DOCSLIB.ORG

Sufism in the West

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Sufism in the West Sufism in the West With the increasing Muslim diaspora in post-modern Western societies, Sufism – intellectually as well as sociologically – may eventually become mainstream Islam itself due to its versatile potential, especially in the wake of what has been called the failure of political Islam world-wide. Sufism in the West provides a timely account of this subject and is primarily concerned with the latest developments in the history of Sufism and elaborates the ideas and institutions which organise Sufism and folk- religious practices. The topics discussed include: • The orders and movements • Their social base • Organisation and institutionalisation • Recruitment-patterns in new environments • Channels of disseminating ideas, such as ritual, charisma, and organisation • Reasons for their popularity among certain social groups • The nature of their affiliation with the countries of their origin Sufism in the West is essential reading for students and academics with research interests in Islam, Islamic History and Social Anthropology. John Hinnells is former Professor and founding chair of the Department for the Study of Religion at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London University. His main research interest is in Zoroastrianism and has also edited the New Penguin Dictionary of Religions and the New Penguin Handbook of Living Religions. Jamal Malik is Chair of Religious Studies and Islamic Studies at the University of Erfurt, Germany. His areas of interest and research are Islamic Religion, Social History of Muslim South Asia, Colonialism and Political Islam, Islamic Mysticism and Muslims in the West. Sufism in the West Edited by Jamal Malik and John Hinnells I~ ~~o~!~~n~~~up LONDON AND NEW YORK First published 2006 by Routledge Published 2017 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017, USA Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business Copyright © 2006 Editorial matters and selection, Jamal Malik and John Hinnells; individual chapters their contributors Typeset in Garamond by Keyword Group Ltd, Wallington The Open Access version of this book, available at www.tandfebooks.com, has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial- No Derivatives 4.0 license. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data A catalog record for this book has been requested ISBN13: 978-0-415-27407-4 (hbk) ISBN13: 978-0-415-27408-1 (pbk) Contents List of contributors vii Preface x Introduction 1 JAMAL MALIK 1 Literary productions of Western Sufi movements 28 MARCIA HERMANSEN 2 Persian Sufism in the contemporary West: reflections on the Ni‘matu’llahi diaspora 49 LEONARD LEWISOHN 3 The evolution of the Naqshbandi-Mujaddidi: Sulaymançis in Germany 71 GERDIEN JONKER 4 Third-wave Sufism in America and the Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship 86 GISELA WEBB 5 Transnational Sufism: the Haqqaniyya 103 JORGEN S. NIELSEN, MUSTAFA DRAPER AND GALINA YEMELIANOVA 6 Aspects of the Naqshbandi-Haqqani order in North America 115 DAVID W. DAMREL 7 Seekers on the path: different ways of being a Sufi in Britain 127 PNINA WERBNER vi Contents 8 Learning the lessons from the neo-revivalist and Wahhabi movements: the counterattack of the new Sufi movements in the UK 142 RON GEAVES 9 Popular Islam in northern Pakistan and its reconstruction in urban Britain 160 ROGER BALLARD Glossary 187 Bibliography 190 Index 203 List of contributors Roger Ballard is an anthropologist, and Director of the Centre for Applied South Asian Studies in the University of Manchester. He has a long-standing interest in all aspects of the development of Britain’s many South Asian communities, and has carried out extensive ethnographic research in the UK, as well as in both Indian and Pakistani Punjab. The author of many articles, he edited Desh Pardesh: the South Asian Presence in Britain (London: Hurst, 1994). David W. Damrel teaches in the Department of Religious Studies at Arizona State University and has research interests in contemporary and early modern Islamic