The Sufis

As Salaamu Alaikoom wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatahu

Unlike Da Vinci's drawings, it's no hidden secret that sufism is widely unaccepted in Saudi Arabia, at least largely at the political level (just kidding about The Da Vinci Code reference). The Wahhabi influence out there is very strong, but it seems as though 'the people' of Saudi and slowly the government itself are beginning to realize the beauty of tasawwuf/sufism.

I think people that write off sufism as a sort of cult, deviant sect within Islam, or bidah (an innovation) are typically individuals who have not really studied up on it or fear it as being a force that divides the ummah up (i.e., creating sects within the deen). But this is not the case, I feel. Of course, in matters of the deen, my opinion is worth less than a grain of sand in the Sahara Desert, so don't take my word as scholarly! I would argue, however, that I do base many of my ideas -- especially on sufism -- on traditional, sound scholarship (inshaAllah).

Moving on, the individuals that I've gotten into conversations with that are anti-sufism will typically say, "Where does the Quran mention sufism?" or "Why didn't the Prophet (sw) talk about sufism?" or "Where was the term 'sufism' in the time of Prophet (sw)?" etc. You can see what they're getting at. To this, all I can say is that I'm convinced by the arguments of the sufi shayukh and their sound logic in answering such questions. Again, that whole not-being-a-scholar thing prevents me from providing answers, so I will not delve into the subject here. I would recommend, however, to those seeking an answer to listen to "real" sufi shaykhs like Shaykh Nuh Ha Mim Keller for starters. And for you desis out there, as one teacher jokingly yet accurately phrased it, I just don't get how people from the subcontinent refuse sufism considering that it was through the sufis that Islam swept across India...

It's amazing, mashaAllah: Years ago when I first heard about the idea of sufism through my brother Umar, it came from recorded tapes he was listening to from Shaykh Nuh. Listening to things like, if you take bayah (an allegiance; which is actually something that the Sahaba [rh] all did with the Prophet [sw]) with a shaykh, it's like riding a train to paradise or the right path because of your 'connection' to him and the connection he has to his shaykh and his shaykh's shaykh and so on until you reach the Hazoor (sw). I was like, Whoa! I want that! And so I started to become more and more interested in sufism at that point. I put together that the Naqshabandis are one tariqa (path; or a path to Allah) within sufism and was content to hear about this considering some familial connections with sound Naqshabandis, mashaAllah.

But later, my views on sufism became distorted. Questions like, What exactly is the basis for sufism? Why can't we all just say we're Muslims? etc. would re-surface. Privately, I found myself at times rejecting sufism all together. I still believed in spirituality greatly, but thought that taking bayah with just one shaykh and one path was not a critical element in gaining higher levels of iman (faith). More specifically, I thought that bayah was very limiting in one's quest for knowledge and ways of reaching closeness to Allah'ta'ala. But then I thought that to understand it more I should at least try to reach some sort of conclusion; because while a part of me was beginning to logically deny sufism, there was an undeniable part of my heart that accepted it without hesitation.

Flip flopping between, Sufism is amazing! and Sufism is bidah or makes no sense! caused a good deal of inner spiritual turmoil. To ease my heart, I was guided to the tariqa tapes of Shaykh Nuh (May Allah protect him. Allah huma salay Allah Muhammad. Ameen.). Miraculously, every single question (and I truly mean every single tiny doubt or question) that I had regarding sufism was answered in his tapes. SubhanAllah. Sure, there were times where upon hearing some things I was like, Huh? What? Where? Why? But then each time my heart essentially told me to be patient and listen to the message. Soon enough, I was back on the track of accepting sufism. I started to think to myself, Should I take bayah with Shaykh Nuh and be in the company of Shadhilis? Should I continue a family 'tradition' and take bayah with Shaykh Husain Sattar and follow the ways of the Naqshabandis? Or should I follow the way of the Akbari tariqa and adhere to the guidance of the shaykh of shaykhs (I purposely leave his name out for personal reasons). So around this time, the opportunity came to become a student of the latter shaykh. The opportunity came suddenly and almost urgently (I remember a phone call from my brother saying, "Dude, you know all the sufi stuff we talk about? Well, we can actually start it if we go tonight to such-and-such place where so-and-so will be talking about it, but you have to come tonight, man!") I was on my way from work on a late Friday evening. Immediately, I was excited and equally confused. To mysef I was like, I don't really know much about this shaykh and I'm really 'into' the other two shaykhs mentioned earlier. Regardless, I went to the class. During those intial classes, however, I still was listening to the Sh. Nuh tapes. I still was interested in Sh Husain Sattar. I even remember consulting Shaykh Husain and Mufti Abdurrahman ibn Yusuf about tasawwuf and I was soon returning to my thoughts of, Why can't I just follow all these ways? What's the harm in doing multiple forms of dhikr?

But the explanations of these travellers, teachers, and seekers of knowledge prevailed, mashaAllah. It's difficult for a loser like me to really explain the logic, but rest assured that it's there. SubhanAllah, both the logic and heart of sufism drive the spirituality of this deen. For you doubters out there, I just explained how I was very much like you, but through duas and pleas to Allah and the hikmah (wisdom) of our teachers, I soon began to appreciate sufism on a wholistic level. What really did it for me, though, was the adab and mannerisms of my shaykh. I know on certain points in this posting I've been decidedly vague and to no exception, I'll be even more so on this point, too. But you can't put into words the ways of your own shaykh. Mureeds (students) of Shaykh Nuh feel the same way about Shaykh Nuh. As I'm sure Shaykh Husain's (or his teacher, Shaykh Zulfiqar Ahmad) students feel about them.

You see them smile and you're convinced that it's a smile that is in conjunction with and in the spirit of the Sunnah. You feel closeness not to just the shaykh, but to Allah. Does that make sense? If not, I urge you to read books on sufism by 'validated' and true sufis. To attend their gatherings or listen to their tapes/cd's. To ask Allah for guidance and an open heart.

If you're listening to a shaykh that exclusively focuses on 'miracles' and amazing feats of sufis of the past, then you may not be in the right company. If you find a 'hippie' sufi that insists that you just need to be spiritual and then disregards the importance of fiqh and other like things, then you probably haven't followed a real sufi. Sufism is a spiritual means of seeking closeness to Allah and His Messenger (sw). It is to follow a path where the only aim is Allah. A path that follows the Quran and Sunnah. "As for those who strive in Us, surely We will guide them to Our paths; And verily Allah is with those who excel" (Quran 29:69).

Going back to the issue of sufism and Saudi Arabia (which was actually the primary reason for my posting!), I thought I would share a very intriguing article that was forwarded to me and taken from The Washington Post: In Saudi Arabia, a Resurgence of Sufism. Seriously, do read it as it's not a long read.

Well, in the end of your own journey, you may very well find out that sufism, while intrinsically beautiful, is not intrinsically necessary. And while I would say that sufism is the closest thing we have to what Islam was back in the day (I just paraphrased that from a teacher), I wouldn't think that you're in the wrong. Many good people out there do not completely subscribe to sufism and in my opinion, that's okay. But if your hearts have ever cried out to you or your soul ever yearn for something "more," then don't ignore it either.

May Allah grant us all guidance and His Forgiveness. Allah huma salay Allah Muhammad. Ameen.