bektāshīyah (Haci Bekta, early 14th century), together with strange syncretistic cults, showed a prevalence of the ideals of the Shīites (from Shīah—the followers of Alī, son-in-law of the prophet Muhammad, whose descendants claimed to be rightful successors to the religious leadership of Islām). The figure of Alī played a role also in other fraternities, and the relations between Sufism in the 14th and 15th centuries and the Shīah still have to be explored, as is also true of the general influence of Shīite ideas on Sufism. Other orders, such as the , an offshoot of which still plays an important role among Egyptian officials and employees, are typically . This order demands not a life in solitude but strict adherence to one’s profession and fulfillment of one’s duty. Still other orders were connected with the ruling classes, such as, for a time, the in Mughal India, and the , whose leader had to invest the Ottoman sultan with the sword. The Mawlawīyah is also largely responsible for the development of classical Turkish poetry, music, and , just as the Chishtīyah contributed much to the formation of classical Indo-Muslim music.

Geographical extent of Sufi ordersIt would be impossible to number the members of mystical orders in the Islāmic world. Even in such countries as Turkey, where the orders have been banned since 1925, many people still cling to the mystical tradition and feel themselves to be links in the spiritual chains of the orders and try to implement their ideals in modern society. The most widely spread group is, no doubt, the Qādirīyah, whose adherents are found from West Africa to India—the tomb of Abd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī in Baghdad still being a place of pilgrimage. The areas where the Sanūsīyah live are restricted to the Maghrib, the Atlas Massif, and the coastal plain from Morocco to Tunisia, whereas the Tijānīyah has some offshoots in Turkey. Such rural orders as the Egyptian Ahmadīyah and Dasūqīyah (named after Ibrāhīm ad-Dasūqī; died 1277) are bound to their respective countries, as are the Mawlawīs and to the realms of the former . The Bektāshīyah had gained political importance in the empire because of its relations with the Janissaries, the . Albania, since 1929, has had a strong and officially recognized group of Bektāshīyah who were even granted independent status after . The order extends from India to Java, whereas the Chishtīyah and Suhrawardīyah remain mainly inside the Indo-Pakistan subcontinent. The reached Kashmir through Alī Hama-dhānī (died 1385), a versatile author, but the order later lost its influence.

Significance

Sufism has helped to shape large parts of Muslim society. The orthodox disagree with such aspects of Sufism as saint worship, visiting of tombs, musical performances, miracle mongering, degeneration into jugglery, and the adaptation of pre-Islāmic and un-Islāmic customs; and the reformers object to the influences of the monistic interpretation of Islām upon moral life and human activities. The importance given to the figure of the master is accused of yielding negative results; the shaykh as the almost infallible leader of his disciples and admirers could gain dangerous authority and political influence, for the illiterate villagers in backward areas used to rely completely upon the “saint.” Yet, other masters have raised their voices against social inequality and have tried, even at the cost of their lives, to and political conditions for the better and to spiritually revive the masses. The missionary activities of the Sufis have enlarged the fold of the faithful. The importance of Sufism for spiritual education, and inculcation in the faithful of the virtues of trust in God, piety, faith in God’s love, and veneration of the Prophet, cannot be overrated. The formulas still preserve their consoling and quieting power even for the illiterate. Mysticism permeates and other literatures influenced by it. Such poetry has always been a source of happiness for millions, although some modernists have disdained its “narcotic” influence on Muslim thinking.[Britannica]

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Malamatiyah

Malamatiyah, a Sufi (Muslim mystic) group that flourished in Sāmānid Iran during the 8th century. The name Malamatiyah was derived from “to be ignoble,” or “to be wicked”. Malamati doctrines were based on the reproach of the carnal self and a careful watch over its inclinations to surrender to the temptations of the world. They often referred to the Quranic verse “I [God] swear by the reproachful soul” as the basis for their philosophy. This verse, they said, clearly praised a self that constantly reproached and blamed its owner for the slightest deviation from the world. [Britannica]

Tariqa

tariqa, also spelled tariqah, Arabic tarīqah, (“road,” “path,” or “way”), the Muslim spiritual path toward direct knowledge (marifah) of God or Reality (Haqq). In the 9th and 10th centuries tariqa meant the spiritual path of individual Sufis (mystics). After the 12th century, as communities of followers gathered around sheikhs (or pīrs, “teachers”), tariqa came to designate the sheikh’s entire ritual system, which was followed by the community or mystic order. Eventually tariqa came to mean the order itself. Each mystic order claimed a chain of spiritual descent (silsilah) from the Prophet Muhammad. [Britannica]

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Sufism

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SUFISM

Sufism is path of mysticism towards God according to views of many Muslims.
Belows is what famous WIKI enclyclopedia says about the subject.

CONTENTS:

Sufism
Dhikr
Tariqa
Sufi Metaphysics
Muraqaba
History of Sufism
Sufism in India
Bayazid Bastami
Chishti Order
Qadiriyya
Suhrawardiyya
Shadhili
Shattari
Naqshbandi
Eleven Naqshbandi principles

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# Sufism

Sufism or tasawwuf is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a Sufi. Another name for a Sufi is Dervish.

Classical Sufi scholars have defined Sufism as "a science whose objective is the reparation of the heart and turning it away from all else but God." Alternatively, in the words of the Darqawi Sufi teacher Ahmad ibn Ajiba, "a science through which one can know how to travel into the presence of the Divine, purify one's inner self from filth, and beautify it with a variety of praiseworthy traits."

Classical Sufis were characterised by their attachment to dhikr (a practice of repeating the names of God) and asceticism. Sufism gained adherents among a number of Muslims as a reaction against the worldliness of the early Umayyad Caliphate (661-750 CE). Sufis have spanned several continents and cultures over a millennium, at first expressed through Arabic, then through Persian, Turkish and a dozen other languages. "Orders" (turuq), which are either Sunnī or Shī'ī or mixed in doctrine, trace many of their original precepts from the Islamic Prophet Muhammad through his cousin 'Alī, with the notable exception of the Naqshbandi who trace their origins through the first Caliph, Abu Bakr. Other exclusive schools of Sufism describe themselves as distinctly Sufi.

Some mainstream scholars of Islam define sufism as simply the name for the inner or esoteric dimension of Islam. René Guénon in 'Insights into Islamic Esoterism and Taoism ' (Sophia Perennis 2003) contended that Sufism was the esoteric aspect of Islam supported and complemented by exoteric practices and Islamic law. However, according to Idries Shah, the Sufi philosophy is universal in nature, its roots predating the rise of Islam and the other modern-day religions, save for perhaps Buddhism and Jainism; likewise, some Muslims consider Sufism outside the sphere of Islam.[

Etymology and origin of the term

Several origins of the word 'sufi' have been suggested. Commonly, the lexical root of the word is traced to sūf, "wool", referring either to the simple cloaks the early Muslim ascetics wore, or possibly to safā, "purity". The two were combined by the Sufi al-Rudhabari who said, "The Sufi is the one who wears wool on top of purity." The wool cloaks were sometimes a designation of their initiation into the Sufi order. Others have suggested that word comes from the term ahl as-suffah ('the people of the bench'), who were a group of impoverished companions of the Prophet Muhammad who held regular gatherings of dhikr.

According to the medieval Iranian scholar Abū Rayān al-Bīrūnī the word sūfi is a derivation from the Greek word "sofia" or "sophia" (σοφία), meaning wisdom.

Basic views

While all Muslims believe that they are on the pathway to God and hope to become close to God in Paradise — after death and after the "Final Judgment" — Sufis also believe that it is possible to draw closer to God and to more fully embrace the Divine Presence in this life. The chief aim of all Sufis is to seek the pleasing of God by working to restore within themselves the primordial state of fitra, described in the Qur'an. In this state nothing one does defies God, and all is undertaken with the single motivation of love of God. A secondary consequence of this is that the seeker may be led to abandon all notions of dualism or multiplicity, including a conception of an individual self, and to realize the Divine Unity.

Thus, Sufism has been characterized[by whom?] as the science of the states of the lower self (the ego), and the way of purifying this lower self of its reprehensible traits, while adorning it instead with what is praiseworthy, whether or not this process of cleansing and purifying the heart is in time rewarded by esoteric knowledge of God. This can be conceived in terms of two basic types of law (fiqh), an outer law concerned with actions, and an inner law concerned with the human heart. The outer law consists of rules pertaining to worship, transactions, marriage, judicial rulings, and criminal law — what is often referred to, a bit too broadly, as qanun. The inner law of Sufism consists of rules about repentance from sin, the purging of contemptible qualities and evil traits of character, and adornment with virtues and good character.

Sufism, which is a general term for Muslim mysticism, was originally a response to the increasing worldly power of Islamic leaders as the religion spread during the 8th Century and their corresponding shift in focus towards materialistic and political concerns. In particular, Harun al-Rashid, the fifth Abbasid Caliph, attracted negative attention for his lavish lifestyle, including gold and silver tableware, an extensive harem and numerous slaves and retainers, that stood in contrast to the relative simplicity of the Prophet Muhammad's life.

The typical early Sufi lived in a cell of a mosque and taught a small band of disciples. The extent to which Sufism was influenced by Buddhist and Hindu mysticism, and by the example of Christian hermits and monks, is disputed, but self-discipline and concentration on God quickly led to the belief that by quelling the self and through loving ardour for God it was possible to maintain a union with the divine in which the human self melted away.

Teaching

To enter the way of Sufism, the seeker begins by finding a teacher, as the connection to the teacher is considered necessary for the growth of the pupil. The teacher, to be genuine, must have received the authorization to teach (ijazah) from another Master of the Way, in an unbroken succession (silsilah) leading back to Sufism's origin with Muhammad. It is the transmission of the divine light from the teacher's heart to the heart of the student, rather than of worldly knowledge transmitted from mouth to ear, that allows the adept to progress. In addition, the genuine teacher will be utterly strict in his adherence to the Divine Law.

Scholars and adherents of Sufism are unanimous in agreeing that Sufism cannot be learned through books. To reach the highest levels of success in Sufism typically requires that the disciple live with and serve the teacher for many, many years. For instance, Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari, who gave his name to the Naqshbandi Order, served his first teacher, Sayyid Muhammad Baba As-Samasi, for 20 years, until as-Samasi died. He subsequently served several other teachers for lengthy periods of time. The extreme arduousness of his spiritual preparation is illustrated by his service, as directed by his teacher, to the weak and needy members of his community in a state of complete humility and tolerance for many years. When he believed this mission to be concluded, his teacher next directed him to care for animals, curing their sicknesses, cleaning their wounds, and assisting them in finding provision. After many years of this he was next instructed to spend many years in the care of dogs in a state of humility, and to ask them for support.

As a further example, the prospective adherent of the Mevlevi Order would have been ordered to serve in the kitchens of a hospice for the poor for 1,001 days prior to being accepted for spiritual instruction, and a further 1,001 days in solitary retreat as a precondition of completing that instruction.

Some teachers, especially when addressing more general audiences, or mixed groups of Muslims and non-Muslims, make extensive use of parable, allegory, and metaphor. Although approaches to teaching vary among different Sufi orders, Sufism as a whole is primarily concerned with direct personal experience, and as such has sometimes been compared to other, non-Islamic forms of mysticism (e.g., as in the books of Seyyed Hossein Nasr).

History of Sufism

Origins

In its early stages of development Sufism effectively referred to nothing more than the internalization of Islam.[26] According to one perspective, it is directly from the Qur'an, constantly recited, meditated, and experienced, that Sufism proceeded, in its origin and its development. Others have held that Sufism is the strict emulation of the way of Muhammad, through which the heart's connection to the Divine is strengthened.

From the traditional Sufi point of view, the esoteric teachings of Sufism were transmitted from Muhammad to those who had the capacity to acquire the direct experiential gnosis of God, which was passed on from teacher to student through the centuries. Some of this transmission is summarized in texts, but most is not. Important contributions in writing are attributed to Uwais al-Qarni, Harrm bin Hian, Hasan Basri and Sayid ibn al-Mussib, who are regarded as the first Sufis in the earliest generations of Islam. Harith al-Muhasibi was the first one to write about moral psychology. Rabia Basri was a Sufi known for her love and passion for God, expressed through her poetry. Bayazid Bastami was among the first theorists of Sufism; he concerned himself with fanā and baqā, the state of annihilating the self in the presence of the divine, accompanied by clarity concerning worldly phenomena derived from that perspective.

Sufism had a long history already before the subsequent institutionalization of Sufi teachings into devotional orders (tarîqât) in the early Middle Ages.[30] Almost all extant Sufi orders trace their chains of transmission (silsila) back to Muhammad via his cousin and son-in-law Ali. The Naqshbandi order is a notable exception to this rule, as it traces the origin of its teachings from Muhammad to the first Islamic Caliph Abu Bakr.

Different devotional styles and traditions developed over time, reflecting the perspectives of different masters and the accumulated cultural wisdom of the orders. Typically all of these concerned themselves with the understanding of subtle knowledge (gnosis), education of the heart to purify it of baser instincts, the love of God, and approaching God through a well-described hierarchy of enduring spiritual stations (maqâmât) and more transient spiritual states (ahwâl).

Formalization of doctrine

Towards the end of the first millennium CE, a number of manuals began to be written summarizing the doctrines of Sufism and describing some typical Sufi practices. Two of the most famous of these are now available in English translation: the Kashf al-Mahjûb of Hujwiri, and the Risâla of Qushayri.

Two of Imam Al Ghazali's greatest treatises, the "Revival of Religious Sciences" and the "Alchemy of Happiness," argued that Sufism originated from the Qur'an and was thus compatible with mainstream Islamic thought, and did not in any way contradict Islamic Law—being instead necessary to its complete fulfillment. This became the mainstream position among Islamic scholars for centuries, challenged only recently on the basis of selective use of a limited body of texts. Ongoing efforts by both traditionally trained Muslim scholars and Western academics are making Imam Al-Ghazali's works available in English translation for the first time, allowing English-speaking readers to judge for themselves the compatibility of Islamic Law and Sufi doctrine.

Growth of Sufi influence in Islamic cultures

The spread of Sufism has been considered a definitive factor in the spread of Islam, and in the creation of integrally Islamic cultures, especially in Africa and Asia. Recent academic work on these topics has focused on the role of Sufism in creating and propagating the culture of the Ottoman world, and in resisting European imperialism in North Africa and South Asia.

Between the 13th and 16th centuries CE, Sufism produced a flourishing intellectual culture throughout the Islamic world, a "Golden Age" whose physical artifacts are still present. In many places, a lodge (known variously as a zaouia, khanqah, or tekke) would be endowed through a pious foundation in perpetuity (waqf) to provide a gathering place for Sufi adepts, as well as lodging for itinerant seekers of knowledge. The same system of endowments could also be used to pay for a complex of buildings, such as that surrounding the Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul, including a lodge for Sufi seekers, a hospice with kitchens where these seekers could serve the poor and/or complete a period of initiation, a library, and other structures. No important domain in the civilization of Islam remained unaffected by Sufism in this period.

Contemporary Sufism

Current Sufi orders include the Qadiria Boutshishia,Oveyssi, Naqshbandi, the Chishti, the Nimatullahi, the Qadiriyyah, the Qalandariyya, the Sarwari Qadiri, the Shadhliyya and the Suhrawardiyya.

Sufism is popular in such African countries as Morocco and Senegal, where it is seen as a mystical expression of Islam.[38] Sufism is traditional in Morocco but has seen a growing revival with the renewal of sufism around contemporary spiritual teachers such as Sidi Hamza al Qadiri al Boutshishi. Mbacke suggests that one reason Sufism has taken hold in Senegal is because it can accommodate local beliefs and customs, which tend toward the mystical.

Sufism suffered many setbacks in the modern era, particularly (though not exclusively) at the hands of European imperialists in the colonized nations of Asia and Africa. The life of the Algerian Sufi master Emir Abd al-Qadir is instructive in this regard. Notable as well are the lives of Amadou Bamba and Hajj Umar Tall in sub-Saharan Africa, and Sheikh Mansur Ushurma and Imam Shamil in the Caucasus region. In the twentieth century some more modernist Muslims have called Sufism a superstitious religion that holds back Islamic achievement in the fields of science and technology.

For a more thorough, though incomplete, summary of currently active groups and teachers, readers are referred to links in the site of Dr. Alan Godlas of the University of Georgia.

A number of Westerners have embarked with varying degrees of success on the path of Sufism. One of the first to return to Europe as an official representative of a Sufi order, and with the specific purpose to spread Sufism in Western Europe, was the Swedish-born wandering Sufi Abd al-Hadi Aqhili (also known as Ivan Aguéli). René Guénon the French scholar became a sufi in the early twentieth century and was known as Sheikh Abdul Wahid Yahya. His manifold writings defined the practice of sufism as the essence of Islam but also pointed to the universality of its message. Other spiritualists as for instance G. I. Gurdjieff. may or may not conform to the tenets of Sufism as understood by orthodox Muslims.

Other noteworthy Sufi teachers who were active in the West in recent years include Sidi Hamza al Qadiri al Boutshishi, Bawa Muhaiyaddeen, Dr. Nahid Angha (amongst the first Sufi women leaders of the present time), Dr. Shah Nazar Ali Kianfar, Nader Angha, Sheikh Abdullah Sirr-Dan Al-Jamal, Inayat Khan, Javad Nurbakhsh, Bulent Rauf, Irina Tweedie, Idries Shah and Muzaffer Ozak.

Currently active Sufi academics and publishers include Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, Nuh Ha Mim Keller, Abdullah Nooruddeen Durkee, Abdal Hakim Murad and the Franco-Moroccan Faouzi Skali.

Theoretical perspectives in Sufism

Traditional Islamic scholars have recognized two major branches within the practice of Sufism, and use this as one key to differentiating among the approaches of different masters and devotional lineages.

On the one hand there is the order from the signs to the Signifier (or from the arts to the Artisan). In this branch, the seeker begins by purifying the lower self of every corrupting influence that stands in the way of recognizing all of creation as the work of God, as God's active Self-disclosure or theophany. This is the way of Imam Al-Ghazali and of the majority of the Sufi orders.

On the other hand there is the order from the Signifier to His signs, from the Artisan to His works. In this branch the seeker experiences divine attraction (jadhba), and is able to enter the order with a glimpse of its endpoint, of direct apprehension of the Divine Presence towards which all spiritual striving is directed. This does not replace the striving to purify the heart, as in the other branch; it simply stems from a different point of entry into the path. This is the way primarily of the masters of the Naqshbandi and Shadhili orders.

Contemporary scholars may also recognize a third branch, attributed to the late Ottoman scholar Said Nursi and explicated in his vast Qur'an commentary called the Risale-i Nur. This approach entails strict adherence to the way of Muhammad, in the understanding that this wont, or sunnah, proposes a complete devotional spirituality adequate to those without access to a master of the Sufi way.

Contributions to other domains of scholarship

Sufism has contributed significantly to the elaboration of theoretical perspectives in many domains of intellectual endeavor. For instance, the doctrine of "subtle centers" or centers of subtle cognition (known as Lataif-e-sitta) addresses the matter of the awakening of spiritual intuition[49] in ways that some consider similar to certain models of chakra in Hinduism. In general, these subtle centers or latâ'if are thought of as faculties that are to be purified sequentially in order to bring the seeker's wayfaring to completion. A concise and useful summary of this system from a living exponent of this tradition has been published by Muhammad Emin Er.

Sufi psychology has influenced many areas of thinking both within and outside of Islam, drawing primarily upon three concepts. Ja'far al-Sadiq (both an imam in the Shia tradition and a respected scholar and link in chains of Sufi transmission in all Islamic sects) held that human beings are dominated by a lower self called the nafs, a faculty of spiritual intuition called the qalb or spiritual heart, and a spirit or soul called ruh. These interact in various ways, producing the spiritual types of the tyrant (dominated by nafs), the person of faith and moderation (dominated by the spiritual heart), and the person lost in love for God (dominated by the ruh).

Of note with regard to the spread of Sufi psychology in the West is Robert Frager, a Sufi teacher authorized in the Halveti Jerrahi order. Frager was a trained psychologist, born in the United States, who converted to Islam in the course of his practice of Sufism and wrote extensively on Sufism and psychology.

Sufi cosmology and Sufi metaphysics are also noteworthy areas of intellectual accomplishment.