mysticism. His current research project investigates mysticism and dissent in contemporary transnational Muslim communities. Some of his publications include ‘Muslim Spaces in South Asia’, in Sacred Places and Modern Landscapes, (ed. Ronald A. Lukens-Bull, 2003), and ‘The “Naqshbandi Reaction” Reconsidered’, in Beyond Turk and Hindu (ed. David Gilmartin and Bruce Lawrence, Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2000). Mustafa Draper is Research Fellow at the Centre for the Study of Islam and Christian- Muslim Relations (CSIC), Department of Theology, University of Birmingham, UK. Ron Geaves is Professor of Religious Studies at University College, Chester. He is particularly interested in Muslim, especially Sufi, diasporas in the West. His major publications are Sectarian Influences within Islam in Britain (Leeds: University of Leeds, 1996), Sufis of the West (Cardiff: Cardiff Academic Press, 2000) and Islam and the West post 9/11 (Aldershot: Ashgate, 2004), edited with Yvonne Haddad, Theodore Gabriel and Jane Smith. His latest book, Aspects of Islam, is published by Darton, Longman and Todd. Marcia Hermansen is Professor of Islamic Studies in the Theology Department of Loyola University, Chicago. She works both on classical Islamic thought and on contemporary topics such as Muslims in America and Western Sufi movements. Publications include The Conclusive Argument from God. Shah Wali Allah of Delhi’s Hujjat Allah al-Baligha (Brill: Leiden, 1997), and ‘Islamic Religious Healing in Chicago: Intersections of South Asian Sufi, American, and Islamic Models’ for Religious Healing in America (ed. Susan Sered and Linda L. Barnes, Oxford, 2004). viii List of contributors John Hinnells, prior to retirement, was Professor of Comparative Religion at Manchester and the School of Oriental and African Studies, London. He now works at Liverpool Hope University College, part time, and is a Senior Member of Robinson College, Cambridge. His main area of research is on the Parsis (Zoroastrians in Britain, Oxford Clarendon Press, 1996 and The Zoroastrian Diaspora, Oxford: Clarendon Press, 2005). He is also interested in questions of theory and method in the study of reli- gion (see Companion to the Study of Religion, Routledge, 2005). Gerdien Jonker works at the Department of Social and Comparative Anthropology, Viadrina-University Frankfurt (Oder). Recent publications are, Eine Wellenlänge zu Gott: Der Verband der Islamischen Kulturzentren in Europa (Bielefeld: Transcript Verlag, 2002); Female Inroads into Muslim Communities: Reconstructions of Knowledge, Community, and Communication, (ed. with Tuula Sakaranaho, Social Compass, 2003/1); The Politics of Visibility: Young Muslims in European public spaces (with Valérie Amiraux, Bielefeld, Transcript Verlag, 2005). Leonard Lewisohn is Research Associate at the Department of Academic Research and Publications, The Institute of Ismaili Studies, London, UK. He is also Iran Heritage Foundation Fellow in Classical Persian and Sufi Literature at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies of the University of Exeter. Lewisohn is a specialist on Sufi literature and Persian language. His major publications are the three-volume single set entitled The Heritage of Sufism (Oxford: Oneworld Publications, 1999), Beyond Faith and Infidelity: The Sufi Poetry and Teachings of Mahmud Shabistari (London: Curzon Press, 1995), and The Wisdom of Sufism (Oxford: Oneworld, 2001). Jamal Malik is Professor of Islamic Studies at the University of Erfurt. He works both on Muslims in South Asia and Europe. Publications include The Colonialization of Islam (New Delhi: Manohar and Lahore: Vanguard, 1996), Islamische Gelehrtenkultur in Nordindien (Leiden: Brill, 1997). He edited Perspectives of mutual encounters in South Asian History 1760–1860 (Leiden: Brill, 2000), Muslims in Europe: From the Margin to the Centre (Münster: LIT, 2004), and Religious Pluralism in South Asia and Europe (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2004). Jorgen S. Nielsen is Professor of Islamic Studies, Centre for the Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations (CSIC), Department of Theology and Religion, University of Birmingham, UK. Current research interests concentrate on the Islamic debate on religious pluralism and relations with the ‘West’. His recent publications include Muslim Networks and Transnational Communities in and Across Europe, (ed. with S. Allievi, Leiden: Brill, 2003), and Muslims in Western Europe (Edinburgh University Press, 3rd edn, 2004). Gisela Webb is Professor of Religious Studies, Seton Hall University, USA. Her publications include ‘Expressions of Islam in America’, ‘Sufism in America’, and ‘Subud’ in America’s Alternative Religions, (ed. T. Miller, SUNY Press, 1995), her anthology, Windows of Faith: Muslim Women Scholar-Activists in the United States (ed. G. Webb, Syracuse University Press, 2000), ‘Themes of Wisdom in Dialogue’ in List of contributors ix Beacon of Light: Essays in Honor of Seyyed Hossein Nasr (ed. M. Faghfoory, Fons Vitae Press, 2003), and ‘Death and Dying in Islam: This Day Your Sight is Made Keen’ in Death and Dying in World Religions (ed. L. Bregman, Pearson Press, 2004). Pnina Werbner is Professor of Social Anthropology at Keele. She is the author of The Manchester Migration Trilogy, which includes ‘The Migration Process’ (Berg, 2002), ‘Imagined Diasporas among Manchester
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Understanding the Concept of Islamic Sufism
    Journal of Education & Social Policy Vol. 1 No. 1; June 2014 Understanding the Concept of Islamic Sufism Shahida Bilqies Research Scholar, Shah-i-Hamadan Institute of Islamic Studies University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006 Jammu and Kashmir, India. Sufism, being the marrow of the bone or the inner dimension of the Islamic revelation, is the means par excellence whereby Tawhid is achieved. All Muslims believe in Unity as expressed in the most Universal sense possible by the Shahadah, la ilaha ill’Allah. The Sufi has realized the mysteries of Tawhid, who knows what this assertion means. It is only he who sees God everywhere.1 Sufism can also be explained from the perspective of the three basic religious attitudes mentioned in the Qur’an. These are the attitudes of Islam, Iman and Ihsan.There is a Hadith of the Prophet (saw) which describes the three attitudes separately as components of Din (religion), while several other traditions in the Kitab-ul-Iman of Sahih Bukhari discuss Islam and Iman as distinct attitudes varying in religious significance. These are also mentioned as having various degrees of intensity and varieties in themselves. The attitude of Islam, which has given its name to the Islamic religion, means Submission to the Will of Allah. This is the minimum qualification for being a Muslim. Technically, it implies an acceptance, even if only formal, of the teachings contained in the Qur’an and the Traditions of the Prophet (saw). Iman is a more advanced stage in the field of religion than Islam. It designates a further penetration into the heart of religion and a firm faith in its teachings.
    [Show full text]
  • Access-Controlled High-Speed Corridor Project, 129 Adib-Moghaddam, Arshin, 19–20 Agwani, M. S., 64 Ahl-I-Hadith Movement
    Cambridge University Press 978-1-107-08026-3 - Limits of Islamism: Jamaat-e-Islami in Contemporary India and Bangladesh Maidul Islam Index More information Index 335 Index Access-Controlled High-Speed Corridor ‘available’/‘availability,’ concept of, 10 Project, 129 Awami League, 175–179, 184, 187–188, Adib-Moghaddam, Arshin, 19–20 195, 199, 204, 212, 219, 226, 230–232 Agwani, M. S., 64 Azad, Maulana Abul Kalam, 105 Ahl-i-Hadith movement, 180 Azam, Ghulam, 176, 194, 208, 218, 221 , Ahmed, Akbar, 49 232, 247-248 Ahmed, Justice Shahabuddin, 218 Ahmed, Raisuddin, 146 Alhle-e-Hadees, 113 Baathist regime of Iraq, 18 Ali, Maulana Karamat, 181 Babri Masjid Action Committee, 108 Ali, Maulana Wilayet, 180 Babri mosque demolition, 106 Ali, Mawlana Inayat, 180 Bandung Conference, 31 Ali, Syed Ameer, 181 Bangladesh Ali, T. Arif, 135, 137, 144 altered status quo, politics of, 189 All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimin anti-Ershad