What is Sufism(Tasawwuf)

Al-Hamdu lillah was-Salat was-Salam
`ala Rasulillah wa Alihi wa Sahbihi wa man Walah

"Before asking what is Sufism, we should ask what is Religion."
(Shaykh Nazim in an interview with the BBC, London 1991)

Shaykh al-`Arusi said in his marginalia
titled Nata'ij al-Afkar al-Qudsiyya (Bulaq, 1920/1873):

“Religion (al-dîn) is an orchard of which the fence is the Law (al-sharî`a), the inner grove is the Path (al-tarîqa), and the fruit is the Reality (al-haqîqa). Whoever has no Law has no Religion; whoever has no Path has no Law; and whoever has no Reality has no Path ... ”

"The way of the Sufis consists in ten items:

(1) The reality of tasawwuf which is defined by truthful self-orientation (sidq al-tawajjuh) to Allah Most High.

(2) The pivot of truthful tawajjuh is to single out the heart and the body for [obedience of] Allah Alone.

(3) Tasawwuf in relation to Dîn is like the soul in relation to the body.

(4) The Sufi examines the factors of perfection and deficiency.

(5) The Jurist examines whatever discharges liability (mâ yusqitu al-haraj) while the scholar of juridical/doctrinal Principles (al-usûlî) examines whatever makes one's faith valid and firmly established. Therefore the Sufi's perspective is more specific than both of theirs, consequently their criticism of him is valid, while his criticism of either of them is invalid. Hence 'the Sufi among Jurists is better than the Jurist among Sufis.'

(6) To display the nobility of tasawwuf, its evidence being both by demonstration and by textual precedent (burhânan wa nassan).

(7) Fiqh [jurisprudence] is the precondition for the validity of tasawwuf and that is why it has precedence over it.

(8) Terminology and its specific applicability to each discipline exclusively of others.

(9) The keys of spiritual opening concerning which there are four rulings: first principles; truthful aspiration towards attainment; longing for spiritual realities; and quitting the guideline of what is transmitted (al-manqûl) once one obtains self-realization (al-tahqîq).

(10) It is a wonderful and strange path built on the permanent following of what is better and best: in doctrines it consists in following the Salaf; in rulings, fiqh; in meritorious deeds (al-fada'il), the scholars of hadith; and in high manners (al-âdâb), all that is conducive to the wholeness of hearts."

Some definitions of tasawwuf:

Tasawwuf: Purification of the self from all that is other than the remembrance and obedience of Allah; the realization of ihsân (excellence); zuhd (asceticism) combined with ma`rifa (knowledge of Allah); the attribute of the Sufi. "Ceasing objection" (al-Su`luki); "Abandoning the world and its people" (Ibn Sam`un). "Tasawwuf is neither knowledge nor deeds but an attribute with which the essence of the Sufi adorns itself, possessing knowledge and deeds, and consisting in the balance in which these two are weighed." (Ibn Khafif)

Some definitions of the Sufi:

Sûfî, pl. Sûfiyya: One who follows the path of tasawwuf, "He who gazes at the Real in proportion to the state in which He maintains him" (Bundar). They wore wool (sûf): "I found the redress of my heart between Makka and Madina with a group of strangers � people of wool and cloaks" (ashâb sûf wa `abâ'). Sufyan al-Thawri as cited from Khalaf ibn Tamim by al-Dhahabi, Siyar A`lam al-Nubala' (Dar al-Fikr ed. 7:203).

Hajj Gibril

GF Haddad ©
[2000-09-29]

Reference(Source): http://www.livingislam.org/fiqhi/fiqha_e50.html

Shari’ah, Tariqah, Haqiqah

Shari’ah, Tariqah, Haqiqah by Shaykh Ahmad Hendricks

Thursday, 19 August 2010 11:24 administrator

The meaning and usage of the terms Shari’ah, Tariqah and Haqiqah is the subject of some controversy. What exactly do they mean and why do they exist in the first place. The first of those words "Shariah" is to most of us a reasonbly familiar term. When we talk about "Shari’ah" people generally understand that we are either talking about the din in general or specifically about the legal aspects or fiqh of Islam. The common expression is " we have to live according to the shari’ah" and we immediately understand when we hear this " according to the law of Allah, the Most High". The question that often mystifies some Muslims is what else can there possibly be besides the law of Allah, the Most High? We have our Din, we have the Shari’ah the prophetic code to live by, what is the Tariqah or Haqiqah we hear about in connection with Tasawwuf?

Allah, the Most High says, " Surely this (Quran) is a reminder (tadhkirah) and he who has the will let him seek a path (sabil) to his Lord."