Sufi practices

The devotional practices of Sufis vary widely. This is because an acknowledged and authorized master of the Sufi path is in effect a physician of the heart, able to diagnose the seeker's impediments to knowledge and pure intention in serving God, and to prescribe to the seeker a course of treatment appropriate to his or her maladies. The consensus among Sufi scholars is that the seeker cannot self-diagnose, and that it can be extremely harmful to undertake any of these practices alone and without formal authorization.

Prerequisites to practice include rigorous adherence to Islamic norms (ritual prayer in its five prescribed times each day, the fast of Ramadan, and so forth). Additionally, the seeker ought to be firmly grounded in supererogatory practices known from the life of Muhammad (such as the "sunna prayers"). This is in accordance with the words, attributed to God, of the following, a famous Hadith Qudsi:

My servant draws near to Me through nothing I love more than that which I have made obligatory for him. My servant never ceases drawing near to Me through supererogatory works until I love him. Then, when I love him, I am his hearing through which he hears, his sight through which he sees, his hand through which he grasps, and his foot through which he walks.

It is also necessary for the seeker to have a correct creed (Aqidah), and to embrace with certainty its tenets. The seeker must also, of necessity, turn away from sins, love of this world, the love of company and renown, obedience to satanic impulse, and the promptings of the lower self. (The way in which this purification of the heart is achieved is outlined in certain books, but must be prescribed in detail by a Sufi master.) The seeker must also be trained to prevent the corruption of those good deeds which have accrued to his or her credit by overcoming the traps of ostentation, pride, arrogance, envy, and long hopes (meaning the hope for a long life allowing us to mend our ways later, rather than immediately, here and now).

Sufi practices, while attractive to some, are not a means for gaining knowledge. The traditional scholars of Sufism hold it as absolutely axiomatic that knowledge of God is not a psychological state generated through breath control. Thus, practice of "techniques" is not the cause, but instead the occasion for such knowledge to be obtained (if at all), given proper prerequisites and proper guidance by a master of the way. Furthermore, the emphasis on practices may obscure a far more important fact: The seeker is, in a sense, to become a broken person, stripped of all habits through the practice of (in the words of Imam Al-Ghazali words) solitude, silence, sleeplessness, and hunger.

Magic has also been a part of Sufi practice, notably in India.[56] This practice intensified during the declining years of Sufism in India when The Sufi orders grew steadily in wealth and in political influence while their spirituality gradually declined as they concentrated on Saint worship, miracle working, magic and superstition. The external religious practices were neglected, morals declined and learning was despised. The element of magic in Sufism in India possibly drew from the occult practices seen in Atharvaveda. The most famous of all Sufis, Mansur Al-Hallaj (d. 922), visited Sindh in order to study "Indian Magic." He not only accepted Hindu ideas of cosmogony and of divine descent but he also seems to have believed in the Transmigration of the soul.

Dhikr

Dhikr is the remembrance of God commanded in the Qur'an for all Muslims through a specific devotional act, such as the repetition of divine names, supplications and aphorisms from hadith literature and the Qur'an. More generally, dhikr takes a wide range and various layers of meaning. This includes dhikr as any activity in which the Muslim maintains awareness of God. To engage in dhikr is to practice consciousness of the Divine Presence and love, or "to seek a state of godwariness". The Qur'an refers to Muhammad as the very embodiment of dhikr of God (65:10-11). Some types of dhikr are prescribed for all Muslims, and do not require Sufi initiation or the prescription of a Sufi master because they are deemed to be good for every seeker under every circumstance.

Some Sufi orders engage in ritualized dhikr ceremonies, or sema. Sema includes various forms of worship such as: recitation, singing (the most well known being the Qawwali music of the Indian subcontinent), instrumental music, dance (most famously the Sufi whirling of the Mevlevi order), incense, meditation, ecstasy, and trance.

Some Sufi orders stress and place extensive reliance upon Dhikr. This practice of Dhikr is called Dhikr-e-Qulb (remembrance of Allah by Heartbeats). The basic idea in this practice is to visualize the Arabic name of God, Allah, as having been written on the disciple's heart.

Muraqaba

The practice of muraqaba can be likened to the practices of meditation attested in many faith communities. The word muraqaba is derived from the same root (rqb) occurring as one of the 99 Names of God in the Qur'an, al-Raqîb, meaning "the Vigilant" and attested in verse 4: 1 of the Qur'an. Through muraqaba, a person watches over or takes care of the spiritual heart, acquires knowledge about it, and becomes attuned to the Divine Presence, which is ever vigilant.

While variation exists, one description of the practice within a Naqshbandi lineage reads as follows:

He is to collect all of his bodily senses in concentration, and to cut himself off from all preoccupation and notions that inflict themselves upon the heart. And thus he is to turn his full consciousness towards God Most High while saying three times: "Ilahî anta maqsûdî wa-ridâka matlûbî—my God, you are my Goal and Your good pleasure is what I seek." Then he brings to his heart the Name of the Essence—Allâh—and as it courses through his heart he remains attentive to its meaning, which is "Essence without likeness." The seeker remains aware that He is Present, Watchful, Encompassing of all, thereby exemplifying the meaning of his saying (may God bless him and grant him peace): "Worship God as though you see Him, for if you do not see Him, He sees you." And likewise the prophetic tradition: "The most favored level of faith is to know that God is witness over you, wherever you may be."

Visitation

In popular Sufism (i.e., devotional practices that have achieved currency in world cultures through Sufi influence), one common practice is to visit the tombs of saints, great scholars, and righteous people. This is a particularly common practice in South Asia, where famous tombs include those of Khoja Afāq, near Kashgar, in China; Lal Shahbaz Qalander, in Sindh, Pakistan; Moinuddin Chishti in Ajmer, India. Likewise, in Fez, Morocco, a popular destination for such pious visitation is the Zaouia Moulay Idriss II and the yearly visitation to see the current Sheikh of the Qadiri Boutchichi Tariqah, Sheikh Sidi Hamza al Qadiri al Boutchichi to celebrate the Mawlid (which is usually televised on Morrocan National television).

Persecution

The government of Iran is considering an outright ban on Sufism, according to the 2009 Annual Report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom. It also reports:

In February 2009, at least 40 Sufis in Isfahan were arrested after protesting the destruction of a Sufi place of worship; all were released within days.

In January, Jamshid Lak, a Gonabadi Dervish from the Nematollahi Sufi order, one of the country's largest Sufi sects, was flogged 74 times after being convicted in 2006 of slander following his public allegation of ill-treatment by a Ministry of Intelligence official.

In late December 2008, after the closure of a Sufi place of worship, authorities arrested without charge at least six members of the Gonabadi Dervishes on Kish Island and confiscated their books and computer equipment; their status is unknown.

In November 2008, Amir Ali Mohammad Labaf was sentenced to a five-year prison term, 74 lashes, and internal exile to the southeastern town of Babak for spreading lies, based on his membership in the Nematollahi Gonabadi Sufi order.
In October, at least seven Sufi Muslims in Isfahan, and five others in Karaj, were arrested because of their affiliation with the Nematollahi Gonabadi Sufi order; they remain in detention.

In November 2007, clashes in the western city of Borujerd between security forces and followers of a mystic Sufi order resulted in dozens of injuries and the arrests of approximately 180 Sufi Muslims. The clashes occurred after authorities began bulldozing a Sufi monastery. It is unclear how many remain in detention or if any charges have been brought against those arrested. During the past year, there were numerous reports of Shi'a clerics and prayer leaders, particularly in Qom, denouncing Sufism and the activities of Sufi Muslims in the country in both sermons and public statements.

Islam and Sufism

Sufism and Islamic law

Scholars and adherents of Sufism sometimes describe Sufism in terms of a threefold approach to God as explained by a tradition (hadîth) attributed to Muhammad,"The Canon is my word, the order is my deed, and the truth is my interior state". Sufis believe the canon, order and truth are mutually interdependent. The order, the 'path' on which the mystics walk, has been defined as 'the path which comes out of the Canon, for the main road is called branch, the path, tariq.' No mystical experience can be realized if the binding injunctions of the Canon are not followed faithfully first. The path, order, however, is narrower and more difficult to walk. It leads the adept, called sâlik (wayfarer), in his sulûk (wayfaring), through different stations (maqâmât) until he reaches his goal, the perfect tawhîd, the existential confession that God is One. Shaykh al-Akbar Muhiuddeen Ibn Arabi mentions," When we see someone in this Community who claims to
be able to guide others to God, but is remiss in but one rule of the Sacred Law - even if he manifests miracles that stagger the mind - asserting that his shortcoming is a special dispensation for him, we do not even turn to look at him, for such a person is not a sheikh, nor is he speaking the truth, for no one is entrusted with the secrets of God Most High save one in whom the ordinances of the Sacred Law are preserved. (Jami' karamat al-awliya')".

The Amman Message, a detailed statement issued by 200 leading Islamic scholars in 2005 in Amman, and adopted by the Islamic world's political and temporal leaderships at the Organization of the Islamic Conference summit at Mecca in December 2005, and by six other international Islamic scholarly assemblies including the International Islamic Fiqh Academy of Jeddah, in July 2006, specifically recognized the validity of Sufism as a part of Islam.

Traditional Islamic thought and Sufism

The literature of Sufism emphasizes highly subjective matters that resist outside observation, such as the subtle states of the heart. Often these resist direct reference or description, with the consequence that the authors of various Sufi treatises took recourse to allegorical language. For instance, much Sufi poetry refers to intoxication, which Islam expressly forbids. This usage of indirect language and the existence of interpretations by people who had no training in Islam or Sufism led to doubts being cast over the validity of Sufism as a part of Islam. Also, some groups emerged that considered themselves above the Sharia and discussed Sufism as a method of bypassing the rules of Islam in order to attain salvation directly. This was disapproved of by traditional scholars.

For these and other reasons, the relationship between traditional Islamic scholars and Sufism is complex and a range of scholarly opinion on Sufism in Islam has been the norm. Some scholars, such as Al-Ghazali, helped its propagation while other scholars opposed it. W. Chittick explains the position of Sufism and Sufis this way:

In short, Muslim scholars who focused their energies on understanding the normative guidelines for the body came to be known as jurists, and those who held that the most important task was to train the mind in achieving correct understanding came to be divided into three main schools of thought: theology, philosophy, and Sufism. This leaves us with the third domain of human existence, the spirit. Most Muslims who devoted their major efforts to developing the spiritual dimensions of the human person came to be known as Sufis.

Traditional and Neo-Sufi groups

The traditional Sufi orders, which are in majority, emphasize the role of Sufism as a spiritual discipline within Islam. Therefore, the Sharia (traditional Islamic law) and the Sunnah are seen as crucial for any Sufi aspirant. One proof traditional orders assert is that almost all the famous Sufi masters of the past Caliphates were experts in Sharia and were renowned as people with great Iman (faith) and excellent practice. Many were also Qadis (Sharia law judges) in courts. They held that Sufism was never distinct from Islam and to fully comprehend and practice Sufism one must be an observant Muslim.

In recent decades there has been a growth of neo-Sufi movements in the West. Examples include the Universal Sufism movement, the Golden Sufi Center, the Sufi Foundation of America, the neo-sufism of Idries Shah, Sufism Reoriented and the International Association of Sufism. Rumi has become one of the most widely read poets in the United States, thanks largely to the translations published by Coleman Barks.

Islamic positions on non-Islamic Sufi groups

The use of the title Sufi by non-traditional groups to refer to themselves, and their appropriation of traditional Sufi masters (most notably Jalaluddin Rumi) as sources of authority or inspiration, is not accepted by some Muslims who are Sufi adherents.

Many of the great Sufi masters of the present and the past instruct that: one needs the form of the religious practices and the outer dimension of the religion to fulfill the goals of the inner dimension of Sufism (Proximity to God). The exoteric practices prescribed by God contain inner meanings and provide the means for transformation with the proper spiritual guidance of a master. It is thought that through the forms of the ritual and prescribed Islamic practices (prayer, pilgrimage, fasting, charity and affirmation of Divine Unity) the soul may be purified and one may then begin to embark on the mystical quest. In fact it is considered psychologically dangerous by some Sufi masters to participate in Sufi practices, such as "dhikr", without adhering to the outer aspects of Islam, which add spiritual balance and grounding to the practice.

Some traditional Sufis also object to interpretations of classical Sufis texts by writers who have no grounding in the traditional Islamic sciences and therefore no prerequisites for understanding such texts. These are considered by certain conventional Islamic scholars as beyond the pale of the religion. However, there are Islamic Sufi groups that are open to non-Muslim participation.

Preeminent Sufis

Abul Hasan al-Shadhili

Abul Hasan al-Shadhili (died 1258 CE), the founder of the Shadhiliyya Sufi order, introduced dhikr jahri (The method of remembering Allah through loud means). Sufi orders generally preach to deny oneself and to destroy the ego-self (nafs) and its worldly desires. This is sometimes characterized as the "Order of Patience-Tariqus Sabr". In contrary Imam Shadhili taught that his followers need not abstain from what Islam has not forbidden, but to be grateful for what God has bestowed upon them. This notion known as the "Order of Gratitude-Tariqush Shukr" was espoused by Imam Shadhili. Imam Shadhili gave eighteen valuable hizbs (litanies) to his followers out of which the notable Hizbul Bahr is recited worldwide even today.

Bayazid Bastami

Bayazid Bastami (died 874 CE) is considered to be "of the six bright stars in the firmament of the Prophet", and a link in the Golden Chain of the Naqshbandi Tariqah. He is regarded as the first mystic to openly speak of the annihilation (fanā') of the base self in the Divine, whereby the mystic becomes fully absorbed to the point of becoming unaware of himself or the objects around him. Every existing thing seems to vanish, and he feels free of every barrier that could stand in the way of his viewing the Remembered One. In one of these states, Bastami cried out: "Praise to Me, for My greatest Glory!" His belief in the unity of all religions became apparent when asked the question: "How does Islam view other religions?" His reply was "All are vehicles and a path to God's Divine Presence."

Ibn Arabi

Muhyiddin Muhammad b. 'Ali Ibn 'Arabi (or Ibn al-'Arabi) is considered to be one of the most important Sufi masters, although he never founded any order (tariqa). His writings, especially al-Futuhat al-Makkiyya and Fusus al-hikam, have been studied within all the Sufi orders as the clearest expression of tawhid (Divine Unity), though because of their recondite nature they were often only given to initiates. Later those who followed his teaching became known as the school of wahdat al-wujud (the Oneness of Being). He himself considered his writings to have been divinely inspired. As he expressed the Way to one of his close disciples, his legacy is that 'you should never ever abandon your servanthood ('ubudiyya), and that there may never be in your soul a longing for any existing thing'.

Junayd Baghdadi

Junayd Baghdadi (830-910 CE) was one of the great early Sufis, and is a central figure in the golden chain of many Sufi orders. He laid the groundwork for sober mysticism in contrast to that of God-intoxicated Sufis like al-Hallaj, Bayazid Bastami and Abusaeid Abolkheir. During the trial of al-Hallaj, his former disciple, the Caliph of the time demanded his fatwa. In response, he issued this fatwa: "From the outward appearance he is to die and we judge according to the outward appearance and God knows better". He is referred to by Sufis as Sayyid-ut Taifa, i.e. the leader of the group. He lived and died in the city of Baghdad.

Mansur al-Hallaj

Mansur al-Hallaj (died 922 CE) is renowned for his claim "Ana-l-Haqq" (I am The Truth). His refusal to recant this utterance, which was regarded as apostasy, led to a long trial. He was imprisoned for 11 years in a Baghdad prison, before being tortured and publicly dismembered on March 26, 922. He is still revered by Sufis for his willingness to embrace torture and death rather than recant. It is said that during his prayers, he would say "O Lord! You are the guide of those who are passing through the Valley of Bewilderment. If I am a heretic, enlarge my heresy."

Reception

Perception outside Islam

Sufi mysticism has long exercised a fascination upon the Western world, and especially its orientalist scholars. Figures like Rumi have become household names in the United States, where Sufism is perceived as quietist and less political.

The Islamic Institute in Mannheim, Germany, which works towards the integration of Europe and Muslims, sees Sufism as particularly suited for interreligious dialogue and intercultural harmonisation in democratic and pluralist societies; it has described Sufism as a symbol of tolerance and humanism – nondogmatic, flexible and non-violent.

Influence of Sufism on Judaism

A great influence was exercised by Sufism upon the ethical writings of Jews in the Middle Ages. In the first writing of this kind, we see "Kitab al-Hidayah ila Fara'iz al-Qulub", Duties of the Heart, of Bahya ibn Pakuda. This book was translated by Judah ibn Tibbon into Hebrew.

The precepts prescribed by the Torah number 613 only; those dictated by the intellect are innumerable.

This was precisely the argument used by the Sufis against their adversaries, the Ulamas. The arrangement of the book seems to have been inspired by Sufism. Its ten sections correspond to the ten stages through which the Sufi had to pass in order to attain that true and passionate love of God which is the aim and goal of all ethical self-discipline. A considerable amount of Sufi ideas entered the Jewish mainstream through Bahya ibn Paquda's work, which remains one of the most popular ethical treatises in Judaism.

The Jewish writer teaches the asceticism of the Sufis. His distinction with regard to the observance of Jewish law by various classes of men is essentially a Sufic theory. According to it there are four principal degrees of human perfection or sanctity; namely:

(1) of "Shari'ah," i.e., of strict obedience to all ritual laws of Islam, such as prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, almsgiving, ablution, etc., which is the lowest degree of worship, and is attainable by all
(2) of Tariqah, which is accessible only to a higher class of men who, while strictly adhering to the outward or ceremonial injunctions of religion, rise to an inward perception of mental power and virtue necessary for the nearer approach to the Divinity

(3) of "Tazikah," the degree attained by those who, through continuous contemplation and inward devotion, have risen to the true perception of the nature of the visible and invisible; who, in fact, have recognized the Godhead, and through this knowledge have succeeded in establishing an ecstatic relation to it; and
(4) of the "Ma'arifah," in which state man communicates directly with the Deity.

Abraham ben Moses ben Maimon, the son of the Jewish philosopher Maimonides, believed that Sufi practices and doctrines continue the tradition of the Biblical prophets. He introduced into the Jewish prayer such practices as reciting God's names (dhikr), prostration , stretching out hands, kneeling, ablution of the feet. Some of these Sufi-Jewish practices are still observed in a few Oriental synagogues.

Abraham Maimuni's principal work is originally composed in Judeo-Arabic and entitled Kitāb Kifāyah al-'Ābidīn ("A Comprehensive Guide for the Servants of God"). From the extant surviving portion it is conjectured that Maimuni's treatise was three times as long as his father's Guide for the Perplexed. In the book, Maimuni evidences a great appreciation for, and affinity to, Sufism. Followers of his path continued to foster a Jewish-Sufi form of pietism for at least a century, and he is rightly considered the founder of this pietistic school, which was centered in Egypt.

The followers of this path, which they called, interchangeably, Hasidism (not to confuse with the latter Jewish Hasidic movement) or Sufism (Tasawwuf), practiced spiritual retreats, solitude, fasting and sleep deprivation.The Jewish Sufis maintained their own brotherhood, guided by a religious leader - like a Sufi sheikh.

Abraham Maimuni's two sons, Obadyah and David, continued to lead this Jewish-Sufi brotherhood. Obadyah Maimonides wrote Al-Mawala Al Hawdiyya ("The Treatise of the Pool") - an ethico-mystical manual based on the typically Sufi comparison of the heart to a pool that must be cleansed before it can experience the Divine.

The Maimonidean legacy extended right through to the 15th century with the 5th generation of Maimonidean Sufis, David ben Joshua Maimonides, who wrote Al-Mursid ila al-Tafarrud (The Guide to Detachment), which includes numerous extracts of Suhrawardi's Kalimat at-Tasawwuf.

Popular culture

Films

Bab'Aziz (2005), a film by Tunisian director Nacer Khemir, tells the story of a blind dervish who must cross the desert with his young granddaughter over many days and nights to reach a vast dervish reunion. The movie draws heavily on the Sufi tradition, containing quotes from Sufi poets such as Rumi and depicting an ecstatic Sufi dance.

In Monsieur Ibrahim (2003), Omar Sharif's character professes to be a Muslim in the Sufi tradition.

The 2007 short film 'Vishwaas Ki Goonj/The Echo Of Faith', highlights the universal message of Sufism and conveys mankind's ability to practice and uphold the notion of 'oneness of beings'. Directed and presented by Basant P. Tolani, the film received first prize in the Global Festival of Films on Peace and Spirituality 2008 by IFTC (International Films & Television Club) and AAFT (Asian Academy Of Films and Television).

