28 Sufism

S. Abdul Sattar

Introduction:

Sufism is a concept of mysticism dedicated to experiencing God as the epitome of divine Love emerged during the eighth century C.E. in the Middle East, though having earlier precedents, Sufism subsequently developed into several different orders known as Tariqas. The most famous of these orders is the Mevlevi tradition associated with the poet and mystic, Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi.

Sufis believe that excessive rationalism blocks human understanding of God’s immersive and loving nature. Consequently, they focus on directly experiencing God through ecstatic practice in order to efface the obstructing self. Sufis have endured persecution over the years due to their unconventional and controversial approach to Allah, which has been perceived by some to be blasphemous.

2. Etymology:

There are several possible etymologies for the word Sufi, which are indicated below:

• The conventional view is that the term originates from Suf, the Arabic word for wool, referring to the simple cloaks that the early ascetics wore. However, not all Sufis wear cloaks or clothes of wool.
• Another possible etymology is that the root word of Sufi comes from the Arabic word Safa, meaning “purity”. This approach places the emphasis of Sufism on purity of heart and soul.
• Another suggested origin is from “Ashab al-Suffa” (“Companions of the Veranda”) or “Ahl al-Suffa” (“People of the Veranda”), who were a group of Muslims during the time of the Prophet Muhammadr that spent much of their time on the veranda of the Prophet’s mosque devoted to prayer.
• A final etymology, advanced by the tenth-century author Al-Biruni, is that the word Sufiya is linked with the Greek term for ‘Wisdom’ – ‘Sophia‘.

3. History:

Almost all traditional Sufi orders trace their “chains of transmission” back to the Muhammadr via his cousin and son-in-law Ali ibn Abi Talib except the Naqshbandi order which traces its origin to Caliph Abu Bakr. Each order believes that Sufi teachings were passed on from teacher to student through the centuries.

Some scholars argue that Sufism evolved from an interiorization of Islam, such as Louis Massignon who states: “It is from the Qur‘an, constantly recited, meditated, and experienced, that Sufism proceeded, in its origin and its development”. Sufism may also have emerged from the practice of Muslim asceticism. People of ascetic temperaments were found throughout Muslim communities early in the history of Islam. These ascetics focused on introspection and maintained a strict control over their life and behavior. They followed a lifestyle of modesty, temperance, contentment and the denial of luxury. Their practices included fasting, wearing light clothing in the depths of winter, or withdrawing themselves from the world. Other theories have been suggested for the origins of Sufism, which link it to outside non-Muslim influences.

If early Sufism arose out of the practice of asceticism—the turning away from worldly life to concentrate on prayer to Allah—then it likely resulted in being limited to a small number of devoted practitioners. However, by the middle of the ninth century, Sufi mysticism started to burgeon. One major figure and catalyst in its growth was the female mystic Rabiah al-Adawiyah (died 801), who emphasized the absolute love for God above everything else. The shift of Sufism from asceticism to divine love captured the attention of the masses and elites, and soon Sufism began to flourish in Baghdad spreading then to Persia, Pakistan, India, North Africa, and Muslim Spain.

Figures such as Uwais al-Qarni, Harrm Bin Hian, Hasan Ul-Basri and Sayid Ibn Ul Mussib are regarded as the first mystics in Islam. Rabia was a female Sufi and known for her love and passion for God.

From 1200-1500 C.E., Sufism experienced an era of increased activity in various parts of the Islamic world. This period (especially the thirteenth century) is considered to be the “Golden Age” of Sufism. At this time, many of the major figures in the history of Sufism were alive and writing their monumental classics of Sufi literature and poetry.

The Sufis dispersed throughout the Middle East, particularly in the areas previously under Byzantine influence and control. This period was characterized by the practice of an apprentice (Murid) placing himself under the spiritual direction of a Master (Shaykh or Pir). Schools were developed, concerning themselves with the topics of mystical experience, education of the heart to rid itself of baser instincts, the love of God, and approaching God through progressive stages (Maqaam) and states (Haal). The schools were formed by reformers who felt their core values and manners had disappeared in a society marked by material prosperity that they saw as eroding the spiritual life. Additionally, many Sufi brotherhoods (Turuq) flourished with lodges and hospices that became places for practicing Sufis and other mystics to stay and retreat. One of the first Sufi orders was the Yasawi order, named after Khwajah Ahmed Yesevi in modern Kazakhstan. Another order, called the Kubrawiya order, originated in Central Asia. The most prominent Sufi master of this era is Abdul Qadir Jilani, the founder of the Qadiriyyah order in Iraq. Others included Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi, founder of the Mevlevi order in Turkey, Sahabuddin Suharwardi in Asia Minor, and Moinuddin Chishti in India.

