SUFISM

[rajiv uppal]

The life of a Sufi is the "life of the spirit " regulated strictly in accordance with Islamic theology and traditions. To attain this his first lesson is unshakable belief in the existence of God and unconditional surrender to His will. This entails a strenuous life attended by rigid austerity and self-denial. He has to undergo a course of training in regular prayers and meditation to attain the Divine Knowledge and realisation of Truth. This particular knowledge is passed on 'in secret' by one Sufi to another having the requisite qualifications i.e. one who does not think evil does not see evil, does not hear evil and does not speak evil. Without this Divine Knowledge, one cannot fathom the hidden mysteries of the Nature and those of the soul. To sum up the whole object of Sufism is to attain the highest spiritual perfection.

A Sufi will be distinguishable from others on account of his detachment from his parents, children, wealth, power, position and comforts. His ignorance vanishes in the effulgence of the 'Divine Light' of the most High, the Lord of the entire Universe. In such an ecstatically devotion there is neither pain nor sorrow for him as he is overwhelmingly dedicated to the will of the Almighty God. Thus a Sufi saint is the Spiritual King, far above all temporal kings, disguised in the patched robes of a humble dervish.

Hazrat Khawaja Muinuddin Chisty (May peace of God be upon his soul) was one of the greatest Sufi saints the world has ever known. His spiritual influence and benedictions have been, and are still a perpetually source of inspiration courage and guidance to the afflicted humanity, irrespective of caste creed or religion.

[rajiv uppal]

The Sufis are classified into four prominent silsilas (categories) or lines, viz. Qadaria, Chishtia Suhraward and Naqshbandia.

Hazrat Khawaja Muinuddin Chishty belonged to the second 'silsila'. There is no fundamental difference between these silsilas except in matters of minor details. They are all within the framework of the Islamic law as laid down by the Holy Quran and expounded by Hadith but the rituals applied for obtaining the communion or 'raza' of God are different just like the modern Universities where student take different courses for obtaining a particular class of degree. The Chishtia 'silsila' does not enjoin any indifferent belief from that of the other Hanafi Sunni Mussalmans. Their belief is based upon the Holy Quran. A study of the lives of Chishty saints, including Hazrat Khawaja Muinuddin and his spiritual preceptor Hazrat Khwaja Usman Harooni reveals that they preached and held purely Quranic beliefs. According to Shariat, every Chishty saint has to follow the Quranic laws strictly.

The Sufi 'silsilas' however, are not sects. They grew up because people went to Sheikhs or 'murshids' (religious masters) for spiritual guidance and training who invested those of their disciples whom they regarded as spiritually fit to cater for the spiritual and moral needs of others Traditions, no doubt, grew up differently in different 'silsilas'. What is common between the various Sufi 'silsilas' is confined to few spiritual practices like auraad (verses from Quran) 'sama' (audition) certain festivals, institutions like veneration of the shrines, the etiquette of visiting them and the devotion to certain leading personalities of the order. One special features of the Chishtia order, which is particularly observable among the early Chishty saints of India, is their love for all humanity. They sought to inculcate among their followers an attitude of broad sympathy for the common man irrespective of caste, creed or nationality. They stressed more on humanitarian of caste, creed or nationality. They stressed more on humanitarian obligations of Muslims than on any other point. And that is why Khawaja Muinuddin Chishty attracted lakhs of people to the vast circle of his devotees in India in a very short time.

[rajiv uppal]

Regulation and Practices

There are certain regulations of Sufism which are called ‘Adraak’ and ‘Ehsas’ in Sufi parlance. They are also known as ‘Arkaan Tasawwuf’ or ‘Arkaan-Baatani’ i.e. the rules and discipline for the acquirement of the hidden wisdom or knowledge. They are divided into the "hidden wisdom" or knowledge. They are divided into the following three categories:

(1) "Knowledge" i.e. the ‘divine Knowledge’ attainable through the rigid discipline of ‘Shariat’.

(2) "Amal" i.e. action under the above discipline with unflinching faith and devotion.

(3) "Haal" i.e. the resulting reaction from ‘Amal’ or the action.

A Sufi aspirant’s first important step to act upon the above course is to seek a religious preceptor or ‘murshid’ who should be a practical master of the said Divine Knowledge and its training experience. His preliminary lessons start with,

(i) Liturgical practices and exercises with unswerving devotion to certain Quranic verses which are pregnant with the Divine Knowledge in order to grasp their spiritual interpretation and values.

(ii) A rigid control over his soul called ‘Nafs’which starts which renunciation and self-mortification.