Newer production companies and directors are beginning to populate the media landscape with films that emphasize a Sufi sensibility. Most notably Sufi Films with Director James McConnell, and Simon Broughton (Director of Sufi Soul – The Mystic Music of Islam), to name a few in a growing field. The University of North Carolina provides a partial list of some other Films on Sufism and Saints.

Music

Madonna, on her 1994 record Bedtime Stories, sings a song called "Bedtime Story" that discusses achieving a high unconsciousness level. The video for the song shows an ecstatic Sufi ritual with many dervishes dancing, Arabic calligraphy and some other Sufi elements. In her 1998 song "Bittersweet", she recites Rumi's poem by the same name. In her 2001 Drowned World Tour, Madonna sang the song "Secret" showing rituals from many religions, including a Sufi dance.

Singer/songwriter Loreena McKennitt's record The Mask and Mirror (1994) has a song called "The Mystic's Dream" that is influenced by Sufi music and poetry. The band MewithoutYou has made references to Sufi parables, including the name of their album It's All Crazy! It's All False! It's All a Dream! It's Alright (2009). Lead singer Aaron Weiss claims this influence comes from his parents, who are both Sufi converts.

Lalan Fakir and Kazi Nazrul Islam scored several Sufi songs. Famous Sufi singers from the Indian subcontinent include Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Kailash Kher, Alam Lohar and Abida Parveen. A. R. Rahman, the Oscar-winning Indian musician has several compositions which draw inspiration from the Sufi genre; one example is the filmi qawwali, Khwaja Mere Khwaja in the 2008 Bollywood film Jodhaa Akbar and Arziyan, a qawwali in Delhi (2009), dedicated to Delhi's 13th century Sufi saint, Nizamuddin Auliya.

Junoon, a band from Pakistan, created the genre of Sufi rock by combining elements of modern hard rock and traditional folk music with Sufi poetry.

Richard Thompson is a practicing Sufi and once lived in a Sufi commune in East Anglia with his first wife and young family. [wiki 2010]

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# Dhikr

Dhikr (or Zikr, "Remembrance [of God]", "pronouncement", "invocation") adhakār, is an Islamic devotional act, typically involving the repetition of the Names of God, supplications or formulas taken from hadith texts and verses of the Qur'an. Dhikr is usually done individually, but in some Sufi orders it is instituted as a ceremonial activity. At the same time, dhikr encompasses a broader meaning in the Islamic sources, including when God is the one who performs dhikr.

Broad meaning

The word dhikr is commonly translated as "remembrance" or "invocation". In reality, it has taken a wide range and various layers of meaning.[1] For instance, while dhikr is commonly understood as the practice of remembering God, it has also been used in the Islamic sources to indicate God as the subject and the servant as the object of dhikr, and also been directly applied to the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, as embodiment of dhikr of God.

Essentially, the practice of dhikr is a form of prayer in which the Muslim will express his or her remembrance of God either within or overtly; this may come in the form of recitation, lyrical chanting, or simply always remembering God in one’s heart. In tasawwuf (Islamic mysticism or Sufism) dhikr is most likely the most frequent form of prayer. Among the orders of Muslims that practice dhikr, there are some who advocate silent, individual prayer, while others join together in an outward, group expression of their love for God.

Origins

There are several verses in the Qur'an which emphasize the importance of remembering the Will of God by saying "God Willing," "God Knows best," "if it is Your Will," and so on. This is the basis for dhikr. Sura 18 (Al-Kahf), ayah 24 states a person who forgets to say, "God Willing," should immediately remember God by saying, "May my Lord guide me to do better next time." Other verses include sura 33 (Al-Ahzab), ayah 41, "O ye who believe! Celebrate the praises of Allah, and do this often;", and sura 13 (Ar-Ra'd), ayah 28, "They are the ones whose hearts rejoice in remembering God. Absolutely, by remembering God, the hearts rejoice." There are also a number of hadiths that give emphasis to remembrance of God. Muhammad said that "the best [dhikr] is that of la elaha ella’llah, and the best supplicatory prayer is that of al-hamdo le’llah," which translate to "there is no god but God" and "praise to God" respectively.

Phrases read during Dhikr

There are several phrases that are usually read when remembering allah. Here are a few:

Allah ho Akbar - means "Allah is Greater" or "Allah is the Greatest"
Subhan'Allah - means "Glory be to Allah" or "far above is Allah from any shortcoming or imperfection"
Alhamdulillah - means "All praise is due to Allah"
La ilaha ilallah - means "There is no god but Allah"
La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah - means "There is no power or strength except with Allah."
Bismillah Ar-Rahman Ar- Raheem- means "In the Name of God, The Gracious, The Merciful" said before anything of spiritual significance ; i.e. eating, rising from and going to sleep, before work, etc.

Importance

Dhikr is given great importance by some Sufi writers, among them is Najm-al-Din Razi who wrote about dhikr in the context of what it combats. In contrast to the virtues of remembrance, Razi uses the perils of forgetfulness to show the importance of dhikr. The soul and the world are veils that make people forget God. The Naqshbandi Haqqani Sufi Order of America says this about dhikr; Dhikr is the means by which Stations yield their fruit, until the seeker reaches the Divine Presence. On the journey to the Divine Presence the seed of remembrance is planted in the heart and nourished with the water of praise and the food of glorification, until the tree of dhikr becomes deeply rooted and bears its fruit. It is the power of all journeying and the foundation of all success. It is the reviver from the sleep of heedlessness, the bridge to the One remembered.

Methods

There is some debate with regards to the method in which dhikr is performed. Many Muslims practice a private and silent worship. There are some Sufi orders, such as the Naqshbandi, that perform dhikr in groups at a Hazra (or presence). Haḍra is a communal gathering for dhikr and its associated liturgical rituals, prayers, and song recitals, whether private or public; in earlier orders, the "presence" referred to was that of God, but since the 18th century it has been considered the spiritual presence of Muhammad.

Dhikr beads

Known also as Tasbih, these are usually Misbaha (prayer beads) upon a string, 99 or 100 in number, which correspond to the names of God in Islam and other recitations. The beads are used to keep track of the number of recitations that make up the dhikr.

Muslim inmates in the United States are allowed to utilize dhikr beads for therapeutic effects. This was a result of a successful action brought pursuant to 28 USC @ 1983 (by Imam Hamzah S. Alameen in the State of New York against Thomas A. Coughlin III, the Department of Corrections) arguing that prisoners have a First Amendment Constitutional right to pursue Islamic healing therapy called KASM which uses Dhikr. Imam Alameen, is a student of the late Shaykh Ismail Abdur Rahim, who was the Islamic Supervisor at Arthur-kill C.F., and was finally promoted to M.C.P for NYSDOC. The Dhikr was used to rehabilitate inmates suffering from co-occurring mental health challenges, and substance abuse issues. The dhikr Alameen developed was used to assist the successful recovery of hundreds if not thousands of inmates in the 90's.

Some Islamic scholars argue that using the beads are forbidden, however. Many claim that the usage of the fingers to count is better as that is what was practiced by Muhammad.

Some Sufi orders stress and place extensive reliance upon Dhikr, and likewise in Qadri Al-Muntahi Sufi tariqa, which was originated by Riaz Ahmed Gohar Shahi. This practice of Dhikr is called Zikar-e-Qalbi (remembrance of Allah by Heartbeats). The basic idea in this practice is to visualize the Arabic name of God, Allah, as having been written on the disciple's heart.

Sufi view

Followers of Sufism engage in ritualized dhikr ceremonies, the details of which are the primary difference between Sufi orders or tariqah. Each order or lineage within an order has one or more forms for group dhikr, the liturgy of which may include recitation, singing, music, dance, costumes, incense, Muraqaba (meditation), ecstasy, and trance. Dhikr in a group is not limited to these rules but most often done on Thursday and/or Sunday nights as part of the institutional practice of most orders.

A group dhikr ceremony marks the climax of the Sufi's gathering regardless of any teaching or formal structure. Musically this structure includes several secular Arab genres and can last for hours. It consists of the ostinato-like repetition of the name of God over which the soloist performs a richly ornamented song. Often the climax is reached through cries of "Allah! Allah!" or "hu hu", with the participants bending forward while exhaling and stand straight while inhaling.

The hadrah [or hazra] is directed by a Sheikh of the tariqa or one of his representatives; monitoring the intensity, depth and duration of the phases of the Hazra, the shaykh aims to draw the circle into deep awareness of God. Dhikr ceremonies may have a ritually determined length or may last as long as the Sheikh deems his murids require. [wiki 2010]

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# Tariqa

A tariqa (meaning "way, path, method") is an Islamic religious order. In Sufism one starts with Islamic law, the exoteric or mundane practice of Islam and then is initiated onto the mystical path of a tariqa. Through spiritual practices and guidance of a tariqa the aspirant seeks ḥaqīqah - ultimate truth.

Meaning

A tariqa is a school of Sufism. A tariqa has a murshid (guide) who plays the role of leader or spiritual director of the organization. A tariqa is a group of murīdīn (singular murīd), Arabic for desirous, desiring the knowledge of knowing God and loving God (also called a faqīr, word that means poor or needy, usually used as al-Faqīr ilá l-Lāh, "the needy to God's knowledge).

Nearly every tariqa is named after its founder and is referred to by a nisba formed from the founder's name. For example, the "Rifai order", named after Sheikh Ahmad ar-Rifai, is called the "Rifaiyyah", the "Qādirī order", named after Shaykh `Abd al-Qādir al-Jīlānī, is called the "Qadiriyya". Often, Turuq are offshoots of another tariqa. For example, the Qadri Al-Muntahi order is an offshoot of the Qadiriyya order founded by Riaz Ahmed Gohar Shahi, the Jelveti order is an offshoot of the Bayrami order founded by Hacı Bayram-ı Veli who are an offshoot of the zahidiyye founded by Pir Zahid al-Gaylani. The Khalwati order are a particularly splintered order with numerous offshoots such as the Jerrahī, Sunbulī, Nasuhī, Karabashiyya and others, the Tijaniyyah order prevalent in West Africa also has its roots in this Tarīqa.

In most cases the sheikh nominates his khalīf or "successor" during his lifetime, who will take over the order. In rare cases, if the sheikh dies without naming a khalīf, the students of the ṭarīqa elect another spiritual leader by vote. In some orders it is recommended to take a khalīf from the same order as the murshid. In some groups it is customary for the khalīfa to be the son of the sheikh, although in other groups the khalīfa and the sheikh are not normally relatives. In yet other orders a successor may be identified through the spiritual dreams of its members.

Tarīqas have silsilas "chain, lineage of sheikhs". Almost all orders except the Naqshbandi order claim a silsila that leads back to Muhammad through ‘Alī. (The Naqshbandi Silsila goes back to Abu Bakr the first Caliph of Sunni Islam and then Muhammad.) Many silsilas contain the names of Shī‘ah Imams.

Every murid, on entering the ṭarīqa, gets his 'awrād, or daily recitations, authorized by his murshid (usually to be recited before or after the pre-dawn prayer, after the afternoon prayer and after the evening prayer). Usually these recitations are extensive and time-consuming (for example the awrād may consist of reciting a certain formula 99, 500 or even 1000 times). One must also be in a state of ritual purity (as one is for the obligatory prayers to perform them while facing Mecca). The recitations change as a student (murid) moves from a mere initiate to other Sufi degrees (usually requiring additional initiations).

Being mostly followers of the spiritual traditions of Islam loosely referred to as Sufism, these groups were sometimes distinct from the ulema or officially mandated scholars, and often acted as informal missionaries of Islam. They provided accepted avenues for emotional expressions of faith, and the Tarīqas spread to all corners of the Muslim world, and often exercised a degree of political influence inordinate to their size (take for example the influence that the sheikhs of the Safavid had over the armies of Tamerlane, or the missionary work of Ali Shair Navai in Turkistan among the Mongol and Tatar people).

Tariqas around the world

The tariqas were particularly influential in the spread of Islam in the sub-Sahara during the 9th to 14th centuries, where they spread south along trade routes between North Africa and the sub-Saharan kingdoms of Ghana and Mali. On the West African coast they set up Zāwiyas on the shores of the river Niger and even established independent kingdoms such as al-Murābiṭūn or Almoravids. The Sanusi order were also highly involved in missionary work in Africa during the 19th century, spreading both Islam and a high level of literacy into Africa as far south as Lake Chad and beyond by setting up a network of zawiyas where Islam was taught. Much of central Asia and southern Russia was won over to Islam through the missionary work of the ṭarīqahs, and the majority of Indonesia's population, where a Muslim army never set foot, was converted to Islam by the perseverance of both Muslim traders and Sufi missionaries.

Tariqas were brought to China in the 17th century by Ma Laichi and other Chinese Sufis who had studied in Mecca and Yemen, and had also been influenced by spiritual descendants of the Kashgarian Sufi master Afaq Khoja. On the Chinese soil the institutions became known as menhuan, and are typically headquartered near the tombs (gongbei) of their founders.

A case is sometimes made[who?] that groups such as the Muslim Brotherhoods (in many countries) and specifically the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt (the first, or first known), are modern inheritors of the tradition of lay tariqa in Islam. This is highly contentious since the turuq were Sufi orders with established lineages while the Muslim Brotherhood is a modern, rationalist tradition. However, the Muslim Brotherhood's founder, Hassan al Banna, did have a traditional Islamic education (his family were Hanbali scholars) and it is likely that he was initiated into a tariqa at an early age.

Certain scholars, e.g., G. H. Jansen, credit the original tariqas with several specific accomplishments:

Preventing Islam from becoming a cold and formal doctrine by constantly infusing it with local and emotionally popular input, including stories and plays and rituals not part of Islam proper. (A parallel would be the role of Aesop relative to the Greek mythos.)
Spreading the faith in east Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, where orthodox Islamic leaders and scholars had little or no direct influence on people.
Leading Islam's military and political battles against the encroaching power of the Christian West, as far back as the Qadiri order of the 12th century.
The last of these accomplishments suggests that the analogy with the modern Muslim Brotherhoods is probably accurate, but incomplete.

Tariqas in the Four Spiritual Stations

The Four Stations, sharia, tariqa, haqiqa. The fourth station, marifa, which is considered 'unseen', is actually the center of the haqiqa region. It's the essence of all four stations.

Orders of Sufism

It is important to note that membership of a particular Sufi order was not exclusive and cannot be likened to the ideological commitment to a political party. Unlike the Christian monastic orders which are demarcated by firm lines of authority and sacrament, Sufis often are members of various Sufi orders. The non-exclusiveness of Sufi orders has important consequences for the social extension of Sufism. They cannot be regarded as indulging in a zero sum competition which a purely political analysis might have suggested. Rather their joint effect is to impart to Sufism a cumulant body of tradition, rather than individual and isolated experiences.

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# Sufi Metaphysics

Major ideas in Sufi metaphysics have surrounded the concept of Wahdat or "Unity". Two main Sufi philosophies prevail on this controversial topic. Wahdat al-Wujud literally means the unity of creation. Wahdat al-Shuhud (Apparentism, or Unity of Witness), on the other hand, holds that God and his creation are entirely separate. Some Islamic reformers have claimed that the difference between the two philosophies differ only in semantics and that the entire debate is merely a collection of "verbal controversies" which have come about because of ambiguous language. However, the concept of the relationship between God and the universe is still actively debated both among Sufis and between Sufis and non-Sufi Muslims.

Wahdat al-Wujud

Wahdat al-Wajud the "Unity of Being" is a Sufi philosophy emphasizing that 'there is no true existence except the Ultimate Truth (God)'. Or in other phrasing that the only truth within the universe is God, and that all things exist within God only. All of his creations emerge from `adim (non-existence) to wujood (existence) out of his thought only. Hence the existence of God is the only truth (Haqq), and the concept of a separate created universe is falshood. Arabic: (Batil).

Ibn Arabi is most often characterized in Islamic texts as the originator of the doctrine of wahdat al-wujud, however, this expression is not found in his works and the first who employed this term was perhaps, in fact, the Andalusian mystical thinker Ibn Sabin. Although he frequently makes statements that approximate it, it cannot be claimed that "Oneness of Being" is a sufficient description of his ontology, since he affirms the "manyness of reality" with equal vigor.

In his view, wujūd is the unknowable and inaccessible ground of everything that exists. God alone is true wujūd, while all things dwell in nonexistence, so also wujūd alone is nondelimited (mutlaq), while everything else is constrained, confined, and constricted. Wujūd is the absolute, infinite, nondelimited reality of God, while all others remain relative, finite, and delimited.

Since wujūd is nondelimited, it is totally different from everything else. Whatever exists and can be known or grasped is a delimitation and definition, a constriction of the unlimited, a finite object accessible to a finite subject. In the same way, wujūd's self-consciousness is nondelimited, while every other consciousness is constrained and confined. But we need to be careful in asserting wujūd's nondelimitation. This must not be understood to mean that wujūd is different and only different from every delimitation. The Shaykh is quick to point out that wujūd's nondelimitation demands that it be able to assume every delimitation. If wujūd could not become delimited, it would be limited by its own nondelimitation. Thus "He possesses nondelimitation in delimitation" Or , "God possesses nondelimited wujūd, but no delimitation prevents delimitation. Rather, He possesses all delimitations, so He is nondelimited delimitation, since no single delimitation rather than another rules over Him.... Hence nothing is to be attributed to Him in preference to anything else" . Wujūd must have the power of assuming every delimitation on pain of being limited by those delimitations that it cannot assume. At the same time, it transcends the forms by which it becomes delimited and remains untouched by their constraints.

Only He who possesses Being in Himself (wujûd dhâtî) and whose Being is His very essence (wujûduhu 'ayn dhâtihi), merits the name of Being. Only God can be like that.

On the highest level, wujūd is the absolute and nondelimited reality of God, the "Necessary Being" (wājib al-wujūd) that cannot not exist. In this sense, wujūd designates the Essence of God or of the Real (dhāt al-haqq), the only reality that is real in every respect. On lower levels, wujūd is the underlying substance of "everything other than God" (mā siwā Allāh)—which is how Ibn Arabi and others define the "cosmos" or "universe" (al-'ālam). Hence, in a secondary meaning, the term wujūd is used as shorthand to refer to the whole cosmos, to everything that exists. It can also be employed to refer to the existence of each and every thing that is found in the universe.

God's 'names' (asma') or 'attributes' (sifat), on the other hand, are the relationships which can be discerned between the Essence and the cosmos. They are known to God because he knows every object of knowledge, but they are not existent entities or ontological qualities, for this would imply plurality in the godhead.

For the creatures, Being is not part of their essence. So a creature does not own its being, that it can never be independent in itself . In this sense, the created does not deserve the attribution of Being. Only God is Being, and all the rest is in reality a possibility (imkân), a relative, possible non-existence.

Ibn 'Arabî used the term "effusion" (fayd) to denote the act of creation. His writings contain expressions which show different stages of creation, a distinction merely logical and not actual. The following gives details about his vision of creation in three stages: the Most Holy Effusion (al-fayd al-aqdas), the Holy Effusion (al-fayd al-muqaddas) and the Perpetual Effusion (al-fayd al-mustamirr).

Wahdat-ul-Wujood spread through the teachings of the Sufis like Qunyawi, Jandi, Tilimsani, Qayshari, Jami etc. This mystic sufi philosophy found conducive soil in many parts of South Asia as most of the saints and sages became dedicated disciples of Wahdat-ul-Wujood. It is also associated with the Hamah Ust (Persian meaning "He is the only one") philosophy in South Asia. Sachal Sarmast and Bulleh Shah two Sufi poets from Pakistan, were also ardent followers of Wahdat-ul-Wujood.

Today, some Sufi Orders, notably the Bektashi sect and the non-traditional sects of Universal Sufism, place much emphasis on the concept of wahdat-ul-wujood.

Pantheism, Panentheism, and Wahdat al-Wujud

The English word Pantheism means All is God while the Arabic word wahdat ul-wujood emphasizes that there is just a single being in existence and this single being is God. However, wahdat ul-wujood maybe closer to panentheism, because it states that while the Universe is part of God or God's mind, God is still greater than his creation.