As Sufism grew and as the Mongol empire expanded from Persia through Central Asia, Sufis absorbed ideas from local people who followed such ancient traditions as Zoroastrianism, Vedanta, Gnosticism, Buddhism, or Shamanism. Thus Sufism came to bridge gaps between the Muslim population and rulers and the local people they ruled over.

In the modern period, Sufism has started to reemerge, and has tens of millions of followers in Central Asia, Southeast Asia, and West Africa; hundreds of millions more across the world follow Sufi ways.

4. Sufi Philosophy:

Sufism as a whole is primarily concerned with direct personal experience, and as such may be compared to other forms of religious mysticism. Sufis make extensive use of parable, allegory, and metaphor to express divine longing and mystical experience. The following allegory helps to explain the Sufi approach to God:

“There are three ways of knowing a thing. Take for instance a flame. One can be told of the flame, one can see the flame with his own eyes, and finally one can reach out and be burned by it. In this way, we Sufis seek to be burned by God.”

People who sense this special perception within themselves and who work to transcend ordinary human constraints can further develop their minds to ―know‖ God. The ninth-century mystic Nubian Dhu al-Nun al-Misri clearly expressed what was to become the backbone of Sufi philosophy by saying, ―Let him direct his soul to the greatness of God, for then it will dissolve and become pure. Whoever regards the power of God, his own power goes away, for all souls are poor next to his awesomeness‖. His disciple, Al-Kharraz, (890 – 891 C.E.), was the first to speak of F’anaa (annihilation) and Baqaa (remaining) to describe how Sufis sought to lose consciousness of their own self to properly live in full contemplation of the divine‘s existence.

Building on these notions, Sufism developed several key doctrines including Wahdat (meaning “Unity”), which affirms the Oneness of Allah (Tawhid), and Tawakkal (meaning “absolute trust in God”). The former doctrine is predicated on the belief that all phenomena are manifestations of a single reality called Wujud (being), or al-Haq (Truth, God). The essence of Being/Truth/God is devoid of every form and quality, and hence unmanifested, yet it is inseparable from every form and phenomenon either material or spiritual. It is often understood to imply that every phenomenon is an aspect of Truth and at the same time attribution of existence to it is false. The chief aim of all Sufis is to let go of all notions of duality, including the individual self and realize this divine unity. In this way, Sufis seek to directly connect with the divine. Junayd was among the first theorist of Sufism; he concerned himself with ‗Fanaa’ and ‗Baqaa’, the state of annihilating the self in the presence of the divine, accompanied by clarity concerning worldly phenomena.

5. Obstacles on the Path

The difficulties in following the path or obstacles to getting closer to God derive primarily from one’s self or ego (nafs). In other words, it can be said that if one is not recognizing or experiencing God’s “closeness” or presence, the responsibility for this condition lies with one’s own self.

Some of the gross effects of the dominance of the nafs are that one may become overwhelmed by the need to gratify desires such as anger, lust, and the many addictions that afflict us. Other gross effects are that one may become dominated by states of consciousness such as anxiety, boredom, regret, depression, and self-pity– so that one feels like a powerless victim or prisoner tortured within one’s own mind.

Given that the Sufi regards every thought, feeling, and perception that he or she has (including his or her sense of self) as a manifestation of God or as a particular view of God’s face (“Wherever you turn there is God’s face”–Qur’an), a more subtle effect of the dominance of the nafs than those expressed earlier (but still a divesting effect) is to imagine that God is absent from one’s experience or to imagine that one does not have the choice to embrace the way in which God appears at this moment. Such mistaken imaginings often cause one to cease to surrender gratefully and lovingly into God’s embrace. In fact, being overcome by these subtle effects opens the door for the gross effects mentioned earlier.

