What Is Sufism?

Sufism is a mystical Islamic belief and practice in which Muslims seek to find the truth of divine love and knowledge through the direct personal experience of God. It consists of a variety of mystical paths that are designed to ascertain the nature of humanity and of God and to facilitate the experience of the presence of divine love and wisdom in the world.

Sufism, or Taṣawwuf, variously defined as “Islamic mysticism“, “the inward dimension of Islam” or “the phenomenon of mysticism within Islam”, is mysticism in Islam, “characterized … [by particular] values, ritual practices, doctrines and institutions” which began very early in Islamic history and represents “the main manifestation and the most important and central crystallization of” mystical practice in Islam. Practitioners of Sufism have been referred to as “Sufis“.

Sufi dervishes whirling (abstract)

Sufi dervishes whirling (abstract)

Main Articles

Aims and objectives

Unity with God

Four Stations in Sufism

Devotional practices of Sufis

Sufi ranks

Major Sufi orders

List of Sufi orders

Prominent Sufis

Influence on Judaism

See also

La ilaha illa Allah Muhammed asul Allah. English translation: There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God.

Islamic calligraphy
La ilaha illa Allah Muhammed rasul Allah.
English translation: There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the messenger of God.

Key Concepts in The Practice Of Sufism

Key Concepts in the Practice of Sufism
By M. Fethullah Gulen