Tashkeek

Tashkeek or gradation is closely associated with Sadrian interpretation of wahdat al-wujud. According to this school, not only there is gradation of existents that stand in a vast hierarchical chain of being (maratib al-wujud) from floor (farsh) to divine throne (arsh), but the wujud of each existent maahiya is nothing but a grade of the single reality of wujud whose source is God, the absolute being (al-wujud al-mutlaq). What differentiates the wujud of different existents is nothing but wujud in different degrees of strength and weakness. The universe is nothing but different degrees of strengths and weaknesses of wujud, ranging from intense degree of wujud of arch-angelic realities, to the dim wujud of lowly dust from which adam was made.

Wahdat al-Shuhud

Wahdat al-Shuhud has often been translated into English as Apparentism. In Arabic it literally means "unity of witness", "unity of perception" or "unity of appearance".

Out of those who opposed the doctorine of wahdat al-wujood, there were those who substituted the pole of subject for the object, formulating the doctorine of Wahdat ul-shahood. This school was formulated by `Ala al-Dawlah Simnānī, was to attract many followers in India, including Ahmed Sirhindi who provided some of the most widely accepted formulations of this doctorine in the Indian sub-continent.

According to Ahmed Sirhindi's doctrine, any experience of unity between God and the created world is purely subjective and occurs only in the mind of the believer; it has no objective counterpart in the real world. The former position, Shaykh Ahmad felt, led to pantheism, which was contrary to the tenets of Sunnite Islam. He held that God and creation are not identical; rather, the latter is a shadow or reflection of the Divines Name and Attributes when they are reflected in the mirrors of their opposite non-beings (a'dam al-mutaqabila).

Abu Hafs Umar al-Suhrawardi and Abd-al-karim Jili were also proponents of apparentism.

Shah Waliullah's view of Wahdat

Shah Waliullah made the first attempt to reconcile the two (apparently) contradictory doctrines of wahdat al-wujud (unity of being) of Ibn Arabi and wahdat al-shuhud (unity in conscience) of Shaykh Ahmad Sirhindi.

Shah Waliullah neatly resolved the conflict, calling these differences 'verbal controversies' which have come about because of ambiguous language. If we leave, he says, all the metaphors and similes used for the expression of ideas aside, the apparently opposite views of the two metaphysicians will agree. The positive result of Shah Wali Allah's reconciliatory efforts was twofold: it brought about harmony between the two opposing groups of metaphysicians, and it also legitimized the doctrine of wahdat al-wujud among the mutakallimun (theologians), who previously had not been ready to accept it.

In his books Lamahat and Sata'at, he discusses stages of being, the perceptive faculty, the relation of the abstract with the universe, the universal soul and the souls of man, after death, essence, miracles, the scope of man, the soul of the perfect, universal order, source of manifestation, and the transformation of mystics from quality to quality. He also demonstrated that the long-standing assumption that Sufi doctrine was divided between Apparentism and Unity of Being was a difference of expression alone, the latter doctrine being seen as merely a less-advanced stage of projection.

In his opinion this whole universe has also self (nafs) as an individual person has a self, which is called the Universal Soul (an-Nafs-ul-Kulliyah). The multiplicity of the whole universe has originated from it. When Ibn Arabi says that everything is God, he thereby means the Universal Soul. This Universal Soul, or the Self-unfolding Being (al-Wujud-ul-Munbasait), subsists by itself. This existence pervades the whole universe, both the substance and the accident, and accepts the form of everything. It is both immanent and transcendental. Beyond this existence (al-Wujud-al-Munbasit : Universal Soul) towards the original existence (God) none has access to. In other words, man's progress ends with the Universal Soul or the Self-unfolding Being. He cannot move a step further. The Universal Soul and God are so intermingled that the former is often taken for the latter."

As for the question of the relation that this existencen (al-Wujud-ul-Munbasit) has with the essence of God itself. This relation is, however, known only in its reality (anniyyah : I-ness); its quality is unknown and can never be known. Thus when Ibn Arabi says that the realities of the existing things are the names and the attributes of the Universal Soul (Self-unfolding Being) in the stage of knowledge (Fi Martabat-il-'Ilm, in the Divine Consciousness) or when Imam Rabbani asserts that the realities of existing objects are sheer nothingness on which the lights of the names and attributes of the Universal Soul (al-Wujud-ul-Munbasit) are reflected is exactly the same thing. The difference in their language is so little that it needs no consideration.


Shahab al-Din Suhrawardi

"Shahāb ad-Dīn" Yahya ibn Habash as-Suhrawardī (or Sohrevardi) was an Iranian philosopher, a Sufi and founder of the Illuminationist philosophy or "Oriental Theosophy", an important school in Islamic mysticism that drew upon Zoroastrian and Platonic ideas. The "Orient" of his "Oriental Theosophy" symbolises spiritual light and knowledge. He is sometimes given the honorific title Shaikh al-Ishraq or "Master of Illumination" and sometimes is called Shaikh al-Maqtul, the "Murdered Sheikh", referring to his execution for heresy.

Other important Muslim mystics carry the name Suhrawardi, particularly Abu 'l-Najib al-Suhrawardi and his paternal nephew Abu Hafs Umar al-Suhrawardi.

Suhrawardī produced a series of highly assured works that established him as the founder of a new school of philosophy, sometimes called "Illuminism" (hikmat al-Ishraq). According to Henry Corbin, Suhrawardi "came later to be called the Master of Oriental theosophy (Shaikh-i-Ishraq) because his great aim was the renaissance of ancient Iranian wisdom".

In 1186, at the age of thirty-two, he completed his magnum opus “The Philosophy of Illumination.” He was executed in 1191 in Aleppo on charges of cultivating Batini teachings and philosophy by the order of al-Malik al-Zahir, son of Saladin.

Teachings

Arising out of the peripatetic philosophy as developed by Ibn Sina (Avicenna), Suhrawardi's illuminationist philosophy is critical of several of his positions and radically departs from him in the creation of a symbolic language (mainly derived from ancient Iranian culture or Farhang-e Khosravani) to give expression to his wisdom (hikma).

Suhrawardi taught a complex and profound emanationist cosmology, in which all creation is a successive outflow from the original Supreme Light of Lights (Nur al-Anwar). The fundamental of his philosophy is pure immaterial light, than which nothing is more manifest, that unfolds from the light of lights in a descending order of ever-diminishing intensity and, through complex interaction, gives rise to a "horizontal" array of lights, similar in conception to Platonic forms, that governs the species of mundane reality. In other words, the universe and all levels of existence are but varying degrees of Light - the light and the darkness. In his division of bodies, he categorizes objects in terms of their reception or non-reception of light.

Suhrawardi considers a previous existence for every soul in the angelic domain before descending to the realm of the body. The soul is divided into two parts, one remaining in heaven and the other descending into the dungeon of the body. The human soul is always sad because it has been divorced from its other half. Therefore, it aspires to become united with it again. The soul can only reach felicity again when it is united with the celestial part, which has remained in heaven. He holds that the soul should seek felicity by detaching itself from its tenebrous body and worldly matters and access the world of immaterial lights. The souls of the gnostics and saints, after leaving the body, ascend even above the angelic world to enjoy proximity to the Supreme Light, which is the only absolute Reality.

Suhrawardi elaborated the neo-Platonic idea of an independent intermediary world, the imaginal world (alam-e mithal). His views have exerted a powerful influence down to this day, particularly through Mulla Sadra’s combined peripatetic and illuminationist description of reality.

Suhrawardi's Illuminationist project was to have far-reaching consequences for Islamic philosophy in Shi'ite Iran. His teachings had a strong influence on subsequent esoteric Iranian thought and the idea of “Decisive Necessity” is believed to be one of the most important innovations of in the history of logical philosophical speculation, stressed by the majority of Muslim logicians and philosophers. In the seventeenth century it was to initiate an Illuminationist Zoroastrian revival in the figure of Azar Kayvan. [wiki 2010]

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# Muraqaba

Muraqaba is the Sufi word for meditation. Literally it is an Arabic term which means "to watch over", "to take care of", or "to keep an eye". It implies that with meditation, a person watches over or takes care of his spiritual heart (or soul), and acquires knowledge about it, its surroundings, and its creator.

Stages of Muraqaba

Following are the maqamat (Arabic: stages) in which sufis have broadly categorised their journey of ascension. This categorization is an arbitrary one, and each level is generally further divided into several sub-levels. During the process of enlightenment, some stages can merge or overlap each other.

Ghanood (Somnolence)

This is the starting level of meditation. When a person starts meditation, he enters into a somnolent or sleep state often. With the passage of time, the person goes into a state between sleep and wakefulness. So the person can remember that he saw something, but not specifically what it is.

Adraak

(Arabic: cognition) With continuous practice of meditation, the sleepiness from meditation decreases. When the conscious mind is not suppressed by sleep and is able to focus, the person can receive the spiritual knowledge from his subconscious mind. At this stage, the person is unable to see or hear anything, but he is able to experience or perceive it.

Warood

(Arabic: coming, beginning) When adraak (experience) becomes deep, it is exhibited as sight. The stage of warood starts when mental concentration is sustained and somnolence is at its minimum. As soon as the mind is focused, the spiritual eye is activated. The conscious mind is not used to see through the spiritual eye, so concentration comes and goes. Gradually, the mind gets used to this kind of visions and the mental focus is sustained. With practice, the visions/experience becomes so deep that the person starts considering himself a part of the experience rather than considering himself an observer.

Gnosis of the universe

Kashaf / Ilhaam

Kashaf, or Ilhaam (Arabic: unveiling of arcane knowledge) is the stage where man starts getting information that most people are unable to observe. In the beginning, this condition occurs suddenly without personal control. With practice, the mind gets so energized that it can get this knowledge by will.

Shahood

(Arabic: evidence) When a person can get any information about any event/person with his will, this condition is called Shahood. This stage is broadly categorized according to activation of the senses:

The person can see things anywhere in the universe
The person can hear things anywhere in the universe
The person can smell things anywhere in the universe
The person can touch things anywhere in the universe (hadith)

Fatah

(Arabic: opening, victory) The peak of Shahood is called Fatah. At this stage, the person doesn't need to close his eyes for meditation. Here the person is freed from both space and time. He can see/hear/taste/touch anything that are present anywhere in time and space.

Gnosis of Allah

Fanaa

Main article: Fanaa (Sufism)

(Arabic: extinction, annihilation) Through a series of stages (maqamat) and subjective experiences (ahwal), this process of absorbation develops until complete annihilation of the self (fana) takes place and the person becomes al-insanul-kamil, the "perfect man". It is the disintegration of a person's narrow self-concept, social self- and limited intellect (feeling like a drop of water aware of being part of the ocean). The stage is also called Fana fit tawheed ("extinction with the unity"), and Fana fil Haq (Extinction in the reality).

Sair illallah

(Arabic: journey towards the God) Here the person starts his spiritual journey towards the ultimate reality of the universe, i.e. God. Also called Safr-e-Urooji

Fana fillah

(Arabic: Extinction of the self in God) One of the important phases of mystical experience which is attained by the grace of God by a traveller on the mystical path is the state of fana fi Allah, "extinction of the self in God". This is the state where the person becomes extinct in the will of God. It is important to mention that this is not incarnation or union. Most Sufis, while passing through this experience, have preferred to live in the greatest depth of silence which transcends all forms and sounds, and enjoy their union with the beloved.

The highest stage of fana is reached when even the consciousness of having attained fana disappears. This is what the Sufis call "the passing-away of passing-away" (fana al-fana). The mystic is now wrapped in contemplation of the divine essence. (Nicholson, The Mystics of Islam, p. 60).

Since it is a state of complete annihilation of carnal self, absorbation or intoxication in God, the pilgrim is unable to participate in worldly affairs, he is made to pass into another state known as Fana-al-Fana (forgetfulness of annihilation). It is a sort of oblivion of unconsciousness. Since two negatives make one positive, the pilgrim at this stage regains his individuality as he was when he started the journey. The only difference is that in the beginning he was self-conscious, but after having reposed in the Divine Being, he regains that sort of individuality which is God-consciousness or absorbation in God. This state is known as Baqa-bi-Allah — living or subsisting with God. (Alhaj W.B.S. Rabbani, Gems of Sufi Gnosticism)

Sair min Allah

(Arabic: journey from the God) Here the person comes back to his existence. Also called Safr-e-Nuzooli.

No one can subsist with The Supreme Creator and to believe as such is shirk. What really happens is the person's awareness of Allah increases so much so that he forgets his own self and is totally lost in Allah's magnificence.

Baqaa billah

(Arabic: eternal life in union with Allah The Creator) This is the state where man comes back to his existence and God appoints him to guide the humans. This is a state in which the individual is part of the world, but unconcerned about his or her rewards or position in it. This doctrine is further explained in an authentic tradition of the prophet which states that God said:

And the most beloved things with which My slave comes nearer to Me, is what I have enjoined upon him; and My slave keeps on coming closer to Me through performing Nawafil (praying or doing extra deeds besides what is obligatory) till I love him, so I become his sense of hearing with which he hears, and his sense of sight with which he sees, and his hand with which he grips, and his leg with which he walks.

There is another verse from Qur'an , that is used to explain this concept.

We are nearer to him than his jugular vein.(50:16)

When Sufis have come out of the Fana fillah state and enter Baqa billah, many of them have produced works of unsurpassed glory, especially in the fields of philosophy, literature, and music. These works have crowned the culture of the entire Islamic world and inspired Sufis and non-Sufis for generations. As the great Persian Sufi poet, Hafez of Shiraz, who is fondly remembered as the "tongue of the unseen", said centuries ago: "He whose heart is alive with love, never dies.". Allah says about these people in the Qur'an:

"Lo, indeed, the friends of God have no fear, nor are they grieved."

Types of muraqaba

There are many different kinds of muraqaba that are practiced in various Sufi schools in different parts of the world. Following is a list of the ones commonly practiced.

Beginner level muraqabas

Muraqaba of light

These are usually used for beginners, or for cure of various diseases.
Violet
Indigo
Blue
Turquoise
Green
Yellow
Orange
Pink
Red
Ehsan
Noor (Invisible Light)
Haatif-e-Ghabi (Unhearable sound of Cosmos)
Names of God -- For getting acquaintance with attributes of God
Allah (Proper name of God) -- Final level of Muraqaba of names of God. In Universal Sufism this concentration is on their own pantheist concept of God.

Middle level muraqabas

Maot (Arabic: Death) -- For getting acquaintance with life after Death
Qalb (Arabic: Heart) -- For getting acquaintance with Spiritual Heart
Wahdat (Arabic: Unity) -- For getting acquaintance with the reason behind cosmic unity i.e. God's will
La (Arabic: Nothingness) -- For getting acquaintance with material lessness, or non-material universe
Adam (Pre-existence) -- Next level of Muraqaba of Nothingness.
Fana (Arabic: Annihilation) -- Annihilation of Self, getting acquaintance with the alpha and omega of universe.

High level muraqabas

Tasawwur-e-Sheikh (Arabic: Focusing mind on master) -- To facilitate the transfer of spiritual knowledge from master to student.
Tasawwur-e-Rasool (Arabic: Focusing mind on prophet) -- To facilitate the transfer of Faiz (arcane spiritual knowledge) from prophet to student. This focussing of mind is done on Muhammad.
Tasawwur-e-zat-e-Ilaahi (Arabic: Focusing Mind on God) -- With the help of this Muraqaba, the student experiences the Tajalli-e-Zaat of God.
:

Physiological benefits:of muraqba 1- It lowers oxygen consumption. 2- It decreases respiratory rate. 3- It increases blood flow and slows the heart rate. 4- Increases exercise tolerance. 5- Leads to a deeper level of physical relaxation. 6- Good for people with high blood pressure. 7- Reduces anxiety attacks by lowering the levels of blood lactate. 8- Decreases muscle tension 9- Helps in chronic diseases like allergies, arthritis etc. 10- Reduces Pre-menstrual Syndrome symptoms. 11- Helps in post-operative healing. 12- Enhances the immune system. 13- Reduces activity of viruses and emotional distress 14- Enhances energy, strength and vigour. 15- Helps with weight loss 16- Reduction of free radicals, less tissue damage 17- Higher skin resistance 18- Drop in cholesterol levels, lowers risk of cardiovascular disease. 19- Improved flow of air to the lungs resulting in easier breathing. 20- Decreases the aging process. 21- Higher levels of DHEAS (Dehydroepiandrosterone) 22- prevented, slowed or controlled pain of chronic diseases 23- Makes you sweat less 24- Cure headaches & migraines 25- Greater Orderliness of Brain Functioning 26- Reduced Need for Medical Care 27- Less energy wasted 28- More inclined to sports, activities 29- Significant relief from asthma 30- improved performance in athletic events 31- Normalizes to your ideal weight 32- harmonizes our endocrine system 33- relaxes our nervous system 34- produce lasting beneficial changes in brain electrical activity 35- Cure infertility (the stresses of infertility can interfere with the release of hormones that regulate ovulation).

Psychological benefits:of muraqba 36- Builds self-confidence. 37- Increases serotonin level, influences mood and behaviour. 38- Resolve phobias & fears 39- Helps control own thoughts 40- Helps with focus & concentration 41- Increase creativity 42- Increased brain wave coherence. 43- Improved learning ability and memory. 44- Increased feelings of vitality and rejuvenation. 45- Increased emotional stability. 46- improved relationships 47- Mind ages at slower rate 48- Easier to remove bad habits 49- Develops intuition 50- Increased Productivity 51- Improved relations at home & at work 52- Able to see the larger picture in a given situation 53- Helps ignore petty issues 54- Increased ability to solve complex problems 55- Purifies your character 56- Develop will power 57- greater communication between the two brain hemispheres 58- react more quickly and more effectively to a stressful event. 59- increases one’s perceptual ability and motor performance 60- higher intelligence growth rate 61- Increased job satisfaction 62- increase in the capacity for intimate contact with loved ones 63- decrease in potential mental illness 64- Better, more sociable behaviour 65- Less aggressiveness 66- Helps in quitting smoking, alcohol addiction 67- Reduces need and dependency on drugs, pills & pharmaceuticals 68- Need less sleep to recover from sleep deprivation 69- Require less time to fall asleep, helps cure insomnia 70- Increases sense of responsibility 71- Reduces road rage 72- Decrease in restless thinking 73- Decreased tendency to worry 74- Increases listening skills and empathy 75- Helps make more accurate judgements 76- Greater tolerance 77- Gives composure to act in considered & constructive ways 78- Grows a stable, more balanced personality 79- Develops emotional maturity


Spiritual benefits:of muraqba 80- Helps keep things in perspective 81- Provides peace of mind, happiness 82- Helps you discover your purpose 83- Increased self-actualization. 84- Increased compassion 85- Growing wisdom 86- Deeper understanding of yourself and others 87- Brings body, mind, spirit in harmony 88- Deeper Level of spiritual relaxation 89- Increased acceptance of oneself 90- helps learn forgiveness 91- Changes attitude toward life 92- Creates a deeper relationship with your God 93- Attain enlightenment 94- greater inner-directedness 95- Helps living in the present moment 96- Creates a widening, deepening capacity for love 97- Discovery of the power and consciousness beyond the ego 98- Experience an inner sense of “Assurance or Knowingness” 99- Experience a sense of “Oneness” 100- Increases the synchronicity in your life. [wiki 2010]

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# History of Sufism

Sufism is generally believed to have originated among Muslims near Basra in modern Iraq, though there is a history of Sufism in Transoxania dating from shortly after the time of Muhammad. Some scholars believe that early Sufism was essentially the evolution of Islam in a mystic direction, although some of these beliefs lack historic evidence.

Annemarie Schimmel proposes that Sufism in its early stages of development meant nothing but centuries into the future, Sufi dervishes would go from village to village, teaching peasants to read and write through conversion to Islam.

Sufism in Central Asia

Sufism has been known in Transoxania and Khorasan since its very beginnings. Some of the greatest and most renowned Sufis were from this region, including al-Farabi (9th century CE), al-Ghazali (12th century CE), Jalāl-ad-Dīn Rūmī (13th

Sufism in South Asia

Further information: Sufism in India

Muslims of South Asia prominently follow the Chishtiyya, Naqshbandiyyah, Qadiriyyah and Suhrawardiyyah orders. Of them the Chishti order is the most visible. Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti, a disciple of Khwaja Abu Abdal Chishti, the propounder of this order, introduced it in India. He came to India from Afghanistan with the army of Shihab-ud-Din Ghuri in 1192 AD and started living permanently in Ajmer from 1195. Centuries later, with the support of Mughal rulers, his shrine became a place of pilgrimage. Akbar used to visit the shrine every year.