movement, 176–177 (AIMIM), 108 anti-Indian sentiments in, 233–234 All India United Democratic Front Constitution of, 176 (AIUDF), 108 disinvestment of profit-making Al-Qaeda, 6–7, 51 ‘state-owned enterprises,’ 201 al-Rāwandī, Ibn, 17 failure of Left movement in, 178–179 al-Rāzī (Rhazes), Abu Bakr, 17 inclusion and exclusion, politics of, Al-Sadr, Moqtada, 30 188 American imperialism, 31, 120 Islam as a political symbol in, protests against, 106–107, 124–125 175–178 vs Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH), 111 Islamic symbols in Bangladeshi Amin, Samir, 11–13, 29, 46, 55, 187–188 politics, 179 Ansari, M. A., 105 Islamist parties in, 204
    [Show full text]
  • Islamic Liberation Theology Reading List
    ISLAMIC LIBERATION THEOLOGY READING LIST Note: In the spirit of robust inquiry and discussion, we chose to present authors from a wide range of intellectual and political commitments, some of whose writings conflict with others, and some we may not even agree with ourselves. This list is not an endorsement of all the texts, authors, and their views, but rather a starting point for critically exploring the place of Islam in liberation, justice, solidarity, and the long work ahead to transform our communities. GENDER, SEXUALITY, AND FEMINISM Sexual Ethics and Islam: Feminist Reflections on Qur'an, Hadith, and Jurisprudence by Kecia Ali Before Homosexuality in the Arab-Islamic World, 1500-1800 by Khaled El- Rouayheb American Muslim Women, Religious Authority, and Activism: More Than a Prayer by Juliane Hammer Women of the Nation: Between Black Protest and Sunni Islam by Dawn-Marie Gibson and Jamillah Karim Homosexuality in Islam: Critical Reflection on Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Muslims by Scott Kugle Politics of Piety: The Islamic Revival and the Feminist Subject by Saba Mahmood Being Muslim: A Cultural History of Women of Color in American Islam by Sylvia Chan-Malik The Veil And The Male Elite: A Feminist Interpretation Of Women's Rights In Islam by Fatima Mernissi The Imperial Harem: Women and Sovereignty in the Ottoman Empire by Leslie P. Peirce Sufi Narratives of Intimacy: Ibn Arabi, Gender and Sexuality by Sa'diyya Shaikh Inside the Gender Jihad: Women's Reform in Islam by Amina Wadud LAW AND THEOLOGY Islamic Family Law in a Changing World: A Global Resource Book by Abdullahi A.
    [Show full text]
  • Iran's Sunnis Resist Extremism, but for How Long?
    Atlantic Council SOUTH ASIA CENTER ISSUE BRIEF Iran’s Sunnis Resist Extremism, but for How Long? APRIL 2018 SCHEHEREZADE FARAMARZI ome fifteen million of Iran’s eighty million people are Sunni Muslims, the country’s largest religious minority. Politically and economically disadvantaged, these Sunnis receive relatively lit- tle attention compared with other minorities and are concen- Strated in border areas from Baluchistan in the southeast, to Kurdistan in the northwest, to the Persian Gulf in the south. The flare up of tensions between regional rivals Saudi Arabia and Iran over Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Yemen would seem to encourage interest in the state of Iranian Sunnis, if only because the Saudis present them- selves as defenders of the world’s Sunnis, and Iran the self-appointed champion of the Shia cause. So how do Iran’s Sunnis fare in a state where Shia theology governs al- most every aspect of life? How have they been affected by this regional rivalry? Are they stuck between jihadist and other extreme regional Sunni movements on the one hand, and the Shia regime’s aggres- sive policies on the other? Is there a danger that these policies could push some disgruntled Iranian Sunnis toward militancy and terrorism? A tour of Turkmen Sahra in the northeast of Iran near the Caspian Sea, and in Hormozgan on the Persian Gulf in 2015 and 2016 revealed some of the answers. More recent interviews were conducted by phone and in person in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and with European-based experts. “Being a Sunni in Iran means pain, fear, anxiety, restrictions,”1 said a young The Atlantic Council’s South woman in a southern Hormozgan village.
