Islamic Spirituality and the Feminine Dimension

Abstract

As a social, economic, and political system, Islam is not monolithic. Hence, the religion in these contexts tends to be susceptible to different interpretations and different readings; some could be dogmatic and authoritarian, others could be liberal, and still others could be spiritual, depending on the social, political, and economic settings. But also one has to take into consideration the personal backgrounds of the individual readers. For instance, a Muhadith (someone who is specialist in Hadith literature) could read Islam in a more conservative way, and a Faqih (someone who is specialist in Islamic jurispudence) could understand it in a more legalistic form, while a Sufi saint could comprehend and present it in a more spiritual and mystical way. This is a fact that needs to be borne in mind, especially when considering the position of women in Islam and their relationship to the Divine. Historically, the conservative patriarchal readings of the position of women in Islam have been the dominant ones, while other readings, especially the spiritual/mystical have been left in the shadow. This is mainly due to the historical rivalries between the legalists and the Sufis and the eventual triumphal of the legalists over the Sufis.