Turkic conquests in South Asia were accompanied by four Sufi mystics of the Chishtiyya order from Afghanistan: Moinuddin (d. 1233 in Ajmer), Qutbuddin (d. 1236 in Delhi), Nizamuddin (d.1335 in Delhi) and Fariduddin (d.1265 in Pakpattan now in Pakistan). During the reign of Muhammad bin Tughluq, who spread the Delhi sultanate towards the south, the Chistiyya spread its roots all across India. The Sufi shine at Ajmer in Rajasthan and Nizamuddin Auliya in Delhi belong to this order.

Some Sufis under the Chishtiyya order were not against absorbing ideas from the Hindu Bhakti movement and even used Hindi for their devotional songs. However, the orthodox Ulama with royal support insisted that the Sufis go "back to Shariat". Even though the Ulama had certain differences with Sufis over theological and mystic issues, the Shariat remained a cementing force between them.

The Suharawardy order was started by Shahab al-Din Suhrawardi of Baghdad and brought to India by Baha-ud-din Zakariya of Multan. Suhrawardiyyah order of Sufism gained popularity in Bengal. The Qadiriyyah order founded by Abdul Qadir Gilani whose tomb is at Baghdad. It is popular among the Muslims of South India.

Baha-ud-Din Naqshband (1318-1389) of Turkestan founded Naqshbandi order of Sufism. Khwaja Mohhammad Baqi Billah Berang whose tomb is in Delhi (E.I.Rose ) introduced Naqshbandi order in India. The essence of this order was insistence on rigid adherence to Shariat and nurturing love for prophet. It was patronized by the Mughal rulers, as its founder was their ancestral 'Pir' (Spiritual guide). "The conquest of India by Babur in 1526 gave considerable impetus to the Naqshbandiyya order". Its disciples remained loyal to the throne because of the common Turkic origin. With the royal patronage of most of the Mughal rulers, the Naqshbandi order caused the revival of Islam in its pure form.

Depicting authentic Sufism in India, the 5 minute video 'Vishwaas Ki Goonj - The Echo Of Faith', filmed in Hazrat Nizamuddin Dargah, Delhi, brings to us the universal message of Sufism and conveys mankind's ability to practice and uphold the notion of 'oneness of beings'. Directed and presented by filmmaker Basant P. Tolani in 2007, the film has Received an Award and First Prize in Global Festival of Films on Peace and Spirituality 2008 by IFTC (International Films & Television Club) and AAFT (Asian Academy Of Films and Television). This film is available in Youtube for viewing.

Sufism in Muslim Spain

Flourishing Sufisim in Al-Andalus has been seen in two different ways. For some it reflects the influence of mystical tradition started by Ibn Masarra. For others it has to do with the influence of Ghazali's thoughts and teachings.[1]

During the sixth/twelfth century the foundation for mystic thought in the western world lay in Spain. In Spain intellectual activity had already reached a pre-eminence that was rarely enjoyed by mystics in the East. Due to this Sufis from Al-Andalus during the sixth/twelfth century created their own doctrines.

The earliest introduction of Sufism to Spain was by Ibn Masarrah. He was considered to have established the first Sufi school in the providence. It is believed by some that he is the originator of a system of thought that is followed by Almerian followers and Ibn ‘Arabi. There is no historical connection linking this claim however.[3] Early Fuquahs in Spain were somewhat skeptical of philosophical thought as well as Sufi speculation. The works of Ghazali were also committed to flames by the Murabit Prince.

By the sixth/twelfth Century however, times had begun to change. Many people began to read the works of thinkers such as Aristotle and Plato. Some of the people at the forefront of the philosophical movement in Spain were Ibn Bajjah, Ibn Tufail, Ibn Rushd as well as a Jewish scholar named Ibn Maimun. It was Ibn Tufail who introduced the element of Sufism into this philosophical way of thinking.

At the same time that Ibn Tufail was introducing Sufi ways of thinking into philosophy a group of Sufi masters was emerging from “the famous centers of Spain.” These scholars defended the works of theosophists such as Ghazali and Al-Qushairi. Abu l-‘Abbas ibn al-‘Arif is described as being one of the first to interpret Ghazali in the West. He is also described as the founder of a method of spiritual training called tariqah. Ibn al-‘Arif had a disciple known as Ibn Qasi who set up a group of religious followers in Portugal and built a monastery in Silves. He left a work known as Khal al-Na’lain, which ‘Arabi has written a commentary on.

A school was also set up in Seville and was headed by Ibn Barrajah, who was considered to be one of the most philosophical of all Sufis. He came from North Africa.

One of the most important Sufis to come out of Spain is Ibn ‘Arabi. Ibn ‘Arabi was born in Marcia in 560/1165 at the beginning of the Almohad reign. As a child he moved with his father, a high ranking Muslim official, to Seville where his father was given a post in the Almohad sultans administration. Ibn ‘Arabi was schooled in the traditional Islamic sciences and quickly mastered the major fields of Islamic knowledge. In his teens Ibn ‘Arabi converted to Sufism. He dismissed all of his well to do friends and devoted his life to God. He acquired all the knowledge he could from the Sheikhis in Seville then he began to search the Iberian Peninsula for renown spiritual tutors. He came into contact with the great Sufi master from North Africa Abu Madyon, but soon surpassed even him. He went on a pilgrimage to Mecca in 598/1201, he would never again return to Andalusia.

Some of Ibn ‘Arabi’s writings include Fusus al-hikam ("The Ringstones of Wisdom"), Al-Futuhat al-makkiyya ("The Meccan Openings"), and Tarjuman al-ashwaq ("The Interpreter of Yearnings"). His works in Andalusia focused mainly on the prefect human individual, monastic metaphysics, and mystical path to spiritual and intellectual perfection.[

Other important Sufis include Ibn Masarra who was an important mystical thinker of the time and who is credited with setting up the first Sufi school in Spain. There is also Abu Ja’far al-‘Uryani, and Nunah Fatimah bit Ibn al-Mathanna whom Ibn ‘Arabi discusses in his book Sufi’s of Andalusia.

Sufism in 21st century

Riaz Ahmed Gohar Shahi was heavily criticized by orthodox theological scholars in Pakistan and abroad. Shahi's books were banned by the Government of Pakistan. His followers are not allowed to hold public meetings, and no press coverage is allowed to either Gohar Shahi or to his followers due to charges of blasphemy. Many attempts were made on Shahi's life including a petrol bomb thrown into his Manchester residence, and an attack with a hand grenade during a discourse at his home in Kotri, Pakistan.Gohar Shahi was booked in 1997 on alleged charges of murdering a woman who had come to him for spiritual treatment; Gohar Shahi, and many of his followers, were later convicted under Islamic blasphemy laws by an antiterrorist court in Sindh. Gohar Shahi was convicted in absentia—as then he was in England—resulting in sentences that totaled approximately 59 years. [wiki 2010]

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# Sufism in India

Sufism in India had an instrumental role in spreading Islam in India. The Sufis belonged to different tariqas (orders) of Sufism. The most prominent tariqahs of India are the Shadhiliyya, Chishtiyyah, Naqshbandiyyah, Qadiriyyah, Suhrawardiyya, Ahmadiyya, and Muhammadiya orders. Of them the Chishti order is the most prominent. Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti introduced the Chishtiyyah in India. He came to India from Afghanistan in 1192 AD and started living permanently in Ajmer in 1195. Centuries later, with the support of Mughal rulers, his shrine became a place of pilgrimage. Akbar would visit the shrine every year. In India, Sufi saints have emerged periodically to reshape the sacred in society. Although Sufi teachings convey the message of love and harmony, many movements, including the Wahhabi movement, arose against the developments in Sufism which appeared during the reign of Akbar.

History

In the 9th century, when the ‘Abbasids were in decline and Sindh was slipping out of their control, India was regarded as one of the most civilized regions outside of Islamic rule. By the time the ‘Abbasid Caliphate fell, there were many Sufi orders that had sprung up across the Muslim world, founded by eminent scholars. They built khaniqahs or hospices which were the focal points for the spread of Islam and Islamic teaching. Under each main center, sub-centers sprang up which owed their allegiance to the order. While the kings at that time used their political power, the Sufi saints exercised their spiritual power and had a greater hold on people. The orthodox ulema (Islamic legal scholars) were generally critical of the Sufis, but in the history of Islam Sufis played a major role. They interpreted Islam in a liberal way and brought about large-scale conversions to Islam. The relations between Sufis and the rulers of Sindh were greatly influenced by the presence of the Suhrawardi order, which enjoyed the favor of the Sindhi rulers. The Sufis in Sindh received a step-motherly treatment until the arrival of the Mughals in 1707. Sufi saints helped in the refinement and development of Indian languages and bridging the spiritual gap between the masses.

Orders

The Shadhiliyya order

Shadhilyya was founded by Imam Nooruddeen Abu Al Hasan Ali Ash Sadhili Razi. It was brought to India by Sheikh Aboobakkar Miskeen sahib Radiyallah of Kayalpatnam and Sheikh Mir Ahmad Ibrahim Raziyallah of Madurai. Mir Ahmad Ibrahim became the first of the three Sufi saints revered at the Madurai Maqbara in Tamil Nadu. There are more than 70 branches of Shadhiliyya and in India. Of these, the Fassiyatush Shadhiliyya is the most widely practised order.

The Chishti order

The first of the Chishti saints was Abu Ishaq Shami (d. 329 AH/AD 940–41), whose teacher was a well-known Sufi, Mimshad al-Dinawari (d. 299/911-12). Abu Ishaq Shami established the Chishti order in Chisht-i-Sharif in Afghanistan, but it took root in India, where it was brought by several Central Asian mystics, most notably Moinuddin Chishti and Bakhtiar Kaki.

The first four saints of the Chistiyyah order in India were Moinuddin Chishti (d. AD 1233 in Ajmer), Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki (d. AD 1236 in Delhi), Fariduddin Ganjshakar (d. AD 1265 in Pakpattan now in Pakistan) and Nizamuddin Auliya (d. AD 1335 in Delhi).. During the reign of Muhammad bin Tughluq, who spread the Delhi Sultanate southward, the Chistiyyah order spread its roots all across India.

During the Mongol invasion in AD 1220 and Safavid attack in 1509 many Chishti Sufis migrated to Uch, Ajodhan, Bhakkar and Sehwan in Sindh.

The Khanzada subdivision of the Rajput clan was converted to Islam by Chishti Sufis.

The Shattārīya order

The origin of this order is attributed to ‘Abdullāh al-Shattār (died AD 1415), who flourished in Jaunpur, India. Thereafter he shifted to Mandu, which then became the center of the Shattariya order. The order was popularised in Bengal by Qazan Shattari. The most important saint of this order was Shaikh Muhammad Ghaus, the author of many books on Sufism. The order was later carried to Iran, Turkey, and Indonesia.

The Suhrawardi order

The first of the Suhrawardi saints was Abu al-Najib Suhrawardi (490–563 AH). The Suhrawardiyyah order was started by his nephew and disciple Abu Hafs Umar al-Suhrawardi of Baghdad and brought to India by Baha-ud-din Zakariya of Multan. Like the Chishti order, the Suhrawardi order traces the lineage of its teaching back to Memshad-al-Dinawari. Besides Hazrat Wajhuddin Abu Hafs, Hazrat Zeyauddin AbulNajib Abdul Qaher Suhrawardi had achieved khilafat from Hazrat Abdul Qadir Jilani too; hence the Suhrawardiyyah order was mixed with the Quaderi, and later on all Sufis of the Firdousi order continued both traditions. The Suhrawardiyyah order achieved popularity in Bengal particularly.

The Qadiri order

The Qadiri order was founded by Abdul-Qadir Gilani, whose tomb is in Baghdad. It is popular among the Muslims of South India. It is one of the most widespread orders in Sufism. It has many branches, such as Sarwari Qadiri.

The Naqshbandi order

The origin of this order can be traced back to Khwaja Ya‘qub Yusuf al-Hamadani (b. AD 1140), who lived in Central Asia. It was later organised by Baha’uddin Naqshband (1318–1389) of Turkestan, who is widely referred to as the founder of the Naqshbandi order. Khwaja Muhammad al-Baqi Billah Berang, whose tomb is in Delhi, introduced the Naqshbandi order to India. The essence of this order was insistence on strict adherence to the shari‘ah and nurturance of love for the Prophet Muhammad. It was patronized by the Mughal rulers, as its founder was their ancestral pīr, or spiritual guide. "The conquest of India by Babur in 1526 gave considerable impetus to the Naqshbandiyya order". Its disciples remained loyal to the throne because of their common Turkic origin. With the royal patronage of most of the Mughal rulers, the Naqshbandi order brought about the revival of Islam. The Naqshbandis earned their living by designing patterns printed on cloth.

Impact of Sufism

Sufi saints were responsible for the introduction of the mystical form of Islam. Hindus and Hinduism ware deeply influenced by the Sufi saints..Sufi scholars instrumental in the social economical and philosophical development of the masses. Sufi saints also contributed significantly in spreading Islam in the Indian subcontinent and across Asia. In fact, in most cases, it was Sufi Muslim saints, not conquerors, who spread Islam in this part of the globe. [wiki 2010]

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# Bayazid Bastami

Bayazid Bastami, also known as Abu Yazid Bistami or Tayfur Abu Yazid al-Bustami, (804-874 or 877/8 CE) was a Persian Sufi born in Bastam, Iran.

The name Bastami means "from the city of Bastam". Bayazid's grandfather was a Zoroastrian who converted to Islam. His grandfather had three sons, Adam, Tayfur and 'Ali. All of them were ascetics. Abayazid was born to Tayfur. Not much is known of his childhood, but Bayazid spent most of his time in isolation in his house and the mosque. Although he remained in isolation, he did not isolate himself from the Sufi realm. He welcomed people into his house to discuss Sufism. Bayazid also led a life of asceticism and renounced all worldly pleasures in order to be one with God. Ultimately, this led Bayazid to a state of "self anhiliation", which, according to Sufism, is the only state a person could be in order to be closest with God. Bayazid became known as the first "intoxicated" Sufi because of the openness of his expressions he felt towards God (shatahat). Bayazid is regarded as being one of the most influential mystics due to the fact of how
controversial he was at the time.

Influence

Bayazid was in close contact with the Twelve Imams. He received initiation from Imam Ali ar-Ridha and died in either 874 or 877/8, indicating it is most likely he would have also associated with the succeeding Shi'ite Imams, including Imam Muhammad at-Taqi (d.835 CE), Imam Ali al-Hadi (d.868 CE), and Imam Hasan al-Askari (d.874 CE) , the paternal ancestors Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari, who would later lend his name to the chain of Central Asian Sufi Masters from the 10th to the 16th century known collectively as the Khwajagan. Bayazid's successor was Abu al-Hassan al-Kharaqani, who transmitted belief in the Twelve Imams to both Khwaja Abdullah Ansari, at whose shrine the names of the Twelve Imams are inscribed, and to Abu al-Hassan al-Kharaqani's successor Abul Qasim Gurgani (d. 1076), at whose shrine these names are also inscribed.

Bastami's predecessor Dhu'l-Nun al-Misri (d. CE 859), a student of Jābir ibn Hayyān, who was a student of the sixth Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq. Al-Misri had formulated the doctrine of ma'rifa (gnosis), presenting a system which helped the murid (initiate) and the shaykh (guide) to communicate. Bayazid Bastami took this a step further and emphasized the importance of ecstasy, referred to in his words as drunkenness (sukr or wajd), a means of self-annihilation in the Divine Presence. Before him, Sufism was mainly based on piety and obedience and he played a major role in placing the concept of divine love at the core of Sufism.

Bastami was one of the first to speak of "annihilation of the self in God" (fana fi 'Allah') and "subsistence through God" (baqa' bi 'Allah). The "annihilation of the self" (fana fi 'Allah') refers to disregarding everything in this world because of one's love towards God. When a person enters the state of fana it is believed that one is closest to God. His paradoxical sayings gained a wide circulation and soon exerted a captivating influence over the minds of students who aspired to understand the meaning of the wahdat al-wujud, Unity of Being. It is most likely Bayazid learnt this doctrine from the Twelve Imams, who declared "We are the Wajhullah (Face of God), we are the Eyes of Allah, we are the Hands of Allah"

When Bayazid died he was over seventy years old. Before he died, someone asked him his age. He said: "I am four years old. For seventy years I was veiled. I got rid of my veils only four years ago.” Being a disciple of the Twelve Imams and the first amongst the Sufis to formally articulate the doctrine of "annihilation" of the self in Allah, it is possible that Bayazid was expressing the annihilation of his self in the presence of Muhammad al-Mahdi who was four years old when he was first seen publicly at the funeral of his father Hasan al-Askari.

Bayazid died in 874 CE and is buried either in the city of Bistam in north central Iran, or in Semnan, Iran.

Intoxicated Sufi

An intoxicated Sufi is one that expresses their feelings openly without disregarding the social consequences in doing so. Bayazid was most famous for openly expressing himself. Unlike the sufi Junayd who was a sober sufi, meaning that he reserved his feelings within himself and not allowing for such expressions to be observed to the outside world. This was the acceptable comportment of a Sufi, however when Bayazid began to express himself openly, many shunned him. The people opposed to his openness accused Bayazid of being a heretic due to his bizarre sayings. Not only his sayings are controversial, but Bayazid also claimed to have traveled through the 7 heavens in his dream. This journey proclaimed by Bayazid is similar to the Mi'raj of the Prophet Muhammad (Sells, pg 213).

These sayings are some of Bayazid's famous sayings that caused him to be labeled as an intoxicated Sufi.

"Glory be to me! How great is My majesty!"
"Thy obedience to me is greater than my obedience to Thee"
"I am the throne and the footstool"
"By my life, my grasp is firmer than His"
"I saw the Kaba walking round me"
"Moses desired to see God; I do not desire to see God;He desires to see me"
"I am I; there is no God but I; so worship me!"

These and other similar statements of Bayzid indicate evidently that he was greatly influenced by the mystical teachings of the Twelve Imams, apart from whose teachings, statements like "We are the Most Beautiful Names of Allah" and "We are the Wajhullah (Face of Allah)" were unheard of throughout the Islamic world.

The Mystery About Shrine of Bayazid Bostami in Bangladesh

Interestingly enough, there is a shrine in Chittagong, Bangladesh that local people believe to be Bastami's tomb as well. This seems unlikely to be true, as Bastami was never known to have visited Bangladesh. However, Sufi teachers were greatly influential in the spread of Islam in Bengal and this might explain the belief. The Islamic scholars of Bangladesh usually regard the tomb at Chittagong attributed to him as a jawab, or imitation.

One explanation is the local legend that Bayazid did indeed visit Chattagong. At the time of his return, he found that his local followers did not want to leave. Overwhelmed by the love of his local followers, he pierced his finger and dropped a few drops of his blood on the ground and allowed his followers to build a shrine in his name where his blood drops fell.

This also explained by the traditional Sufi masters as a mash-had, or site of witnessing, where the spiritual presence of the saint has been witnessed, and is known to appear. This is explained through the Sufi concept of the power of the saint's soul to travel and in its spiritual form, even after death, to appear to the living. The Quran mentions that some of those who have proven their sincerity have achieved a life beyond the grave: Wala tahsabanna allatheena qutiloo fee sabeeli Allahi amwatan bal ahyaon AAinda rabbihim yurzaqoona - “Think not of those who are slain in Allah's way as dead. Nay, they live, finding their sustenance in the presence of their Lord.” 3:169

Sayings

Some of his words quoted from Tadhkiratul Awliya by Farid al-Din Attar:

I never saw any lamp shining more brilliantly than the lamp of silence.

I went to a wilderness, love had rained and had covered earth, as feet penetrate snow, I found my feet covered with love.

I stood with the pious and I didn’t find any progress with them. I stood with the warriors in the cause and I didn’t find a single step of progress with them. Then I said, ‘O Allah, what is the way to You?’ and Allah said, ‘Leave yourself and come.’

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# Chishti Order

The Chishtī Order is a Sufi order within the mystic branches of Islam which was founded in Chisht, a small town near Herat, Afghanistan about 930 CE. The Chishti Order is known for its emphasis on love, tolerance, and openness.

The order was founded by Abu Ishaq Shami (“the Syrian”) who introduced the ideas of Sufism to the town of Chisht, some 95 miles east of Herat in present-day western Afghanistan. Before returning to Syria, where he is now buried next to Ibn Arabi at Jabal Qasioun Shami initiated, trained and deputized the son of the local emir, Abu Ahmad Abdal. Under the leadership of Abu Ahmad’s descendants, the Chishtiya as they are also known, flourished as a regional mystical order.