[rajiv uppal]

The origin of the term Sufi is rather complex, but in general it signifies one who wears the garment of ''suf'' i.e. wool. In the beginning it was a mark of personal penitence though some early Muslims, like Ibn Sirin (died 729 AD) criticised the ascetics for wearing Suf in imitation of Jesus Christ. He said, "I prefer to follow the example of the Prophet who dressed in cotton." In the second century of Islam a particular group of ascetics of Kufa were generally called al-Sufiya due to their dress. But, by 4th century wearing of woolen garments became the recognised badge of the Sufis of Iraq and hence the term was commonly applied to all Muslim mystics. In the same century, groups of these a sites used to assemble to recite aloud the holy Quran and other religious pieces which practice gradually took on a liturgical character called Zikr evolving into spiritual concerts named Sama (now popularly called Qawwali in India) with their attendant perils of extreme ecstatic nervous.

Gradually a change was coming over the general character of Sufism. Its basis was " fear of God and His wrath to come " with the mystical element of love and adoration. According to a woman saint, Rabia al-Adawiya (died 891 AD) The mainspring of mysticism is Love. She said, "Love of God had so absorbed me that neither love nor hate for any other things remains in my heart."

[tana]

Om Sai Ram~~~

SUFISM~~~Fanaa (فناء)

Fanaa (فناء) is the Sufi term for extinction. It means to annihilate the self, while remaining physically alive. Persons having entered this state are said to have no existence outside of and unity with Allah. Fanaa is equivalent to the concept of nirvana in Buddhism,or moksha in Hinduism which also aims for annihilation of the self.

Fana may be attained by constant meditation and by contemplation on the attributes of God, coupled with the denunciation of human attributes. It is a sort of mental, yet real, death. The man of the ‘’Way’’ experiences it freely; it is the final passage which leads to the summit of the Stages. It liberates man from all contingency outside of his spiritual quest; his ultimate aim is the Truth. Three degrees may be distinguished here: fanâ' of acts, attributes and essence.

The Sufi fanâ' in its triple manifestation does not have an exclusively negative effect or action; it is the annihilation of everything contingent, whether this be in the form of action, attribute or essence; more precisely, it is the annihilation of everything that is not God, and God is the supreme object of all good, all beauty. Fanâ' thus conceived is an internal state which requires from the Sufi a sustained and permanent effort of concentration to break his fetters and take on the demands and calls of truth, by his acts, his moral virtues, his whole being. That implies perfect control of himself: in words, deeds and thoughts. It is at this price that he attains an interior spiritual state where he becomes the pure and clear mirror in which the lights of Truth are reflected in all their splendour.

There are three ways in man's journey towards God. The first is the way of ignorance, through which each must travel. It is like a person walking for miles in the sun while carrying a heavy load on his shoulder, who, when fatigued, throws away the load and falls asleep under the shade of a tree. Such is the condition of the average person, who spends his life blindly under the influence of his senses and gathers the load of his evil actions; the agonies of his earthly longings creating a hell through which he must pass to reach the destination of his journey. With regard to him the Qur'an says, 'He who is blind in life, shall also be blind in the hereafter.'

The next way is that of devotion, which is for true lovers. Rumi says, 'Man may be the lover of man or the lover of God; after his perfection in either he is taken before the King of love.' Devotion is the heavenly wine, which intoxicates the devotee until his heart becomes purified from all infirmities and there remains the happy vision of the Beloved, which lasts to the end of the journey. 'Death is a bridge, which unites friend to friend' (Sayings of Mohammed).

The third is the way of wisdom, accomplished only by the few. The disciple disregards life's momentary comforts, unties himself from all earthly bondages and turns his eyes toward God, inspired with divine wisdom. He gains command over his body, his thoughts and feelings, and is thereby enabled to create his own heaven within himself, that he may rejoice until merged into the eternal goal. 'We have stripped the veil from thine eyes, and thy sight today is keen', says the Qur'an. All must journey along one of these three paths, but in the end they arrive at one and the same goal. As it is said in the Qur'an, 'It is He who multiplied you on the earth, and to Him you shall be gathered.'


Jai Sai Ram~~~

[shilohgomz]

The substance of Sufism is the truth and meaning of Sufism is the experience and actualization of the Truth. Sufi is one who loves the truth. Sufis to be in the internal dimension, mystical, or psycho-spiritual of Islam.

[silvermessenger]

Sufism was a remarkable spiritual development in the history of India, as one will find in the book "From india to the Truth" (www.sphatik.net). In chapter 9 "the guiding hand - and the spiritual failure", we find the information that the Mughal emperor Akbar was inspired by Sufism and this led him to the formation of the Din'i'illahi religion (The Divine Faith) by Akbar. This was a very pure form of Sufism that recognized all religions and faiths in India and enabled everyone to ascend spiritually, healing the wounds of the past from the trail of bloodshed left by the previous Muslim invaders. It seems that Akbar might have taken Sufism to the highest level possible, according to this book. It is only unfortunate that no further information exists about Din'i'illahi; all of Akbar's circle was corrupt and did not want to follow the spiritual teaching he laid down. Who knows what India might be today if Din'i'illahi had spread wider? The book I mentioned indicates that it should have been spread more widely for the benefit of India.

I am curious if anyone else has read this work and shares a similar view?