Sufism

Sufism () is a mystic body of religious practice found within Islam that is characterized by a focus on Islamic purification, spirituality, ritualism, and asceticism.

The Mawlid () is an annual festival commemorating the birthday of the Islamic prophet Muhammad on the traditional date of 12 Rabi' al-Awwal, the third month of the Islamic calendar.

thumb|200px|right|Dervish with a lion and a tiger, Mughal painting, thumb|200px|right|Ottoman Turks|Ottoman Dervish portrayed by [[Amedeo Preziosi, , Muzeul Naţional de Artă al României]]

school of Hindu philosophy; a classic path to spiritual realization

thumb|A Sufism|Sufi Muslim ascetic (fakir) in [[Bengal during the 1860s]]

thumb|right|The Dhikr, Eugène Baugnies (1841–1891) '''' (; ; ) is a form of Islamic worship in which phrases or prayers are repeatedly recited for the purpose of remembering God. It plays a central role in Sufism, and each Sufi order typically adopts a specific dhikr, accompanied by specific posture, breathing, and movement. In Sufism, dhikr refers to both the act of this remembrance as well as the prayers used in these acts of remembrance. Dhikr'' usually includes the names of God or supplication from the Quran or hadith. It may be counted with either one's fingers or prayer beads, and may be

A tariqa () is a religious order of Sufism, or specifically a concept for the mystical teaching and spiritual practices of such an order with the aim of seeking , which translates as "ultimate truth".

Khidr () is a quranic figure of Islam. He is described in Surah al-Kahf as a righteous servant of God possessing great wisdom or mystic knowledge. In various Islamic and non-Islamic traditions, Khidr is described as an angel, prophet, or wali (saint), who guards the sea, teaches secret knowledge and aids those in distress. He prominently figures as patron of the Islamic saint Ibn Arabi. The figure of al-Khidr has been syncretized over time with various other figures including Dūraoša and Sorūsh in Iran, Sargis the General and Saint George in Asia Minor and the Levant, Elijah and Samael (the di

Sufi ceremony performed as dhikr

Ihsan ( , also romanized ehsan) is an Arabic term meaning "to do beautiful things", "beautification", "perfection", or "excellence" (Arabic: , ). Ihsan is a matter of taking one's inner faith (iman) and showing it in both deed and action, a sense of social responsibility born from religious convictions.

thumb|Calligraphic Arabic text of the "Salawat": , meaning "Blessings and peace be upon Muhammad and his family", in the handwriting of Shamsuddin Asaf Jahi thumb|Arabic text of another shape of "Salawat": , meaning "May God send his mercy and blessings upon him" Salawat (; ) or Durud (, ) is an Islamic complimentary Arabic phrase which contains veneration for Muhammad. This phrase is usually expressed by Muslims as part of their five daily prayers (usually during the ) and also when Muhammad's name is mentioned. is a plural form of () and from the triliteral root of ṣ-l-w (the letters , ) whi

Islamic religious school or monastery

Barakah or Baraka ( "blessing") is a blessing power in Islam, a kind of continuity of spiritual presence and revelation that begins with God and flows through that and those closest to God.

Bayʿah (, "Pledge of allegiance"), in Islamic terminology, is an oath of allegiance to a leader. It is known to have been practiced by the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In Bedouin culture it was a procedure for choosing the leader of the tribe, and is sometimes taken under a written pact given on behalf of the subjects by leading members of the tribe with the understanding that as long as the leader abides by certain requirements towards his people, they are to maintain their allegiance to him. Bayʿah is still practiced in countries such as Saudi Arabia and Sudan. In Morocco, bayʿah is one of the

2003 film by François Dupeyron

In Sufism, a '''''' (Arabic ) is a novice committed to spiritual enlightenment by (traversing a path) under a spiritual guide, who may take the title , or . A or Sufi follower only becomes a when he makes a pledge () to a . The equivalent Persian term is .

