Sufism Flashcards
what is sufism?
- Sufism emphasises the importance of experiencing God and having a union with God.
- Sufis put less emphasis on reading the Qur’an and finding God intellectually.
- They seek a mystical experience of God i.e. To be unified with God and find spiritual truth.
How does Junayd define sufism?
“Sufism is being with God, without any attachments”
how does Ruwaym B Ahmad define sufism?
“Sufism consists of abandoning oneself to God in accordance with God’s will”
how does Samnum define sufism?
“Sufism is about not possessing anything, nor letting anything possess you.”
How does Al-Jarir define sufism?
“Sufism means attaining every exalted quality and leaving behind every despicable quality.”
How does Aslan explain sufism?
“Sufi is to Islam as the heart is to the human being”
What sufi hadith shows self sacrifice?
“As for Muhammad, he bound a stone to his belly when he was hungry”
- This asceticism they believe then leads to an experience of divine e.g. trances, visions etc.
Why is sufism popular with the poor?
it gives a glimpse of beautiful eternity
How are Sufis different to mystics?
- They don’t cut themselves off from society as islam is a community religion
- they are not celibate as this is not encouraged in the quran
- sufism is not attached to islam - Sufis do worship as Muslims but consider Islamic teachings, law theology, the five pillars and even the Qur’an to be inadequate for true knowledge of God.
How islamic is sufism?
- According to Aslan, the aim of Sufism is self annihilation and unity with the divine. The start of the journey is Islam but gradually, this shell must be discarded. The ultimate aim is love.
- Their disregard of reason as well as their disregard for the Shariah angered the religious authorities. Their non attachment to the Ummah (Muslim community) also meant that they were regarded with suspicion as it was thought that they were trying to form their own Ummah. Their disinterest in political power also made them different to other Muslims.
- They aimed for simplicity and poverty “If you can not change the kings, then change yourself”
what did haeri say about sufis?
“When you start by purifying your inner self, you end up being concerned with the outer and with society.”
What did a sufi master say on the sufi attachment to islam?
“Why spend time reading a love letter (the Qur’an) in the presence of the Beloved who wrote it.”
What is ihsan?
- Spiritual perfection
- Ihsan is the focus of sufis
Ihsan is when the Muslim shows his inner faith (iman) in action. Ihsan is to obtain perfection in worship. Muslims must worship God as though they see him even though they can’t. They must realise that He is constantly watching them.
- Ihsan is the focus of sufis
how is ihsan defined in the gabriel hadith?
Muhammad states “[Ihsan is] to worship God as though you see Him, and if you cannot see Him, then indeed He sees you”.
What does ihsan include? (7)
○ To feel Allah’s presence whilst in prayer.
○ In relations to parents, honor them, be thankful to them and do your duties towards them.
○ In relations to other relatives, recognize their rights, be good to them and help them if they need help.
○ In relations to people in society who are weak, needy and poor, be charitable and nice to them.
○ In human relations in general, be good to others. Even those with whom you disagree in matters of faith, present to them the message, but have no aggression towards them:
○ In relations to the whole world including vegetables, animals and even inanimate things, do not waste, do not misuse or abuse and be thankful to Allah.
Finally, Just do good, because Allah loves those who do good things
what is dhikr?
This is the repetition of the names of God. This can be carried out as a chant or in silence. This is meant to break down the separation between humans and God.
what does vocal dhikr involve?
repetition of the shahadah until it breaks down to repeat “hu” meanng he meaning god, breathing exercises and rapid movement of head and torso
what does silent dhikr involve?
more sombre, repeats gods names inwardly and reject music and dance
what do the whirling dervishes do
whirl on the spot repeating the names of god, the spinning represents the planets of the solar system, done to honour allah in a trance like state with right hand to sky and left to earth symbolising what comes from god should be shared with people
What is tazkiyat al-nafs/self purification?
Tazkiyat al nafs means to purify (tazkiyat) your soul of bad characteristics (nafs). It means to get rid of vices and beautify the soul with virtues.
What is the first stage of self purification?
Where most humans are, where nafs are the sole reality. Nafs are the bad characteristics of the soul including anger and desire. We refer to these as the self/ego/I. A person must overcome these desires/lusts/sensual pleasures pull the heart (qalb) down. Muslims see this part of the journey as overcoming satan. In particular, these stage of the journey is to do with overcoming nafs-al-ammārah: unruly animal self or soul that dictates evil. These particular nafs urge us to do evil.
What is the second stage of self purification?
Conscience is awakened and aware that the self is listening to nafs. At this stage the nafs are reproachful nafs. The Muslim will become conscious of wrong doing and will ask for forgiveness. The Muslim will become aware of the negative effects of their habitual self-centredness. At this stage, the Muslim is therefore conscious of wrong doing but not yet able to prevent it. This enters them into a cycle of realising they are doing wrong, being regretful, yet doing wrong again! According to Aslan, this stage is also to do with the ruh. In the Quran the ruh is the breath of God which he breathes into Adam, the spirit which runs through all of creation. At this stage, the ruh has to battle with the nafs for possession of the heart (the qalb) which is the soul. It is the ruh which makes the Muslim conscious of wrong doing but the nafs which keep the Muslim doing wrong.
