Sufi Saints Research Articles

Rumi

CrossCurrentsVolume 69, Issue 4 p. 365-383 Original Article Rumi The Homoerotic Sufi Saint Delaney James, Delaney JamesSearch for more papers by this author Delaney James, Delaney JamesSearch for more papers by this author First published: 12 November 2019 https://doi.org/10.1111/cros.12405Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Volume69, Issue4December 2019Pages 365-383 RelatedInformation

A Mountain of Saints and Sages: Muslims in the Landscape of Popular Religion in Late Imperial China

AbstractNear the beginning of the Qing dynasty (1636-1912), the mausoleum of a Sufi saint, the Pavilion of Lingering Illumination, was constructed on an ancient Daoist mountain in the town of Baoning, Sichuan province. Over the following centuries, the shrine became one of the most heavily patronized religious sites in the province. There, state officials oversaw rain-making rituals, local gentry supplicated for success in the civil examinations, and Manchu bannermen bestowed dedications celebrating the empire’s military campaigns in Xinjiang. While Qing officials recognized it as an Islamic site, many of the town’s residents treated it like any other Chinese shrine, emphasizing its connections to the region’s fengshui and its efficacy for rain-making. Through exploring the shrine’s history, this article provides a new window into Islam as a “local religion” in China, a survey of the flexible religious contours of the imperial state, and a richer understanding of Qing patronage for the institutions of minority groups. It argues that this Islamic site played a central role in the wider social life and governance of the area.

Sufism and the Socio-Legal Services of Hazrat Moinuddin Hasan Sanjari of Ajmer Urf "Khwaja Gareeb Nawaz"

The Sufi saints, Ulemas and Mashaikhs always had an important place in the history of mankind. These Sufi saints belong to different tariqas but their basic belief has been same and that is “oneness of Allah”. A tariqa is a school of thought or a concept for the mystical teaching and spiritual practices with the intention of seeking the ultimate truth. The history of Moinuddin Chishti, the Sufi saint of Ajmer is much mired in mythology. Therefore, it is often infuriating to shift fact from friction. Loveable and the legends declare Moinuddin Chishti a great saint, many are curious to know why he is considered to be so. This paper explores why Moinuddin Chisti is considered greater above all in the Chishti tariqa. In addition to this, this paper also explores the socio-legal services of Moinuddin Chishti for Muslim world generally and for Rajasthan particularly.

Reflections on the prehistory of the Abdālī Afghans

ABSTRACTThe Abdālī Afghans-Pashtuns played a leading role in the creation of the Durrānī polity (est. 1747) – the precursor of present-day Afghanistan. Given their lasting contributions to the process of state formation in Central Asia, it is somewhat surprising that the early history of the Abdālī remains obscure. Nevertheless, authors of recent generations have not been deterred from speculating on the origins of the Abdālī. This article explores the prevailing theories concerning Abdālī prehistory, including the tribe’s purported connection to both the Hephthalites and the Sufi saint Abū Aḥmad Abdāl, as well as some of the motivations undergirding these theories. It also considers the place of the Abdālī within the Afghan-Pashtun tribal system and ventures to reconcile their Afghan identity with their alleged non-Afghan origins. The present study thus aims to offer a more nuanced understanding of the history of the Abdālī – the most politically prominent group in Afghanistan’s history.

Il ḏikr nella ṭarīqa Burhāniyya secondo l’insegnamento di Muḥammad ‘Uṯmān ‘Abduhu al-Burhānī

Abstract The ḏikr, the remembrance of God, is a Sufi ritual that is common to many Sufi orders and is performed by each of them in accordance to precise rules. While the rules may differ in its practice, the final aim is the same: coming near God through the repetition of His beautiful names. My paper is focused on the method introduced by šayḫ Muḥammad ‘Uṯmān ‘Abduhu al-Burhānī, a Sudanese Sufi master who lived and spread his teachings during the 20th century. Collective ḏikr is also an important element of the procedure of ḥaḍra, a traditional sufi ceremony which is performed regularly by the disciples of Burhāniyya once a week, as well as on important occasions, such as the mawlid in commemoration of the birth of the Prophet and of Sufi saints. Today the participation in this ritual has a crucial meaning for the Burhāniyya adherents, as it represents the affirmation of their Sufi identity within contemporary Muslim world.

