Essential Sufism

1. Sufism: A Path of Love, Devotion, and Knowledge

There is no single, systematic approach to Sufi teachings, and not all of its teachings can be communicated in words.

Mysticism's essence. Sufism offers a path toward self-realization or God-realization through love, devotion, and knowledge. It's a mystical tradition aiming to eliminate the veils between the individual and God, leading to knowledge of Reality. Sufism embraces various forms of expression, including stories, poetry, art, rituals, exercises, dance, and prayer, recognizing that not all wisdom can be conveyed through words alone.

Sufism's goal. The ultimate goal is to acquire knowledge of Reality, understanding that God is the ultimate reality, not the phenomenal world of multiplicity. This journey involves love of the Absolute, the One Reality, also called Truth, Love, or God. Self-knowledge is also crucial, as it leads to knowledge of God.

Sufism's definition. According to Sarraj's classic definition, "The Sufis are people who prefer God to everything and God prefers them to everything else." This preference signifies a complete devotion and surrender to the Divine will, setting the stage for a transformative spiritual journey.

2. Islam as the Foundation for Sufi Practice

Sufism without Islam is like a candle burning in the open without a lantern.

Islam's role. Sufism is often described as the mystical core of Islam, with its essential truths existing in all religions. Islam provides the moral and ethical framework necessary for Sufi practices to flourish. Honesty, charity, and service are virtues that form a solid foundation for spiritual practices.

Moral container. A moral, ethical, and disciplined lifestyle is like a solid container that can hold the Sufi’s mystical experience without its leaking or dissipating. This foundation is crucial for maintaining balance and preventing spiritual experiences from becoming ungrounded or harmful.

Universal Truth. Most Sufis believe that the great religions and mystical traditions of the world share the same essential Truth. The various prophets and spiritual teachers are like the light bulbs that illuminate a room, each different but drawing from the same source, which is God.

3. The Sufi Seeker: Creed, Faith, and Pillars

Sufis maintain that you don’t look for God in Mecca or Jerusalem but in your heart.

Islamic creed. The Islamic creed of faith includes fundamental beliefs that are basic tenets of Sufism, including belief in one God, God's angels, the Holy Books, God's Messengers, the Day of Resurrection, and destiny. These beliefs provide a framework for understanding the nature of reality and the individual's place within it.

Faith's location. Sufis believe that God is not to be found in external places but within the heart. The paradox is that God is very close, but humanity is far from God. Faith brings the seeker closer, bridging the gap between the individual and the Divine.

Five Pillars. The five pillars of Islam—bearing witness, daily prayer, fasting during Ramadan, charity, and pilgrimage to Mecca—are basic practices for those who wish to follow Islam. These practices have both outer forms and inner meanings, serving as visible manifestations of faith and opportunities for spiritual growth.

4. The Four Stages of Sufism: Shariah, Tariqah, Haqiqah, and Marifah

Trying to follow Sufism without following the shariah is like trying to build a house on a foundation of sand.

Stages of practice. Sufism involves four stages of practice and understanding: shariah (religious law), tariqah (the mystical path), haqiqah (Truth), and marifah (Gnosis). Each stage builds upon the previous one, leading the seeker closer to God.

Shariah's importance. The shariah, consisting of the teachings of Islam and the morality and ethics found in all religions, provides the basic foundation for the next three stages. Without an ordered life built on solid moral and ethical principles, mysticism cannot flourish.

Tariqah, Haqiqah, Marifah. Tariqah refers to the practice of Sufism, the path in the desert that requires a guide (the sheikh). Haqiqah is the direct experience of the mystical states of Sufism, the direct experience of the presence of God within. Marifah, or Gnosis, is superior wisdom or knowledge of spiritual truth, an ongoing state of attunement with God and with Truth.

5. Opening the Heart: Love and Remembrance

Love is to see what is good and beautiful in everything.

Love's power. Love is the only force that can transcend the bounds of reason, the distinctions of knowledge, and the isolation of normal consciousness. It is a continually expanding capacity that culminates in certainty, in the recognition that there is nothing in this world or in the next that is not both loved and loving.

Remembrance's role. Remembrance is a basic Sufi practice to open the heart, involving constantly striving to be mindful of God, repeating mystical formulas or Divine Names, and achieving a temporary or stable inner state of awareness of God. This practice helps to polish the heart and bring the seeker closer to the Divine.

