Murid Spirituality a Lived Eschatology with Its Origins in The

Claudia Venhorst

Murid spirituality

A Lived Eschatology

SUMMARY – Spiritual thought and practices of the West African Sufi order of the Muridiyya are strongly framed by eschatology. The belief in ‘the last things’ does not only shape attitudes towards death and afterlife but also provides leading guidelines for life and living. The article explores three interconnected domains that provide the eschatological backdrop against which Murid spirituality is brought together: tradition presented in the longstanding Sufi tradition in Islam, teacher the exemplary life and teachings of shaykh Amadu Bamba the founder of the order and a model to his followers, and place referring to the holy city of Touba the physical and spiritual centre of the Muridiyya. The reader is guided through Murid webs of significance and their common spiritual practices, providing insights in Muslim lived eschatology in general and Sufi eschatology in particular.

With its origins in the 1880s, the Murid Sufi order and the teachings of founder shaykh Amadu Bamba (1853-1927) are still very much alive. The Muridiyya is an eye catching Islamic spiritual movement with over four million adherents, predominantly living in West Africa with branches all over the world.1 The order has caught scholarly interest from the earliest days of its existence, but until recently the focus was very much on socio-economic and historical aspects. The spiritual side of Amadu Bamba’s teachings and the spirituality of his followers is only more recently uncovered, through the opening up of internal sources.2 This paper intents to contribute to this line of research on the Muridiya.

1 Today, of Senegal’s approximately 13 million inhabitants about 94% is Muslim and most of them are affiliated with one of the country’s Sufi orders – a remarkable statistic in the Islamic world where Sufis are generally a minority. With an estimated four million adherents the Muridiyya is the second largest order, immediately after the demographically dominant Tijaniyya. 2 c.A. Babou, Fighting the greater Jihad: Amadu Bamba and the founding of the Muridiyya of Senegal, 1853-1913, Athens: Ohio University Press, 2007; F. Ngom, Understanding Murīdiyya from ‘Ajami sources: Muhammad Mahmūd Ñaŋ’s “Jaar-jaari-Boroom Tuubaa” (Itineraries of

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Murid spiritual thought and practice seems to be strongly framed by eschatology or ‘the belief in the last things’. These eschatological conceptions shape beliefs concerning death and afterlife, and the ritual practices that accompany them. In case of the Muridiyya it also provides leading guidelines for life and living. Murid spirituality is configured against a dominant eschatological backdrop and it is against this horizon Murid religious life takes shape. This study aims to provide insight in how Murid perceptions of the End of Time and the hereafter are actually lived and ritually enacted. And at the same time provides interesting insights in a Muslim approach of eschatology in general. Eschatology is firmly rooted in Amadu Bamba’s writings and teachings and is vividly presented in numerous stories and poems. Studying Murid spirituality means drawing on general Islamic and Sufi sources as well as specific Murid sources on Bamba’s pedagogy and the role he is expected to play at the End of Time. For Bamba’s taalibe (Wolof/Arabic ‘students’), the founder has the status of a saint and is seen as a spiritual guide. His teachings and his exemplary life are at the basis of what is referred to as ‘the Murid way’ or ‘the path of the Muridiyya’. A path that is also laid out in Bamba’s poetic writings, the so called xassaide.3 In his most important pedagogical writing Masalik al Jinan – ‘Path- ways unto Heaven’, Bamba provides both a spiritual way and practical guidelines for his disciples to live by.4 Masalik is a long poem dealing with mysticism and the human struggle to overcome the lower desires of the nafs and it is still widely read and studied on today. Alongside the Arabic xassaide, a vivid oral and written tradition has developed that provides exegetic commentaries and poetic odes on Bamba’s life journey. This tradition is provided in the local Wolof language, making its content accessible for those that don’t read Arabic.

Boroom Tuubaa), Digital library for International Research-The African Language Materials Archive (ALMA) program, s.a. Online: http://dlir.aiys.org/ALMA/alma_ebooks/JaarTransl. pdf (accessed 4 August 2014); R. Ware, ‘In praise of the intercessor: Mawahib al- Nafi῾ fı Mada᾿ih al- Shafi῾ by Amadu Bamba Mbacké (1853-1927)’, in: Islamic Africa 4 (2013) no.2, 225-248. 3 From Arabic Qasida: poly-thematic poem, usually translated as ‘ode’, composed according to strict metrical rules: J. Esposito (Ed.), The Oxford dictionary of Islam, Oxford: Oxford Univer- sity Press, 2003. 4 this long poem – written in Arabic – deals with issues of mysticism, more specifically with the pitfalls facing the aspirant who wishes to gain mastery over the lower desires of the nafs. Bamba wrote the Masalik as a versification of al-Yadālī’s († 1166/1753) Khātimat al-taṣawwuf (Seals of Sufism) with autobiographical commentary regarding his own spiritual struggles. In addition to its references to prominent texts and authors of Classical Sufism, the Masalik contains important clues to Bamba’s philosophy. See C.A. Babou, ‘Educating the Murid: Theory and practices of education in Amadu Bamba’s thought’, in: Journal of Religion in Africa 33 (2003) no.3, 310-327; F. Ngom, ‘Aḥmadu Bamba’s pedagogy and the development of ‘Ajamī literature’, in: African Studies Review 52 (2009) no.1, 99-123.

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These Murid discourses go far beyond the founder’s spoken and written teachings and are still elaborated on today. The eschatological backdrop is also unmistakably present in this tradition. By paying attention to and elaborating on these eschatological roots we can gain access to Murid spirituality and get a more in depth view of their lived religion and spiritual practices. It is through a variety of sources Murids weave their webs of significance, offering a spiritual framework that provides meaning beyond the realities of everyday life. This study is conducted from a ‘lived religion’ approach,5 meaning we focus on spirituality as practiced, experienced and expressed by ordinary Murids. At the base is extensive personal fieldwork in Senegal, consisting of interviews, conversations and observations among Murid adherents and their personal shaykhs.6 It is combined with a study of available literature on the Muridiyya and of Murid sources. Additionally literature on Sufism and (Islamic) eschatology was studied to provide context and depth. All with the intention to ‘con- nect the dots’, to bring rather fragmented material together in order to characterize basic Murid spirituality. A spirituality that is so generously overlooked in previous research on this Sufi order.