Hence, one of the emphases of Sufism is upon the struggle to overcome the dominance that one’s nafs has over one, a struggle that first and foremost involves choosing at each moment to remember and surrender actively to God–irrespective of whether the form in which God becomes manifest is one of absence or presence, benevolence or severity. As Rumi said: ―I am a lover of both his benevolence and severity! Amazing it is that I’m in love with these opposites!‖

6. Struggle with One’s Nafs

The behavioral absolutes of the Shari’ah (Islamic law) set the outer limits that the Sufi must keep within. But the Sufi struggle with one’s nafs puts further curbs on the Sufi’s behaviour and consciousness. Usually this struggle is spoken of as having two dimensions: negation (nafy) and affirmation (ithbat), corresponding to the two components of the first shahadah (testification of faith), La ilaha (There is no deity) and illa Allah (except for God). In reference to the two kinds of effects of the dominance of the nafs mentioned above, the “negation” can be said to take the form of attempting

• to control oneself from acting out one’s anger or gratifying addictions,
• to negate the thought that one will find fulfillment through these means,
• to negate the sense that one cannot escape one’s depression, and
• to give up imagining that God is absent.

The “affirmation” can be said to take the form of embracing and engaging the presence of God in whatever form it may appear within one’s consciousness. This unconditional embrace of the presence of God is simply called taslim in Muslim languages. This word is cognate with and is at the root of the word “Islam,” and in light of the meaning expressed here, I have translated it as “engaged surrender.”

In this regard, the struggle with one’s own nafs has been called the greater struggle or greater “holy war” (al-jihad al-akbar) in contrast to the lesser struggle (al-jihad al-asghar), which is against injustice and oppressors in this world. The concept derives from the popular hadith of the Prophet, in which he said to Muslims returning from a battle, “You have returned from the lesser struggle to the greater struggle.” And he was asked, “What is the greater struggle?” He answered, “The struggle against one’s self (nafs), which is between the two sides of your body.” Needless to say, in Sufism these two struggles are mutually reinforcing and occur simultaneously. In particular, the practice of “engaged surrender” in the “greater” struggle with one’s own nafs diminishes certain obstacles in the consciousness of the Sufi, obstacles that–if not struggled against–will hinder the Sufi’s capacity to engage in the “lesser” struggle in their life in the world.

7. Sufism and Love:

The Sufis believe that the highest form of human love is the pure love for the Divine. Humans can achieve this love if they give themselves entirely to the Allah’s will. Sufis consider love for family, friends, material goods, or even Paradise all to be distractions from the love of God. The heart of a believer should be so overflowing with God‘s love that there is no other room for any other emotion in it. Affirming this sentiment, the great female Sufi Rabi‘a Al Adawiyya said, ―I love God: I have no time left in which to hate the devil‖. Love allows the believer to seize the spiritual beauty of God that is present in all things, and therefore love God in all things and love all things through God. Sufis believe that love is a projection of the essence of God to the universe.

8. Sufi Devotional Practices:

Remembrance of Allah, or Dhikr, forms the backbone of Sufi practices. Repeating the name of God is a form of Dhikr, which is thought to be a direct manifestation of the divine on a human level. Additionally, poetry and music are devotional tools used by Sufis to remind the seeker of God‘s presence. These practices were also used to heighten awareness and concentration of one‘s inner mind, and were a central part of Sufism from the early days.

As Sufi devotional practices evolved over the centuries, a more elaborate system developed that aimed to facilitate moving the seeker through seven stages of consciousness. In the first stage, Sufi followers were to give themselves over to service of their brethren and to following the law. In the second stage, Sufis were to practice righteous actions as prescribed by the holy Qur’an, and the further rigors of asceticism. Through these practices, Sufis aimed to be imbued with the knowledge of an inner light. The third stage sought the experience of ecstasy in the presence of God moving towards the sixth stage of finding union with God. Finally, in the seventh stage, the Sufi reaches annihilation—the self is extinguished and no longer exists independently from God. The one who has reached the pinnacle of these stages is said to be a Mu‘min, or pure believer, who can communicate directly with God. At the seventh stage, the Sufi is said to see everything as a manifestation of God and is stripped of all notions of culture, race and ideology.

―It is then and only then…that the human being steps into the true radiance and beauty of God Consciousness, which recognizes no differences in the human family.‖

Virtually all Sufis also distinguish Lataif-e-Sitta (The Six Subtleties) that designate the spiritual centers of sensory perception that lie dormant in an individual (i.e. Nafs, Qalb, Ruh, Sirr, Khafi and Akhfa). Sufis seek to activate and awaken these centers. The purification of the elementary passionate nature (Tazkiya-I-Nafs), followed by cleansing of the spiritual heart so that it may acquire a mirror-like purity of reflection (Tazkiya-I-Qalb) and become the receptacle of God’s love (Ishq), illumination of the spirit (Tajjali-I-Ruh) fortified by emptying of egoistic drives (Taqliyya-I-Sirr) and remembrance of God’s attributes (Dhikr), and completion of journey with purification of the last two faculties, Khafi and Akhfa.

