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Inaug.-Diss.--Kiel. / Vita. Bibliography: p. 1-7.

The word mysticism in the English language has been corrupted and abused by its difference usages in the various disciplines such as religion, poetry, and philosophy. In Islam the only word which refers to a mystic is a Sufi. Sufism, according to its adherents, is the highest form of human experience, the ultimate reality of God. The Sufi theme is “Know thyself and thou wilt know God.” Sufism has been considered by Sufis and by Orientalists as the ancient school of wisdom, of quietism, of attaining the highest union and of purification of the soul. It embodies the strains of various philosophies and religions. These strains are Christian, Neo-Platonic, Gnostic and Indian ascetic and religious philosophy. The Naqshabandi tariqa stresses the importance and knowledge of the preceding shaykhs, their character and their virtues. Knowledge of the silsila (chain) which traces its inception to Muhammad is also very important. This is most significant to the murid (follower), because he must submit to the shaykh and trust him implicitly in order to model his life after him, leading him to spiritual virtue. Not only spiritual virtue is transmitted through the chain but the gift of grace, given by God, to the one who repents and lives according to the tariqa. That is to say, the silsila functions as a communicator between the hearts and the Light of God, which is grace. Having achieved this stage and with the art of concentration and contemplation, the true believer can know God. Thus the aim of contemplation, is spiritual union with the One.` It is achieved when the murid practices the doctrine of the Naqshabandis, that of Repentance, Dhikr and Prayers of the Masters. There are prescribed rituals and practices in this attainment that must be adhered to religiously. However, this fulfillment is not within reach of every murid, but the Naqshabandis claim that reciting the dhikr (litany) is the easiest and simplest path to the One. What is discussed here are three important inter-related aspects of the Naqshabandi tariqa: doctrine, spiritual virtue (moral and ethical), and an art of concentration. The question now is what are the social implications of Sufism? Sufism sprang and was nurtured, as in other religions, as a result of general conditions and causes within the structures of the society. Sufism was not only one of the factors that expressed the spirit of society in religious and social terms, it was also a way of life to a Muslim. When man in society finds anxieties and conflicts in a given path, there has to be alternate routes of departure, if not, then some conceptualization of thoughts and ideas must stem to fill the vacuum for him. If there are too many external obstacles, then an internal reign takes a hold to give meaning and order to man’s existence and self fulfillment. If man cannot find spiritual and intellectual answers inwardly, he must find order and meaning in the external world. The balances must be met in society and the Naqshabandi Sufi found it in concentration and contemplation.

No description available.

This dissertation is an ethnohistorical study of an Afghan branch of the Naqshbandiyya/Mujaddidiyya order, the Saifiyya. The problem this study addresses is how the Saifiyya order is able to sustain and perpetuate itself over time. Recent historical studies attribute the survival of the orders to official patronage or an ability to adapt, in a variety of ways, to changes in the social and political environment. These analyses, however, stress mainly adaptation to social change. Few scholars have examined how social forces interact with spiritual practice such that the order remains the same in important respects. Because the reason for this oversight is chiefly methodological, this study uses broader methods, combining textual analysis with participatory field work. The Saifiyya identity is informed mainly by the renowned Naqshbandi religious reviver of the seventeenth century, Ahmad Sirhindi. Sirhindi preached the inseparability of shari'a and tarīqa and the continued validity of taqlīd or imitation of Islamic norms accumulated in the first ten centuries of Islam. Beginning in the eighteenth century, however, many spiritual heirs of the Naqshbandiyya rejected taqlīd, in order to address the social crises overtaking the Asian sub-continent. For some, reform eventually led to outright rejection of mysticism. In Afghanistan, government efforts to modernize prompted lineal Mujaddidiyya shaikhs to adopt political Islam, a strategy that similarly led to a loss of its mystical fimction. By contrast, the Saifiyya branch of the order continues to adhere to taqlīd. Until recently, the relatively stable society of northern Afghanistan was conducive to this approach, because it was somewhat removed from the social crises affecting the subcontinent and Afghanistan's urban areas. The result has been the preservation of a powerful baraka embodied in the order's shaikh, Saifur Rahman. Although forced to relocate to Pakistan, the Saifiyya order thrives, despite the presence of anti-mystical reform movements there. Saifiir Rahman attracts a growing number of disciples with the ecstatic and transforming power of his baraka. While the order's success is due partly to its ethnic and linguistic compatibility with the region, more than anything, it is the Pir's baraka that explains the order's growing social appeal today.

This thesis is a study of the doctrine of maqamat (stations) and ahwal (states), the crucial doctrine of sufism, as described in two different books, al-Risalah al-Qushayriyah and Kashf al-Mahjub, by two different masters of Sufism: one Sunni-Shafi'i, al-Qushayri, the other Sunni-Hanafi, al-Hujwiri. After introducing their positions in the history of sufism, the thesis examines their backgrounds as well as their mystical inclinations. The thesis then analyzes al-Qushayri's and al-Hujwiri's doctrine of maqamat and ahwal through a comparison of concrete examples found in the two books. Through this comparison, the thesis attempts to show the differences and the similarities of their concepts of maqamat and ahwal. The conclusion discovers that the differences which appear in al-Qushayri's and al-Hujwiri's views concerning identification of a virtue as a state or a station pertain to theoretical differences only.

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No description available.

Originally presented as the author's Thesis (master's)--al-Jāmiʻah al-Islāmīyah, Medina. / Includes bibliographical references (v. 3, p. 1251-1288) and indexes.

E.J. Jurji's Thesis (Ph. D.)--Princeton University, 1936.