Tafakkur (Reflection) Tafakkur (Reflection) literally means to think on a subject deeply, systematically, and in great detail. In this context, it signifies reflection, which is the heart’s lamp, the spirit’s food, the spirit of knowledge, and the essence and light of the Islamic way of life. Reflection is the light...
Muhasaba (Self-Criticism Or Self-Interrogation) Muhasaba (Self-Criticism or Self-Interrogation) literally means reckoning, settling accounts, and self-interrogation. In a spiritual context, however, it takes on the additional meaning of the self-criticism of a believer who constantly analyzes his or her deeds and thoughts in the hope that correcting them will bring him...
God and the Truth of Divinity This article covers the subjects of God and the Truth of Divinity. The sacred term Allah (God), which is also referred to as the Word of Majesty or the All-Supreme Name in the sense that it is the Chief Divine Name comprising all other...
Tawba, Inaba, And Awba Repentance, Sincere Penitence, and Turning to God in Contrition This article covers Tawba (Repentance), Inaba (Sincere Penitence), and Awba (Turning to God in Contrition). Repentance (tawba) means that one feels regret and, filled with remorse for his or her sins, turns to God with the intention...
What Is Sufism? Sufism (tasawwuf) is the path followed by Sufis to reach the Truth—God. While Sufism usually expresses the theoretical or philosophical aspect of this search, the practical aspect is usually referred to as “being a dervish.” What is Sufism? Sufism has been defined in many ways. Some see...
Wahdat al-Wujud (Unity of Being) What Is Wahdat al-Wujud (Unity of Being)? Does It Conform In Any Way To The Teachings Of Islam?” Wahdat al-wujud (literally, oneness or unity of being) is a teaching mostly spoken of in connection with mystics and Sufis. Although the phrase refers to a subjective...
Sufism As A Lifestyle Sufism is the spiritual life of Islam (Sufism As A Lifestyle). Those who represent Islam according to the way of the Prophet and his Companions have never stepped outside this line. A tariqah is an institution that reaches the essence of religion within the framework of...
Hajj The Hajj (حَجّ; “pilgrimage”) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims, and a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by all adult Muslims who are physically and financially capable of undertaking the journey,...
Rumi Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Rūmī (جلالالدین محمد رومی), also known as Jalāl ad-Dīn Muhammad Balkhī (جلالالدین محمد بلخى), Mevlânâ – Mawlānā (مولانا, “our master”), Mevlevî – Mawlawī (مولوی, “my master”), and more popularly simply as Rumi (30 September 1207 – 17 December 1273), was a 13th-century Persian poet, jurist, Islamic scholar, theologian, and Sufi mystic originally from Greater Khorasan. Rumi’s influence transcends national borders and ethnic...
Mevlevi Order The Mawlaw’īyya – Mevlevi Order (Mevlevilik or Mevleviyye, طریقت مولویه) is a Sufi order in Konya founded by the followers of Jalal ad-Din Muhammad Balkhi-Rumi, a 13th-century Persian poet, Islamic theologian and Sufi mystic. The Mevlevi are also known as the Whirling Dervishes due to their famous practice of whirling...
Naqshbandi The Naqshbandi (نقشبندی) or Naqshbandiyah (نقشبندية, Naqshbandīyah) is a major Sunni spiritual order of Sufism. It got its name from Baha-ud-Din Naqshband Bukhari and traces its spiritual lineage to the Islamic prophet Muhammad through Abu Bakr, who was father-in-law, companion, and successor of Muhammad. Some Naqshbandi masters trace their lineage...
Ni’matullāhī Order The Ni’matullāhī Order or Ne’matollāhī Order (نعمتاللهی) (also spelled as “Nimatollahi”, “Nematollahi” or “Ni’matallahi) is a Sufi order (or tariqa) originating in Iran. According to Moojan Momen, the number of Ni’matullāhī in Iran in 1980 was estimated to be between 50,000 and 350,000. Following the emigration of Javad Nurbakhsh and other dervishes after...
Qadiriyya Order The Qadiriyya (القادريه, قادریه, also transliterated Qadri, Qadriya, Kadri, Elkadri, Elkadry, Aladray, Alkadrie, Adray, Kadray, Qadiri, “Quadri” or Qadri) are members of the Qadiri tariqa (Sufi order). The tariqa got its name from Abdul Qadir Gilani (1077–1166, Jilani), who was from Gilan. The order relies strongly upon adherence to the fundamentals of Islam. The order, with its many...
Senussi Order The Senussi order (Senussi, Senusiyya, Sanussi, السنوسية), are a Muslim political-religious tariqa (Sufi order) and clan in colonial Libya and the Sudan region founded in Mecca in 1837 by the Grand Senussi (السنوسي الكبير), the Algerian Muhammad ibn Ali as-Senussi. Senussi was concerned with what it saw as both the decline of Islamic thought and spirituality...
Tijaniyyah Order The Tijaniyyah (الطريقة التجانية, Al-Ṭarīqah al-Tijāniyyah, ‘The Tijānī Path’) is a sufi tariqa (order, path) within Sunni Islam, originating in North Africa but now more widespread in West Africa, particularly in Senegal, The Gambia, Mauritania, Mali, Guinea, Niger, Chad, Ghana, Northern and South-western Nigeria and some part of Sudan....
Shadhili Order The Shadhili Tariqa (الطريقة الشاذلية) is a Sufi order of Sunni Islam founded by Abul Hasan Ali ash-Shadhili of Morocco. Followers (murids, “seekers”) of the Shadhiliya are known as Shadhilis. It has historically been of importance and influence in North Africa and Egypt with many contributions to Islamic literature. Among the figures most known for their literary and...
Suhrawardiyya Order The Suhrawardiyya (سهروردية) is a Sufi order founded by the Sufi Diya al-din Abu ‘n-Najib as-Suhrawardi (1097 – 1168 CE). It is a strictly Sunni order, guided by the Shafi`i school of Islamic law (madhhab), and, like many such orders, traces its spiritual genealogy (silsila) to Ali ibn Abi Talib through Junayd...
Kubrawiya The Kubrawiya order (سلسلة کبرویة) or Kubrawi order, also known as Firdausia Silsila, is a Sufi order that traces its spiritual lineage (Silsilah) to prophet Muhammad through Ali, Muhammad’s cousin, son-in-law and the First Imam. This is in contrast to most other Sufi orders that trace their lineage to Ali. The Kubrawiya order is named after...
Bektashi Order Bektashi Order or Shī‘ah Imāmī Alevī-Bektāshī Ṭarīqah (Tarikati Bektashi; Bektaşi Tarîkatı) is a Sufi dervish order (tariqat) named after the 13th century Alevi Wali (saint) Haji Bektash Veli from Khorasan, but founded by Balım Sultan. The order, whose headquarters is in Tirana, Albania, is mainly found throughout Anatolia and the Balkans, and was...
Chishti Order The Chishtī Order (چشتی chishtī) is a Sunni Sufi order within the mystic Sufi tradition of Islam. It began in Chisht, a small town near Herat, Afghanistan about 930 CE. The Chishti Order is known for its emphasis on love, tolerance, and openness. The Chishti Order is primarily followed...