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hir Mamood Kin [email protected]

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TAAWWUF

Meaning of Taawwuf

Evolution of the Word Taawwuf

The term Taawwuf evolved as did the termsfiqh, kalm, etc.

The word f is derived from:

f (wool)uffah(Ahl a-uffah)aff (i.e. aff Awwal First Row)ifah (good quality/virtue)afwah (elite/best choice)

Tne word may have come from: = = = =

The word f was first used for Ab Hshim, of Syria (d. 150 AH)The first to define the ideologies ofTaawwufwas Dhun-Nn al-Mir (d. 245 AH)

The word f became popular after 200 AH.The term f was first opposed after 600 AH.

Who wrote on Taawwuf / Zuhd1

Imm Muslim ibn al-allj (206 AH / 821 CE 261 AH / 875 AH)Imm Amad ibn anbal (164 AH/ 780 CE - 241 AH / 855 CE)Imm Ab Dwd (202 AH / 818 CE - 275 AH / 889 CE)Imm Wak ibn al-Jarr (d. 197 AH / 813 CE)Imm al-Bayhaq (384 AH / 994 CE - 458 AH / 1066 CE)ImmAbdullh ibn al-Mubrak (118 AH / 736 CE 181 AH /797 CE)and others.

The Holy Qurn does not use the word Taawwuf rather, it uses other words that aresynonymous such as Tazkiyah,Khashyah and Taqw, etc.

1. Tazkiyah: cleansing oneselfThe Holy Qurn says:

. Truly he succeeds who purifies (his soul). (Srat ash-Shams (91):9)

1 Zuhd Renunciation the conviction that possessions do not enrich us in any way.


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2. Khashyah or khashiyyah: fear of AllhThe Holy Quran says:

. Those who fear Allh will remember (the advice). (Srat al-Al (87):10)

3. Taqw: Piety, Righteousness, GodwarinessThe Holy Qurn says:

. Righteousness is that one remains Allah-wary. (Srat al-Baqarah (2):189)

And whoever hopes for the meeting with his Lord, let him do righteous work, and make

none sharer of the worship due unto his Lord. (Srat al-Kahf (18):110)

. And none hath with him any favour for reward, Except as seeking (to fulfil) the purpose of

his Lord Most High. He verily will be content. (Srat al-Layl (92):19-21)

Taawwuf in the Holy Qurn

1.

Who have believed and whose hearts have rest in the remembrance of Allah. Verily in the

remembrance ofAllh do hearts find rest! (Srat ar-Rad (13):28)

2.

Allh verily has shown grace to the believers by sending to them a messenger of their ownwho recites to them His revelations, and purifies them, and teaches them the Scripture andwisdom; although before (he came to them) they were in flagrant error. (Srat l Imrn (3):164)

a. Recitation of scripture outward aspect of prophethood. Muslim Scholars, Jurists, adthMasters, Preachers continue this.

b. Purification inward aspect of prophethood. Including (a), this was continued by Saints,Ascetics, etc. (Ghawth, Abdl, etc.)Both (a) and (b) emanate from the Holy Qurn, and hence, without following the HolyProphet, they are impossible to adopt.

It is imperative for a Spiritual Doctor to be learned in both.

3.

Say, (O Muammad, to mankind): If you love Allah, follow me; Allh will love you and

forgive you your sins. Allh is Forgiving, Merciful. (Srat l Imrn (3):31)


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4.

Restrain yourself along with those who cry to their Lord morning and evening, seeking HisCountenance; and let not thine eyes overlook them, desiring the pomp of the life of the world;and obey not him whose heart We have made heedless of Our remembrance, who follows his ownlust and whose case has been abandoned. (Srat al-Kahf (18):28)

5.

Men whom neither merchandise nor sale sways away from the remembrance of Allh and

constancy in prayer and paying to the poor their due; who fear a day when hearts and eyeballswill be overturned. (Srat an-Nr (24):37)

6.

Except ifAllh will. And remember your Lord when you forget, and say: It may be that my Lordguids me to a nearer way of truth than this. (Srat al-Kahf(18):24)

7.