1. Understanding Spirituality Against an Eschatological Horizon

Eschatology or ‘the doctrine of last things’ provides concepts of both end of time and afterlife perceptions and is an important element in Islam and an essential part of its spirituality. It is one of the so called three principles of the Islamic faith, along with ‘God, His angels, His books and His Messengers’ (Qur’an 4:136; 2:177) and primary sources frequently speaks on themes like the Last Day, the final judgement, resurrection and afterlife. Islamic eschatology, as expounded in the Qur’an and Hadith and elaborated on by generations of scholars and teachers, has developed into a grand narrative that involves both ‘personal’ and ‘collective’ dimensions.7

5 M. McGuire, Lived religion: Faith and practice in everyday life, New York: Oxford University Press, 2008, 12. 6 Fieldwork conducted in the period 2007-2014. 7 T. Quartier, ‘Eschatology’, in: C. Bryant & D. Peck (Eds.), Encyclopedia of death and the human experience, Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE, 2009, 417-421. This generic eschatological narrative is recounted in various works on the subject. See e.g., J.E. Campo, ‘Muslim ways of death: Between the prescribed and the performed’, in: K. Garces-Foley (Ed.), Death and religion in a changing world, Armonk, NY: Sharpe, 2006, 141-177; W.C. Chittick, ‘Eschatology’, in: S.H. Nasr (Ed.), Islamic spirituality: Foundations, New York: Crossroad, 1987, 378-409; Idem, ‘Muslim eschatology’, in: J.L. Walls (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of eschatology, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007, 132-150; A.H. Sakr, ‘Death and dying: An Islamic perspective’, in:

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What is referred to as ‘The Last Day’, ‘Day of Reckoning’ or ‘Day of Resur- rection’ is perceived as a collective event all mankind has to face. It will arrive with what is called the signs of the hour, frightening events that will culminate in the complete destruction of the earth and all that live on it (Qur’an 55:26- 27). At the sound of the trumpet all the deceased will resurrect from their graves and all will be gathered. Each person will be offered his or her book – a written record of good and bad deeds accumulated during life on earth. Good deeds are carried by an angel on the right shoulder, bad deeds by an angel on the left shoulder. Scales are set up for the weighing of deeds and God himself descends to carry out the interrogation. People are asked one by one to explain their earthly deeds. The scrolls of their good and evil deed are weighed and are then taken to the bridge over hell. Those whose good deeds outweighed the evil will find this bridge short and broad, and those whose evil deeds outweighed the good slip and fall into the horrors of hell. This can be undone as God will ask for intercession on their behalf. Prophets will step forth and intercede for their communities, as will all those who have safely crossed the bridge. Even though the events at the end of time are often vividly depicted in extensive narratives on the topic, for Muslims this final phase remains the great unknown.8 These eschatological teachings have an impact on the individual life cycle and on humanity as a whole. The collective time span starts with the birth of humankind: creation from nothing by God and towards the end there is the complete destruction of the world and everything in. It signifies a death that leads to the resurrection or rebirth of all humankind. It is followed by the final judgment that ends in an eternity of either heaven or hell. For every Muslim there is also a personal eschatology, a human life with a beginning and an end: a person is born and at death leaves the temporal world. When a person dies, life leaves the body through the nose and God (or angels on his behalf) removes the soul of the deceased. There is a dominant idea that at the moment someone is buried that there will be (preliminary) interrogation in the grave by two angels. They order the deceased to sit up and answer ques- tions on faith, God and the Prophet. If one gives the right answers, one might be taken up to God or a window will open through which one can catch a glimpse the beauties of heaven. For those, the remaining time in the grave

J.K. Parry & A.S. Ryan (Eds.), A cross-cultural look at death, dying, and religion, Chicago: Nelson-Hall, 1995, 47-73; J. Smith & Y. Haddad, The Islamic understanding of death and resurrection, New York: Oxford University Press, 2002; R. Tottoli, ‘Afterlife’, in: G. Krämer, D. Matringe, J. Nawas & E. Rowson, Encyclopaedia of Islam. Vol. 3, Leiden: Brill, 2014 (http:// referenceworks.brillonline. com/ entries/ encyclopaedia-of-islam-3/afterlife- COM_22930). 8 c. Venhorst, ‘Being a Murid: The ritual practice of work’, in: Jaarboek voor Liturgie-onderzoek/ Yearbook for Liturgical and Ritual Studies 29 (2013), 267-288.

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will pass quickly and agreeably. The unfortunates whose answers were incor- rect will endure terrible torments; their time in the grave will pass extremely slowly and painfully. So the outcome of this preliminary judgment deter- mines the conditions in the grave while waiting for the day of resurrection and the final judgment. This period between a personal death and the collective resurrection is referred to as barzakh, or ‘life in the grave’ – making any Muslim cemetery quite a vivid place. With the destruction of the temporal world at the end of time, followed by the resurrection. Personal and collective eschatology blend, as participation in these events is envisaged as a collective experience. This eschatological horizon is probably even more manifest in Sufism; the longstanding Islamic tradition of Tasawwuf that focuses on the spiritual development. It can be described broadly as ‘the intensification of Islamic faith and practice, or the tendency among Muslims to strive for a personal engagement with the divine reality’.9 Or as Houston Smith aptly describes it in his intro- duction to Sufism: Every upright Muslim expects to see God after death, but the Sufis are the impa- tient ones. They want God now – moment by moment, day by day, in this very life. And they are willing to undergo the disciplines that make that possible.10 The intensification of the Islamic faith and practice can be best understood through a famous saying of the Prophet Muhammad, the so called Hadith of Gabriel. In this Hadith the angel Gabriel – disguised as a human being – interrogates Muhammad on his religion and how it can be understood to have three basic dimensions: islam ‘submission’, iman ‘faith’, and ihsan ‘doing the beautiful’.11 All Muslims are familiar with the first two dimensions. Islam cor- responds with the so called five pillars: (1) there is no god but God and Muhammad is his messenger; (2) to perform the daily prayers; (3) give alms; (4) fast during the month Ramadan and (5) making a pilgrimage to Mecca. It underscores the practice, the forms of worship of religion. Iman entails believ- ing in God, his angels, his books, his messenger and the Last Day. The so called ‘three principles of faith’: the assertion of divine unity, prophecy and eschatology. The hadith implies that practice and faith are interdependent dimensions as one does not make sense without the other.12 The third dimension ihsan

