A Sufi’s Vision of Himself and His Relation to Humanity
By
Mohammad Ali, New Age Islam
January 15,
2022
Sufis
View Diversity In Thoughts, Culture, Race, And Even In Faiths, As Part Of The
Divine Plan
Main
Points:
1. This essay
discusses how a Sufi defines himself today.
2. It discusses
the characteristics of Sufi ideas that help Sufi relate himself to other human
beings on a humanitarian level.
3. It also
discusses that the Sufi ideas of religious tolerance and equality are inspired
by the Quran.
-----
In the
modern world, the term Sufi refers to numerous connotations. For some people,
it could mean a person donned in rags, covered in dirt, indifferent to the
world, and free from any religious obligation. And for some Muslims, Sufi
practices are an utter innovation and heresy. These all understandings that have
been attached to the word, Sufi, may have some sorts of anchoring points in
real-life experiences.
However,
these meanings and representations of the word Sufi are misleading. Because
this word is not about maintaining appearances and not subjecting oneself to a
moral and religious code. It is about purifying one’s inner self from all types
of negative feelings like anger, greed, enmity, jealousy, etc. that encourage a
person to inflict harm to others. And a person can attain such purification
only by abiding by certain moral principles which are provided by God Himself.
By this understanding, a Sufi has a religion and follows a prescribed course of
actions to purify himself/herself. Similarly, he can also not be indifferent to
the world around him. For a Sufi, the creation is the manifestation of God’s
attributes, meaning, the creation is a tangible display of God’s actions which
one can experience and through it can attain the realization of God’s presence
in the world. Every move a Sufi makes, every desire he wishes, he does so very
cautiously, lest it may not be in violation of God’s command. His belief system
is like that of the other Muslims in the world. However, the sole purpose of
his exercises is to bring out the best of humanity from the inside of himself,
which, he thinks, is the purpose of Islam as well.
The
purification of self is a difficult skill that can be excelled only under the
supervision of a master. Throughout Islamic history, these Sufi masters took it
upon themselves to teach these skills that they had honed for several years.
They built Sufi hospices, and under their supervision trained novices, passing
on their tradition and skills to later generations. Therefore, thinking about
Sufis as those who are dismissive and unconcern about the world is deceiving.
Through their hospices and Khanqahs, they have influenced the world, and their
contributions to human society are significant.
Sufis gave
us a unique perspective about humanity. A Sufi envisions his relationship with
other human beings of love and compassion. He tries to win people’s hearts, not
through fear but kindness. Sufis draw inspiration for this idea from the
Quranic conceptions about God and His Prophet Muhammad as a mercy for all
creation in the universe. The Quranic idea that God and the Prophet are
merciful for the entire humanity invites Sufis to imitate the attributes of God
at their full capacity in order to get close to Him and His Prophet. Unlike
Muslim jurists who divided humanity in legal terminologies, Sufis regarded all
humans as the creation of God. Al-Khalqu ‘Ayāl Allāh (the whole creation is the
family of Allah), is one of the formulas their lives are guided by.
Sufis view
diversity in thoughts, culture, race, and even in faiths, as part of the divine
plan. The Quran says, Had Allah willed, He would have made you one nation
(united in religion). (Maidah, 48) But God did not do so, instead, He allowed
people to follow their conscience. In this divine scheme, a Sufi imagines his
role as a guide, who help people find the right course to lead their lives.
There is a famous anecdote that relates that once in the morning, Khwaja
Nizamuddin, a celebrated Chishti Sufi of Delhi, was strolling on the roof of
his Jamat Khana (khanqah). He, then, saw some Hindus bathing and observing
religious rituals at the banks of the Jamuna river. At the sight of the people
of a different faith immersed in their religious practices, Nizamuddin uttered,
everyone has his own religion and a distinct way of following it. This
statement of Nizamuddin was a reflection of his sincere belief in the diversity
and freedom of religion, meaning everyone is free to believe in the religion
his/her conscience leads to. This also means that Sufis not only believe in
diversity in faith, but they also do not believe in coercion in the name of
religion. These views of Sufis are not the products of heresy. In fact, Sufis
claim that the source of such ideas is the Quran itself. In many places, the
Quran has declared that God does not allow coercion in religion. Faith should
be a product of sincerity and purity of thoughts, which can only be attained if
people are allowed to follow their conscience freely. This is the Quranic
concept of freedom in religion, and this is what Sufis believe in as well.
Another
important characteristic of Sufi practices is establishing and maintaining
peace with every individual in this world. The underpinning idea behind this
practice is that a Sufi must always rely on God’s providence and live without
the fear of others. Since a Sufi does not seek or desire anything from people,
he does not have any reason to quarrel with them. It is noteworthy that by
seeking peace with fellow human beings, irrespective of their religion, a Sufi
actually contributes significantly to the spreading of peace in the world.
Sufi’s emphasis on establishing peace with the people of other religions is
also inspired by the instances that they find in the practices of the Prophet
Muhammad and his companions. In the early days of Islam, the Prophet
established brotherhood among the people of Mecca and Medina and made treaties
with the Jews of Medina and other non-Muslim tribes of the Arabian Peninsula.
He also forgave the polytheists of Mecca after the conquest of the city.
After this
brief discussion, it can be said that a Sufi is someone who is highly committed
to the noble ideals that he has learned from the Quran and the life of the
Prophet Muhammad, and he devotes his entire life to the propagation of those
ideals in the society. A Sufi is not someone who is illiterate, rather a Sufi
is a person who is highly trained in Islamic ethics and other sciences whom he
acquires either through formal education in a madrasa or through the
companionship of a Sufi master in a khanqah. In the modern period, the status of
khanqahs deteriorated due to the lack of serious and excellent Sufi masters.
However, there is still some reminiscence of the previous glory of this Islamic
institution which can be found in some Indian khanqahs. And there are some
Sufis who are trying to revive this age-old tradition.
Note: this
essay draws on the address of Sheikh Abu Saeed Shah Ehsanullah Mohammadi
Safawi, which he delivered at Jamia Millia Islamia in 2018. This address was
later published in Khizr-e-Rāh Monthly, July 2018. Sheikh Abu Saeed is a Sufi
master and rector of Khanqah-e-Arifia, Saiyid Sarawan, Allahabad.
----
Mohammad Ali has been a madrasa student. He has
also participated in a three years program of the "Madrasa Discourses,” a
program for madrasa graduates initiated by the University of Notre Dame, USA.
Currently, he is a PhD Scholar at the Department of Islamic Studies, Jamia
Millia Islamia, New Delhi. His areas of interest include Muslim intellectual
history, Muslim philosophy, Ilm-al-Kalam, Muslim sectarian conflicts, madrasa
discourses.
URL: https://www.newageislam.com/islamic-society/sufi-vision-humanity-diversity-faith/d/126166
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