And they are not ordered but to to serve Allah, keeping religion pure for Him, as men by

nature upright, and to establish worship and to pay the poor-due. That is true religion. (Srat al-Bayyinah (98):5)

Taawwuf in adth and Sunnah

1. adth Jibrl: " ( :

" " : ) ( : " " :

) : " " : " : ) " ( So tell me about Isn. The Prophet replied: That you worship Allh as though you

see Him, or else He does see you.(Muslim, Mishkt)

According to this adth, the pillars ofTaawwufare 3:

i. Islm meaning obedience (ah) and worship (ibdah),ii. mn meaning belief(aqdah) and light (nr) ,iii. Isn devotion (murqabah) and witnessing (mushhadah).

2. adth Qalb:


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Verily, in the body is a lump of flesh; when it is well, the whole body is well when it isunwell, the whole body is unwell it is the heart! (Al-Bukhr, Muslim, Ibn Mjah)

3. adth uwari-kum:

Verily, Allh does not look at your bodies and nor at your appearances, but rather, he

looks at your hearts and at your actions. (Muslim)

Types ofNafs (Self)

Three types of Nafs (Self / Soul):

1. Nafs Ammrah (The Self the Incites to Do Evil)2The Lower Self or the Base Desires

Rm compares the Nafs to a camel, and the Intellect to Majnn, where the latter strives toturn the former in the direction of his Beloved who is Allh.

2. Nafs Lawwmah (The Self-Accusing Self)3The Conscience

3. Nafs Mumainnah (The Tranquil Soul)4The ego that is content with the will ofAllh

Further types of nafs include; (4) nafs mulamah (the Inspired Soul), (5) nafsraiyyah (the Pleased Soul), (6) nafs mariyyah (the Pleasing Soul), (7)

nafsfiyah (the Pure Soul).

Scholars Who Wrote in Favour of Taawwuf

Jalluddn as-Suy, Ibn ajar al-Asqaln, Badruddn al-Ayn, Ibn Khaldn, Taqiyuddnas-Subk, Ibn ajar al-Haytam, al-Baydw, a-w, Abus-Sud, al-Baghaw, Ibn Kathr, at-Taftzn, an-Nafas, ar-Rz, al-Bukhr, Muslim ibn allj, etc.

Ibn Khaldn, a Muslim statesman, jurist, historian, and scholar of the fourteenth century,devoted a long section of in his monumental work, al-Muqaddimah of History, to discuss the scienceofTaawwuf. He writes:

Taawwufbelongs to the sciences of religious law that originated in Islam. It is

based on the assumption that the practices of its adherents had always beenconsidered by the important early Muslims, the men around Muammad and the men of the second generation, as well as those who came after them, asthe path of true and right guidance. The f approach is based upon constantapplication to divine worship, complete devotion to God, aversion to false

2

.

Nor do I absolve my own self (of blame): the (human soul) certainly is prone to do evil, unless my Lord bestows HisMercy: but surely my Lord is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Srat Ysuf (12):53)

3

. And I certainly call to witness the self-reproaching soul. (Srat al-Qiymah (72):2)4

.

(It will be said to the obedient person) O content soul, Come back to your Lord, well-pleased (with Him),well-pleasing (to Him). So, enter among My (special) servants, And enter My Paradise. (Srat al-Fajr(89):27-30)


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splendor of the world, abstinence from the pleasure, property, and position towhich great mass aspires, and the retirement from the world into solitude fordivine worship. These things were general among the men around Muammad and the early Muslims. Then, worldly aspirations increased in the second(eighth) century and after. At that time, the special name of fs (Sfiyyah andMutaawwifah) was given to those who aspired to divine worship.The fs came to represent asceticism, retirement from the world, and

devotion to divine worship. They developed a particular kind of perceptionwhich comes about through ecstatic experience. When the sciences werewritten down systematically and when the jurists wrote works on jurisprudence and the principles of jurisprudence, on speculative theology,Qurn interpretation, and other subjects, the fs, too, wrote on their subject.Some fs wrote on the laws governing asceticism and self-scrutiny, how toact and not act in imitation of model (saints). Al-Ghazzl, in the IyUlm ad-

Dn, dealt systematically with the laws governing asceticism and the imitationof models. Then, he explained the behavior and customs of the fs andcommented on their technical vocabulary. Thus, the science of Taawwufbecame a systematically treated discipline in Islam. Before that, mysticism had

merely consisted of divine worship, and its laws had existed in the breasts ofmen. The same had been the case with all other disciplines, Qur ninterpretation, the science of tradition, jurisprudence, the principles ofjurisprudence, and other disciplines.