    [Show full text]
  • Turkomans Between Two Empires
    TURKOMANS BETWEEN TWO EMPIRES: THE ORIGINS OF THE QIZILBASH IDENTITY IN ANATOLIA (1447-1514) A Ph.D. Dissertation by RIZA YILDIRIM Department of History Bilkent University Ankara February 2008 To Sufis of Lāhijan TURKOMANS BETWEEN TWO EMPIRES: THE ORIGINS OF THE QIZILBASH IDENTITY IN ANATOLIA (1447-1514) The Institute of Economics and Social Sciences of Bilkent University by RIZA YILDIRIM In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in THE DEPARTMENT OF HISTORY BILKENT UNIVERSITY ANKARA February 2008 I certify that I have read this thesis and have found that it is fully adequate, in scope and in quality, as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History. …………………….. Assist. Prof. Oktay Özel Supervisor I certify that I have read this thesis and have found that it is fully adequate, in scope and in quality, as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History. …………………….. Prof. Dr. Halil Đnalcık Examining Committee Member I certify that I have read this thesis and have found that it is fully adequate, in scope and in quality, as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History. …………………….. Prof. Dr. Ahmet Yaşar Ocak Examining Committee Member I certify that I have read this thesis and have found that it is fully adequate, in scope and in quality, as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History. …………………….. Assist. Prof. Evgeni Radushev Examining Committee Member I certify that I have read this thesis and have found that it is fully adequate, in scope and in quality, as a thesis for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History.
    [Show full text]
  • My Favorite Rumi
    My Favorite Rumi selected by Jason Espada 1 Preface In the early 1980’s, I had the incomparable good fortune of finding Rumi’s poetry. Since that time, it’s been a faithful companion; at times a stern teacher, and most often, just the right, delightful medicine. Like a letter from a dear friend, it has always been Rumi’s poetry that reminds me the most of my true home. These last couple of years I’ve had the thought of assembling my favorite Rumi to share with both fellow lovers of his poetry, and especially those who have never read or even heard of him. I’ve been able to make shorter collections of the poetry of Hafiz and Pablo Neruda, to share with others, but with Rumi it’s been more of a challenge. For one thing, I have more of his poetry to choose from. But more than this, Rumi is the poet who is closest to my own heart, and so naturally I really want to get this right. At some point though, not being able to do something perfectly is no excuse for not acting. This is the best I can do right now, and so I send this out into the world with the wish that others receive at least some of the same joy, nourishment and inspiration I have over the years. Who knows? Dear reader, perhaps meeting Rumi’s poetry, the door will open for you, and all the riches he encourages us to know will be yours. It’s with good reason that great works are always in season.
    [Show full text]
  • Regional Implications of Shi'a Revival in Iraq
    Vali Nasr Regional Implications of Shi‘a Revival in Iraq Since regime change disenfranchised the Sunni minority leader- ship that had ruled Iraq since the country’s independence in 1932 and em- powered the Shi‘a majority, the Shi‘a-Sunni competition for power has emerged as the single greatest determinant of peace and stability in post-Saddam Iraq. Iraq’s sectarian pains are all the more complex because reverberations of Shi‘a empowerment will inevitably extend beyond Iraq’s borders, involv- ing the broader region from Lebanon to Pakistan. The change in the sectar- ian balance of power is likely to have a far more immediate and powerful impact on politics in the greater Middle East than any potential example of a moderate and progressive government in Baghdad. The change in the sec- tarian balance of power will shape public perception of U.S. policies in Iraq as well as the long-standing balance of power between the Shi‘a and Sunnis that sets the foundation of politics from Lebanon to Pakistan. U.S. interests in the greater Middle East are now closely tied to the risks and opportunities that will emanate from the Shi‘a revival in Iraq. The competition for power between the Shi‘a and Sunnis is neither a new development nor one limited to Iraq. In fact, it has shaped alliances and de- termined how various actors have defined and pursued their interests in the region for the past three decades. Often overlooked in political analyses of greater Middle Eastern politics, this competition is key to grasping how cur- rent developments in Iraq will shape this region in years to come.