9 J.O. Voll & O. Kazuo, ‘Sufism’, in The Oxford encyclopaedia of the Islamic world. Oxford Islamic Studies online (http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t236/e0759). 10 h. Smith, ‘Foreword’, in: J. Fadiman & R. Frager (Eds.), Essential Sufism, San Francisco: Harper, 1997, ix. 11 S. Murata & W.C. Chittick, The vision of Islam: The foundations of Muslim faith and practice, London etc.: Tauris, 1996. 12 campo, ‘Muslim ways of death’, 151.

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reminds to be mindful of God’s watchfulness and thus to do what is good and beautiful. Sufis see the three dimensions as sequent levels, as stages of religious experience: on the most external level Islam is a religion that tells people what to do and what not to do, on a deeper level it teaches people how to understand the world and themselves and on the deepest level it teaches people how to transform themselves. So not only respect for outer prescriptions and inner faith but a total openness to rediscover ‘the most beautiful form’ in which one was created.13 Eschatological narratives underline that God, the creator and originator of all things, is the sole authority over the beginning, duration and end of all things. It strongly teaches that life is consequential: people’s actions during their life on earth determine their destination after death. Human action in the context of this world is meaningful only in light of the life of the next. In eschatology and the worldview connected with it – fundamental Islamic concepts are shaped like the concept of God, the cosmos and the place of man. And appar- ent dualities – opposite but complementary pairs - are connected and brought together: the end and the beginning of things (origin and return), life and death, God and man, here and hereafter, the seen and the hidden.14 These narratives create a coherent worldview that imposes order and disposes people to experience the world around them, something that is made tangible in their ritual practices.15 So although eschatology refers to the last things – to the final destination of human beings, afterlife and life’s finitude – its impact reaches far beyond mortality. In many cases it opens up to the idea of man’s infinite poten- tiality16 that is also very much at the base of Amadu Bamba’s teachings. Through the promise of life after death, it provides an expect of a future that transcends the regular, day to day life. This idea of eternity directly influences the spirituality of here and now life. To be able to read into this eschatological backdrop and how Murids relate to it where their spiritual beliefs and practices are concerned, means we need come to grips with Islamic eschatology as a framework for shared meaning and interpretation. As we will see in the Muridiyya, where a whole range of pious practices has evolved that are strongly linked to these eschatological teachings.

13 J.L. Michon, ‘The spiritual practices of Sufism’, in: S.H. Nasr (Ed.), Islamic spirituality: Foundations, New York: Crossroad, 1987, 266. 14 chittick, ‘Eschatology’. 15 c. Bell, Ritual: Perspectives and dimensions, New York: Oxford University Press, 1997, 83. 16 chittick, ‘Eschatology’, 386.

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2. The Murid Way

There are many studies available that cover the basic eschatological myth derived from primary Islamic sources. But how common Muslims, in various contexts, actually relate to eschatology is often not that clear. And when the myth itself might be quite static, the way Muslims relate to it is not. The Islamic eschatological grand narrative as sketched above forms the backdrop against which Murid spiritual beliefs and practices take shape. For Murids, this myth is very much interwoven with Amadu Bamba’s life and teachings, pre- senting a lived eschatology that is expressed in what is called ‘the Murid way’. We see how a focus on eschatology provides an interesting lens through which the Murid Way is made explicit and can be better understood. To gain a better understanding of Murid spirituality, it is necessary to see how this particular Sufi order relates to general Islamic eschatology. The Muridiyya is what Kees Waaijman describes as a ‘school of spirituality’ – providing a useful model for our research.17 A school of spirituality is a spiritual way that springs from a ‘source experience’, in this case strongly linked to Shaykh Amadu Bamba. It is made accessible by way of its mediations: forms of religious life, spiritual exercises, and the like. It is this source experience that gives identity to the school within a given socio-cultural context, it provides validation in the event of reforms, and opens a specific perspective for the future. Waaijman’s model points out a school’s essential structural elements: the source experience, the circle of pupils, the context, orientation, a consistent whole, accessibility and reform. All elements we need to address to come to understanding Murid spirituality. In the next paragraphs these essential elements will be presented within three interconnected domains: (1) tradition, referring to Murid orientation, (2) teacher, meaning Amadu Bamba and his heirs and (3) place, regarding the holy Murid city of Touba. In this way, we aim to provide a more substantial insight in basic Murid beliefs and practices, and their eschatological qualities. We make use of various Murid sources, like Bamba’s own writings and hagiographies about him, and of historical sources, newspapers and websites. Interviews with Murids and fieldwork observations provide further context where contemporary practices are concerned. As Bamba’s teachings were never exclusively directed towards an elite, the common practices – the actual lived eschatology – that spring from these teachings, deserve our full attention.

