The Sufi Path

Introduction
The word Sufism is now just a label whose reality could not be found in definitions, descriptions
and books. Although the term is now widely known in west but its original meaning has been
lost somehow in Islamic world. Sufism is now linked with “mysticism” or “esotericism” or
“spirituality”, these words can give vague idea regarding Sufism but are far too broad or too
narrow to describe teaching that have been identified with Sufism over the years. If we look at
the Arabic original word of Sufism, we see that the term is already problematic and the high
profile it has acquired these days it all because of the western scholars, who wanted a term that
refer to various sides of Islamic civilization that they found attractive and that would avoid
negative stereotypes associated with the religion of Islam. The modern study on Sufism reflect
disagreement regarding the meaning found in primary texts. People who use Sufism in positive
sense connect it with the concept of achieving human perfection by following the footsteps of
Prophet (Pbuh) while those who use it in negative sense associates it with negative distortions of
Islamic teachings.
The Islamic Context
Sufism is consider a source of spirituality while considering Islam in terms of stereotypes in
many books. The great historian H.A.R Gibb pointed out fifty years ago that Muslim looks upon
Sufism either as a “survival of superstitions” and “cultural backwardness” or as a deviation from
“true Islam”. Many consider Sufism as concept that is foreign to Islam, although in the ninth
century teachers who came to be designated Sufis, have always claimed to speak for the heart
and marrow of the Islamic tradition.
In order to give a proper definition for Sufism, it is easy to suggest that Gibb was on the right
track that Sufism is equivalent to “authentic religious experience”. In other words Sufi teachers
claimed that the spoke for the enlivening spirit of Islam. The identification of Sufism with
Islam’s spirit could be explained with the famous saying of prophet (Pbuh) known as the “hadith
of Gabriel”. According to this hadith prophet was sitting with few of his companions when a
man came and started asking him questions, after the man left, the prophet told that it was
Gabriel who came to teach them about their religion. As outlines by Gabriel questions and
Prophet’s answers Islam can be understood to have three basic dimensions which are
“submission” that is to bear witness that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is His
messenger, and to believe in five pillars of Islam, “faith” that is to have faith in God, His
messengers, His angels, and the last day, “doing the beautiful” that is to worship God as you see
him, for even if you do not see him, He sees you.
The third dimension which is “doing the beautiful” is the one that has special importance when it
comes to Sufism as Sufis take doing the beautiful as their own special domain. This dimension
has not been explained properly by jurists (fuquha) who limit their vision to sharia and nor is this
explained by theologians who are experts in science of Kalam. On the external level Islam tells
people what to do and what not to do while on the deeper level, Islam is the religion that teaches
people how to understand the world and themselves and on the deepest level Islam is the religion
that teaches people how to transform themselves so that they may come into harmony with the
ground of all being. The first dimension of Islam keeps in view the activities that must be
performed because of our relational situation with God and others, and the second of our
understanding of self and the others, the third point the way to achieving nearness to God which
is recognized as the heart of religion that include sincerity, love, virtue and perfection.
Three Domains of Faith and the Shahadah (testimony of faith)
The hadith of Gabriel suggests that human beings are compounded of three domains ranked in
clear hierarchy – heart or inmost awareness, tongue or articulation of understanding, and limbs or
bodily parts. These domains are distinct and came to be studied by different disciplines. “Acting
with the limbs” or putting faith into practice, is the domain of jurisprudence. “Voicing with
tongue” is the realm of expressing faith through articulated self-awareness, or rational speech.
Finally “acknowledging with the heart” is to recognize the truth and reality of faith’s objects in
the deepest realm of human awareness. The three domain such as body realm is defined as
sharia, the tongue’s realm is expressed in theology, and the heart’s realm is associated with doing
the beautiful in depths of the soul. All three are understood and conceptualized as ideals that
must be realized in order to live up to the potentialities that were given to human beings when
God created Adam in his own image. Sufism in this understanding can be viewed as an invisible
spiritual presence that animates all authentic expression of Islam.
Mercy and Wrath
Sufis reduce the basic models for all plurality to two divine attributes- mercy and wrath. In
general, things that are linked to external and material realm tend to manifest wrath, whereas the
closer we move to spiritual world, the closer we move to mercy. God’s essential nature is mercy
and gentleness, and the wrath and severity pertain to domain of created things. According to
great sufi theoretician Ibn Arabi the divine mercy that gives rise to universe is existence itself.
When Sufis say that God’s love for creation gives existence to universe, they quickly add that the
corresponding human love for God closes the gap between God and his creatures.
Sufi theory and practice
Sufism is a path that leads human beings from imperfection to perfection, it explains both what
human beings are what they aspire to be. The first shahadah means that there is no reality but
God and that all other so-called realities of our experience and secondary and derivative. The
second shahdah tells us that “Muhammad (Pbuh) is the messenger of God”, it follows that he is a
clear, designated manifestation of one real and without the messengers of God people will
wander in ignorance. Sufi believes that everything on this universe is a sign of God that
manifestations of God can be seen in each living and non-living thing. For them, the Quranic
verse “Wherever you turn, there is the face of God”. The constant goal of sufi path is the union
with the God and to indulge in the this to such extent that one forgets his own self.
