The Doctrines Of Sufism

Perfecting The ReligiousExperience

Improving The Spiritual Self

Kashf: Enlightenment

Wali: Spiritual Guide/sainthood

Annihilation

Unity Of Existence

The doctrines of sufism.mmap - 3/4/2006 - Mindjet Team

Annihilation

The Context: (The Approaches ToFaith And Understanding)

Sufism

Emphasizes perception, maarifa leadingto direct knowledge of Self and God, anduses the heart as its medium

Kalam

Emphasizes reason, ilm leading tounderstanding of God, uses the Aaql asits medium, and subjects reason torevelation

Philosophy

Emphasizes reason, ilm leading tounderstanding of God, uses the Aaql asits medium

The Goals Of The Spiritual JourneyTaqwa: Piety

AL BAQARA

QAAF

AL HADEED

The Origins Of Annihilation

AL RAHMAN

The Motivation For Annihilation

Living the Shahada

Results from the negation in the first partof the Shahada (fana)

And from the affirmation of thesubsistence in the second part of theShahada: (Baqa)

Living the TawheedBe witness to the divine reality, andeliminate the egocentric self

Self transformation

Start as a stone

Be shuttered by the divine light of thedivine reality you witness

Emerge restructed as a jewel

The Consequence Of Annihilation

Sobriety

IntoxicationParadox and biwelderment

PerplexityAbu Bakr (RAA): Incapacity to perceive is perception

Annihilation By ExamplesAl Junayd

Al Hallaj

Annihilation.mmap - 3/6/2006 - Mindjet Team

AL JUNAYD

Biography

Born and Raised in Baghdad (died in 910 or 198 H)

His education focused on Fiqh and Hadith

He studied under the Jurist Abu Thawr:An extraordinary jurist started as aHanafii, then followed the Shafi schoolonce al Imam Al Shafi came to Baghdad.Abu Thawr was equally skilled in Fiqh andHadith

The strength of Al Junayd in classicalstudies was Fiqh

Although he distinguished himself earlyenough as a gifted mystic he refused toteach as a sign of respect for his teacherSari As-Saqati

He also learned from AL Muhasibi andconsidered him his spiritual master

He was a silk merchant by trade

Maintained a balanced life style: Noexcessive material life and no extremeausterity

He was also balanced in character

The Mystical School Of BaghdadIn The 10th Century

Tawhid as opposed to Kalam

Esoteric Character

Suffered great persecutions foraccusations ranging from innovations andquestionable practices to heresy

The Writings Of Al Junayd

Kitab Amthal Al Quran

Kitab Al Rasail

Other historians and biographers haveattributed to Al Junayd many more books

The Doctrines Of Al Junayd

Unification (Tawheed): using his famousdefinition=> "Unification is the separationof that which has from that which wasoriginated in time"

Separate and fix the Eternal Essence ofGod and reject all others

Separate and fix the attributes of God anddisapprove all others

Separate the actions of God and refute all others

Mithaq: Covenant

Understand the relationship between Godthe creator and the Human the created,and the realization by the human ofhis/her place before God: Surah Al Ahzab

Fana: Annihilation/Obliteration

"true" Tawheed can only achieved oncethe created human loses his/herindividuality and asserts only the divinepresence

Details Of Fana In Al Junayd's Theory

Fana: of natural qualities in one's motiveswhen one carries out religious duties. Thisis moral and objective.

Fana: of pursuit after pleasures toeliminate intermediation with God. This ismental and subjective.

Fana: of consciousness. This is where AlJunayd restore the Baqa. When this stageis attained the worshipper should recoversobriety after intoxication

Preventing Excess And InsuringThe Supremacy Of Sharia

Baqa: Subsistence. This is theprescription against pantheism

Sahw: . This is the prescription againstlibertinism and antinomianism

Al Junayd.mmap - 3/4/2006 - Mindjet Team

AL HALLAJ

Biography

Born and Raised in Tur south-westernIran (in 858 or 244 H)

His education focused on FiqhAlthough a Sunni he found himself in Shiite milieu

The strength of Al Hallaj was Hanbali Fiqh

Prior to his focus on sufism he was known at a preacherAl Hallaj came under the influence of AlJunayd and Amr Al Makki

He was a wool carder by trade

He was a social activists who denouncedinjustice and became a voice for the weakand the oppressed in Basra

After his death his mutilated body was laid to rest in Karkh

The Mystical School Of BaghdadIn The 10th Century

Tawhid as opposed to Kalam

Esoteric Character

Suffered great persecutions foraccusations ranging from innovations andquestionable practices to heresy

The Writings Of Al Hallaj

Diwan

Diwan Al Hallaj

Tawassin

Example A

The Ta-Sin of the Circle

1. The first door representsthe one who reaches the circleof Truth. The second doorrepresents the person whoreaches it, who after enteringit comes to a closed door. Thethird door represents the onewho goes astray in the desertof the Truth-Nature of thetruth.

2. He that enters the circle isfar from the Truth because theway is blocked and the seekeris sent back. The point on highrepresents his yearning. Thelower point represents hisreturn to his point ofdeparture, and the middlepoint is his bewilderment.

3. The inner circle does nothave a door, and the pointwhich is in the center is Truth.

4. The meaning of Truth isthat from which externals andinternals are not absent, and itdoes not tolerate forms.

Example B

The Ta-Sin of the Point1. Finer still than that is themention of the PrimordialPoint, which is the Source, andwhich does not grow ordecrease, nor consume itself.

2. The one who denies myspiritual state denies itbecause he does not see me,and he calls me a heretic. Hecharges me with evil, andseeing my glory he calls forhelp, and it is to the sacredcircle which is beyond thebeyond that he cries.

3. He who reaches the secondcircle imagines me to be theInspired Master.

4. He who reaches the thridcircle thinks that I am at thebottom of all desires.

5. And he who reaches thecircle of Truth forgets me andhis attention is distracted fromme.

The Doctrines Of Al HallajUnification (Tawheed)

Fana: Annihilation/Obliteration

Fana For Al Hallaj's: Devotion And Martyrdom

Fana: Total and complete annihilationleading to intoxication with sobriety

The Reactions To His Death

Massignon and Mason (BU)

His inquisitors

His contemporariesLater generations of Muslims

The ambivalence continues to this day

The Martyrdom of al-Hallaj, Baghdad 17thcentury Indian painting (Allahabad,1017a) from Diwan, by Amir Najm-ad-dinDihlavi (Walters Art Gallery, Baltimore)

Al Hallaj.mmap - 3/5/2006 - Mindjet Team