17 K. Waaijman, Spirituality: Forms, foundations, methods, Leuven: Peeters, 2002, 118.

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2.1 Tradition The Murid tradition or ‘orientation’18 presents specific values and goals that characterize the school of spirituality. It is an orientation that clearly draws from a longstanding Sufi tradition within Islam. The Sufi tradition gets taken into a specific time and place, is contextualized, and certain accents are laid. It results in what is called a tariqa (‘path’), which stands for both the method of the school and the organizational form. Through the tariqa, the Murid is introduced to the value system and conceptual world of the school by contemporary shaykhs. These Sufi teachers are making the source experience available and practicable on the personal path each disciple has to go in his life. The Murid way in particular signifies a combination of education, devotion and action. It is perceived as a dynamic quest, an active pursuit of spiritual growth so common to Sufis of all times and places. And although it is often emphasized that God is nearer to man than his jugular vein (Qur’an 50:16); the actual approach to God is not that simple and this journey commands guidance in this world and the next. The mystical dimension of Islam is as old as the religion itself and has been shaped by many Sufi masters over the centuries, often adapted to the time and circumstances they were living in. These masters or saints have often founded their own ‘schools of spirituality’ which provide teachers and guides that can initiate followers into the specific teachings and practices. Within Islam, the role of the Prophet Muhammad is of crucial importance and within Sufi tradition his role is even more intensified.19 Muhammad, who was according to the Qur’an sent as a mercy to all creatures (21:107), is seen as a man of perfection who was able to communicate with this rather distant God. In this ability he is perceived as the perfect link between God and humanity.20 Devotion to the Prophet has become a central motif of popular Islamic piety and had become a necessary attribute of Sufi saints in the 18th and 19th hundreds.21 A devotion that is also expressed in many of Bamba’s xassaide, like in Mawahib al-Nafi (‘In praise of the Intercessor’) that is completely devoted to and directed towards the Prophet: In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful. My Dear Lord and Most Gracious God! Blessings on our lord Muhammad the opener of what was closed, The seal of what came before, the champion of Truth by Truth and the guide to

18 Ibid., 119. 19 A. Schimmel, And Muhammad is his messenger: The veneration of the Prophet in Islamic piety, Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1985; V. Cornell, Realm of the saint: Power and authority in Moroccan Sufism, Austin: University of Texas Press, 1998. 20 V. Hoffman, ‘Annihilation in the messenger of God: The development of a Sufi practice’, in: International Journal of Middle East Studies 31(1999) no.3, 353. 21 hoffman, ‘Annihilation in the messenger of God’, 351.

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Your Straight Path And upon His family in due measure with His eminent status. And make this poem a way to Faith, Submission, Perfection, and Eternal Happiness. And may it gladden the Messenger of God – Blessings of God Most High upon Him, along with Peace – Wherever one might recite it, write it, or gaze upon it, forevermore. Amen! O Lord of the Worlds!22 Shaykh Amadu Bamba actively picks up on Muhammad’s role as the ultimate intercessor, putting it at the core of his teachings and writings. It is through Muhammad, through love for the Prophet that God can be known. Bamba strongly presents himself as Khadim al-Rasul (‘Servant of the Prophet’) – whose work for God and the Prophet is eminent beyond and above comparison according to his disciples. And this perception is at the very heart of the Murid tradition and practice as it puts a chain into action that leads Bamba’s followers into the presence of God: when the Prophet is the most perfect manifestation of God, the Saint is perceived the most perfect manifestation of the Prophet available for his disciples. Khadim al-Rasul is seen as a source of peace, protection, prosperity and blessing in this world, but the full extent of Bamba’s blessings will only be unveiled at the end of time and in the hereafter.23 There is a strong popular belief that at the Day of Judgement Bamba will be able to intercede on behalf of all Murids, granting them direct access to paradise. But in addition to this otherworldly eschatological role Bamba also provides a rather practical path in this world that is crucial in leading them to paradise. Whereas the teachings of most classic Sufi masters were generally followed by an elite, Amadu Bamba directed his message to the masses – in particular to the young people of his time. Through his writings, teachings and exemplary life Bamba has made a strong effort to guide people towards a paradise that is attainable for all. Bamba’s core teachings are directed towards self-knowledge – being both the mean and the goal. It is a quest for the true self, trying to get at ‘the core of the Divine self’24 and ‘to become what one is’.25 A quest that can be fulfilled with the right intention and effort described by Bamba as the greater Jihad – ‘Jihad al Akbar’ – and refers to one’s personal struggle against the nafs (ego or carnal soul). Bamba sets out a path that equips common people with skills, character and attitudes to deal with life’s challenges and instil valuable knowledge that leads to good action. It is concretised in a ritual practice that is

22 From the preamble of Mawahib al-Nafi fi Mada’ih al-Shafi – ‘In praise of the Intercessor’, Bamba’s xassaide translated by Rudolph Ware (see his ‘In praise of the intercessor’). 23 A. Zito, Prosperity and purpose, today and tomorrow: Shaykh Ahmadu Bamba and discourses of work and salvation, in the Muridiyya Sufi order of Senegal, Boston: Boston University, Pro- Quest, UMI Dissertations Publishing, 2012, 220. 24 Michon, ‘The spiritual practices of Sufism’, 285. 25 c. Le Gai Eaton, ‘Man’, in: S.H. Nasr (Ed.), Islamic spirituality: Foundations, New York: Crossroad, 1987, 374.

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feasible and understandable for all Murids and is guided by a personal shaykh. In Sufi tradition these personal guides are perceived as indispensable companions on one’s spiritual path. The taalibe’s submission to a shaykh of his choice is seen as the starting point of a genuine search for God – and establishes what can be seen as an eschatological infused chain of connection. One formally becomes a Murid with the performance of the initiation rite the jébbalu. The words of this initiation rite contain clear eschatological references: I submit myself to you, in this life and the next. I will do everything that you order me; I will abstain from anything that you forbid me. This pledge is presented by the taalibe to the shaykh of choice, while kneeling in front of him with open folded hands. Murid Shaykhs are directly linked to Amadu Bamba, as they are either his direct descendants or descendants of his early companions that were ordained shaykhs by him. Bamba’s spiritual knowledge is inherited and disseminated by them and they share in the founders’ baraka26 of which the origins can be found in the connection with the Prophet Muhammad. This lineage chain establishes their authority and creates fruitful taalibe-shaykh relations. By entrusting oneself to a shaykh the taalibe is opened up for education through practice, commonly exercised through obeying the ndigal – the ‘recommendation’ or ‘order’ of the shaykh. An exercise in trust and obedience that is at the heart of the spiritual training as these taalibes explain: Through the act of jébbalu you establish an intermediary between you, the Prophet Muhammad and God, as it is not so easy to come close to God. When you do the jébbalu it is to search for God (…) so you submit yourself to your shaykh, follow his ndigal without any hesitation (…) that is the spiritual training that establishes your faith in God (…) It is the way of the Muridiyya.27 The jébbalu connects you to the shaykh you so carefully chose. You follow him because he is an example, a model and that will help you and you can trust him. He is your connection to the source (…) Shaykh Amadu Bamba. All with the purpose to become a Murid saadix – a true and genuine Murid…28 Following an ndigal is an exercise in humbleness, training the ability to be a true pupil – only then one is able to learn. With issuing out these particular