    [Show full text]
  • Rumi Contents Volume 1
    Contents In the Beginning 7 Gökalp Kâmil Editor’s Note 11 Leonard Lewisohn Love’s Freedom: A Ghazal from Rumi’s Divan-i Shams-i Tabrizi 16 Translated by Franklin Lewis From Balkh to the Mediterranean: Everyman, Rabbi Eisik, son of Yekel and Jalal al-Din Rumi’s Mathnawi 17 Jalil Nozari Mawlana Jalal al-Din Rumi of R. A. Nicholson 33 Marta Simidchieva Rumi’s Metaphysics of the Heart 69 Mohammed Rustom Don’t Sleep: A Ghazal from Rumi’s Divan-i Shams-i Tabrizi 80 Translated by Paul Losensky The Castle of God is the Centre of the Dervish’s Soul 82 Alberto Fabio Ambrosio The Human Beloved and the Divine Beloved in the Poetry of Mawlana Rumi 100 A. G. Rawan Farhadi The Religion of Love: One Ghazal and Two Quatrains by Rumi 108 Translated by Leonard Lewisohn The Popularity of Mawlana Rumi and the Mawlawi Tradition 109 Ibrahim Gamard The Final Generation: A Tahmîs-i Mutarraf by Ahmed Remzi Dede 122 Roderick Grierson 6 contents The Honey Bee: A Quatrain by Rumi 131 Translated by Michael Zand book reviews Mevlânâ Celâleddîn Rûmî, Mesnevi-i S,erîf S,erhi, trans. and commentary by Ahmed Avni Konuk, ed. Mustafa Tahralı, 13 vols. – Reviewed by Alberto Fabio Ambrosio 132 Seyed Ghahreman Safavi and Simon Weightman, Rumi’s Mystical Design: Reading The Mathnawi, Book One – Reviewed by Coleman Barks 136 Shams-i Tabrizi, Rumi’s Sun: The Teachings of Shams of Tabriz, trans. Refik Algan and Camille Adams Helminski – Reviewed by Mojdeh Bayat and Ali Jamnia 138 Rumi, The Quatrains of Rumi: Rubaciyat-é Jalaluddin Muhammad Balkhi-Rumi; Complete Translation with Persian Text, Islamic Mystical Commentary, Manual of Terms, and Concordance, trans.
    [Show full text]
  • Varieties of South Asian Islam Francis Robinson Research Paper No.8
    Varieties of South Asian Islam Francis Robinson Research Paper No.8 Centre for Research September 1988 in Ethnic Relations University of Warwick Coventry CV4 7Al Francis Robinson is a Reader in History at the Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, University of London. For the past twenty years he has worked on Muslim politics and Islamic institutions in South Asia and is the author of many articles relating to these fields. His main books are: Separatism Among Indian Muslims: The Politics of the United Provinces' Muslims 1860-1923 (Cambridge, 1974); Atlas of the Islamic World since 1500 (Oxford, 1982); Islam in Modern South Asia (Cambridge, forthcoming); Islamic leadership in South Asia: The 'Ulama of Farangi Mahall from the seventeenth to the twentieth century (Cambridge, forthcoming). Varieties of South Asian Islam1 Over the past forty years Islamic movements and groups of South Asian origin have come to be established in Britain. They offer different ways, although not always markedly different ways, of being Muslim. Their relationships with each other are often extremely abrasive. Moreover, they can have significantly different attitudes to the state, in particular the non-Muslim state. An understanding of the origins and Islamic orientations of these movements and groups would seem to be of value in trying to make sense of their behaviour in British society. This paper will examine the following movements: the Deobandi, the Barelvi, the Ahl-i Hadith, the Tablighi Jamaat, the Jamaat-i Islami, the Ahmadiyya, and one which is unlikely to be distinguished in Britain by any particular name, but which represents a very important Islamic orientation, which we shall term the Modernist.2 It will also examine the following groups: Shias and Ismailis.
    [Show full text]
  • Elements of Sufism in the Philosophy of the Order: an Examination of The
    1 Elements of Sufism in the Philosophy of the Order: An Examination of the Lectures and Writings of Hazrat Inayat-Khan and Zia Inayat-Khan Keenan Nathaniel Field Ashland, Virginia Bachelor of Arts, History, Virginia Commonwealth University, 2015 Bachelor of Arts, Religious Studies, Virginia Commonwealth University, 2015 Associates of Science, J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College, 2013 A Thesis presented to the Graduate Faculty of the University of Virginia in Candidacy for the Degree of Master of Arts Department of Religious Studies University of Virginia December, 2020 Dr. Shankar Nair Dr. Jessica Andruss 2 In 1910, when Hazrat Inayat Khan left India to visit New York and the United States for the first time, he began his journey as a traveling musician, having come from a family of highly respected musicians in Baroda, India. Before long, however, he began publicly teaching a form of primarily Chishti Sufism. The next seventeen years of his life would be spent crisscrossing the Western world giving lectures to thousands of Europeans and Americans in an attempt to spread this philosophical message. This message shifted over those first seventeen years and the subsequent century from one that heavily emphasized specifically Sufi elements of teaching and philosophy to a religious message that placed heavy emphasis on the universal elements that it considered to be the core of all religions. This philosophy is most readily observable and easily understood by studying its current iteration, the Inayattiya, who developed out of a number of schisms and splits in the mid twentieth century and trace their silsila, or spiritual lineage, back to HIK by way of his siblings and cousins, to his son Pir Vilayat Inayat-Khan, and his grandson, the current head, of the Order Pir Zia Inayat-Khan.