8.1. Muraqabah

Muraqabah is the word used by many Sufis when referring to the practice of meditation. The Arabic word literally means “to observe, guard or control one’s thoughts and desires.” In some Sufi orders, Muraqabah may involve concentrating one’s mind on the names of God, on a verse of the Qur’an, or on certain Arabic letters that have special significance.

8.2. Dhikr

Dhikr is the remembrance of God commanded in the Qur’an for all Muslims. To engage in Dhikr is to have awareness of God according to Islam. Dhikr as a devotional act includes the repetition of divine names, supplications and aphorisms from the Hadith literature, and sections of the Qur’an. More generally, any activity in which the Muslim maintains awareness of God is considered Dhikr.

Some Sufi orders engage in ritualized Dhikr ceremonies, the liturgy of which may include recitation, singing, instrumental music, costumes, meditation, ecstasy, and trance.

8.3. Qawwali:

Qawwali is a form of devotional Sufi music common in Pakistan, North India, Afghanistan, Iran and Turkey. It is known for its secular strains.

8.4. Khalwah:

Khalwah refers to a form of retreat, once widespread but now less common. A Khalwah may be prescribed by the Shaykh (spiritual advisor) of the Murid or Talib (student). Muslims believe that most of the prophets, and also Maryam (Mary) the mother of Jesusr, lived in some form of seclusion at some point in their life. Muhammadr, for example, used to retreat to the cave where he received his first inspiration—but had been going there for many years prior to his meeting with the angel Gabriel. Similar examples include Moses’ going into seclusion for 40 days in a cave in Mt. Sinai. Mary was in seclusion in the Jewish temple for a year, where only Zakariyar was permitted to see her.

9. Famous Sufi Orders

The term Tariqa is used for a school or order of Sufism, or especially for the mystical teaching and spiritual practices of such an order with the aim of seeking ḥaqīqah (ultimate truth). A tariqa has a murshid (guide) who plays the role of leader or spiritual director. The members or followers of a tariqa are known as murīdīn (singular murīd), meaning “desirous”, viz. “desiring the knowledge of knowing God and loving God”

9.1. Chishti

The Chishti Order was founded by (Khawaja) Abu Ishaq Shami (“the Syrian”; died 941) who brought Sufism to the town of Chisht, some 95 miles east of Herat in present-day Afghanistan. Before returning to the Levant, Shami initiated, trained and deputized the son of the local Emir (Khwaja) Abu Ahmad Abdal (died 966). Under the leadership of Abu Ahmad’s descendants, the Chishtiyya as they are also known flourished as a regional mystical order.

The Chishti Order is primarily followed in Afghanistan and South Asia. It was the first of the four main Sufi orders (Chishti, Qadiriyya, Suhrawardiyya and Naqshbandi) to be established in this region. Moinuddin Chishti introduced the Chishti Order in Lahore (Punjab) and Ajmer (Rajasthan), sometime in the middle of the 12th century CE. He was eighth in the line of succession from the founder of the Chishti Order, Abu Ishq Shami. There are now several branches of the order, which has been the most prominent South Asian Sufi brotherhood since the 12th century.

9.2. Naqshbandi

The Naqshbandi order is one of the major Sufi orders of Islam. Formed in 1380, the order is considered by some to be a “sober” order known for its silent dhikr (remembrance of God) rather than the vocalized forms of dhikr common in other orders. The word “Naqshbandi” is Persian, taken from the name of the founder of the order, Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari. Some have said that the translation means “related to the image-maker”, some also consider it to mean “Pattern Maker” rather than “image maker”, and interpret “Naqshbandi” to mean “Reformer of Patterns”, and others consider it to mean “Way of the Chain” or “Silsilat al-dhahab“. It is one of the Sufi way that traces its spiritual lineage to the Islamic prophet Muhammad, through Abu Bakr, the first Caliph and Muhammad’s companion. Some Naqshbandi masters trace their lineage through Ali, Muhammad’s cousin, son-in-law and the fourth Caliph, in keeping with most other Sufis.