This verse makes two important points;

1. The Quran is a tadhkirah. It serves as a reminder of the fundamental truths we have forgotten, the truth of where we come from and where we ultimately are all going to. It is a light that re-awakens us to the nature of reality, to the truth of ourselves and of what is beyond the grave. We are called to our higher purpose and destiny. "And we have not created men and jinn except to worship Me". Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, says, "to worship me," means to "to know me".
2. So having been reminded of all of this let the Muslim adopt a path, a way that leads from his state of forgetfullness to our original state of rememberance. Let him seek a means to return to Allah, the Most High, to His Pleasure and to His Paradise. Let him adopt a path that leads to knowledge (ma’rifah) of Allah, the Most High. The verse also alludes to another important point. Let the one who "has the will" persue the path to Allah. It is a well-known teaching of the masha'ikh that the beginning of the path is "iradah", the persistent desire to travel closer to Allah. So the first thing we need to search for is a means to awaken the "iradah", and once awoken to thank Allah for this blessing. When this "iradah" appears in our soul, this longing to draw close to Allah is the clearest sign of His calling us to Him.

According to Sh. Amin al-Kurdi in his "Tanwir al-qulub", the Prophetic path that leads to these high goals comprises of the following three interrelated elements;

• Knowledge, of the legal rules, beliefs, ethical and spiritual principles revealed to the Prophet, may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon him, collectively called the Shari’ah. The scholars of Tawhid, Fiqh and Tasawwuf did the crucial work of deriving, extracting and compiling the Shari’ah from the Quran and the Sunnah. Some would add as a primary source, the practise of the People of Medina and still others would add the consensus of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with all of them.
• Practice of the Shari’ah, preferably under the guidance of a qualified master and teacher. The practice of the Shari’ah basicly means staying away from all the prohibited things, both outwardly and inwardly, and carrying out the commands of the shar’ to the best of ones ability. The practise of the Shari'ah is referred as the Tariqah. Tariqah in Arabic means, "road" or "method" and from a very early phase in Muslim History, probably from the second century AH, was used to denote the "practice" of the Shari’ah.
• Realisation or becoming a reality, in Arabic called the Haqiqah. Haqiqah is the fruit of knowledge and its continuous practice. The Haqiqah is the fruit of the Shari’ah and the Tariqah. Haqiqah, says Sh. Amin al-Kurdi, also has a a number of phases or aspects;
  • The lifting or thinning of the veil between the seeker and the Divine Essence and His Attributes, His Majesty and Beauty, His Nearness to us and His Nearer–thanness. As a result of these realizations and this "tasting", the seeker gains access to the secrets of the Tariqah and the lights and insights of the Haqiqah.
  • The nafs is cleansed of all the lower qualities and rebuilt with the praiseworthy qualities. The great akhlaq of the Prophet, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, now becomes his akhlaq. His patience, repentance, taqwa, istiqamah (regular worship), reliability and tawakkul (trust in Allah) are deep rooted and genuine.
  • His chest has now finally opened to the nur of Islam. Ibadah and good deeds comes to him without any effort. He has reached the stage of al-nafs al-mutmainnah (the peaceful self) and reached a state of complete acceptance of the Din at every level of his being.
  As the Prophet, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, is reported to have said, " He who practices what he knows, Allah will teach him what he doesn’t know."

So to summarise; the Shari’ah is the boat we all have to sail on, the Tariqah is the sea, and the Haqiqah is the jewels and pearls we extract from the sea; or the Shari'ah is the tree, the Tariqah is the branches and the Haqiqah is the fruit we enjoy. All three of these aspects together are the elements of the "sabil" (way) to your "Rabb" in the verse quoted earlier. In our quest to come near to Allah, the Most High, to really understand the Quran as a tadhkirah, we have to combine all three elements; knowledge of the Shari’ah, practicing the Shari’ah and consequently reaping the fruits of practicing the Shari’ah. The solution to our dissatisfaction and spiritual alienation is found in this.

The words Shari’ah, Tariqah, Haqiqah in the sense we defined them earlier are used by the ‘Ulama to refer to these crucial elements or stages of the din, knowledge, practise and realisation. These terms are sometimes defined with minor differences by other scholars. We will require substantial space to discuss all the various definitions and statements of the scholars on this subject. Shaykh Amin's definition seems the most inclusive of all the definitions I looked at, and Allah knows best. As a cautionary note, readers must also remember that words convey certain meanings when used together as we doing in this essay. These words can however have other meanings when used alone and within other contexts. For example, the word Tariqah is also used to refer to a school of Tasawwuf or to the jama'ah of a particular Master of the path. The students of Imam 'Ali ibn Muhammad Assanusi, the great 18th century reformer, loves to call themselves Sanusi's. Shaykh 'Umar Mukhtar whilst fighting Italian Colonialism, called himself and others Sanusi's in his effort to unify the resistance. The pupils and murids of a great Shaykh often feel deeply honored to bear the name of their Shaykh. And this is really the son honoring the father, rather than a human denuding himself of his individuality or self respect.

And finally it is reported that Imam Malik, may Allah be pleased with him said: He who practices the shari’ah without the haqiqah is a fasiq (reprobate); and he who lays claim to the haqiqah without the shari’ah has left the fold of Islam; but he who combines these aspects have truly realized (the fullness of Islam).

Reference(source): http://www.zawiyah.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=95:shariah-tariqah-haqiqah-by-shaykh-ahmad-hendricks&catid=47:tasawwuf&Itemid=90

UNder Construction....................