The Rhetoric of Islamic Debate in Kazakhstani Mass Media

There is an ongoing debate in Kazakhstani mass media over what constitutes proper Islamic belief and conduct. This paper examines a running dispute between Zikiriya Zhandarbek, an intellectual based at a university in southern Kazakhstan, and scripturalist Islamic institutions, such as the Kazakhstani Muftiate and the Islamic television channel Asyl Arna. In his tirades against “Salafist” and “untraditional” members of the Muftiate and Asyl Arna, Zhandarbek uses rhetoric inviting identification with domestic traditions and Akhmed Yasawi, a local Sufi saint. Conversely, scripturalists’ rhetoric identifies them as scholars working to revive knowledge of the Qur’an and Islam. However, both parties claim to represent the Kazakh nation, showing the overwhelming importance of nationalist rhetoric in Kazakhstan today.

Role of Sufi Saints in North –Western India

The eighteenth century in Indian History is characterized as an epoch of political anarchy and social chaos that spread unchecked in the wake of the collapse of the Mughal empire. But disintegration of the imperial center and its administrative institutions did not produce any profound effect on the pre-existing pluralistic socio-cultural structure, which was distinguished by widespread Hindu-Muslim unity and culture syncretism in northern India.

Navigating African Sacred Geography: Shrines for African Sufi Saints and Spirits in India

Abstract African sacred spaces in India are carved and maintained by mortal beings mostly hailing from the Sidi African-Indian community and from other subaltern communities, and these spaces are perpetually protected by African spirit beings. Thriving as marginal spaces in the overcrowded Indian cities, coastal towns, and villages, these African sacred topographies are continuously reimagined and reinvented by invested stakeholders to suit contemporary purposes. While addressing the complex connections of some of these sacredscapes with the African Indian Ocean slave trade, this paper examines how shrines dedicated to African Sufi saints and spirits keep African memories alive as devotees continue to seek the intercessions of these saints and spectral deities. By studying the spiritual beliefs and practices at these shrines, I discuss how African sacred geography in India prevails as a relational space connected to the Indian Ocean littoral through the intercessory powers of the African saints and spirits.

Sufism in the state of rajasthan

The soil of India is like a place of worship for the sufi saints. The sufi saints contributed uninterrupted flow of spirituality for enriching the human heart with thoughtful purity. The saints played important roles for spreading messages of humanity and global brotherhood to the whole world. Devotional meditation and assisting common people for finding solution to their everyday problems were part of the daily routine of the sufi saints. This all made, quite attractive by their simple living and impressive with their truthful spiritual thinking. The paper presents description of various Sufi Saints in various Districts of the State of Rajasthan. Highlights the contribution of Sufis who worked for benefitting the society beyond any boundaries of caste and creed. Explains the customs and traditions of the Sufism, as practiced at various Dargah of the Sufi Saints. Presented the facts with historical and sociological details.

Sheep to Slaughter

This essay seeks to articulate the process by which sacrifice took on new meanings, symbols, and practices in the context of the war in Afghanistan. It does so by examining five acts and the ‘axial figures’ associated with each of these acts, the first of which centers on the early efforts of Afghan political parties to change the focus of popular esteem from brave deeds to heroic deaths and the axial figure of veneration from the Warrior to the Martyr. The second act is associated with ‘Abdullah ‘Azzam who infused the figure of the Martyr with a sanctity long associated with the Sufi Saint by documenting miracles observed during and after the death of Afghan Arabs who died in the Afghan jihad. The third act involves the Taliban’s deployment of public rituals that altered the focus of sacrificial violence from collective veneration of the Martyr to the punishment of criminals who had defiled the purity of the jihad. The fourth act is associated with Osama Bin Laden who exploited the potential of using bodies as weapons of mass destruction, in the process turning the figure of the Suicide Bomber into one of the key symbols of our age. The fifth and final act discussed here involves the rise of the Islamic State and its synthesis of diverse forms of sacrificial violence, expanding and recasting these elements in a symbolic register derived from popular media and centered around the figure of the Slaughterer.