9.3. Qadiri

The Qadiri Order is one of the oldest Sufi Orders. It derives its name from Abdul-Qadir Gilani (1077–1166), a native of the Iranian province of Gīlān. The order is one of the most widespread of the Sufi orders in the Islamic world, and can be found in Central Asia, Turkey, Balkans and much of East and West Africa. The Qadiriyyah have not developed any distinctive doctrines or teachings outside of mainstream Islam. They believe in the fundamental principles of Islam, but interpreted through mystical experience.

9.4. Suhrawardiyya

The Suhrawardiyya order is a Sufi order founded by Abu al-Najib al-Suhrawardi (1097– 1168). The order was formalized by his nephew, Shahab al-Din Abu Hafs Umar Suhrawardi.

It is a strictly Sunni 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, particularly in Baghdad.

9.5. Mawlawi:

The Mawlawi order was founded in 1273 by Rumi’s followers after his death, particularly by his successor Hüsamettin Çelebi who decided to build a mausoleum for Mawlâna, and then Mawlâna’s son, Baha al-Din Muhammad-i Walad. He was an accomplished Sufi mystic with great organizing talents. His personal efforts were continued by his successor Ulu Arif Çelebi.

The Mawlawi believe in performing their dhikr in the form of a “dance” and musical ceremony known as the Sama, which involves the whirling, from which the order acquired its nickname. The Sema represents a mystical journey of man’s spiritual ascent through mind and love to the “Perfect”. Turning towards the truth, the follower grows through love, deserts his ego, finds the truth, and arrives at the “Perfect”. He then returns from this spiritual journey as a man who has reached maturity and a greater perfection, able to love and to be of service to the whole of creation.

10. Sufi Doctrines

Sufi doctrine includes several branches in which two chief domains can be distinguished, that of Universal Truths (al-Haqaiq) and that which relates to human and individual stages of the way (ad-daqaiq) or, in other words, metaphysics and a ―science of the soul‖. Needless to say these domains are not separated into watertight compartments. Metaphysics includes everything but in Sufism it is always envisaged according to points of view connected with spiritual realization. The cosmology is derived from metaphysics, and applied at the same time to the macrocosm and to the microcosm, so that there is a psychology of cosmic amplitude just as there is a cosmology built up on analogy with the inner constitution of man.

In order to put this quite clearly, it is necessary to insist at some length on this relationship. Apart from the two domains of al-Haqaiq and ad-daqaiq already mentioned three chief domains of doctrine can be distinguished – metaphysics, cosmology and spiritual psychology. This distinction corresponds to the triad: God, the world or the macrocosm and the soul or microcosm. In its turn cosmology can be conceived either by applying metaphysical principles to the cosmos – and this is the contemplation of God in the world – or by drawing an analogy between the cosmos and the human soul. Moreover in its complete development cosmology necessarily includes the cosmic reality of the soul, while no spiritual psychology can cut off the soul from cosmic principles. In the fabric of the cosmos there is no radical break. In its own fashion discontinuity does exist; it is what it is.

But discontinuity is barely conceivable apart from a principle of unity which bridges the gap and without the background of a continuity which manifests it. Thus, for instance, the apparent discontinuity between individuals the isolation of their respective centre of consciousness, is only the mark of their unique Essence which ―vertically‖ transcends the ―horizontal‖ plane of their common nature. As for the discontinuity between individual consciousness in general and the levels of Intelligence which are beyond form, it exists in terms of the quasi-material level of consciousness which links it ―horizontally‖ with other consciousnesses that are on the level of form but at the same time also separates it from their unique Essence. Thus reality is regarded according to different orders of continuity depending upon the point of view adopted or imposed on us by the very nature of things, and metaphysics alone can embrace all these various perspectives and give to each its proper place in that web of visions, the universe. The following is a succinct account of the doctrines of the Sufis.

God only exists. He is in all things and all things in Him. All visible and invisible beings are an emanation from Him, and are not really distinct from Him. Religions are matters of indifference. They however serve as leading to realities. Some for this purpose is more advantageous than others, among which is al-Islam, of which Sufism is the true philosophy. There does not really exist any difference between good and evil, for all is reduce to Unity, and God is the real Author of the acts of mankind. It is God who fixes the will of man. Man therefore is not free in his actions. The soul existed before the body, and is confined within the latter as in a cage. Death, therefore, should be the object of the wishes of the Sufi, for it is then that he returns to the bosom of Divinity.