Hurufism ( ḥurūfiyyah, Persian: حُروفیان horūfiyān) is a form of Islamic numerology based on the mysticism of letters (ḥurūf), essentially being the Islamic equivalent of gematria. It originated in the Sufi circles of Astrabad and spread to areas of western Iran (Persia), Anatolia, and the Balkans in the late 14th and early 15th centuries.

Naat ( and ) is poetry in praise of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. The practice is popular in South Asia (Bangladesh, Pakistan and India), commonly in Bengali, Punjabi, or Urdu. People who recite Naat are known as Naat Khawan or sanaa-khuaan. Exclusive "Praise to Allah" and Allah alone is called Hamd, not to be confused with 'Na'at'.

Islamic theological work written by Al-Ghazali between 1095 and 1105 in four parts of ten chapters each

Murshid () is Arabic for "guide" or "teacher", derived from the root r-sh-d, with the basic meaning of having integrity, being sensible, mature. Particularly in Sufism it refers to a spiritual guide. The term is frequently used in Sufi orders such as the Naqshbandiyya, Qādiriyya, Chishtiya, Shadhiliya and Suhrawardiyya.

The term '''''' () means 'axis', 'pivot', or 'pole'. Qutb can refer to celestial movements and be used as an astronomical term or a spiritual symbol.

thumb|A silsilah tablet in Yu Baba Gongbei (Islamic architecture)|Gongbei in [[Linxia City]]

book by Al-Ghazali

annihilation of self

doctrine

thumb|The outside of a Zawiya (institution)|zawiya, a place where Sufis would conduct their sessions which was usually in a private section of a [[mosque]]

Tawassul () is an Arabic word that originates from the word , which stands for a means by which a person, goal or objective is approached, attained or achieved. In another version of the meaning of tawassul in another text: Tawassul is an Arabic word that comes from a verbal noun, wasilah, which according to Ibn Manzur (d. 711/1311) in Lisān al-'Arab means "a station of King, a rank, or act of devotion". In other words, it refers to a position of power due to one's proximity to the king or sovereign. While the tawassul or tawassulan is the use of wasilah for this purpose. In religious contexts

Abdāl () lit: substitutes, but which can also mean "generous" [karīm] and "noble" [sharīf]) is a term used in Islamic metaphysics and Islamic mysticism, both Sunni and Shiite, to refer to a particularly important group of God's saints. In the tradition of Sunni Islam in particular, the concept attained an especially important position in the writings of the Sunni mystics and theologians, whence it appears in the works of Sunni authorities as diverse as Abu Talib al-Makki (d. 956), Ali Hujwiri (d. 1072), Ibn Asakir (d. 1076), Khwaja Abdullah Ansari (d. 1088), Ibn Arabi (d. 1240), and Ibn Khaldu

Balaibalan () is the oldest known constructed language.

conference

physically active Sufi meditation, practiced by Dervish orders, involving spinning in circles to music

alt=Purity from within |thumb|upright=1.5| A Fatimid medallion depicting the Purity of [[Ahl al Bayt ]]

thumb|right|Two talibés boys in Vélingara, Senegal. A talibé (also spelled talibe, plural talibés; , 'student'; pl. ) is a boy, usually from Senegal, the Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Chad, Mali or Mauritania, who studies the Quran at a daara (West African equivalent of madrasa). This education is guided by a teacher known as a marabout. In most cases talibés leave their parents to stay in the daara.

collective supererogatory ritual performed by Sufi orders

Ishq () is an Arabic word meaning 'love' or 'passion', also widely used in other languages of the Muslim world.

Mawsim or moussem (), waada, or raqb, is the term used in the Maghreb to designate an annual regional festival in which worshippers usually combine the religious celebration of local Marabouts or Sufi Tariqas, with various festivities and commercial activities. These are very popular events, often attended by people from very distant places.