Myths, Miracles and Legends: an interpretation of Kashmiri Myth with special reference to western viewpoint

The paper traces the characteristics of myth, legends and miraculous facts in Kashmir history. Myth is deeply related to cultural history of Kashmir. Since the beginning of Kashmir's history, the myth (Purakatha) has a great place. The origins of Kashmir, starting from the geographical location, the presence of public life, the construction of rivers, lakes, shrines, temples, mosques, and all matters of religious and societal transformation are closely related with myth and legends. In some cases, the myths also focus on the views of the individual or ruling classes. There are many myth, legend and miraculous facts about the Rishi and Sufi saints in Kashmir. This paper examines the theoretical concept of myth, miracle and legends which is emerged in western academics in the nineteenth and twentieth century. In this paper I shall try to analyse the truthfulness of myth, miracles and legends in Kashmir history through the theoretical concepts of world scholarship.

Sufism: A New History of Islamic Mysticism by Alexander Knysh

Reviewed by: Sufism: A New History of Islamic Mysticism by Alexander Knysh Benjamin Powergriffin (bio) Sufism: A New History of Islamic Mysticism. By Alexander Knysh. Princeton, NJ: Princeton Press, 2017. 389 pp. $29.95 The question of who decides the essential nature of a mystical tradition is paramount to understanding how it functions as a lived spirituality. With Sufism: A New History of Islamic Mysticism, University of Michigan Professor of Islamic Studies Alexander Knysh has written a concise but remarkably thorough history of Sufism that addresses the myriad of complications inherent in defining Sufism both in a Western, often Orientalist, context as well as how it has been historically defined within the wider Islamic tradition. Pursuing the topic with pointed neutrality, Knysh has written a history of Sufism that both honors and reimagines historic approaches to Islam's ascetic-mystical heritage. From the start, Knysh makes it clear that honing in on a precise, historically satisfactory definition of Sufism is difficult, if not outright impossible. This is not simply due to Sufism's own wide-ranging expressions within Muslim cultures but also because of its reconstruction within the Western imagination. Rather than attempt to disentangle Sufism from this in order to elucidate a supposedly pure Islamic form, Knysh attempts instead to "explore [the] dimensions of the ascetic-mystical stream of Islam… without sliding into either unbridled partisanship or adverse criticism of the subject and of its conceptualizations by both insiders and outsiders." (8) In doing so, Knysh is able to offer both an insight into the quotidian experience of Sufi communities as well as a history of how Sufism has been envisioned by various outside thinkers. In Chapter One, Knysh explores this thesis by offering several potential models for Sufism's origin. These models range from Marxist interpretations of political unrest to various Sufi thinkers' own self-understanding as pursuing the purest form of Muslim devotion. Knysh notes as well the undeniable influence of other religious traditions, especially the proximity of Christianity's own mystical expressions, on the development of Sufism early on while also recognizing the potential complications inherent with such comparison. As such, Knysh states Sufism is only truly real "in the sense that it has long-ranging and tangible sociopolitical, practical, cultural, and institutional implications" (p.34) developed through a vast variety of imaginations. Holding the tension between these influences allows Knysh to explore the complications of Sufism as an evolving concept as well as living spirituality. Knysh deepens this analysis in Chapter Two by considering how Sufism came to be understood as a unique Islamic practice. He discusses early elements of Sufi development such as walaya, spiritual authority of teachers, transmitted not only through their texts but through the teacher's lived example. This, in turn, would serve as a basis for a cult of devotion surrounding Sufi saints, solidifying [End Page 369] the development of spiritual lineages. Knysh utilizes these foundational concepts to reveal the differences between Muslim and Western understanding of Sufism's functionality. Whereas the Muslim approach along the Sunni/Shi'i divide focuses largely on the sociopolitical role played by such schools, the West often looks to the discourses created by spiritual authorities to delineate between Sufism's various focus on philosophy or occult sciences. Knysh astutely observes how privileging texts over social structures significantly alters how Sufism is conceived. At the end of this chapter, Knysh offers a succinct and helpful list of traits that might be seen as essential to Sufism (p. 60–61), helping the reader understand Sufi spirituality vis-à-vis the efficacy of spiritual authorities to reveal esoteric knowledge and shape their worldview. Chapter Three concerns Sufism's exegetical tradition and will undoubtedly be the most engaging for the outside readers that Knysh envisions. Largely focused on the characteristics of Ibn Arabi's Akbarian school and Najm al-din (al-)Kubra's Kubrawi school, this chapter offers the deepest look into the "cosmology and gnoseology" (p.120) that has so captured Western attention. Exploring various ways in which these schools read both the Quranic and Hadith texts, this chapter gives the reader a sense of not only how their philosophy functions but also how its implications are transmitted...