26 Its most fundamental meaning is blessing, beneficent force or supernatural power conferred by the Almighty on humankind. Uncommonly pious individuals are privileged with baraka. In their turn those blessed with baraka, whether living or dead, can transmit it to ordinary mortals, who then benefit by amassing both material fortune and spiritual rewards, see J. Clancy-Smith, ‘Barakah’, in: The Oxford encyclopaedia of the Islamic world (2014). Oxford Islamic Studies Online: http://www.oxfordislamicstudies.com/article/opr/t236/e0102. 27 personal interview Abdulkhadre, 2007. 28 personal interview Boubacar, 2007.

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orders the personal shaykh translates Bamba’s teachings into a ritual practice. It is often referred to as ligeeyeul Sëriñ Touba29 (‘working for Bamba’) by the disciples.30 Following the shaykhs’ orders provides the necessary insights and reveals the path of the Muridiyya: The ndigal is what you are waiting for, what you look forward to (…) you are anxious to participate in. This makes you very much aware of the possibility to learn and to grow (…) So much more than when you are doing things just on your own. It is a way also to show your love and respect to your shaykh, and gain his love and respect in return.31 A good taalibe is someone who follows the ndigal of his shaykh, the recommendations of Sëriñ Touba, and those of God (…) and knows that these are the same recommendations. A good taalibe visits his shaykh and confides in him about his problems and doubts, because if you don’t talk with your shaykh, your habits won’t change…32 The acquired spiritual knowledge can be applied in this world, where it provides helpful survival tools, and in the hereafter, where it provides healing, redemp- tion and salvation.33 In return for following the ndigal the taalibe earns the prayers of his shaykh. These prayers will dispose God favourably towards him, which will manifest itself in xéewal (Wolof for ‘unexpected prosperity’, ‘chance’, ‘felicity’) both in this world and the next. – In Masalik al Jinan, Bamba himself urges Murids to make best use of their time on earth, underlining the importance of it, and always to envision that death is just around the corner:34 Behave as thou wouldst do if thou knew that thy death was impending (verse 97). The greatest wish of the dead is coming back alive so as to spend on earth were it only the slightest lapse of time and to perform a single good deed liable to entail some benefit for them back to the hereafter (verse 133-134). It is the concept of what Murids refer to as Jëf Jël (Wolof: ‘effort’ ‘take’) that can be best translated as ‘you reap what you sow’ or the ‘the nature of your reward equals the nature of your effort’. A motto often used by Murids to best

29 Sëriñ Touba (‘Lord of Touba’), Khadim al-Rassul (‘Servant of the Prophet’), Maam Bamba (‘Father Bamba’) are just a few honorary titles or nicknames very commonly used by Murids to refer to Shaykh Amadu Bamba. 30 Venhorst, ‘Being a Murid’. 31 personal interview Mbaye, 2011. 32 personal interview Kheuch, 2009. 33 Zito, Prosperity and purpose, today and tomorrow, 139. 34 All citations from Masalik al Jinan in this paper are taken from A.A. Mbacké’s Ways unto Heaven (Dakar: Majalis, 2010) an English translation and annotation of Bamba’s famous poem.

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capture the tradition Bamba provided for them. A tradition that teaches that life is consequential and always related to the afterlife. A tradition also that connects Muhammad’s role as intercessor with Amadu Bamba’s role for his com- munity and that is carried on by his descendants. The present day shaykhs are the primary conveyers of this eschatological horizon into a ritual practice. Through them the Murid taalibe can acquire spiritual knowledge needed to proceed on their personal path. In the daily beliefs and practices, it is through tradition that Murids are constantly made aware of a path that is modelled by the Prophet and exemplified by Amadu Bamba. Murid tradition presents a quite positive eschatological outlook; leading a good life, gaining esoteric benefits and spiritual advancement is attainable for all. Through true submission and commitment it is available both in this life and the next. Murids confi- dently put their (eschatological) hope in Bamba’s intercessory qualities.

2.2 Teacher According to Waaijman the founding personality opens the way between an original spiritual experience and the socio-religious context.35 By committing himself tirelessly to the Prophet Muhammad, to serve him in thought and action, Amadu Bamba presents a spiritual path towards God for his own disciples. It is the initial circle of pupils that developed practical expressions to Bam- ba’s teachings. Also historical circumstances, like Bamba’s peaceful resistance against the colonial government and the hardships he endured in exile, have contributed to the rise of the Muridiyya and the establishment of Bamba’s status as the ultimate spiritual guide. Bamba is considered a qutb al-zaman (‘pole of the era’), an exceptional saint with the power to act and protect his disciples in this world and the next. The role of qutb, is inextricably bound up with and rooted in the idea of Muhammad the intercessor as described in the previous paragraph. Contemporary Murids are linked to Amadu Bamba through their jébbalu to a personal shaykh and the Caliph General – Bamba’s eldest living (grand) son and formal leader of the Muridiyya.36 A Murid disciple is commit- ted to Maam (‘father’) Bamba acknowledging him as the ultimate teacher and guide. Bamba’s role as the ultimate spiritual guide is described and praised in numerous Murid sources. Like in this exert of the poem Booroman by the cel- ebrated poet Sëriñ Musa Ka (1889-1963) whose work is still widely recited in contemporary Murid communities:

35 Waaijman, Spirituality, 118 ef. 36 In 2007 Sëriñ Saliou passed away, being the last son functioning as Caliph General. Since then Bamba’s oldest living grandson is in charge of the Sufi order.

