Today,
however, many Moslems and non-Moslems believe that Sufism is outside the
sphere of Islam.
Sufi orders or Sufi brotherhoods are
traditionally known as Tariqa. In the introduction to his book "The
Sufis", Idries Shah writes that the statement Sufi has no known etymology.
Traditional Sufi Orders
The traditional Sufi orders emphasise the role of Sufism within Islam.
Therefore, the
Sharia (traditional
Islamic law) and the
Sunnah (customs of
the Prophet) are seen as crucial for any Sufi aspirant. Among the oldest
and most well known of the Sufi orders are the
Naqshbandi,
Qadiri,
Chisti,
Oveyssi,
Shadhili,
Jerrahi,
Ashrafi,
Bektashi,
Nimatullahi, and
Mevlevi. One proof
traditional orders assert is that almost all the famous Sufi masters of
the past
Caliphates were
also experts in Sharia and were renowned as people with great Iman (reliance)
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 a practicing Muslim obeying the
Sharia.
Non-traditional Sufi Orders
Universal
Sufism movement, the Golden Sufi Center, the Sufi Foundation of
America, the Blaketashi Darwishes, Universalist Sufis and Sufism
Reoriented are some examples of non-traditional sufi orders.
This view of Sufism has been popular in the Western world. Universal
Sufism tends to be opposed by traditional Sufis, who argue that Sufism has
always been practiced from within an Islamic framework and can never be
separated from it.
Sufis do not
define Sufism as a madhhab — what distinguishes a person as a Sufi
is practicing Sufism, usually through association with a Sufi order.
History of Sufism
Sufism was
essentially the result of Islam evolving in a more mystic direction.
It was around 1000 CE that early Sufi literature, in
the form of manuals, treatises, discourses and poetry, became the source
of Sufi thinking and meditations.
During
1200-1500 CE, sufism experienced an era of increased activity in various
parts of the Islamic world. There were tests of conciliation between
Sufism and the other Islamic sciences (sharia, fiqh, etc.), as well as the
beginning of the Sufi brotherhoods (turuq).
Influences
A number of
scholars perceive influences on Sufism from pre-Islamic and
non-Islamic schools of mysticism and philosophy such as Neoplatonism.
Sufi Practices
Dhikr
To engage in
dhikr is to have awareness of God according to Islam. Hadhra is a form of
dhikr practiced primarily in the Arab world.
Sama
In Uyghur culture, this includes a dance form also originally associated
with Sufi ritual.
Controversy and Criticism of Sufism
Sufism
emphasises non quantifiable matters (like states of the heart). Sufi
masters have introduced many special prayers and devotional acts into
their schools. Sufis had attacked a Shia mosque after the orthodox cleric
at that mosque called for the shutting down of the Sufi's lodge. Imam Mohamad M. Algalaleni’s grandfather was a Sufi leader. However, the main
idea behind Sufism was in the Holy Quran and the sunna.
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