RAŞİD HALİFELER DÖNEMİNDE MÜSLÜMANLARIN İNDUS VADİSİ İLE İLK İLİŞKİLERİ VE ASKERİ SEFERLER

The glorious past of the Indus valley has experienced a settlement of the civilization that was at its peak in the era before Christ. People had developed societies living with peace and prosperity. However, time changed and the decline of Indus valley civilization occurred. After that, up to the middle of the 7th century A.D many other nations came and captured the area. It is being perceived as a common concept that Islam came into the Indus valley by the conquest of Muhammad bin Qasim(d.96/715) at the beginning of 8th century during the Umayyad period and started spreading in the region with the effort of Sufi saints. But literature presents some evidence on the presence of Islam in Indus valley even before Muhammad bin Qasim. The purpose of this study is to find out the entrance and existence of Islam in Indus valley during the domination of the Guided Caliphate. To support the claim and analyze the issue the study follows the contemporary as well as the main Arabic sources of Islamic history. It has been found that, with the expansion of the Islamic state, the religion of Islam had also spread up to its vast boundaries along the cardinal directions. However, due to many unsuccessful military expeditions caused by the unfair policies and wrong strategies towards local masses, the impact of the spread went unnoticed. On the contrary, Muhammad bin Qasim was fair enough to the local people and gave them respect as well as high-rank positions in his administration resulting in his quick and comprehensive conquest of the region. It shows that Islam itself and the assimilation potential of people towards it was already there which became a part of Muhammad bin Qasim success in the region.

Tunisian Performances of the Sufi Ascent: the ‘Issawiya Hadra Ritual

Focusing on the hadra ritual of the ‘Issawiya Sufi community, in this article Dia Barghouti explores how the narrative of the Prophet Muhammad's ‘night journey’ is performed within the Tunisian socio-cultural context. Drawing on the philosophical writings of the twelfth-century Sufi saint Muhyidin Ibn ‘Arabi, the author examines how re-enacting narratives of transcendence, and particularly of myths associated with the patron saint of the order, Sidi Ben-’Issa, allows members of the ‘Issawiya community to explore the ontological principles of Sufi cosmology by experiencing them directly in the body. Dia Barghouti is a playwright and PhD candidate in the Department of Theatre and Performance at Goldsmiths, University of London. Her plays have been performed at Ashtar Theatre and the Khalil Sakakini Cultural Center in Ramallah in Palestine.

The all-Embracing Light of Divine Grace in the Theory and Practice of the Sufi Brotherhood of Chishti

Abstract: the author, on the basis of the Philosophical-Sufi studies of medieval Muslim scholars, the achievements of modern theoretical thought and independent argumentation, reveals the Sufi understanding of The Existence of God and the Way to Him. The source of the material was, first of all, the treatises of Indian Islamic thinkers written in Farsi: the work of Ali ibn Uthman al-Hudjwiri Kashf al-Mahdzhub li Abrar al-Kulub («Disclosure of the hidden behind the veil for those who have knowledge in the Mystery of Hearts») and the lithographic edition of Fava’eed al-Fouad «Useful [knowledge] for the Heart», owned by the Sheikh Nizamuddin Awliya – one of the most significant Sufi saints of the Order of Chishti. It is convincingly proven, how, using the words-labels, for example, Light and Heart and their connotations (Anwar – plural Absolute Light, Nur – Light, and also refracted or reflected Ray), one can come to the understanding that Nur is Light, Ray, Shine and Allah Himself. Thus, the creators of the monuments of medieval writing in the countries of the Muslim East asserted the religious paradigm according to which, thanks to the Unity of the Existence (vahdat al-wujud), the Light of Divine Grace embraces the entire universe: from the simple to the complex, and from it to the heart of the person who has gone through all the ways of perfection.