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Seriñ Tuubaa [Bamba] is a deep and wide river from which each one of us can draw Whoever plunges to its depths will know his Lord as soon as he surfaces Whoever readily takes the road that he has prescribed will be filled With his insights even unto sharing them with his companion Whoever plunges into a river must know the water; O you fool, wake up And avoid the sweet water whose depth is bitter He who is careless will be swallowed up forever and will not be able to provide for himself Neither to purify himself, nor to purify another, nor to know his Lord Here is the hallmark of Bamba: Listen, you ignorant one And be the emulator of his character, for he knows his Lord.37 The role of Amadu Bamba is a vivid and crucial one in the spiritual life of a Murid. He is considered a guide on their spiritual path through life and all the way to Paradise. This is exactly what Bamba intended to be for his followers, like he himself had turned to the Prophet Muhammad for guidance. He considered Muhammad as the perfect human being that was able to communicate with God. Bamba presents himself Khadim al- Rassul (‘servant of the Prophet’), and his followers see Bamba in the role of Shaykhul Khadim (‘Leader of the servants’). These are all honorary titles bestowed on Bamba. Where the Prophet Muhammad revealed God’s plan for all, it is up to Bamba to reconnect those who have come somehow disconnected from the path.38 A taalibe explains: Sëriñ Touba explained that ‘all who follow me, will be with me in Paradise’. It is God who said that and Bamba who repeated it. We need to understand this, Bamba said nothing that is not justified by the stories from the good Qur’an. God has sent us the prophet Muhammad and Bamba was his servant. He served the prophet through his writings and with his endless love, and out of apprecia- tion he brought Bamba closer to the good God (…) as it is God who created us and it is He who will reward us…39 In internalizing Bamba’s teachings, Murid disciples do not only draw on his personal writings. They are very much inspired by his exemplary life. Historical accounts of Bamba’s life are available from colonial sources but for most Murids, the more hagiographic reports are of much greater importance. Bamba’s vita or spiritual biography, accounts deeds and miracles but above all the trials and tribulations he endured during the periods of exile. His status as the ultimate guide is believed to have been established in what is referred to as the ‘pact of

37 English translation cited from S. Camara, ‘Ajami literature in Senegal: The example of Seriñ Muusaa Ka, poet and biographer’, in: Research in African Literatures 28 (1997) no.3, 163-182. 38 Zito, Prosperity and purpose, today and tomorrow, xx. 39 personal interview Baara, 2007.

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exile’. During one of his meditation retreats in a secluded place near Touba during the holy month of Ramadan in 1894, Bamba experienced a mystic vision in which the Prophet Muhammad visited him. In this vision the Prophet informed the shaykh that he had reached the extraordinary station of qutb. But to fulfill his mission to save mankind, he should leave Touba to be submitted to a life of extensive trials and exile from his sacred place. The understanding was that meanwhile Bamba’s beloved Touba would be firmly under God’s protection By enduring these trails Bamba would make his path available to the world. It is a mission Murids are still very much aware of: Sëriñ Touba had a mission; he wanted to save all of us (…) He strongly believed he could do this but it is quite a big thing for a small saint. He believed that Para- dise is for all of us and he can guide people to it, save them from the fires of Hell by making God’s message available to all, by providing a path that we can all follow. It will lead us straight to paradise. As people are different he makes the path available in various ways, through very different shaykhs and different means…40 By the end of the 19th century Bamba had gathered quite a substantial following and the French saw him as a possible threat to their ambition to consolidate their power in the region. With the intention to put a stop to Bamba’s popularity, he was arrested and trialled in 1895. The French administration exiled him to Gabon for seven years. It made Bamba only more popular and firmly established his status as a Saint. The exile to Mauritania and the many house arrests and restrictions he was subjected to after his return, further contributed to this. Both Bamba and his followers saw these tests as the fulfilment of the divine order. The role of the French is by Murids often explained as ‘facilitating’ and as an instru- ment in a divine plan. They consider the French involvement as a ‘global aspect’ that will spread Bamba’s universal teachings outside of Senegal and Africa. In battling the hardships of exile, Bamba passes many divine tests and eventually achieves annihilation in God, the final stage of the struggle against the ego in many classical Sufi texts. He explains the experience in his xassaide, in the esoteric language so common to Sufi mystics. These poems are very popular among Murids and a ritual practice has evolved around these writings. In Masalik Bamba points out the spiritual and eschatological benefits of reading them: I do hope that He will lead unto guidance any who reads this work – He is verily the Majestic Lord Who holds grace for His devotees. I also expect from Him the favour of making these verses a shield from Blame for all their readers. And that this book may entail for us, once in the grave, Salvation from its trials and from the Panic of the Great Gathering Day. And that it brings to us, by Heavenly Mercy, the two Lights of the Two Houses (verses 58-61).

40 personal interview Bouba, 2014.