    [Show full text]
  • Grade 4 Akhlaq
    Madrasat Ahlul’Bait Islamic School Grade 4 Akhlaq Cover Design by: Noor Ali Shia-Muslim Association of Bay Area 1 First Edition (Revision 2.0) First Printing April, 2006 Compilers and Co-Authors: Urooj Kazmi, Chair, Syllabus Committee, Madrasat Ahlul’Bait, Shia-Muslim Association of Bay Area Editors: Urooj Kazmi, Chair Syllabus Committee, Madrasat Ahlul’Bait, Shia-Muslim Association of Bay Area Copyright Free & Non-Profit Notice: Madrasat Ahlul’Bait curriculum material can be freely copied, duplicated, reproduced, quoted, distributed, printed, used in derivative works and saved on any media and platform for non-profit and educational purposes only. A fee no higher than the cost of copying may be charged for the material. Note from Madrasat Ahlul’Bait: The Publishers and the Authors have made every effort to present the Quranic verses, prophetic and masomeen traditions, their explanations and the material from the sources referenced in an accurate, complete and clear manner. We ask for forgiveness from Allah (SWT) and the readers if any mistakes have been overlooked during the review process. Contact Information: Any correspondence related to this publication and all notations of errors or omissions should be addressed to Syllabus Committee, Madrasat Ahlul’Bait, Shia-Muslim Association of Bay Area at [email protected]. Published by: Madrasat Ahlul’Bait Shia-Muslim Association of Bay Area 4415 Fortran Court, San Jose, CA 95134, USA www.saba-igc.org [email protected] LIMIT OF LIABILITY/DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: THE PUBLISHER AND THE AUTHORS MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS WORK AND SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
    [Show full text]
  • The Insan Kamil of Bawa: the Metaphysics of a Tamil Sufi Sheikh
    The Insan Kamil of Bawa: The Metaphysics of a Tamil Sufi Sheikh Abstract Al-insan al-kamal or insan kamil is commonly translated as the perfect being, the servant, the universal man, or the perfected being in Islamic mysticism (Buckhardt 1959, 1979; Izutsu 1983; Baldick 1989; Schimmel 1992; Chittick 2000, 2005; Dagli 2004). In this doctrine, the human being is positioned as the isthmus between Allah (God) and the cosmos. A mirror that reflects tawhid (unity) (Chittick 2000) and the barzakh (interface) between God and the world, an insan kamil is the perfected being who preserves the existence of the universe (Baldick 1989). The Tamil Sufi Sheikh Muhammad Raheem Bawa Muhaiyaddeen (d. 1986) reformulated the doctrine of insan kamil when he taught his followers in Sri Lanka, United States and Canada. Bawa, as his adherents referred to him, was a teacher of Sufi-Islam from Sri Lanka who migrated to Philadelphia in the 1970s. The paper explores the paradigm of insan kamil as taught by Bawa, while situating this figure of the insan kamil within classical Sufi thought. The primary goal of this paper is to explore Bawa‘s metaphysical understanding of the human being through themes of the insan kamil as al-qutb (spiritual mediator), the perfect being and the qalb (heart). Keywords: Bawa Muhaiyaddeen, Bawa Muhaiyaddeen Fellowship, Sufism in North America, Insan Kamil, Perfected being, Sufism, Metaphysics 51 The Insan Kamil Introduction1 There was once a powerful king who was childless. In the hope of gaining mercy from God, he promised to perform rituals for twelve years so that God would bless him with a child.
    [Show full text]