Where does Sufism fall within the Islamic hierarchy?

[aMuslimForLife]

It is a sheer extrapolation to portray Ihsaan and Tasawwuf to be synonymous. The word Tasawwuf does not have any origins in Arabic language, let alone Quran and sunnah. It is utterly irrational to assume that Ihsaan means tasawwuf and yet sayedna Muhammad PBUH and his companions did not lay down any basis or principals for this "integral" part of Islam. Rather it was left to the persian sufis to lay down the principles of this "integral" part of Islam.

@ OP .As you have asked for an opinion so let me share my two cents. In my opinion Tasawwuf and its doctrines make up a parallel religion which is severely in collision with Islam and has had its negative impacts on Islam with such a huge magnitude that it has become one of the main reasons for the decline of Islam. I have written something about it which you might consider reading. http://dratifyousafzai.blogspot.com/...of-sufism.html

I read your blog and I must say, that wasn't my experience of Sufism... I actually started out opposite of you. I started out as a Salafi, anti-sufi... but I wanted to find out if what the Salafis say is true about the sufis... So I sought out Shaykh Nuh Keller in particular at the time... Since Dr Saleh As Saleh had written a book specifically against Shaykh Nuh Keller... And I read it... But I want to find out if it was true what Dr Saleh As Saleh accused Shaykh Nuh Keller of...

So I went and attended a Suhba of Shaykh Nuh Keller... and ended up listening to over 80 hours of his lectures trying to grasp sufism as understood by the sufis... and I ended up with the conclusion of Imam Suyuti... who said, “I have looked at the matters which the Imams of Shari`a have criticized in Sufis, and I did not see a single true Sufi holding such positions......”

Shaykh Nuh Keller is a strict Shafi scholar... who actions adhere to the Ulama of the Shafi madhab... Imam Nawawi, Imam Ibn Hajar al Haytami, Imam Izz al Din Abdus Salam, Imam Zakiriyya Ansari, Imam Subki, Imam Suyuti, Imam Rafai... I haven't found anything that Shaykh Nuh Keller has done that has been outside the scope of the Shafi Ulama that I have mentioned... These are relied upon scholars of the Shafi madhab...

In terms of creed Shaykh Nuh Keller is an Ashari.... and majority of the Islamic scholars have been Ashari... and I have personally studied the Ashari aqida and based on my research I haven't found anything that is obligatory for an Ashari to believe to be against the Quran, Sunnah and the Salafus Saleh...

Shaykh Nuh Keller, recites 2 juz of Quran everyday, he prays tahajjah everyday, he does a number of other dhikrs everyday... His wife wears niqab... He has never told anyone to go to graves and worship them....

What he does encourage is that his mureeds read a juz a Quran everyday... along with a number of sunnah dhikrs... he requires all his mureeds to complete a book of fiqh in any madhab with a reliable teachers and to study either the Ashari or Maturidi aqida with a reliable teacher...

I've had a good experience with Shaykh Nuh Keller and the Shadhili tariqa... and what has he said that is against the Quran and Sunnah???

Along with Shaykh Nuh Keller, I've also have the opportunity to sit with Shaykh Mushin an Najjar, Shaykh Habib Umar, Shaykh Noorudeen Durki, and others... And I haven't found any of these scholars to do anything against the Quran and Sunnah.... If so what???

I haven't met any bad sufis... Just because water taste bad in India or Pakistan, doesn't mean I am going to stop drinking water in America.... That doesn't make since...

[Abdullah.ibn.Islam]

I did not mean to insult all Sufis or to make anyone angry, sorry if I was not clear enough brother.

[aMuslimForLife]

I did not mean to insult all Sufis or to make anyone angry, sorry if I was not clear enough brother.

My brother I am not angry at all... If you have any other questions I will answer them as well... Please ask... If there are anything that is confusing I will try and make it clearer... Just ask...

[miirfan]

Bro, can u shed some light on "Group Zikr" being done by some Mashayeq as d pw asked for, would b benefiteal in d light of Ahadith
Can also provide link
Jazakallah

[Colonel_Hardstone]

Bro, can u shed some light on "Group Zikr" being done by some Mashayeq as d pw asked for, would b benefiteal in d light of Ahadith
Can also provide link
Jazakallah

According to Imam Abu Haneefa (RA), Dhik'r is:

1. Silent
2. Individual

وَٱذۡكُر رَّبَّكَ فِى نَفۡسِكَ تَضَرُّعً۬ا وَخِيفَةً۬ وَدُونَ ٱلۡجَهۡرِ مِنَ ٱلۡقَوۡلِ بِٱلۡغُدُوِّ وَٱلۡأَصَالِ وَلَا تَكُن مِّنَ ٱلۡغَـٰفِلِينَ

[7:205] Remember your Lord in your heart with humility and awe, and without speaking loudly, in mornings and evenings, and do not be among the heedless.

[aMuslimForLife]

Bro, can u shed some light on "Group Zikr" being done by some Mashayeq as d pw asked for, would b benefiteal in d light of Ahadith
Can also provide link
Jazakallah

Although I am presenting hadiths which prove the validity of loud dhikr and group dhikr, there are some scholars and sufis who are aware of these hadiths that I am presenting however they understand these hadith in a different way, and therefore do not engage in loud and/or group dhikr. Therefore we must realize that the scholars have differed on this issue, and we are not to condemn any of the rightly guided Sufi tariqas, such as the Nashabandi, Chistiri, Shadhili, Qadiri and many others… because the Shaykh has preferred silent over loud or loud over silent. What is important that one find a rightly guided shaykh so that their spiritual progress happens…..