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The xassaide are much more than an intellectual teaching tool and they are central to various spiritual practices. Murid disciples not just study the written content but they practice and perform the texts to internalize them. A tradition has evolved within the Muridiyya of groups chanting xassaides – called jàng in Wolof meaning ‘to learn’ or ‘to read’. The performances have become an indispensable part of socio-religious gatherings. But it can also be practiced in pri- vate, being described as a kind of prayer or meditation. Many carry little book- lets of xassaides with them wherever they go, as protective and healing powers are assigned to them. Next to Bamba’s own writings there are also numerous popular interpreta- tions Murid hagiographers and poets have constructed a comprehensive epic in the Wolof language (the lingua franca of Senegal) in both oral and written form. They are inspired by Bamba’s writing, testimonies from eyewitnesses and hagiographies of other Sufi saints. These stories and poems are not only recited and performed during religious gatherings but are also widely available on audio-tapes, DVD and cd, and on the internet. There are still works added to this body of literature, providing contemporary approaches to Amadu Bamba’s teachings and life stories. Striking are the rich ‘visual hagiographies’, a variety of artwork that depicts Bamba’s spiritual biography.41 Central to those depictions is the only known photograph of Amadu Bamba, taken by a French colonial officer, probably in an attempt to list subversive elements in the region. This ‘mug shot’ has come a long way since then as it has given rise to countless reproductions. Bamba’s image can be found on the walls of Murid homes and shops, on t-shirts and in a variety of artwork. Individual Murids carry the picture with them for protection but also use it in their spiritual practices as the presence of the image is central for con- templation. The image challenges the Murid to discover the sacred signs and messages, the baatin side of Bamba’s presence. It is seen as a strong source of Baraka, the image is touched, kissed, brought to the forehead to receive its blessings. It is what David Morgan refers to as a visual piety42 – a set of practices, attitudes and ideas invested in images that structure the experience of the sacred – comparable to the tradition of icons in the Christian tradition. Bamba presents a beautiful model for his followers, like he himself followed in the Prophets’ footsteps. Providing guidelines through his writings and teachings. Bamba’s deeds are seen as a series of unending devotions to God and the Prophet, it is through hardship and divine tests that he reaches the elite station

41 A. Roberts & M. Roberts, A saint in the city: Sufi arts of urban Senegal, Los Angeles: UCLA Fowler Museum of Cultural History and the University of California Press, 2003. 42 D. Morgan, Visual piety: A history and theory of popular religious images, Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998, 2-3.

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of the Sufi path. With this ascendance in God – through the Prophet –, he founds a permanent and direct link between this world and the next. A link that is there to serve his followers as Bamba now provides an ultimate ‘means of approach’ – drawing them nearer to God. These accounts tie Bamba to an eternal dimension as his achievements in this world are interwoven with roles beyond it – providing a rich eschatological backdrop.

2.3 Place Touba is without a doubt the physical and spiritual centre for all Murids, the thriving heart of the Muridiyya order. It is the place where the founder is buried and where his descendants reside, it is a multifaceted manifestation of Amadu Bamba’s presence and teachings in ways that reach far beyond the material dimensions of the city. The commonly used name Sëriñ Touba expresses the inextricable bond between the saint and the place he founded. From its genesis Touba has been a tool in Bamba’s mission to lead people to belief and believers on the path to Paradise. It is a place that makes the so called source experience accessible.43 The holy place offers space to do so, as Touba reconciles what is hidden and what is seen, the real and the imaginary, the earth and the heavens – it is linking mankind to God.44 As Touba functions as a cosmic link between the earthly and heavenly world the eschatological dimensions are obvious. Present day Touba is also a manifestation what the Muridi- yya as a collective are capable of, the joint efforts of Murids worldwide have built the city and therewith participated in Bamba’s mission. Once in a remote area the city houses an estimated one million people today. Essential in the formation of a Murid identity. Bamba’s quest for Touba marks an essential episode in his spiritual development and in the formation of the Muridiyya. Together with the period of exile, the quest for and the foundation of the sacred place is an important topic in Bamba’s xassaides as well as in the hagiographies and oral traditions produced about him. Amadu Bamba named the place he founded Touba which in Arabic means ‘felicity’ or ‘bliss’ and evokes the sweet pleasures of eternal life in the hereafter. In Islamic tradition, Touba (Ṭūbā) is also the name of the tree of Paradise. In Sufism, this symbolic tree represents an aspiration for spiritual perfection and closeness to God. In his writings Bamba expresses his ideas and expectations for the place that he founded in the wilderness of Central Senegal around 1888. The xassaide Matlab al-fawzayn (‘In pursuit of the two accom- plishments’) is completely dedicated to it:

43 Waaijman, Spirituality, 118 ef. 44 A. Dièye, Touba, signes et symbols, Maurice: Deggel, 1997, 8.

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And my home make it a blessed home Induce me along an open and ascetic course I call upon You to make it an abode of piety Of science and religion, an abode of ascension A garden in the path of the aspirant A garden of disclosure for the one who strives A benefit to all well-guided Muslims A rebuttal to all recidivist criminals Proof for those who are clothed in weakness Evidence against those who contradict tomorrow A pursuit of obedience to the Beneficent A refuge for obedience to the lapidated one A course to paths of compliance A forswearing of paths of innovation A home attracting all the best A home repelling all harm An occasion for disclosing the best of what is hidden An occasion for repelling the most injurious of deficiencies Be satisfied with it. Make it a land of subsistence and security Of compassion and unlimited hospitality.45 The quest for Touba is part of the collective memory of the Muridiyya and every Murid can give a vivid account of the visions and dreams that initiated Bamba’s quest for this special place. The founding myth narrates how he eventually was guided by the archangel Gabriel to a place that was signalled by a huge tree. It was here where Bamba and his family settled and where Touba’s magnificent grand mosque has risen. It is the place that has become the Muridi- yya’s physical and spiritual centre and has attracted an estimated one million inhabitants today. It was right after the discovery of the place that Bamba’s first wife gave birth to a son and where she died shortly after. She was the first to be buried there, beneath a great Baobab tree – known as the Guy texe or ‘baobab of felicity’.46 This cemetery now situated at the very heart of Touba next to the solid and very formal space of the Great Mosque and adjoining mausoleums that hold Bamba’s grave and that of the Caliph Generals that guided the Muridiyya after his death. The eschatological dimensions are probably nowhere as explicit and vivid as here. Murids passionately belief that internment here

45 Verses 383-402, as translated and cited by Eric Ross, Sufi city: Urban design and archetypes in Touba, Rochester: University of Rochester Press, 2006, 115. 46 c.T. Sy, La confrérie sénégalaise des mourides: Un essai sur l’islam au Sénégal, Paris: Présence Africaine, 1969, 315. This tree dominated the cemetery until it collapsed in 2003. The tree was seen as a materialization of a tree called Tûbâ that is situated in Paradise. Murids saw in the tree the gate to paradise, and some people even engraved their names into the bark of its the trunk, registering themselves for Paradise

