SPECIAL PROBLEMS IN THE STUDY OF SUFI IDEAS pdf download

Special problems in the study of Sufi ideaS

SPECIAL PROBLEMS IN THESSTUDY OF SUFI IDEAS

Theories about Sufism:

Let us presume no background of Sufi ideas on the part of an imaginary student who has recently heard of Sufism. He has three possible choices of source-material.

The first would be reference books and works written by people who have made this subject their especial province.

The second might be organisations purporting to teach or practise Sufism, or using its terminology.

 The third could be individuals and perhaps groups of people, not always in Middle Eastern countries, who are reputedly Sufis.

 He may not yet have been induced to believe that Sufism is to be labelled ‘ Mohammedan mysticism or 4 the cult of the Dervishes What does this man learn, and what are his problems? One of the first things that he could discover is that the very word 4 Sufism’ is a new one, a German coinage of 1821.  

No Sufi ignorant of Western languages would be likely to recognise it on sight. Instead of Sufism, our student would have to deal with terms such as 4 The Qadiris’, named after the founder of a certain rule, who died in 1166.

Or he might come across references to the 4 People of Truth’, 4 The Masters ’, or perhaps 4 The Near Ones Another possibility is the Arabic phrase Mutassawif: ‘he who strives to be a Sufi’.

There are organisations called 4 The Builders’, 4 The Blameworthy ’ which in constitution and sometimes even minor symbolism closely re¬ semble Western cults and societies like Freemasonry.