The most famous of the Chishti saints is Moinuddin Chishti (popularly known as Gharib Nawaz meaning "Benefactor of the Poor") who settled in Ajmer, India. He oversaw the growth of the order in the 13th century as Islamic religious laws were canonized. He reportedly saw the Islamic prophet Muhammad in a dream and then set off on a journey of discovery.

Chishti master Inayat Khan (1882–1927) was the first to bring the Sufi path to the West, arriving in America in 1910 and later settling near Paris, France. His approach exemplified the tolerance and openness of the Chishti Order, following a custom began by Moinuddin Chishti of initiating and training disciples regardless of religious affiliation and which continued through Nizamuddin Auliya and Shah Kalim Allah Jahanabadi. Chishti master Mido Chishty has taken teachings of the order to develop FUZN. This has proven popular in the Middle East, Australia and California.

Key ideas

The Chishti Order is famous for its emphasis on love, tolerance, and openness. The order traces its spiritual origin through various saints all the way to the Islamic caliph Ali and from him to the Islamic prophet Muhammad.

The Chishti saints had two hallmarks which differentiate them from other Sufi saints. The first was their ethical relations to the institutional powers. This meant voluntarily keeping a distance from the ruler or the government mechanism. It didn't matter if the ruler was a patron or a disciple: he was always kept at bay since it was felt that mixing with the ruler will corrupt the soul by indulging it in worldly matters. In his last discourse to disciples, Khawaja Moinuddin Chishti said:

“ Never seek any help, charity, or favors from anybody except God. Never go the court of kings, but never refuse to bless and help the needy and the poor, the widow, and the orphan, if they come to your door. ”

The second distinctive dimension was related to the religious practice of the Chishtis. It was proactive rather than passive; a ceaseless search for the divine other. In this respect the Chishtis followed a particular ritual more zealously then any other brotherhood. This was the practice of sama, evoking the divine presence through song or listening to music. The genius of the Chishti saints was that they accommodated the practice of sema with the full range of Muslim obligations.

The Chishti Order can also be characterized by the following principles[citation needed]:

Obedience to the shaykh and/or pir
Renunciation of the material world
Distance from worldly powers
Supporting the poor
Service to humanity
Respect for other devotional traditions
Dependence on the Creator and not the creation
Disapproval of showing off miraculous feats

Chishti order in South Asia

The Chishti Order is now indigenous to Afghanistan and South Asia (mainly India, Pakistan and Bangladesh). It was the first of the four main Sufi Orders (Chishtia, Qadiriyya, Suhrawardiyya and Naqshbandi) to be established in this region. Moinuddin Chishti introduced the Chishti Order in India, sometime in the middle of the 12th century AD. He was eighth in the line of succession from the founder of the Chishti Order, Abu Ishq Shami. The devotees of this order practise chilla i.e. they observe seclusion for forty days during which they refrain from talking beyond what is absolutely necessary, eat little and spend most of their time in prayers and meditation. Another characteristic of the followers of this order is their fondness for devotional music. They hold musical festivals, and enter into ecstasy while listening to singing.

After Fariduddin Ganjshakar, the Chishti Order of South Asia split into two branches. Either branch was named after one of Ganjshakar's successors:

Nizamuddin Auliya - This branch became the Chishti Nizami branch. Nizamuddin Auliya was the master of Nasiruddin Chiragh Dehlavi who in turn was the master of Khwaja Bande Nawaz. All these are important saints of the order.
Alauddin Sabir Kaliyari - This branch became the Chishti-Sabiri branch.
Over time (principally after the 17th century) many further branches emerged which routinely united or diverged towards other popular Sufi orders in South Asia. Prominent people of later times who trace their spiritual lineage through the Chishti order include:

Ashraf Jahangir Semnani - He further extended the litanies the Chishtiya Nizami branch. His followers became the members of the Chishti Nizami Ashrafiya branch.
Haji Imdadullah Muhaajir Makki - He extended the litanies of the Chishtiya Sabaria branch. His followers became the members of the Chishtiya Sabaria Imdadiya branch.
Shah Niyaz Ahmad- He united the Chishti Nizami order with the Qadriya order to form the Chishtiya Qadriya Nizamia Niyazia branch.
Habibi Silsila - In century 13th Hegira - Silsila Chishtiya Nizamia Habibia emerged at Hyderabad, India - Khaja Habib Ali Shah.
As a result of this metamorphosis of the Chishti order with other branches, most Sufi masters now initiate their disciples in all the four major orders of South Asia: Chishti, Suhrawadi, Qadri and Naqshbandi. They do however, prescribe prayers and litanies, only of the order with which they are primarily associated.

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# Qadiriyya

The Qadiriyya, are members of the Qadiri Sufi order (tariqa). This derives its name from Abdul-Qadir Gilani (1077–1166 CE, also transliterated as "Jilani" etc.) who was a native of the Iranian province of Gilan. The order relies strongly upon adherence to the fundamentals of Islam.

The order, with its many offshoots, is widespread, particularly in the Arabic-speaking world, and can also be found in Afghanistan, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Turkey, the Balkans, China, East and West Africa. There are small groups in Europe and the Americas: the famous travelers and writers Richard Francis Burton and Isabelle Eberhardt belonged to the Qadiri order.

The founder of the Qadiriyya, Abdul-Qadir Gilani, was a respected Hanbalite scholar and preacher. Having been a pupil at the school (madrasa) of Abu Sa'id al-Mubarak Mukharrami he became leader of this school after Mukharrami's death in 1119 CE. Being the new shaykh, he and his large family lived comfortably in the madrasa until his death in 1166, when his son, Abdul al-Wahhab, succeeded his father as sheikh. At the time the Sufi tradition of Abu Hafs Umar al-Suhrawardi was gaining prominence after the caliph al-Nasir came to power in 1180 and patronised al-Suhrawardi. Gilani's son, Abdul al-Razzaq, published a hagiography of his father, emphasising his reputation as founder of a distinct and prestigious Sufi order.

The Qadiriyya flourished, surviving the Mongolian conquest of Baghdad in 1258, and remained an influential Sunni institution. After the fall of the 'Abbasid caliphate the legend of Gilani was further spread by a text entitled The Joy of the Secrets in Abdul-Qadir's Mysterious Deeds (Bahjat al-asrar fi ba'd manaqib 'Abd al-Qadir) attributed to Nur al-Din 'Ali al-Shattanufi, who depicted Gilani is the ultimate channel of divine grace and helped the Qadiri order to spread far beyond the region of Baghdad.

By the end of the fifteenth century the Qadiriyya had distinct branches and had spread to Morocco, Spain, Turkey, India, Ethiopia, Somalia, and present-day Mali. Established Sufi sheikhs often adopted the Qadiriyya tradition without abandoning leadership of their local communities. During the Safavid rule of Baghdad, from 1508 to 1534, the shaykh of the Qadiriyya was appointed chief Sufi of Baghdad and the surrounding lands.[who?] Shortly after the Ottoman Turks conquered Baghdad in 1534, Suleiman the Magnificent commissioned a dome to be built on the tomb of Gilani, establishing the Qadiriyya as his main allies in Iraq.

Koja Abdul Alla, a sheikh of the Qadiriyya and a descendant of Muhammed, is reported to have entered China in 1674 and traveled the country preaching until his death in 1689. One of Abdul Alla's students, Qi Jingyi Hilal al-Din, is said to have permanently rooted Qadiri Sufism in China. He was buried in Linxia City, which became the center of the Qadiriyya in China. By the seventeenth century, the Qadiriyya had reached Ottoman-occupied areas of Europe.

There were also many Qadiri sheikhs in Kerala, including Moula al-Bokhari (Kannur), Syed Abd al-Rahman Aidrusi (Ponnani), Syed Qutb Alavi Manburami, Sheikh Abu-Bakr Madavuri, Sheikh Abu-Bakr Aluva and Sheikh Zain-ud-din Makhdum Ponnani.

Features

Qadiri leadership is not centralised. Each centre of Qadiri thought is free to adopt its own interpretations and practices.
The symbol of the order is the rose. A rose of green and white cloth, with a six-pointed star in the middle, is traditionally worn in the cap of Qadiri dervishes. Robes of black felt are also customary.
Teachings emphasise the struggle against the desires of the ego. Gilani described it as "the greater struggle" (jihad) This has two stages; first against deeds forbidden by religious law and second against fundamental vices such as greed, vanity, and fear. A true seeker of God should overcome all desires other than wishing to be taken into God's custody.
Though the sunna is the ultimate source of religious guidance, the wali (saints) are God's chosen spiritual guides for the people. Such local Sufi saints command considerable local reverence. Sufi masters are not necessarily divinely-inspired but they are still responsible for guiding their disciples.
Names of God are prescribed as wazifas (mantras) for repetition by initiates (dhikr). Formerly several hundred thousand repetitions were required, and obligatory for those who hold the office of sheikh.
Any person over the age of eighteen may be initiated. They may be asked to live in the order's commune (tekke) and to recount their dreams to their sheikh.

Hzt SULTHAN SHAH Sayed Muhammed Badshah

Hazrat Khwaja Shaikh Mohammad Badshah Qadri-ul-Chishti Yamani Raichuri Rahmatullan Alayh (1903 (1324 Hijri) – 1978), was a Sufi saint of the Chisti order in India, known commonly as Badshah Quadri or Badesha Qadri, who preached universal brotherhood and peace.

Badesha Quadri was born in Raichur, Karnataka, India, during Bakrid on 10th day of Dhul Hijja, on a Friday, to a sayyid family which originally came from Yemen. His family trace their descent from Hasan ibn Ali, the first grandson of Muhammad

At an early age, Badesha Quadri became a disciple of his paternal uncle Shah Nabi Mohuiddeen Quadri, of the Chisti order, who was then a renowned Chisti elder. He later became a disciple of Karimullah Shah Qadri. Before Karimullah died, he passed the role of Pir, the leadership of the Qadiriyyah and Chishti traditions, to Badesha Quadri.

Badesha Quadri is entombed in Halkatta Shareef outside of Wadi in the Gulbarga District of Karnataka. His work is continued there by his son and successor Mohammed Ibrahim Shah Qadri (Ibrahim Shah Khaderi ) There is an annual festival or urs for Badesha Quadri and thousands of his followers travel to Halkatta Shareef for it. The urs marks the anniversary of the saint’s death. The term urs literally means wedding with the divine.

Badshah khadri is one of the most greatest person and we all ahle silsila-e-khadriya is faith on him. Hazrat Peer Adil Bijapur Rahmathullah is also the peer of the silsila after hazrat Badshah khadri rahmath ullah Hazrat Peer Younus Ali shah khadri al chisti al ifteqari charage peer adil is one of the saint of the silsila who is present alive and give the true massage of allah and mohammed to all people by the grace of god.

Texts

There are several texts important to the Qadiriyya;

Futuh al-Ghayb (Revelations from the Invisible World) - Seventy-eight of Gilani's essays (maqalat, singular: maqala) compiled by his son, Abdul al-Razzaq Gilani. These pieces tend to be short statements regarding Islamic doctrines and Sufi belief.
Fath al-Rabbani wa al-Fayd al-Rahmani (Revelation from the Lord and the Outflow of His Mercy) - Sermons Gilani delivered during sixty-two sessions held in his madrasa, most likely recorded by his disciples.
al-Ghunya li Lalibi Tariq al-Haqq (Indispensables for the Seekers of the Path of Truth) - the largest of Gilani's three known books, separated into five parts, each dealing with a different branch of Sufi learning; jurisprudence (fiqh), tenets of the faith ('aqa'id), preaching (majalis wa'z), work or "the work" (a'mal) and Sufism (tasawwuf) itself generally.

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# Suhrawardiyya

The well-known Shahab al-Din Suhrawardi "the Executed" (1153 - 1191CE), the Shia founder of Illuminationism, is unconnected.

The Suhrawardiyya is a Sufi order founded by the Iranian Sufi Diya al-din Abu 'n-Najib as-Suhrawardi (1097 – 1168 CE). It is a strictly [sufi]] order, guided by the Shafi`i school of Islamic law (madhab), and, like many such orders, traces its spiritual genealogy (silsila) to Hazrat Ali ibn Abi Talib through Junayd Baghdadi and al-Ghazali. It played an important role in the formation of a conservative ‘new piety’ and in the regulation of urban vocational and other groups, such as trades-guilds and youth clubs (see Futuwwa), particularly in Baghdad..

The order originated in Iraq though it spread all over the Islamic world under its founder's nephew, Abu Hafs Umar al-Suhrawardi (1145 – 1234 CE), who was sent by the Caliph in Baghdad as an ambassador to the Ayyubid Sultan Al-Adil I of Egypt, to Khwarezm-Shah Muhammad of Bukhara and to Kayqubad I, Sultan of Rûm.

The order's founder was a disciple (murid) of Ahmad Ghazali, brother of the noted thinker Imam Abu Hamid al-Ghazali, who taught Shafi'i jurisprudence (fiqh) at Al-Nizamiyya of Baghdad Academy. His surviving work is called Kitab Adab Al-Muridin - "The Book of Duty of Disciples".

Umar al-Suhrawardi

The founder's nephew Abu Hafs Umar al-Suhrawardi, author of Awarif al-Ma’arif, ("The Heights of the Gnostics"), renounced reclusiveness and austerity in favour of an active life in society, maintaining close contact with the civil authorities and undertaking diplomatic missions and the political settlement of conflicts. His luxurious cloister in Baghdad, with gardens and bath houses, was built for him by Caliph an-Nasir.

India

Sheikh Umar directed his disciple Baha-ud-din_Zakariya to make Multan in present-day Pakistan the centre of his activity. Iltutmish appointed him "Sheikh ul-Islam" after the invasion of Multan and the overthrow of its ruler Nasir-ud-Din Qabacha. During the Mongol invasion he became the peace negotiator between the invaders and the Muslim army. Bukhari, known as Makhdum Jahaniyan, the world traveller, was a puritan who strongly objected to Hindu influence on Muslim social and religious practices.

The order became popular in India owing to the work of Bukhari and his successor Baha-ud-din Zakariya. Zakariya’s successor was his son Shaikh Sadruddin ‘Arif. His disciple Amir Husayn, the author of Zad- al-Musafirin, wrote several works on the doctrine of the oneness of being. Shaikh Arif’s son and successor Ruknuddin was highly respected by the Delhi Sultans from Alauddin Khilji to Muhammad Ibn Tughlaq.

After the death of Shaikh Ruknuddin the Suhrawardiyya declined in Multan but became popular in other provinces like Uch, Gujarat, Punjab, Kashmir and Delhi. The Suharawardi order also became popular in Bengal.

Notable acolytes

The poet Fakhr-al-Din Iraqi, buried at Konya, Turkey near Ibn Arabi's tomb and the popular Pakistani saint Lal Shahbaz Qalandar (1177 - 1274 CE) were connected to the order.

Shaikh Sharfuddin Yahya Manairi (d. 1380 AD) belonged to the Firdausia order, a branch of Suhrawardiyya. He compiled several books, i.e. “Fawaid al-Muridin”, “Irshadat al-Talibin”,”Rahat al-Qulub”, etc.

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# Shadhili

The Shadhili Tariqa is a Sufi order founded by Abu-l-Hassan ash-Shadhili. Followers (murids Arabic: seekers) of the Shadhiliya are often known as Shadhilis.

It has historically been of importance and influence in North Africa and Egypt with many contributions to Islamic literature. Among the figures most known for their literary and intellectual contributions are Ibn 'Ata Allah, author of the Hikam, and Shaykh Ahmed Zarruq, author of numerous commentaries and works, and Sheikh ibn Ajibah who also wrote numerous commentaries and works. In poetry expressing love of Muhammad, there have been the notable contributions of al-Jazuli, author of the "Dala'il al-Khayrat", and Busiri, author of the famous poem, the Poem of the Mantle. Many of the head lecturers of al-Azhar University in Cairo have also been followers of this tariqa.

Of the various branches of the Shadhili tariqa are the Fassiyatush, found largely in India, Sri Lanka, and Pakistan. The Darqawi branch is found mostly in Morocco and the Alawiyya (no connection to the Turkish or Syrian Alawi or Alevi groups) which originated in Algeria is now found the world over, particularly in Syria, Jordan, France and among many English-speaking communities. British scholar, Martin Lings wrote an extensive biography of the founder of this branch, Shaykh Ahmad al-Alawi, entitled 'A Sufi Saint of the 20th century' (ISBN 0-946621-50-0)

The Swedish impressionist painter and Sufi scholar Ivan Aguéli (1869–1917) was the first official Moqaddam (representative) of the Shadhili Order in Western Europe. Aguéli initiated René Guénon (1886–1951) into the Shadhili tariqa. Guénon went on to write a number of influential books on tradition and modernity.

Shadhiliyya has nearly 72 branches across the globe. A few prominent branches are listed below.

Fassiya

Fassiyatush shadhili sufi order was established by Qutbul Ujud Ghouthuz Zamaaninaa Ash Sheikh Muhammad bin Muhammad bin Mas'ood bin Abdur Rahman Al Makki Al Magribi Al Fassi Ash Shadhili who was a Moroccan by origin and born in Makkah. Fassiyatush Shadhiliyya is widely practiced in India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Mauritius and Indonesia. The descendants of Imam Fassi who are Sheikhs of Fassiyatush Shadhiliyya who live in Bait Al Fassi , Makkah and in Jeddah visit to these countries frequently to train Ikhwan.

Darqawiyya

The Darqawiyya, a Moroccan branch of the Shadhili order, was founded in the late 18th century CE by Muhammad al-Arabi al-Darqawi. Selections from the Letters of Shaykh al-Darqawi have been translated by the Shadhili initiate Titus Burckhardt, and also by the scholar Aisha Bewley. One of the first tariqas to be established in the West was the 'Alawiya branch of the Darqawiyya, which was named after Shaykh Ahmad ibn Mustafa al-'Alawi al-Mustaghanimi, popularly known as Shaykh al-Alawi. "A significant book about him, written by Martin Lings, is A Sufi Saint of the Twentieth Century."

Maryamiyya

The Maryamiyya branch of the Shadhiliyya Order was founded by Shaykh 'Isa Nur al-Din Ahmad or Frithjof Schuon (1907–1998), a European disciple of Shaykh Ahmad al-'Alawi, who established the Order in Europe and North America. Some of Schuon's most eminent students include, Titus Burckhardt (1908–1984) and Martin Lings (1909–2005), author of the aforementioned text, A Sufi Saint of the Twentieth Century and the universally acclaimed biography of the Prophet, Muhammad: His Life Based on the Earliest Sources. Schuon also wrote several outstanding books on Islam including, Understanding Islam, Dimensions of Islam, and Sufism: Veil and Quintessence, as well as a number of books on the Perennial Philosophy.

Attasiyah

The 'Attasiyah Order is a branch of the 'Alawi Order. It is centered in Yemen but also has centers in Pakistan, India, and Myanmar. The 'Alawiya order in Yemen has recently been studied by the anthropologist David Buchman. In his article "The Underground Friends of God and Their Adversaries: A Case Study and Survey of Sufism in Contemporary Yemen", Professor Buchman summarizes the results of his six month period of fieldwork in Yemen. The article was originally published in the journal Yemen Update, vol. 39 (1997), pp. 21-24."

Another figure is "Shaykh Abdalqadir al-Murabit, a Scottish convert to Islam, whose lineage is Shadhili-Darqawi. Currently his order is known as the Murabitun. At other times his order has been known as the Darqawiyya and Habibiya. One of the first books that Shaykh Abdalqadir wrote was The Book of Strangers, which he authored under the name Ian Dallas. For a brief anecdote of Shaykh Abdalqadir in the early 1970s, go" here.

Another contemporary order deriving, in part, from Shaykh Abdalqadir al-Murabit is the al-Haydariyah al-Shadhiliyah, headed by Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri. Of Shi'ite descent, Shaykh Fadhlalla teaches within neither a Shi'i nor a Sunni framework.

Darqawi Hashimiya

There is another branch of the Shadhili-Darqawi Order known as the Shadhili-Darqawi-Hashimi branch, which is firmly established in both Damascus and Jordan. This branch of the Shadhili tariqa was established through Sheikh Muhammad al-Hashimi al-Tilmisani who, as a young man, migrated from North Africa to Damascus with his spiritual guide (murshid), who was a disciple of Sheikh Ahmad al-'Alawi (see above Martin Lings). Sheikh Muhammad al-Hashimi received his authorization (ijaza) to be a murshid of the Shadhili tariqa from Sheikh Ahmad al-'Alawi when the latter was visiting Damascus in the early 1920s.

