Sufism Essay

Tasawwuff or Sufism is the esoteric and the inward dimension of Islam. It is the mystical aspect of Islam and contrary to popular belief Sufism emerged from the heart of the Islamic revelation. In September 622, Prophet Muhammad migrated from Mecca to Medina in an effort to organize the community and to enable it to fight religious wars against their religious opponents. He considered his own pursuit of faqr—resignation to God’s will and a life of poverty a source of personal pride. It was at the Medina mosque that the prophet became acquainted with a group of people who practiced poverty and self-mortification, called the Ahl al-Suffa. Unlike most followers of Islam who prayed five times a day and fasted during the whole month of Ramadan, the Prophet along with the Ahl al-Suffa observed incessant prayer and fasting. This is believed to be the origin of Sufism. Sufis believe that they are practicing ihsan, or perfection of worship as revealed to the Prophet by angel Gabriel.

Sufism has been known in Transoxania and Khorsan since the Islamic revelation. Some of the greatest and most renowned Sufis were from this region, including 8th century saints such as Al-Fozail ibn Iyaz and Ibrahim ibn Adham. Between the 13th and 16th centuries CE, Sufism produced a flourishing intellectual culture throughout the Islamic world, what is today known as the Golden Age of Islam. In many places, a lodge, known as khanqah would be endowed through a pious foundation in perpetuity to provide a gathering place for Sufi adepts, as well as lodging for itinerant seekers of knowledge. The same system of endowments was used to pay for a complex of buildings, such as that surrounding the Suleymaniye mosque in Istanbul, including a lodge for Sufi...

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...wards Allah may be of three kinds: (a) Mohabbat-e-Islami i.e. love which a new convert to Islam develops with Allah on account of his conversion to the new faith; (b) Mohabbat-e-nuwahhibi, i.e. love which a man develops as a result of his effort in the way of following the Holy Prophet Muhammad; (c) Mohabbat-e-khass, i.e. love which is the result of cosmic emotion. A mystic should develop the last one.

The Chisti mystics do not demand formal conversion to Islam as a pre-requisite to initiation in mystic discipline. Formal conversion, they believe, should not precede, but follow a change in emotional life. The Chisti attitude contrasts sharply with, for example, the Suhrawardi principles in this respect. The guiding principles of the Chisti Order are encapsulated in the famous "Final Sermon" of Khwaja Moin ud-Din Chisti, delivered just one month before his demise.