Ibn Khaldns al-Muqaddimah (of History), translated from the Arabicinto English by Franz Rosenthal, 3 Vols., Princeton University Press,Princeton, N. J., 1967 [vol. 3, pp. 76-81].

Ibn Taymiyyah5:Ibn Taymiyahs general attitude to Taawwufis disclosed in this passage:Some people accept everything of fsm, what is right as well as what is wrong; othersreject it totally, both what is wrong and what is right, as some scholars of kalm and fiqhdo. The right attitude towards Taawwuf, or any other thing, is to accept what is inagreement with the Quran and the Sunnah, and reject what does not agree . [Majm

Fatw Shaykh al-Islm, vol. 10, p. 82].

Stories offs

Jalluddn Rm and Shh Shams TibrzRm story of Majnn writing on sandStory of Majnn wandering and walking past a worshipper

Principles and Rules of Taawwuf

In hisAl-Maqid,Imm an-Nawaw, the great Shfi scholar, discusses Taawwufat great length. Hisconclusions may be summarized as follows: "The basic rules of the way ofTaawwufare five:

1. Being Allh-wary privately and publicly,2. Living according to the sunnah in word and deed,3. Indifference to whether others accept or reject one,4. Satisfaction with Allh in scarcity and plenty, and5. Turning to Allh in sorrow and in joy.

5 Ibn Taymiyyah: He is Taqiuddn Abul-Abbs Amad ibn Abdulalm ibn Abdussalm Ibn Taymiyyah al-arrn (661AH / 1263 CEarrn (Turkey) - 728 AH / 1328 CE Damascus (Syria))
http://www.masud.co.uk/ISLAM/nuh/reliance.htm#maqasidhttp://www.masud.co.uk/ISLAM/nuh/reliance.htm#maqasidhttp://www.masud.co.uk/ISLAM/nuh/reliance.htm#maqasidhttp://www.masud.co.uk/ISLAM/nuh/reliance.htm#maqasidhttp://www.masud.co.uk/ISLAM/nuh/reliance.htm#maqasidhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harranhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harranhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harranhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damascushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damascushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harranhttp://www.masud.co.uk/ISLAM/nuh/reliance.htm#maqasid


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The foundations of all of these consist of five things:

1. High aspiration,2. Keeping the reverence ofAllh,3. Giving the best of service,4. Keeping one's spiritual resolves, and5. Esteeming the blessings of Allh.

On an individual, the signs of the principles ofTaawwufare also five:

1. Seeking knowledge of the Sharah in order to perform the commands of Allh;2. Keeping the company of spiritual guides and fellow disciples in order to see with insight;3. Forgoing both dispensations from religious obligations and figurative interpretations of

scripture, for the sake of cautiousness;4. Organizing one's time with spiritual works to maintain the presence of heart; and5. Suspecting the self in all matters, in order to free oneself from caprice and be safe from

destruction.

What Taawwuf is NotB-Yazd al-Busm(188 AH / 804 CE - 264 AH /878 CE)People said to Sayyidun B-Yazd al-Busm:You are a performer of many miracles. You walk on the surface of water.He replied: This is no miracle. Twigs also float on water.People said: But you fly in the air.He replied: This too is no miracle, for tiny insects too fly in the air.People said: It is indeed a great miracle that within a single night you travel to Makkah.He replied: This too is nothing. Sorcerers journey in a single night from Hindstn to

Mount Diynand.People said: What then is a miracle?

He replied: A miracle is engrossment of the heart with none besides Allh

.

Junayd al-Baghdd(214 AH / 830 CE 297 AH / 910 CE)Sayyidun Junayd al-Baghdd says:All avenues besides the strict following of Raslullhare closed to mankind.

Objectives of Taawwuf

Love for the poor. Purity of heart/intention. Generosity. Loyalty.Inclination towards the Beloved, i.e. Allh. Truth and honesty in conducting

affairs. Prostration to Allh. Fear and hope ofAllh. Adopting silence is

gold. Forgiving others. Clean thoughts and actions. Seeking companionship with thepious. Knowledge, wisdom, observation, guidance, training,

discipline, cure of illnesses, piety, steadfastness, patience, strivinghard, avoiding worldly temptations, purity in worship.

To chieve the nafs mumainnah, one needs to combat the following:Takabbur(False pride)Hir (Greed)Haad (Envy)Shahwah (Lust)Ghbah (Backbiting)Bukhl (Stinginess)

Knah (Malice)

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