Perhaps the most well known spiritual guides (murshideen) in the West of this branch of the Shadhili tariqa are Sheikh Nuh Ha Mim Keller and Sheikh Muhammad al-Yaqoubi both are students of the spiritual guide and Shadhili Sheikh Abd al Rahman Al Shaghouri. Sheikh Abd al Rahman was a student of Sheikh Muhammad al-Hashimi al-Tilmisani. The Sheikh Nuh is an American convert to Islam who resides in Amman, Jordan. Some of his writings are available here. His official website is here. The latter, Sheikh al Yaqoubi, traces his lineage in the tariqa through his father and grandfather. And his official website is here.

Sheikh Muhammad Sa'id al-Jamal, a student of Sheikh Muhammad al-Hashimi al-Tilmisani, works from the Haram al-Sharif or The Temple Mount in Jerusalem and mufti of the Hanbali Madhab. He was also a student of the spiritual guide and Shadhili Sheikh Abdur Rahman Abu al Risah of Halab in the land of Syria of the Shadhili Yashruti line. He is a direct descendent of the Prophet Muhammad, (sallahu alayhi wa salam), through his ancestor, Shaykh Ahmad ar-Rifa`i. He travels yearly to the US and has numerous students there. He has written many books in both English and Arabic on Sufism, tafsir, and healing. His students from the US also established the University of Spiritual Healing and Sufism which is devoted to sufi way of healing.

Badawiyya

Another branch of the Shadhilia which has groups in Egypt, Indonesia, Turkey and America is the Shadhilia-Batawia founded by Sheikh Ibrahim al-Batawi, for many years professor at al-Azhar. He was a confrere of Sheikh Abdu-l-Halim Mahmud, Shaikh al-Azhar, who was very influential in the revival of Sufism in Egypt. Sheikh Ibrahim’s student, Sheikh Abdullah Nooruddeen Durkee has established the Shadhdhuliyyah-Baddawia order in the US. Sheikh Nooruddeen has translated and transliterated the Qur'an and has compiled two definitive books on the Shadhdhuliyyiah,Orisons and Origins.

"Between October 17–26, 1999 the First International Shadhilian Festival occurred in Egypt. It concluded with a pilgrimage to the tomb of Abu 'l-Hasan al-Shadhili and involved Sufi gatherings of dhikr" and the singing of qasidas, or classical poetry.

Influence

This section requires expansion.

On Christianity

For more details on this topic, see Miguel Asín Palacios John of the Cross.
It has been suggested that the Shadhili school was influential on St. John of the Cross, in particular on his account of the dark night of the soul and via Ibn Abbad al-Rundi.

This influence has been suggested by Miguel Asín Palacios and developed by others, who suggests that Ibn Abbad al-Rundi, who draw detailed connections between their teachings.

Other scholars, such as José Nieto, argue that these mystical doctrines are quite general, and that while similarities exist between the works of St. John and Ibn Abbad and other Shadhilis, these reflect independent development, not influence.

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# Shattari

The Shattariyya are members of a Sufi mystical order (tariqah) that originated in Persia in the fifteenth century C.E. and later taken to India, the Hejaz and Indonesia. The word Shattar, which means "speed", "rapidity", or "fast-goer" indicates a system of spiritual practices that lead quickly to a state of "completion", however the name derives from its founder, Sheikh Sirajuddin Abdullah Shattar (d. 1406 CE).

Unlike other Sufis the Shattariyya do not subscribe to the concept of fana (annihilation of the ego). "With the sect of Shattaris, the Salik (seeker, aspirant) descends, of himself, in his own knowledge - there is no annihilation of self with them".

Idries Shah, writing in The Sufis, states that the Shattari technique or "the Rapidness" originated with the Naqshbandi Sufi Order and that after the early nineteenth century it returned to "the custody" of that "parent school". Many of the later Shattariyya, especially those of Medina, were initiated into the Naqshbandiyya, and the sheikhs of the Mazhariyya branch of the Naqshbandiyya were also authorised to initiate into the Shattariya and other paths. The Shattari method thus ultimately became an area of specialisation within the Naqshbandiyya.

Like that of the Naqshbandiyya, the Shattari succession or chain of transmission (silsila) is said to pass from the Prophet Muhammad through Bayazid Bastami (753-845 CE). The Shattari order is thus a branch of the Tayfuri Khanwada. It was reputedly founded by Sheikh Sirajuddin Abdullah Shattar (d. 1406 CE), a descendant of Sheikh Shihabuddin Suhrawardi. Shattar was deputized and given the honorific "Shattar" by his teacher Sheikh Muhammad Taifur in recognition of the austerities he faced in achieving this station (maqam).

Originating in Persia, the order and its teachings were later brought to India by Sheikh Abdullah Shattar. According to Idries Shah, "Shattar visited India in the fifteenth century, wandering from one monastery to another, and made known the method. His procedure was to approach the chief of a Sufi group and say, 'Teach me your method, share it with me. If you will not, I invite you to share mine.'"

Shattar's successor was Shah Wajih ad-Din (d. 1018 AH / 1609 CE), a "great saint" who wrote many books and founded an educational institution (madrasa).

One of the order's notable masters was the 16th century Sufi saint and musician, Shah Muhammad Ghawth (d. 1562/3 CE), a descendant of the great Classical Sufi poet Fariduddin Attar. Shah Ghawth developed the Shattariyya more fully into a "distinctive order"; and also taught the Mughal Emperor Humayun, He wrote the book Jawahir-i khams, (The Five Jewels). The influence of the Shattari Order grew strong during Ghawth's leadership and spread through South Asia.

Ghawth, a highly accomplished musician, became the tutor of the Mughal emperor Akbar's favorite musician, Tansen. Although Tansen was a Hindu by birth, Shah Ghawth adopted him as an orphan and tutored him in both Sufism and music, appointing him as one of his deputies.Tansen was buried in Ghawth's tomb complex.

Ghawth's tomb in Gwalior is a well-known tourist attraction, regarded as an excellent example of Mughal Architecture.

In the late sixteenth/early seventeenth century C.E. the Shattariyya was introduced to Medina by Sibghatallah ibn Ryuhallah al-Sindi al-Barwaji (d.1606 C.E.), a Naqshbandi shaykh. His disciple Abu'l-Mawahib al-Shinnawi (d. 1619) continued the order there. The Shattaris went on to play an important role in Medina through the seventeenth century C.E. under Ahmad al-Qushashi, al Shinnawi's successor, and then Ibrahim Kurani (d. 1689 C.E.) who was also initiated into other orders including the Naqshbandiyya, Qadiriyya and Chishtiyya. Kurani's disciple Abd al Ra'uf Singkel was authorised by him to introduce the Shattariyya to Indonesia. The Shattariyya became popular in Aceh and Jawa, particularly in Pamijahan and Cirebon (where it became closely associated with the court).

Ibrahim Kurani's son, Muhammad Abu'l Tahir Kurani (d.1733 C.E.) inherited his father's position as supreme sheikh of the Shattariyya as well as the role of teacher in the Prophet's mosque and Shafi'i mufti in the city. Among his students was the great Indian Naqshbandi reformer Shah Waliullah Dihlawi (d.1763 C.E.). Abu'l Tahir initiated Shah Waliullah into the Naqshbandiyya in Medina. He also initiated him into the Shadhiliyya, Shattariyya, Suhrawardiyya and Kubrawiyya.

Method

The Shattariyya subscribed to six fundamental principles:

(i) One should not believe in self-negation but adhere to self-affirmation.

(ii) Contemplation is a waste of time.

(iii) Self-effacement is a wrong idea: one must say nothing except "I am I." Unity is to understand One, see One, say One and to hear One. A Sufi of this order must say "I am one" and "There is no partner with me."

(iv) There is no need to oppose to the ego (nafs) or of mujaheda (struggle, parrticipation in jihad with oneself).

(v) There is no such state as annihilation (fana) since this would require two personalities, one wishing for annihilation and the other in whom annihilation takes place, which is dualism and not unity.

(vi) One should not abstain from eating certain foods but instead should consider one's ego, its attributes and actions as identical with those of the Universal Ego. The animal soul is not an obstacle for reaching God.

The Shattariyya held to the principle of wahdat al-wujud (Unity of Existence) expounded by Ibn Arabi. Abu'l Mawahib al Shinnawi was an outspoken adherent of this doctrine. And Shinnawi's successor, Ahmad al-Qushashi was described by the contemporary Damascene scholar Muhammad Amin al Muhibbi as "The Imam of those who expound the unity of existence".

Some aspects of Shattari teaching sought to combine parts of Nath Yoga and other forms of Hindu mystical practice with Sufi methods. Sheikh Baha' al-Din Shattari (d. 1515 C.E.) incorporated Indian spiritual practices into his Risala-i Shattariyya (The Shattari Treatise). Later The Pool of Nectar (traced by Carl Ernst to the Hindu Amrtakunda), was translated into Persian by Muhammad Ghawth. This translation was "a systematic account of yogic mantras and visualization practices, assimilated and even incorporated into the conceptual structure of Sufi tradition". It included an account of the chakras together with the practices required to activate them, though with Sufi wazifas substituted for the traditional Hindu mantras.

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# Naqshbandi

Naqshbandi (an-Naqshbandiyyah, Nakşibendi, Naksbendi, Naksbandi) is one of the major tasawwuf spiritual orders (tariqa) of Sufi Islam. It is considered to be a "Potent" order (Naqsband ajab kafallah).

The Naqshbandi order is over 1,300 years old, and is active today. It is the only Sufi order that claims to trace its direct spiritual lineage (silsilah) to Muhammad through Abu Bakr, the First Caliph and Muhammad's companion. This lineage also indirectly connects to Ali, Muhammad's cousin, son-in-law and the Fourth Caliph, via Jafar as-Sadiq. In contrast, most other Sufi orders (turuq) trace their lineage through Ali.

It is considered that the transmission of spiritual lineage or silsilah, is directly from one Sheikh to another, at or after the time of death or burial. It is not tied to a country, family or political appointment, but is a direct heart to heart transmission. It is also considered that the appointed Sheikh will be in some communication with past Sheikhs. At any one time, there will of course be many other Sheikhs, who will all naturally owe their spiritual allegiance (Beyat) to the current master of the silsilah.

The Naqshbandi order owes many insights to Abu Ya'qub Yusuf al-Hamadani and Abd al-Khaliq al-Ghujdawani, who is regarded as the organizer of the practices and is responsible for placing stress upon the purely mental dhikr . It was later associated with Muhammad Baha ad-din an-Naqshabandi, hence the name of the order. Some interpret the name translation as "the engravers (of the heart)", "related to the image-maker", "pattern maker", "image maker", "reformer of patterns", "way of the chain" and "golden chain."

The name has changed over the years. Originally called "as-Siddiqiyya", around the times of Bayazid al-Bistami to Sayyadina Abdul Khaliq al-Ghujdawani it was called at-Tayfuriyya, and from the times of Sayyadina 'Abdul Khaliq al-Ghujdawani to Shah Naqshband it was called the "Khwajagan" or "Hodja". From the time of Shah Naqshband it has been called Naqshbandiyya.

Criteria of a Sufi Naqshbandi Sheikh

The following would always apply to genuine Sufi Naqshbandi teachers or Sheikhs:

They comply with Sharia. They must be a Aalim. There is no sufism without Ilm.
They regularly acknowledge the silsilah to which they give allegiance.
They openly and regularly defer to the current leader of the silsilah.
Bay'at (allegiance) is given to the leader of the silsilah, not the local teacher or Sheikh.
They accept interaction with other murids of the order.

Naqshbandia Owaisiah Golden Chain

The Naqshbandia Owaisiah Order has a unique spiritual lineage following Abu Bakr as-Siddiq. Uwais al-Qarni was a hidden companion of Muhammad, who gave him his own vest, just before he died.
The undisputed silsilah is surprisingly short, since there are long periods where the order has no living appointed Sheikh.

The method of spiritual instruction is quite close to the Mujaddidiyyah branch. However, there are two main differences. Firstly, Naqshbandia Owaisiah order uses the "Pas Infas" method of zikr. Secondly, the method of spiritual instruction is "Uwaysi," which means that the Shaikh can impart spiritual instruction regardless of place or time. The Naqshbandia Owaisiah Order is based in Pakistan and its modern founder was Shaikh Allah Yar Khan.

Muhammad sallalahu alaihi wasallim, ibn Abd Allah
Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, radiya-l-Lahu`anh d. 13H
Imam Hasan al-Basri rehmatulla taala d. 110H
Dawood Tai rehmatulla taala
Junayd Baghdadi rehmatulla taala d. 297 H
Obaid Ullah Ahrar rrehmatulla taala d. 895 H
Maulana Abdur Rahman Jami rehmatulla taala d. 898 H
Abul Ayub Muhammad Saleh rehmatulla taala d. late 10 cent H
Sultan ul-Arifeen) Allah Din Madni rehmatulla taala
‘Abdul Rahim rehmatulla taala d. 1372 H
Maulana Allah Yar Khan (rehmatulla taala d. 1404 H

Naqshbandi Haqqani (Bhagdadi) Golden Chain

The undisputed Haqqani / Bhagdadi Naqshbandi Golden Chain also includes the lineage of Khalidiyya-Naqshbandiyya. Grandsheikh Nazim al-Qubrusi is now leader of the Naqshbandi-Haqqani order worldwide. Grandshaykh Nazim al-Qubrusi has two khalifas, Mawlana Shaykh Hisham Kabbani and Mawlana Shaykh Adnan Kabbani. Shaykh Gibril Haddad is a notable scholar. The Bhagdadi Naqshbandi practice dhikr jahri, or loud dhikr (Remembrance of God).

The Naqshbandi Golden Chain or silsilah include (in date order):

Imam ul-Ambiyaa Sayyidna Muhammad ibn Abd Allah ibn Abdul Muttalib, sallallahu alaihay wa alihi wa sallam d 11AH, buried Madinah SA (570/571 - 632 CE)
Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, radiya-l-Lahu`anh d 13AH, buried Madinah, SA
Salman al-Farsi, radiya-l-Lahu`anh d 35AH buried Madaa'in, SA.
Qasim ibn Muhammad ibn Abu Bakr d 107AH buried Madinah SA.
Jafar as-Sadiq, alayhi-s-salam (after which moves to Iran) d 148AH buried Madinah SA.
Tayfur Abu Yazid al-Bistami Bayazid Bastami, radiya-l-Lahu canh d 261AH buried Bistaam, Iran (804 - 874 CE).
Abul Hassan Ali al-Kharqani, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 425AH buried Khurqaan, Iran.
Abu Ali al-Farmadi, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah (after which moves to Turkmenistan) d 477AH buried Tous, Khorasan, Iran.
Abu Yaqub Yusuf al-Hamadani, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 535AH buried Bayram-Ali, Mary, Turkmenistan.
Abul Abbas, al-Khidr, alayhi-s-salam (after which moves to Uzbekistan / Afghanistan).
Abdul Khaliq al-Ghujdawani, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 575AH buried Ghajdawan, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
Arif ar-Riwakri, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 616AH buried Reogar, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
Khwaja Mahmoud al-Anjir al-Faghnawi, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 715AH buried Waabakni, Mawralnahar.
Ali ar-Ramitani, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 715AH buried Khwaarizm, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
Muhammad Baba as-Samasi, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 755AH buried Samaas, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
as-Sayyid Amir Kulal, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 772AH buried Saukhaar, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
Muhammad Baha'uddin Shah Naqshband Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 791AH buried Qasr-e-Aarifan, Bukhara, Uzbekistan (1318–1389 CE).
Ala'uddin al-Bukhari al-cAttar, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah buried Jafaaniyan, Mawranahar, Uzbekistan.
Yaqub al-Charkhi, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 851AH buried Charkh, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
Ubaydullah al-Ahrar, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 895AH buried Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
Muhammad az-Zahid, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 936AH buried Wakhsh, Malk Hasaar
Darwish Muhammad, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 970AH buried Samarkand, Uzbekistan.
Muhammad Khwaja al-Amkanaki, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah (after which moves to India) d 1008AH buried Akang, Bukhara, Uzbekistan.
Muhammad al-Baqi bi-l-Lah (Mohhammad Baqi Billah Berang), qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 1012AH buried Delhi, India.
Ahmad al-Faruqi as-Sirhindi Ahmad Sirhindi, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 1034AH buried Sarhand, India (1564–1624 CE)
Muhammad al-Masum, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 1096AH buried Sarhand, India.
Muhammad Sayfuddin al-Faruqi al-Mujaddidi, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah d 1096AH buried Sarhand, India
as-Sayyid Nur Muhammad al-Badawani, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Shamsuddin Habib Allah, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Abdullah ad-Dahlawi, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah (after which moves to Iraq / Damascus)
Khalid al-Baghdadi, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah (1779 - 1826 CE)
Ismail Muhammad ash-Shirwani, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah (after which moves to Causasia)
Khas Muhammad Shirwani, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Muhammad Effendi al-Yaraghi, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Jamaluddin al-Ghumuqi al-Husayni, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Abu Ahmad as-Sughuri, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah (after which moves to Turkey)
Abu Muhammad al-Madani, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah (after which moves to Syria)
Sharafuddin ad-Daghestani, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Abdullah al-Fa'iz ad-Daghestani Abdullah Fa'izi ad-Daghestani, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah (after which moves to Cyprus)
Mawlana Sheikh Nazim Al-Haqqani (1922 - CE)

Naqshbandia Mujaddidi Golden Chain

This chain starts after Muhammad al-Masum - No. 26 above - and has spread world wide. It is named after Ahmad al-Faruqi as-Sirhindi (No 25), who was known as "the Mujaddidi" or "the Reformer", as part of a 1,000 year cycle of renewal. The order spread to Europe in the 1960s By Khawajah Muhammad Aslam r.a the mirror of truth and to the rest of the world via his Khalifa Awal numerous in number. The Mujaddidi Naqshbandi practice dhikr khafi (silent), dhikr bil jahir loud [dhikr] (remembrance of God) and strong emphasis on the sending of salawat salaam on the holy Messenger salallah hai wassallam. The following is one of several silsilah Mujaddidi:

Muhammad Hajibbullah, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Muhammad Zubair, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Bawaji Fqair Muhammad, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Nur Muhammad, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Faizullah, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Isa Muhammad, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Jamalullah, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Qutubuddin Muhammad Ashraf, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah(after which moves to Eidgah shareef)
Hafiz Abdul Karim, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah(after which moves to Mohree shareef)
Khawajah Nawwabuddin, Zarin Zar bahkt, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Khawajah Mohammed Masoom, Qayoom e panjam, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah(after which moves to shadpur Shareef and England)
Khawajah Muhammad Aslam, Sultan Awlia qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Khawajah Riaz Ahmad Aslami,Ghadi Nasheen M.A(Shadpur Shareef, England, blackburn)
khalifa e Afzal Khawajah Arshad Mahmood Aslami, M.A(Salyaal Shareef, England, Leeds)
Khawajah Mohammed Ashgar Aslami, M.A(Shadpur Shareef, England, Bolton)

Naqshbadi Mujadadi Saifi Golden chain

This chain starts after Muhammad al-Masum (No 26) Akhundzada Pir Saif-ur-Rahman Mubarak (آخوندزاده سيف الرحمان مبارك(رحمةالله عليه also known as Mubarak Sarkar) is a Sufi sheikh of the Naqshbandi Mujaddadi Tariqa, the founder of the Saifiya Tariqah. He belongs to the moderate Barelvi school of Islam.

He is famous for activating the hearts of disciples so that a clear vibration can be seen in the chests of many of his followers.. Many people have accepted Islam through him. His followers practise strict compliance with Sunnah, activation of Lataif and Wajad during Zikr.

