Know Thyself, Know Thy God

The Concept of Sufism

Sufism has been described in many different ways by scholars writing in English, throughout this century, but they all agree on its essential character as being the inner, esoteric, mystical, or purely spiritual dimension of the religion of Islam. R. A. Nicholson in his little introduction to Sufism, The Mystics of Islam (1914), remarks: "Sufism, the religious philosophy of Islam, is described in the oldest extant definition as `the apprehension of divine realities'," and although referring to it as "Islamic mysticism," he still maintains the popular idea that Sufism was largely the product of diverse philosophical and spiritual influences, including Christian, Neoplatonic, and others. He further states that it is "a subject so vast and many-sided that several large volumes would be required to do it anything like justice".

More than 35 years later his student, A.J. Arberry, in his brief introduction to the subject, Sufism (1950), similarly states that Sufism is "the name given to the mysticism of Islam" and "the mystical movement of an uncompromising Monotheism". It was this author that first maintained that although Sufism was the recipient of many influences from Neoplatonic and other sources, that it was in essence derived from the Qur'an and Prophetic (Muhammadan) tradition, and attempted to view "the movement from within as an aspect of Islam, as though these other factors which certainly determined its growth did not exist". This approach became generally accepted and was echoed by later scholars.

Shah Latif was an 18th century mystic poet of Sindh whose life was filled with love for the Divine, and who expressed that love through his music and through his poetry. An unusual feature of Shah Latif's life was, similar to Shirdi Sai Baba, he expressed his divine longing in both traditional Sufism as "the name by which Islamic mysticism came to be known in the 8th or 9th century A.D." and stated: "It is only in secondary respects that there can be said to have been any development In Sufism, or for that matter in Islam as a whole, since the time of the Prophet". Taking this idea one step further, he writes: "The influences on Sufism from outside have been enormously exaggerated. Probably the chief influence was Neoplatonism, but even this was confined mostly to terminology and to methods of doctrinal exposition".

The Practice of Sufism

In something of a departure from previous definitions, Victor Danner, in his introduction to his translation of Ibn `Ata'illah's Book of Wisdom (1978), writes: "When dealing with Sufism, it is best to leave to one side such terms as `mystic' and `mysticism,' if only because in the modern Western world such words nowadays often lead to confusion". He prefers to identify it operatively and institutionally, as he does in his book The Islamic Tradition (1988): "Sufism is the spiritual Path (tariqah) of Islam and has been identified with it for well over a thousand years. It has been called `Islamic mysticism' by Western scholars because of its resemblance to Christian and other forms of mysticism elsewhere. Unlike Christian mysticism, however, Sufism is a continuous historical and even institutionalized phenomenon in the Muslim world that has had millions of adherents down to the present day. Indeed, if we look over the Muslim world, there is hardly a region that does not have Sufi orders still functioning there". Such is his estimation of the importance, within Islam, of Sufism that he says: "Sufism has influenced the spiritual life of the religion to an extraordinary degree; there is no important domain in the civilization of Islam that has remained unaffected by it". It is in the spirit of the above quote by Victor Danner that I have compiled this annotated resource guide.

Concerning its intended use, I have compiled this guide for two groups: the general reader wishing to do personal research on the subject, and the college undergraduate wishing to supplement his reading for a course on Sufism, Islam, or comparative mysticism. As such, it contains only works written in English. A bibliography for graduate level research would need to contain works in European languages such as French and German, as well as oriental languages such as Arabic, Persian, and Turkish. Overly technical works, as well as those on highly specialized topics, of interest to only a few scholars, have also been passed over. This guide may be used to aid in collection development in a large public library, undergraduate university library, or small college library.

A word should be said on the organization of the bibliographical section. A number of organizational schemes might have been used. However, certain categories, useful for the new student of Sufism, naturally suggested themselves. Firstly, I have divided the material into primary and secondary works. Primary works are translations of those written by the Sufis themselves, including those of a scholarly or historical nature. Secondary works are those written by modern scholars. I have placed the secondary works first because it is by and large those that will form an introduction to the subject to the new reader, and which s/he may wish to look at first. Secondary works are subdivided into four broad types: general works, doctrinal works, studies of poetry, and studies of individual Sufis. Primary works are similarly subdivided into four broad categories: compendiums and manuals, doctrinal works and teachings, poetical works, and biographical works, including those by Sufis on other Sufis, and collections of letters. These categories are not mutually exclusive, (since among secondary sources, a general work may contain doctrine, and among primary sources, a compendium may contain doctrine and biography, etc.) but correspond to basic types, regarding format, style, and purpose. Furthermore, secondary works by modern scholars may well contain some, even a great deal of primary material. This will be indicated in the annotations, where appropriate.

Sufism : The Way of The Heart Sufism is known as the Way of the Heart, the Way of the Pure, the Mystical Path of Islam. By whatever name it is called, it is the path which takes the seeker to the Divine Presence. In essence Sufism is a means and a way by which the seeker will move from the gravity of his or her lower self, to ascend, with the assistance of a mystical guide, and through the methods and practices defined by the Way he or she has chosen, to the state wherein the Vision of God is presented to her or him. The ways to God are as numerous as the breaths of mankind. Each individual person has his or her own, personal and private way to the Divine Presence.

Each person is a unique representative of the Divine. The Sufis say, "If human beings knew their own inner secrets, never would they look elsewhere for seeking happiness, peace and inner light." Therefore the essence of the Path is to find oneself. "Know thyself, know thy Lord!" is an imperative of the Sufi Way. From whence did we come? Where are we going? How do we get there? These are the questions that have ensconced themselves in the hearts of human beings since the Dawn of Humankind. Sufism, from that very dawn, came to soothe the soul of the seeker and to alleviate his or her suffering in the throes of this worldly life, to relieve the yearning hearts from the distress which pulled them into depression and sadness. The state of the world, always of concern to those who looked beyond their day-to-day living, has always troubled those whose hearts are full of pity and compassion for the lot of humankind, for the Earth and her state, for Nature and its preservation and protection.

The Essence Of The Way

The Sufi masters, those Beings of Light and Hope in every time and century, have sought to provide solace and respite, like oases for the thirsty souls seeking comfort and provision for the journey across the desert of this mundane existence. They are like wellsprings, bubbling forth cold, refreshing pure water to quench the eager thirst of the weary travelers on the way. They fulfilled their vows and their responsibilities before the One, accepting to carry the burden of human-ness.

They answered the first question with "from God." They answered the second question with "to God." They answered the third question with "come with me." Come and sit in association with some of these masters of wisdom and intellect, as they provide soul-soothing answers to the compelling queries of the seekers of love, happiness and peace.

As beings endowed with the Divine Light, we are the custodians and maintainers of all that is of benefit for the personality of humankind, the protection of the planet, and for connecting with our inner childlike self. It is this spiritual connection that enables human beings to draw from the universal flow of energy which penetrates every interstice of this universe, and to channel it towards healing and soothing the body and souls of our sisters and brothers on this tiny green planet, floating like a sparkling sapphire in the depths of space.

Bhitai's Journey Towards The Truth