Women’s public lives and sovereign arrangements in Karachi’s inner city

Women’s public lives in Pakistan are often presented through tropes of oppression and restricted mobility. While women do struggle with all kinds of limitations that curtail their movement in the public sphere, they also negotiate their way and find their place in the public realm through various means that remain understudied in this context. In this article I track women’s movements in public space in the historic quarters of Karachi, Pakistan’s largest and most populous city. What emerges in the study is that a key aspect of women’s movement through their neighbourhood is their membership in or attachment to various sovereign arrangements – political and religious, formal and informal – that seek to rule and govern the space of the quarter. These arrangements include political parties and groups, religious organizations and the shrines of Sufi saints. Ultimately I argue that women’s public lives are driven not so much by the assertion of an individualized citizenship as by an attachment to and association with collective arrangements that allow a participation in the making of political and religious imaginaries.

Analyse the Key Role Played by Different Sufi Institutions in Development of These Architectural Traditions

This study traces the history of Sufi institutions, from their origins inside mosques to their emergence as autonomous organizations meeting the requirements of today's diverse Sufi population. We also talk about how Sufi organizations interact with Islamic government, education, and religion. The study begins with a discussion of the historical circumstances that prompted the establishment of independent Sufi organizations. This study will examine the cultural, architectural, and historical significance of Sufi structures and Sufi orders in the ancient Indian cities of Gulbarga and Bidar, which serve as district headquarters, during the Bahmani era. Urs, a Muslim wedding and funeral rite associated with Sufi saints, will serve as the inspiration for the building's design.

Evolution of the Islamic Religious Architecture of Kashmir in the Medieval Period

The Mughals resurrected stone architecture and erected stunning, majestic buildings across the Valley. As a result of combining local design elements with imperial influences, the architecture in this area is really unique. In addition, the Valley's geography allowed the emperors to create gardens in the style of Central Asia. The Kashmir valley has been praised as "heaven on earth," so naturally it has attracted the attention of religious leaders, explorers, and tourists throughout history. The rise of the Mughal Empire in northern India brought a magnificent resurgence of Islamic architecture after a period of pillage. In the Mughal Empire, a synthesis of Indian, Persian, and other styles resulted in a level of quality and improvement that had never been seen before. Kashmiri culture and custom were significantly shaped during the Mughal era. The era was crucial in developing Kashmiri's rich artwork and putting this valley on the map as one of the most culturally significant places in the world. A spectacular scenario occurred in 1326 A.D. when the monarch of a period, Rinchana (1320–1323) of Kashmir, adopted Islam at the hands of the Sufi saint Sayyid Sharaf-ud-Din Abdul Rahman. The state and its surrounding areas have a long history of Muslim settlement, though, as well as the king's discontent regarding other religions.

Божественная необходимость, Божественные иллюзии: предварительные замечания к сравнительному изучению Майстера Экхарта и Ибн аль-Араби (пер. с англ. и коммент. иер. Евгения Шилова)

Author in his article compares the elements of the teachings of the Dominican preacher Meister Eckhart and the Sufi saint Ibn al-ʼArabi. The author selects some parallels: Oneness and multiplicity, “God” and “Deity”, the doctrine of the soul and its ability to know God, the way of knowing of God, the interpretation of Holy Scripture. Behind the superficial similarities of the teachings of these two thinkers, the author reveals some radical divergences. The author also comes to the conclusion that, in spite of the general moments of mysticism of Ibn al-ʼArabi and Meister Eckhart, the way to God and the knowledge of God are considered by these thinkers in different ways.

From Potent Dead to Potent Places? Reflections on Muslim Saint Shrines in South Asia

This paper analyses the issue of the thaumaturgy of the Muslim saints in South Asia by focusing on the notion of potent place rather than on the exemplary lives of these figures and on their exceptional relations to God. Nevertheless, there is an important contradiction between the ubiquity of the saint, his residence with God and his strict localisation in space. To establish a firm relation with him and obtain his intercession, devotees must visit him precisely where his corpse was buried. Generally, this place was already potent or extra-ordinary before the inhumation of the saint. Does the process of the saint’s institutionalisation through the rites performed on his body transfer the potency of the place onto the saint and the power of the saint to the place? The analysis will draw on fieldwork enquiries conducted at the shrine of the martyr Ghāzī Miyāñ, the oldest (eleventh century) and most popular Muslim heroic figure in Northern India and Nepalese Terai, and at the shrines of two popular Sufi saints of Sindh (Pakistan), Lāl Shahbāz Qalandar and Bodlo Bahār.