Early life

He was born in a small village named Baba Kalai, about 20 km from Jalalabad on Muharram 20, 1344 A.H. (August 10, 1925 C.E.). His father, Sufi Hafiz Qari Muhammad Sarfraz Khan, a disciple of Sheikh Haji Muhammad Amin, a sheikh from Qadiriyah sufi order. At the very first sight the Sheikh predicted that the child would be the Sultan of all the Auliya' of his time and would be renowned throughout the world

Hadrat Khwaajah Sighbat Ullah (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Hadrat Khwaajah Muhammad Ismail (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Hadrat Haji Ghulam M’asum (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Hadrat Shah Ghulam Muhammad (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Hadrat Haji Muhammad Saifullah (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Hadrat Shahiid Sahab (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Hadrat Mianji Sahab (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Hadrat Shams al Haqq Sahib Kohistan (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Hadrat Maulana Shah Rasuul _ Sahab Taliqani (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Hadrat Maulana Muhammad Hashim as-Smankani (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Hadrat Saif-ur-Rahmaan Mubarak Khuraasani (qaddasa-l-lahu sirrah)
Naqshbandia Qasimiya Golden Chain
The Qasimiya or Qasmi Order, is based in the village of Mohra Sharif located in the Murree hills of Punjab, outside the Pakistani capital of Islamabad. It became a spiritual center under Baba Ji Muhammad Qasim Sadiq (b. 1263 AH, 1847 CE). It's silsilah is "of Naqshbandi origin", and separates after No 25 above, Ahmed Sirhindi

Sayedna Khawaja Shah Hussain, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Manikpur
Sayedna Khawaja Abd Al-Basit, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Turkistan Tartar
Sayedna Khawaja Abd Al-Qadir, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Turkistan Tartar
Sayedna Khawaja Syed Mahmood, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Turkistan Tartar
Sayedna Khawaja Syed Abd Allah Shah, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Turkistan Tartar
Sayedna Khawaja Abdul Raheem Baghdarvi , qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Darbar Azamia Salik Abad Sharif, P.O. Hassan Abdal, District Attock, Pakistan
Sayedna Khawaja Pir Muhammad Azam, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Darbar Azamia Salik Abad Sharif, P.O. Hassan Abdal, District Attock, Pakistan
Sayedna Khawaja Syed Inyatullah Shah, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Shah Jahan Abad, India
Sayedna Khawaja Hafiz Ahmed, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Sayedna Khawaja Abd Al-Saboor, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Srinagar/Kashmir
Sayedna Khawaja Gul Muhammad, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Mangal Shareef/Mansehra, Pakistan
Sayedna Khawaja Abd Al-Majeed of Katha Peeran, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Neelum Valley/Kashmir
Sayedna Khawaja Abd Al-Aziz of Karnah Darawah, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Neelum Valley/Kashmir
Sayedna Khawaja Sultan Muhammad Malook, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Janjath Shareef in Neelum Valley/Kashmir
Sayedna Khawaja Ghous-e-Samdani Nizamuddin Aulia, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Kiyyan Shareef in Neelum Valley/Kashmir-Pakistan. Sahib qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah
Sayedna Khawaja Ghousal Ummat Muhammad Qasim Sadiq Known as Baba Ji Khawaja Qasim Mohravi Founder of Qasmiya Order And Dargah of Mohra Shareef, qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Mohra Shareef, Murree, Rawalpindi District, Pakistan.
Syedna Khawaja Pir Muhammad Zahid Khan Sahib known as Pir Khan Sahib - First Sajjada Nashin of Mohra Sharif ,qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Mohra Shareef, Murree, Rawalpindi District, Pakistan.
Syedna Khawaja Pir Aftab Ahmed Qasmi Sahib (Wali-e-Mohra Sharif) ,qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Mohra Shareef, Murree, Rawalpindi District, Pakistan.
Syedna Khawaja Pir Badshah Sahib ,qaddasa-l-Lahu sirrah Mohra Shareef, Murree, Rawalpindi District, Pakistan.
Syedna Khawaja Pir Auliya Badshah Farooq Sahib, Present Sajjada Nashin of Mohra Shareef, Murree, Rawalpindi District, Pakistan.

Qadriyah Naqshbandiyah Golden Chain

This chain separates after No 26 above, Muhammad al-Masum:

Khawaja Hujat Ullah Rahmatullohi 'Alayh
Khawaja Muhammad Parsa Rahmatullohi 'Alayh
Khawaja Muhammad Rasa Rahmatullohi 'Alayh
Khawaja Sheikh Abdullah Bukhari Rahmatullohi 'Alayh
Khawaja Maki Ahmed Peshori Rahmatullohi 'Alayh
Khawaja Nizam Uddin Muzafarabadi Rahmatullohi 'Alayh
Khawaja Jamaluddin Rahmatullohi 'Alayh (Bani Hafiz Hattian Bala Azad kashmir Pakistan)
Hafiz Muhammad Jee Rahmatullohi 'Alayh (Bani Hafiz Hattian Bala Azad kashmir Pakistan)
Mian Muhammad Yunus Rahmatullohi 'Alayh (Bani Hafiz Hattian Bala Azad kashmir Pakistan)
Hafiz Muhammad Irfan Danish Rahmatullohi 'Alayh (Bani Hafiz Hattian Bala Azad kashmir Pakistan)
Present Muhammad Ajmal Irfan Danish (Bani Hafiz Hattian Bala Azad kashmir Pakistan)

Naqshbandiya Husayniya Golden Chain

This branch starts after Ahmad Sirhindi (No 25) above. There is very little current information available about this branch, which is assumed defunct.


Muhammad Sayyid, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Sheikh Abdul Ahad, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Mawlana 'Abid, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Muhammad Musakhan, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Khalifa Siddiq, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Khalifa Husayn, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Khalifa Abdul Sattar, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Khalifa Muhammad Salih, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Khalifa Muhammad Amin, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Khalifa Abdul Wahid, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Khalifa Abdulloh, rahmatullohi 'alayh
Khalifa Ibrahim ibn Muhammad-Qul Oqqo'rghoniy, rahmatullohi 'alayh

Sub-orders

Various semi-autonomous sub-orders include the Churahiya, Sardaria, Aslamiya, Hijazi, Tahiri.

Naqshbandi Churahiya Branch (Churah Sharif)

This branch belongs to Qayyum e Zaman Baba jee Syed Noor Muhammad Terah hurahi, Naqshbandi, also known among his chain as Prof Syed Manzoor Asif Tahir, who is based in Sheikhpura also known as Mujjaddid-al-asar is participating his role in revival of islamic thought based on true love of Muhammad and true love of Allah. He insists on making "rizqe Halal", then speaking truth and then for good deeds. Its silsilah follows the Naqshbandi Mujaddidi Golden Chain until Nur Muhammad (No 30), after which it is claimed that a known family link to Muhammad is sufficient.

Naqshbandi Tahiri Branch

Based in Pakistan, and previously known as Fazali and Ghaffari (after Hazrat Khwaja Allah Bakhsh) branch, the Naqshbandi Tahiri order belongs to a Shaikh of Pakistan, Hazrat Khwaja Muhammad Tahir, better known as Mahboob Sajjan Saeen. The headquarters of this branch is at the Dargah in Allahabad, near Kandiaro, in the province of Sindh.

Practices

11 principal teachings

The first eight were formulated by Ghujdawani, and the last three were added by Baha ad- din.

Remembrance (Yad kard): Always orally and mentally repeating the dhikr.
Restraint (Baz gasht): Engaging in the heart repetition of the phrase "Al-kalimat at-tayyiba."
Watchfulness (Nigah dasht): Being conscientious over wandering thoughts while repeating the phrase "Al-kalimat at-tayyiba."
Recollection (Yad dasht): Concentration upon the Divine presence in a condition of dhawq, foretaste, intuitive anticipation or perceptiveness, not using external aids.
Awareness while breathing (Hosh dar dam): Controlling one's breathing by not exhaling or inhaling in the forgetfullness of the Divine.
Journeying in one's homeland (Safar dar watan): An internal journey that moves the person from having blameworthy to praiseworthy properties. This is also referred to as the vision or revelation of the hidden side of the shahada.
Watching one's step (Nazar bar qadam): Do not be distracted from purpose of the ultimate journey.
Solitude in a crowd (Khalwat dar anjuman): Although journey is outwardly in this world, it is inwardly with God.
Temporal pause (Wuquf-I zamani): Keeping account of how one spends his or her time. If time is spent rightfully give thanks and time is spent incorrectly ask for forgiveness.
Numerical pause (Wuquf-I adadi): Checking that the heart-dhikr has been repeated the requisite number of times, taking into account one's wandering thoughts.
Heart pause (Wuquf-I qalbi): Forming a mental picture of one's heart with the name of God engraved to emphasize that the heart has no consciousness or goal other than God.

Types of concentration


Muraqaba

Muraqaba is known as spiritual communion. In this practice one tries to unveil the mystery of life by losing oneself in it. This is achieve through the method of picturing Muhammad or a saint or his murshid. One method seeks union with the sheikh; when the sheikh dies, it is frequently done at his tomb. The Sufi does not suppose that the spirit of the saint is in the tomb but finds this course an aid to contemplation. To attain union with the sheikh, he must visualize interiorly the image of his sheikh. He imagines the sheikh's image as though on his right shoulder, then pictures a line from the right shoulder to his heart that acts as a passage whereby the spirit of the sheikh can take possession of that organ. By continuing this process he will ensure that he has attained absorption in the sheikh. For the murid this is more beneficial than dhikr since the sheikh is the medium by which the murid can attain the supreme reality. In fact, the more
connected the murid is to the sheikh the more the emanations from his inner being increase and the sooner he is able to attain his goal. In other words, the murid must first lose himself in the sheikh and then he may attain fana in God.

Tawajjuh

Tawajjuh is a formation from wajh (face) and means confrontation. It is employed in relation to the act of facing the qibla during ritual prayer. The direction of the qibla is the murshid who is the gateway to God. Often the sheikh is made the qibla. Tawajjuh was also done to Muhammad. The worshipper cleanses his clouded heart so that is pure enough that his God may be reflected in it.

Subtle substances

The 7 substances of ‘Ala al-Dawla were employed by the Kubrawi school of Sufism. They were used to aid in meditation and dhikr. The substances were linked to a part of the body, a prophet, and a color. The Naqshbandi school created a scheme employing 6 of those substances and linking them to certain subtle energy centers on the body. The qalb (heart) is located two fingers below the left breast and its color is red. The ruh (spirit) is located two fingers below the right breast and its color is white. The nafs (soul) is beneath the naval and its color is yellow. The sirr (conscience) is at the center of the breast with the color green. The khafi (mystery) is above the eyebrow with the color blue. The akhafa (arcanum) is at the top of the brain and its color is black.

Spreading of the Order

China

Ma Laichi brought the Naqshbandi order to China, creating the Khufiyya Hua Si Sufi menhuan. Ma Mingxin, also brought the Naqshbandi order, creating the Jahriyya menhuan. These two menhuan were rivals, and fought against each other. These Menhuan played major roles in the Dungan revolt, and Dungan Revolt (1895).

All the Chinese Muslim Generals of the Ma Clique belonged to Naqshbandi Sufi menhuan. Prominent Generals included Ma Zhan'ao, Ma Anliang, Ma Fulu, Ma Fuxiang, Ma Hongkui, Ma Hongbin, Ma Qi, Ma Bufang, and Ma Buqing.

Egypt

During the middle of the 19th century Egypt was inhabited and controlled by Naqshbandis. A major Naqshbandi takiya was constructed in 1851 by Abbas I, who did this as a favor to Naqshbandi sheikh Ahmad Ashiq. Ahmad Ashiq headed the takiya till his death in 1883. Ahmad Ashiq's was a practicer of the Diya'iyya branch of the Khalidiyya. In 1876 sheikh Juda Ibrahim amended the original Diya’iyya, which became known as al-Judiyya, and gained a following in al-Sharqiyya province in the eastern Nile Delta.

During the last two decades of the 19th century two other versions of Naqshbandiyya spread in Egypt. One of these was introduced by a Sudanese, alSharif Isma'il al-Sinnari. Al-Sinnari had been initiated into the Khalidiyya and Mujaddidiyya by various sheikhs during his time in Mecca and Medina. Initially, he tried to obtain a following in Cairo but was not able to, therefore he resorted going to Sudan. It is from there that the order spread into Upper Egypt from 1870 onward under Musa Mu’awwad, who was al-Sinnari's successor. Muhaamad al-Laythi, son of al-Sinnari, was the successor after Mu’awwad's death.

The Judiyya and the Khalidiyya branches spread in the last decades of the 19th century and continued to grow and are still active today. Khalidiyya of Muhammad Amin al-Kurdi is headed by his son Najm a-Din. The Judiyya split into three main branches:one led by the founder's son Isa, another led by Iliwa Atiyya in Cairo, and another led by Judah Muhammad Abu’l-Yazid al-Hahdi in Tanta.

Unfortunately, none of the early takiyas survived far into the 20th century. The longest living group of takiya based Naqshbandis lived in the takiya of sheikh Ahmad Ashiq, which closed in 1954. This is when all the takiyas in Egypt were closed and the awqaf supporting these establishments were taken over by the Ministry of Awqaf. The buildings were either assigned a different function or demolished as part of urban renovation programs.

Syria and Israel

The Naqshbandiyya was introduced into Syria at the end of the 17th century by Murad Ali al-Bukhari, who was initiated in India. Later, he established himself in Damascus, but traveled throughout Arabia. His branch became known as the Muradiyya. After his death in 1720, his descendents formed the Muradi family of scholars and sheikhs who continued to head the Muradiyya. In 1820 and onward, Khalid Shahrazuri rose as the prominent Naqshbandi leader in the Ottoman world. After the death of Khalid in 1827, his takiya became known as the Khalidiyya, which continued to spread for at least two decades. Later a strife between Khalid's khalifas led to disruption of the takiya, causing it to divide.

The only Naqshbandi branch to have survived till recently is the one based in the zawiya al-Uzbakiyya in Jerusalem. The number of members of this branch increased at the end of the 19th century. When political leader Musa Bukhar died in 1973, the pre-Mujaddidi line of the Naqshbandiyya in Greater Syria came to an end. In Syria and Lebanon, the leaders of every active Naqshbandiyya group has a silsila going back to sheikh Khalid of the Khalidiyya. The Khalidiyya is the only Naqshbandi order found in Syria and Lebanon having continued from the days of Khalid. This branch has also retained the original Naqshbandiyya way. The Farmadiyya branch, which practices silent and vocal dhikr, is another still present in Lebanon and is named after Ali-Farmadi.

South Asia

The Naqshbandiyya order became an influential factor in Indo-Muslim life and for two centuries it was the principal spiritual order in India. Baqi Billah Berang (No 24 in the Naqshbandi Golden Chain) is credited for bringing the order to India. He was born in India and brought up and educated in Kabul and Samarqand, where he came in contact with the Naqshbandiyya order. When he returned to India he tried to spread his knowledge about the order during the end of the 16th century, but died only three years later.

Among his disciples were Sheikh Ahmad Sirhindi (No 25 in the Naqshbandi Golden Chain) and Sheikh Abdul Haq of Dihli. After his death, his student, Sheikh Ahmad primarily took over. Sheikh Ahmad was born in 1561 and his father Makhdum Abdul Ahmad was from a high sufi order. He completed his religious and secular studies at the age of 17. Later he became known as Mujaddad-i-Alf-i-Thani. It was through him that the order gained popularity within a short period of time.

Sheikh Ahmad broke away from earlier mystic traditions and propounded his theory of the unity of the phenomenal world. In particular, he spoke out against innovations introduced by sufis. For instance, he opposed Emperor Akbar's views on Hindu and Muslim marriages. He stated, "Muslims should follow their religion, and non-Muslims their ways, as the Qur'an enjoins 'for you yours and for me my religion'". Also he did not believe in keeping the state and ruler separate and worked hard to change the outlook of the ruling class. After his death, his work was continued by his sons and descendants.

During the 19th century two Naqshbandiyya saints made significant contributions to the silsila by restating some of its basic ideological postures. Shah Wali Allah played an important role in the religious sciences, particularly the hadith and translated the Qur'an into Persian. He also looked at a fresh interpretation of Islamic teachings in the light of the new issues. Furthermore, he played a significant role in the political developments of the period. The second saint, Mirza Mazhar Djan-i-Djanan, adopted an accepting attitude towards Hinduism and looked at the Vedas as a revealed book.

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# Eleven Naqshbandi principles

See also:
http://www.uga.edu/islam/11Naqsprin.html
http://www.sheiknazim2.com/
http://www.naqshbandi.org/


The Eleven Naqshbandi principles or the "rules or secrets of the Naqshbandi", known in their original Persian as the kalimat-i qudsiya ("sacred words" or "virtuous words"), are a system of principles and guidelines used as spiritual exercises, or to encourage certain preferred states of being, in Naqshbandi Sufi schools of mysticism.

There were originally eight principles formulated by the Central Asian Sufi teacher Abdul Khaliq Gajadwani (died 1179), the last three of the eleven being added later by Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari (1318–1389), founder of the Naqshbandi Order. Both were Khwajagan (Masters) of the Sufi tariqah (path, way or method).

These principles are designed to be borne in mind and used as spiritual practices or exercises in the Naqshbandi system of spiritual development. They are carried out under individual tuition, expertly prescribed, monitored for changes, and carefully adjusted by a teacher, rather than being automatically performed.

The principles have been brought to the attention of contemporary Western audiences through the works of the writers Idries Shah, John G. Bennett, Omar Ali-Shah and J. Spencer Trimingham. The exercises were an important aspect of Omar Ali-Shah's work with groups in the modern Naqshbandi tradition in the West. For instance, one of Ali-Shah's books of edited transcripts, The Rules or Secrets of the Naqshbandi Order, was devoted to this subject.

The eleven principles

The eleven principles are as follows, shown in the order used by Idries Shah in A Perfumed Scorpion, which differs slightly (in items 5 to 8) from the order presented by Omar Ali-Shah:

1. Hush dar dam (or hosh dar dam) — awareness of breathing

Being aware or conscious of one's breathing. Breathing deeply in a natural rhythm without being preoccupied by breathing. Inhaling and exhaling whilst in remembrance of God.

2. Nazar ba kadam (or nazar bar qadam) — watching over the steps

Watching over one's steps, ie being aware of one's intention. Paying attention and not being distracted from one's goal, maintaining awareness and being open to opportunities, so that one does the right thing at the right time.
3. Safar dar watan — travelling in the Homeland

Making an interior journey, ie inside oneself, observing oneself in a detached and not overly-critical manner, learning from one's errors and travelling from blameworthy to praiseworthy qualities.
4. Khilwat dar anjuman (or khalwat dar anjuman) — retirement in company

Developing the ability to detach from and distance oneself from external noise, disturbance and confusion when in company, and remain tranquil, perhaps with the aid of a zikr, an exercise in remembrance of God. Also being able to re-attach one's attention to the outward when necessary. Though outwardly the Sufi is in the world, inwardly he or she is with God.

5. Yad kardan (or yad kard) — remembering, recollecting exercises

Remembering experiences one has had and that one is a part of the Tradition from which one may draw positive energy and derive strength. Using inner or vocalized zikr, remembrance or "making mention" of the Divine names, to remain attentive and alert, and so that the heart becomes aware of the presence of Truth (Al Haqq).

6. Baaz gasht (or baz gasht) — restraint

Being self-disciplined, for example cultivating the quality of patience, keeping one's thoughts from straying when repeating the Shahada (the declaration of the Oneness of God and the acceptance of Muhammad as his prophet), being repentant and returning to righteousness.

7. Neegar dashtan (or nigah dasht) — watchfulness, use of special faculties

Concentrating on the presence of God. Being alert, watchful for and open to subtle perceptions, positive energy, positive opportunity and positive impacts. Being watchful over passing thoughts.

8. Yad dashtan (or yad dasht) — keeping of the memory, sensing of the being and the body

Sensing one's being and one's body, recalling positive memories and positive experiences.

9. Ukufi zamani (or wuquf-e zamani) — time-halt (or pause)

Suspending intellect, judgement, preconceptions and conditioned thought. Reprising one's thoughts and actions. Accounting for how one's time is spent, being thankful for acts of righteousness and asking forgiveness for wrongdoing.

10. Ukufi adadi (or wuquf-e adadi) — number-halt (or pause)

Carrying out exercises involving numbers, such as the awareness of the number of repetitions when carrying out one's silent heart zikr exercise, and also certain forms of counting using the Abjad system.

11. Ukufi qalbi (or wuquf-e qalbi) — heart-halt (or pause) or visualisation

Visualising one's heart (Qalb), perhaps with the name of God inscribed on it, and identifying with Truth or with God.

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See also:

Sufi Orders:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Sufi_orders

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