Īshān (from Persian 'they'; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ) is an honorific title given to Sufi leaders in Central Asia. According to Jianping Wang, "In the Sufi doctrine found in [[East Turkestan|E[ast] Turkestan]], the ishan has a serene nature, acting as an intermediary between Muslims and Allah. An ishan has leadership over his group, and can nominate his khalifa and hafiz as well as initiating maulid and buwi into the sub-order. Usually, an ishan will have inherited his position from within his family and pass it on to his descendants."

Sufi mystic order in Sunni Islam

spiritual station in Sufi development

thumb|Diagram of "Plain of Assembly" (Ard al-Hashr) on the Day of Judgment, from autograph manuscript of Futuhat al-Makkiyya, ca. 1238 (photo: after Futuhat al-Makkiyya, Cairo edition, 1911)

2006 Film directed by Özer Kiziltan

Kashf () "unveiling" is a Sufi concept dealing with knowledge of the heart rather than of the intellect. Kashf describes the state of experiencing a personal divine revelation after ascending through spiritual struggles, and uncovering the heart (a spiritual faculty) in order to allow divine truths to pour into it. Kashf is etymologically related to mukashafa "disclosure"/ "divine irradiation of the essence", which connotes "gain[ing] familiarity with things unseen behind the veils". For those who have purified their hearts, and who come to know the Divine Names and Attributes to the fullest o

religious and political group in Sudan, initially followers of the Mahdi Mohamad Ahmed

2001 novel by Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt

The wird (plural: awrād) is a regular litany and a mystical invocation practiced by , and in Islamic sufism.

thumb|260px|Diagram showing Urwayniya as well as other Sufi orders.

Tajalli () is the appearance and disclosure of God as truth in Sufism. Tajalli is believed to be a process by which God manifests himself in concrete forms.

Shab-e-Barat () or Nisfu Syaaban (Southeastern Asian Muslims) is a Mid-Sha'ban related religious celebration celebrated in many South Asian, Central Asian, South East Asian and Middle Eastern Muslim countries, on the 15th night (the night on 15th only) of the month of Sha'ban, the eighth month of the Islamic calendar.

thumb|Wooden boards on which talibe children learn [[Quranic verses]] Daara is the title used in Senegal to designate the traditional Quranic schools that have ensured for centuries that Islamic education was well spread out in all segments of population in the West African countries.

thumb|right|Dervish draped a blue khirqa, late 16th–early 17th century. The khirqa is the initiatory cloak of the Sufi chain of spirituality, with which esoteric knowledge and barakah is passed from the Murshid or the Shaikh to the aspirant murid. The khirqa initiates an aspirant into the silsilah, the chain or lineage of sheikhs that goes back to the Islamic prophet Muhammad. This chain serves as the channel through which barakah flows from the source of spiritual revelation to the being of the initiate.

Sufi practice of penance and solitude

Recitation of the entire Holy Quran

A shath ( šaṭḥ, plural: šaṭaḥāt or šaṭḥiyyāt), in the Islamic mystical tradition of Sufism, is an ecstatic utterance which often seems outrageous; however, it also holds immense significance within Sufism by acting as a conduit of mysticism that communicates implicit religious beliefs and ideals through different modes of consciousness. The word is derived from the root š-ṭ-ḥ, which carries the sense of overflowing or outpouring caused by agitation. Sufi authors tend to vary in their interpretations of shath, sometimes claiming that such utterances were misquotations, being attributed to immat

attracted and absorbed Sufi follower in the pathway of Suluk

concept in Islam

Sufi preachers

Menhuan () is a term used by the Hui and Uyghur Muslim populations of China to indicate a Chinese Ṣūfī ṭarīḳa ("order" or "saintly lineage"). The leaders of a menhuan, which usually are Ṣūfī Muslim murs̲h̲id ("masters") or walī ("saints"), form a chain of spiritual successors over the ages, known in Arabic as silsilah, which goes back to the order's founder in China (e.g., Ma Laichi or Ma Mingxin), and beyond, toward his teachers in Arabia. One of Dillon's main sources is:

aspect of Islamic history

book by Al-Ghazali

a short story based on the life of the renowned Sufi Mansur Al-Hallaj,