It is by this metempsychosis that souls which have not fulfilled their destination here below are purified and become worthy of re-union with God. Without the grace of God, which the Sufis call Fayazanullah or Fazlullah, no one can attain to this spiritual union, but this, they assert, can be obtained by; fervently asking for it. The principal occupation of the Sufi, whilst in the body, is meditation on the Wahdaniyah, or Unity of God, the remembrance of God‘s names (Zikr), and the progressive advancement of life so as to attain unification with God.

‗Al-Ghazali from his retirement until his death in 505/1111 A.D. lived the simple life of a mystic, punctuated only by study and the composition of a succession of books. In these he brought out various aspects of the moral, metaphysical and mystical system in which he essayed to reconcile the Sufism with Muslim orthodoxy, and to prove that the Muslim life of devotion to the One God could not be lived perfectly save by following the Sufi say. While none of his shorter works is negligible, some are of special value and importance. His masterpiece, and in many ways the greatest religious book composed by a Muslim, is the massive Ihya ulum al-din (Revival of Religious Sciences).

A skeleton analysis of the contents of this famous treatise brings out its relationship on the one hand to orthodox theology and religious law and on the other the practical and speculative mysticism. It is divided into four ‗quarters,‘ each quarter being subdivided into different series namely the first quarter ‗Worship‘ studies ‗epistemology and theology‘ which includes the nature of Knowledge (ilm) and the foundations of belief, second part studies ritual and canon law which includes the inward meaning of purification, the inward meaning of prayer, the inward meaning of alms giving, the inward meaning of pilgrimage, third part devotional works which includes reciting the Koran, recollections and prayers, orisons at set times.

The second quarter ‗Personal Behaviour‘ studies ‗religious law‘ which includes eating, drinking, earning, lawful and unlawful things, second part studies ‗mystical training‘ which includes companionship, character, solitude, travel, listening (to music, poetry) ecstasy, good counseling, living and Prophetship.

The third quarter ‗The Deadly Sins‘ studies ‗psychology and spiritual discipline‘ which includes the wonderful nature of the heart, self-discipline, gluttony and sensuality, vices of speech, anger, malice and envy, worldly goods, wealth and avarice, high rank and hypocrisy, arrogance and conceit and pride.

The fourth and the last quarter ‗The Way to Salvation‘ studies ‗spiritual experience‘ which includes conversion(tauba), fortitude (sabr) and gratitude (shukr), fear (khauf) and hope (raja), poverty (faqr) and self-denial (zuhd), belief in one God (tauhid) and trust in God (tawakkul), love(mahabba), yearning(shauq), intimacy(uns) and satisfaction (rida), resolve (niya), truthfulness (sidq) and sincerity (ikhlas), contemplation (muraqaba) and self-examination (muhasaba), second part studies ‗eschatology‘ which includes meditation (tafakkur), the recollection of death and hereafter.‘

11. Sufism and Social Integration

The aim of a Sufi’s life always is to love God and to seek His favor and pleasure, which is not possible unless he renders his services to mankind. Many Sufis have expressed their views about the object of Sufism. The fundamental ideology of Sufis is God, man and the relation between them which is love. The Sufis helped in developing a more humanitarian approach in religious life with their stress on service to mankind and their belief that love of God was not possible without love of mankind. If the national integration is to be achieved, we need to revive the spirit of Sufism. The people of this great nation still have their roots in religion and religious leaders can greatly help to achieve goal of peace and harmony.

All religions try to discipline the human behavior and create harmonious atmosphere in the society in which man could live in peace. But man by nature is a queer combination of contradictions. The religious codes and Sufi teachings about Hell and Heaven therefore serve as a powerful deterrent to keep mankind within bounds, organized and disciplined. The Sufis believed in equality and fraternity of mankind. They opposed narrow mindedness, caste and communal barriers, which cause conflict and destroy social harmony.

12. Summary:

Sufism is a mystical tradition of Islam dedicated to experiencing God as the epitome of divine Love. Sufis can be associated with Shi’a Islam, Sunni Islam, other currents of Islam, or a combination of multiple traditions. Emerging during the eighth century C.E. in the Middle East, though having earlier precedents, Sufism subsequently developed into several different orders known as Tariqas.

Notes

r – Peace be upon him

Web links

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sufism
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Index_of_Sufism-related_articles
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Sufi_saints
• http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t125/e2260?_hi=6&_pos=2
• https://www.dmoz.org/Society/Religion_and_Spirituality/Islam/Sufism
• www.encyclopedia.com

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