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will amount a sure passage to heaven, underlining Touba’s function to be the gate to Paradise. The cemetery celebrates the day when all will rise and when Sëriñ Touba will intercede for his Murids. Cimetières Touba: Embouteillages aux portes du Paradis [‘Cemeteries Touba: traffic jam at the gates of Paradise’], is the intriguing headline of an article pub- lished in the Senegalese newspaper Walfadjiri (13 July 2012).47 The article reports on the overcrowded central cemetery of Touba, where the disciples of the Muridiyya wish to be buried after death. Murids consider being buried at this cemetery as an assurance of eternal salvation, a guaranteed entrance to Paradise. A young man explains about the final resting place of his recently deceased brother: When my brother died, we brought him to the holy city of Touba. It was quite a difficult trip from Dakar but as all Murids know, it is important to be buried there. Touba is a place of peace where he is close to Maam [father] Bamba (…) He is in Paradise already. Why a burial in Touba? It is the place where Amadu Bamba personally guides you to Paradise. When they bury you at the cemetery, like all Muslims we will be interrogated in our grave by two angels and Sëriñ Touba will be present so you can’t go wrong there. He will lift you up in his arms and bring you to paradise (…) so no horrible and uncertain life in the grave for us.48 Murids from all over Senegal (and the world) passionately wish to be buried here in expectation of the End of Time in the near presence of their spiritual guides (Amadu Bamba and his descendants). The limited space near Touba’s mosque has become severely overcrowded.49 In September 2013 the Caliph General Sidy Moukhtar Mbacké, a grandson of Bamba, has announced the closure of the cemetery. In January 2014 the caliph has issued an official ndigal that orders Murids to bury their deceased at the new – much more spacious cemetery at Touba’s outskirts. The first cemetery was officially closed for burials on January 11 with a closing ceremony.50 This decision has caused quite intense reactions among the order’s adherents, they have expressed their serious concerns whether the newly allocated cemetery will still provide a gateway to Paradise. These recent events underline that eschatological concerns are still very much alive among present day Murids.

47 And the article went viral on internet afterwards. 48 personal interview Boubacar, 2012. 49 Walfadjiri reports on an average of 75 burials a day, so over 27.000 a year on the 1 km² plot next to the grand mosque at the centre of the city. 50 A video of the closure ceremony can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v= TM9A0n-WDtI

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The journey to Touba is not only undertaken at times of death but it is also the destination for numerous pious visits and pilgrimages. The annual Grand Maggal (Wolof, ‘to commemorate’ or ‘to celebrate’) is without a doubt the most important one gathering over a million of people over the course of three days. The Grand Maggal commemorates the date Amadu Bamba was sent into exile by the French colonial authorities, underlining the importance of the exile. During the pilgrimage adherents visit the grand mosque and Bamba’s Mausoleum as well as the mausoleums of other shaykhs. The cemetery is also often visited – to visit both loved ones and prominent Murids buried there. The maggal also provides the opportunity to visit one’s personal shaykh who generally resides in the city – it is also a great time to look for a suitable personal shaykh and do the jébbalu. Disciples are not only partaking pious visits, many of them also are part of organising the maggal – as it takes great efforts to provide a peaceful pilgrimage for these huge numbers of people. Touba provides solid manifestations of Bamba’s message and teachings that are constantly reimagined and expressed in and shaped by numerous narratives. Touba represents lived eschatology to the fullest; it makes Murid tradition and the teacher Amadu Bamba accessible on a material, spiritual, ideological and referential level.

3. Concluding – Murid Spirituality, Eschatology Lived

Eschatology, with its strong roots in Islamic sources, is commonly linked with beliefs and practices concerning death and afterlife, and is therefore often only ‘other worldly’ oriented. Murids seem to practice an eschatology that is very much directed towards life and living, providing guidelines for everyday life in this world and is a rich source of inspiration for spiritual practices and beliefs. Practices and beliefs that always underline that life on earth is consequential and has direct implications for the afterlife. In this paper we discussed three main domains that provide the eschatological backdrop against which Murid spirituality takes shape: (1) tradition, referring to Murid orientation, (2) the teacher, meaning Amadu Bamba and his heirs and (3) place, regarding Touba’s material and spiritual manifestations. The teachings and exemplary life of Shaykh Amadu Bamba gave rise to the Murid School of spirituality, a strand of Sufi Islam in western Africa. With his tariqa Bamba provided both a method and an organization for his disciples. Based on a fundamental trust in the intercessory qualities of the Prophet Muhammad. It is through Bamba’s role as the relentless servant of the Prophet, his exemplary life and teachings that his followers can share in God. Bamba provided a lifelong education directed towards the soul trough educating the

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body and spirit. An education that is set out to lead to good action and is guided by commitment to a personal shaykh. Through the jébbalu the taalibe is linked to Amadu Bamba who bridges (via the Prophet Muhammad) the gap towards the rather distant God. Central to his teachings is the quest for the true self through persistence and dedication. A path that provides both exoteric and esoteric knowledge that protects people against the dangers within the self and within the world, and at the same time prepares and makes provisions for the hereafter. The path of a Murid might be a bumpy road, but a taalibe is never alone as one has Bamba as a guide and the Murid tariqa as good company in this life and the next. The idea of death as ‘the only preacher you need’ is not unique as its remem- brance colors all of Islamic spirituality.51 But Amadu Bamba and the Murids have developed this eschatological approach into a refined web of significance and ritual practice. The guidelines provided by Bamba’s teachings are often very practical and the taalibe is challenged to discover its esoteric dimensions, and eschatology constantly interacts with the Murids’ worldview. Above all Bamba’s teachings are attainable for all, not only for an elite. By making paradise reachable for all, the Murid eschatological grounding opens up an optimis- tic view into the future.

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