Parsimony and generosity according to Islamic ethics.
Allaj(j.j) indicates in his holy book about the kind of people who can not see beyond their firm grasp of worldly possessions: And let not those who covetously withhold of the gifts which Allah Hath given them of His Grace, think that it is good for them: Nay, it will be the worse for them: […]
Does being a zaheed means living in a cave?
In today’s world Muslims face many challenges, some are vitally dangerous to our faith. One of these challenges is the “issue of compatibility of Islam and modernism”. Like many of these so-called “issues”, the issue of compatibility of Islam and modernism is a fake one, and such construction has obviously has its roots in orientalism. […]
Before the enlightenment, before the renaissance, there was tasawwuf ethics
In today’s modern world, readers are deliberately forced to observe History of Islam through “distorted” lens and usually the “spread of wisdom of strong ethical philosophy” during those centuries like 8th, 9th and 10th are rarely mentioned. In fact, during those centuries cities like Baghdad and Damascus were sophisticated education centers and the teachers by […]
Concept of Zuhd: Asceticism in sufism
Concept of zuhd(asceticism) has an pivotal place in the way of “tasawwuf”. It means lack of desire, staying away from anything vogue and being content with less. A heart with zuhd gives less importance to worldly needs and advantages, refrains from being opportunist and selfish, carries as little as concerns for self-benefits and becomes fully […]
Different meanings of the word Zuhd
Zuhd is an important concept in Islamic tasawwuf and has multi-layered meanings. It can mean the following; Lack of extreme ambitious, lack of demand and feeling indifferent to worldly needs, Not feeling opportunist for daily, mundane wishes, Not being selfish, Be content with what one has under his possession, Not lamenting over certain mundane losses, Zaheed […]
Resources for studying history of tasawwuf
Islamic tasawwuf has a long and rich tradition of history, therefore this discipline has multi-layers of resources for studying. The books written under the study of tasawwuf can be categorized as follows. 1) Philosophical books on tasawwuf: These kind of studies center around topics like adjectives of Allah(j.j) and His creation, the relationship between human […]
Concept of Heva: Ardour and overweening ambition according to tasawwuf
Heva means empty, full of air, futile and worthless. It is a concept used by sufis to indicate someone’s nafs, in other words, soul’s inclination towards and dependency on personal desires and lust. If heva overcomes reason in any human being, the person will be under the command of his nafs, thus leading his soul […]
Tafakkur: An Islamic method of epistemology
Tafakkur means to think on a subject very deeply. It is a very humane activity and presumably the only activity that makes human beings superior to other creatures. In Islamic thought it is suggested to think deeply on the things Allah(j.j) has created. There is one ayat in Holy Quran which has effected Prophet Muhammad(saw) […]
Mushahadee : Observing with the heart
Mushahadee is a tasawwuf concept that is related with an special stage for the “areef” ones. The areef is the one who is occupied with knowing himself to know more about Allah(j.j) in better way. Naturally, this doesn’t mean about “self-actualization”, since tasawwuf studies is exempt from such egoistic and narcissistic terms. A sufi doesn’t […]
Different degrees of the nafs
In tasawwuf nafs means self, psyche, ego or soul. Some Sufis suggest that there are six degrees of nafs and claim this intellection based on Quranic evidence. Nafs-i-ammara: The kind of nafs that doesn’t care about Allah(j.j) commands and prohibitions and follows mundane pleasures. Nafs-i-lawwama: Here the nafs sometimes follows Allah(j.j) guidelines and feels sorry […]