Unity of breath, sound, movement. Sufis attempt to practice unity of breath, sound, and movement in the Remembrance ceremony. Unity among the dervishes can bring them closer to God, Who is Unity. Ideally, the dervishes move as if there were only one dervish moving, chant as if one dervish were chanting, and breathe as if just one dervish were breathing.

6. Living in the World: Service and Gratitude

To serve others is, in a real sense, to serve God, and this service is considered by many saints to be the highest form of worship.

Service to others. One basic Sufi principle is to live in the world and still pursue the highest mystical goals. To serve others is, in a real sense, to serve God, and this service is considered by many saints to be the highest form of worship.

Dervish's duty. To be a dervish is to love and serve others, seeking to love one another, to speak kindly, to show gentleness to one another, and also to serve one another. There are two conditions required of every dervish: to remember Who has created us and to serve God’s creation.

Gratitude to God. The best way to express gratitude to God is to worship God. God conceived this incredibly varied creation and chose to give people this human form. Humankind cannot thank God enough for creating humanity in a human form, not even by worshiping God day and night.

7. Transforming the Self: Levels of Development

The self is not bad in itself.

Goal of mysticism. The goal of all mysticism is to cleanse the heart, to educate, or transform, the self, and to find God. The lowest level of the self is dominated by pride, egotism, and totally self-centered greed and lust. The highest level is the pure self, and at this level there is no duality, no separation from God.

Seven levels. According to many Sufi teachers, there are seven levels of the self, ranging from absolutely self-centered and egotistical to purely spiritual. These levels include the Commanding Self, the Regretful Self, the Inspired Self, the Contented Self, the Pleased Self, the Self Pleasing to God, and the Pure Self.

Transformation process. The self is actually a living process rather than a static structure in the psyche. The self is not a thing but a process that comes about from the interaction of body and soul. As the self becomes trained, or transformed, it becomes capable of serving the individual.

8. The Role of the Teacher: Guidance and Lineage

A teacher is like a physician of the soul.

Teacher's role. A teacher is like a physician of the soul, guiding seekers who lack the knowledge and self-awareness to heal themselves. The transformation sought in Sufism requires the equivalent of a major operation, necessitating the expertise of a skilled guide.

Sufi Orders. Every Sufi teacher has been authorized by his or her own teacher, forming a silsila, a chain. Each order contains an unbroken chain of sheikhs, each trained, initiated, and confirmed as a teacher by his or her own sheikh. This chain reaches all the way back to the prophet Muhammad, and through him to God.

Attributes of a sheikh. Four major attributes of a sheikh are maturity, patience, awareness of the student, and being in the world while free of the world. These qualities enable the teacher to effectively guide students on their spiritual journey.

9. The Recollection of Death: A Tool for Transformation

Contemplating death can be a powerful tool for releasing an individual from undesirable habits and attitudes.

Mortality awareness. Contemplating death can be a powerful tool for releasing an individual from undesirable habits and attitudes. Thinking about one’s own death is an exercise in becoming more aware of one’s present experiences.

Personal growth. Confronting mortality is one way of beginning the process of personal growth. Until recently Western society has avoided awareness of death, developing a death-fearing culture.

Attitudes for death. Developing two important attitudes helps prepare one for death: the understanding that death is inevitable and the realization that no one knows when the time will come. These attitudes encourage conscious and responsible living.

10. The Mirror of the Divine: Seeing God in the World

When you see beauty and perfection in this world, it is nothing but a sign of Him.

World's reflection. This world is our mirror, reflecting our faults and failings as well as the Divine within each of us. Everything in this world can remind us of God, with all the world’s beauty reminding us of the supreme Artist and the love found all around us being a sign of the Beloved.

Sufi's task. The task for the Sufi is to polish the mirror of oneself so that one can catch the reflection of heaven during life—unmisted, undistorted, and in all its glory. This involves recognizing and remembering the Truth and helping others to do the same.

Two approaches. There are two approaches to the world: one sees heaven as separate, accessible only after death, while the other sees heaven (and hell) as present now. For the Sufis, God is found in the world, and this world does not stand between us and God unless we put it there.

Last updated: April 5, 2025