 Abu Nasar as- sarraj
The book of flashes
Chp 1
People keep various opinion about the science of Sufism and method of Sufis. Some praise it
excessively while other think of it as trifling game for feeble minded. Prophet (Pbuh) said
“Those who possess ilm are the heirs of the prophet”, according to this Hadith there are three
categories: scholars of hadiths, jurists and Sufis that are endowed with knowledge of unassailable
credibility who are the heirs of the prophet. These three groups together share the three religious
disciplines that are knowledge of the Quran, knowledge of the sunnah and the knowledge of the
realities of faith. Anyone who has questions concerning one of the principle of the religion and
its ramifications, legal implications, spiritual meanings has no choice but to have resource of
these three groups. Each of these groups has its distinctive brand of theory and practice, each its
own interpretation of knowledge and action.
Chp 2
The traditionists are concerned with understanding the outward meaning of sayings of God’s
messenger. They have asserted that this is foundation of religion because God says “Take what
messenger gives you and refrain from what he forbids for you”. They would travel from one land
to another in search for transmitters of hadith. They would stay with them until they received
from them the traditions of God messenger. The scholars would then assess the authenticity of
what they had transmitted orally, committed to memory and written down. Then they carefully
preserved the material. They determined the whereabouts of the transmitter who were involved
in compiling each report. They were able to determine who had communicated a Hadith
inaccurately, which individual had erred by either inserting a letter or deleting a word, which
individuals had done so intentionally, and which had simply made an honest mistake. In that
matter these Hadith scholars are superior to religious scholars.
Chp 3
As a category of those who possess knowledge, the legal scholars are superior to traditionists.
The legal scholars possess a specialized understanding and deeper interpretation of the Hadith,
steeping themselves in detailed investigation for setting forth religious regulations and sanctions
and the principles of Revealed Law. They then explain to the people the requirements of their
religion on the basis of Qur'an and tradition. Legal scholars marshal intellectual arguments
against their opponents. They draw conclusions on the basis of evidence in shaping their
arguments against those in error, to bolster the religion. They adhere to the text of the scripture
or the text of the Sunna or to analogical reasoning on the basis of the text, or to the consensus of
the community. Thus they put everything in its place, prioritize every definition according to its
category, distinguishing among rational analogy, formal similarity, affinity, and parallelism.
Chp 4
The Sufis are analogous to the legal scholars and the traditionists in that they, also, have their
groups with their distinctive opinions. They agree with the other groups of religious specialists
on their disciplines and are not at odds on their meanings and methods, to the extent that they
avoid innovation and the pursuit of personal whim, while conforming to the established pattern
and example of tradition. The Sufis have recourse, according to their method, to the best, the
first, and the most complete option out of care for the religion. They give priority to what God
has commanded His servants and avoid what God has forbidden them. Their way does not
include stooping to licentious behavior, going in search of esoteric interpretations, the tendency
toward a life of ease and dissipation, and the espousal of questionable views, all of which amount
to a disregard for the religion and throwing caution to the wind.
Chp 6
Another unique feature of the Sufis, among the categories of the religiously learned, is their use
of verses recited from the Book of God Most High and of traditions transmitted from God's
Messenger, God's blessings and peace upon him. They speak of high spiritual stations in the
religion and exalted stages that distinguish one segment of believers and characterize a group of
the Companions and Followers. Apart from the Sufis, no scholars of unassailable credibility have
a share in the present topic apart from general affirmation and belief that it is true. They speak
similarly of modesty and humility and love, fear and hope, desire and introspection, contrition
and tranquility, certainty and spiritual satisfaction. Sufis are unique in their understanding of the
means for liberation from these things and for turning toward God the Exalted and Glorified, for
sincerely taking refuge in God, and for persisting in spiritual needfulness, surrender, handing all
over to God, and admitting one's lack of power and strength. In addition, the Sufis have
discovered deeper interpretations of knowledge that have eluded the jurists and religious
scholars. Among the religious scholars of unassailable authority or integrity, the Sufis distinguish
themselves in untying these knots and penetrating the problematic aspects of these things. They
pursue these questions tenaciously and doggedly, and attack them with complete unselfishness.
They do not desist until they have communicated about their flavor and taste, decrease and
increase. They inquire of any who lay claim to one of these spiritual states as to their evidence
for it and discourse about the state's soundness or weakness. There is more here than a single
person can mention even a little about, since it is so vast there is no way to encompass it.
Knowledge of all of this is found in the Book of God, exalted and glorified, and in the traditions
of God's Messenger, God's blessings and peace upon him, and is familiar to specialists; and the
religious scholars do not dispute that when they discuss these matters.
Chp 7
The imam agrees that God, refers in his Book to upright men and women, to humble men and
women, as well as to the submissive, the pious, the sincere, those who do good, the fearful, the
hopeful, the awestruck, the worshipful, the sojourners, the long-suffering, the spiritually content,
the god-trusting, the Friends of God, the god-fearing, the elect, the chosen, the devout, and those
who are close to God. . Nevertheless, there is a vast difference between the prophets, God's
blessings be on them all, and the rest of these people I have been talking about. That is due to the
existence of a secret between them and the One they serve, and to the increase in their certitude
and their belief in what God Most High has communicated and apportioned to them. Only the
prophets, upon whom be peace, are set apart from these individuals by the unique features of
prophetic revelation, prophetic mission, and proofs of prophet hood. No one else can compete
with them in that respect. And God is the one who knows most fully.