The Hadiths for Loud and Group Dhikr

1) Jabir ibn Abdullah Ansari relates: “The Messenger of Allah (asws) came out to his
companions and said, “O people, verily Allah has a special group of noble traveling angels
that seek out the gatherings of dhikr on the Earth, so graze in the gardens of Paradise.” They
asked, “and where are the gardens of paradise?” He responded: “(in) the gatherings and
sessions of dhikr, so go and come in the remembrance of Allah.”

[Recorded by Hakim (Mustadrak, 1:494) with a Sahih chain, Abu Ya’la (3:390 #1865), Tabarani (M. Awsat 3:67 #2501, K. Du’a #1891), Bayhaqi (Shu’ab #528), ‘Abd ibn Humayd (#1105), Hakim Tirmidhi in his Nawadir (Asl #133), Bazzar (Zawa’id, 4:5 #3064), and others (see Matalib ‘Aliya, 4:28). See Haythami’s Majma’ (10:77) and Mundhiri’s Targhib (2:405).]

2) On the authority of Abu Hurayra: “Verily, Allah has noble angels that travel the Earth,
seeking out the gatherings of dhikr, so if they come to one of them, they surround it with
their wings until they reach the heaven. So Allah says: ‘From whence did you come?’ They
say: “We came from Your servants, who were glorifying You, magnifying You, praising You,
declaring Your Oneness, asking You, and seeking Your protection.”… Then Allah will say:
“Bear witness that I have indeed forgiven them, and given to them what they ask of Me, and
protected them from what they seek protection with Me.” They will say, ‘but our Lord, there
is among them a servant who sins greatly, who sat with them but is not among them.” He
will say: “I have forgiven him also, for no one who sits with them in their sessions becomes
wretched or miserable.”

[ Recorded by Bukhari (Kitab ad-Da’awat, 8:107-108 #5929), Muslim (Kitab al-Dhikr, #4854), Tirmidhi (5:579#3524), Imam Ahmad (#7117, 8350, 8614), Hakim (1:495), Ibn Hibban (3:137-40 #856-57), Bayhaqi in Shu’ab al-Iman (#531), Tabarani (K. Du’a, p. 530-31 #1894-97), and Bazzar (Zawa’id, 4:4-5 Hasan), with slight
differences in the wording. See also Fath al-Bari (11:208, hadith #6408) and Sharh Sahih Muslim (17:14-15).
260 Recorded by Muslim (Kitab al-Dhikr, #4868), Tirmidhi (#3300), Abu Dawud (#1243), Ibn Majah (#3781),
Imam Ahmad (#9396, 11457), Abdur-Razzaq (11:293-94 #20577), Ibn Abi Shayba (7:75), Ibn Hibban (3:136-
37 #855), and others.)]

3) Abu Hurayra and Abu Sa’id al-Khudri related that the Prophet (asws) said: “No group of
people come together and sit to invoke Allah except that the angels surround them, mercy
covers them, peace descends on them, and Allah mentions them to those with Him.” 260 al-
Amir as-San’ani in Subul as-Salam (2:213) said: “This hadith indicates the merit of the
gatherings of dhikr and the invokers, and the immense merit of gathering for the purpose of
dhikr.” And Imam Nawawi wrote in the beginning of his Kitab al-Adhkar (p. 28): “Know that
just as dhikr is highly recommended, sitting in the circles of the people of dhikr is also highly
recommended, and the proof-texts for that abound.”

[(Recorded by Muslim (Kitab al-Dhikr, #4869), Ibn Hibban (3:96 #813), Tirmidhi (#3301), Nasa’i (#5331), Tabarani (M. Kabir 19:311, K. Du’a #1892-93), Imam Ahmad (4:92 #16232), Ibn Abi Shayba (7:74), Bayhaqi (Shu’ab, #532), Abu Ya’la (13:381), and Ibn Mubarak (K. Zuhd, #1120), on the authority of Mu’awiya.]

4) Imam Ahmad in his Kitab az-Zuhd narrated on the authority of Thabit that Salman al-
Farisi was sitting with a group of Companions doing dhikr together. When the Messenger of
Allah (asws) came by them, they lowered their voices, so he asked them, ‘what were you
saying?’ and they answered, ‘we were invoking Allah (i.e., doing dhikr).’ And the Messenger
then said, “I saw Divine mercy descend on you, so I wanted to join you in it.” Then he
prayed, “Praise be to Allah Who made among my Ummah those who I should be patient
with (alluding to Q18:28).”

[Hakim also recorded this hadith in his Mustadrak (1:122), and he and Dhahabi said it is Sahih. See the Tafsirs of Ibn Kathir (3:81) and of Ibn Jarir at-Tabari (15:155), and Kanz al-‘Ummal (1:447 #1932).]


5) Ibn ‘Abbas said “that the raising of the voices in dhikr after the people were done
praying occurred during the time of the Prophet… I used to know they were finished with
the prayer when I heard their voices (in dhikr).”

[Recorded by Bukhari (Kitab Sifat as-Salah 1:213 #796-97), Muslim (1:410 #917-19), Nasa’i (#1318), Abu Dawud (#851), Imam Ahmad (#1832, 3298), Tabarani (M. Kabir #12200, 12212, M. Awsat 2:187 #1669), Ibn Khuzayma (Kitab al-Imamah, #1706-07), Ibn Hibban (5:610 #2232), and many others. See also Fath al-Bari (2:324-325) and Imam Nawawi’s Sharh Sahih Muslim (5:83-84).]

6) “The Prophet (asws) once came to a group of his companions, and asked, ‘is there a
stranger (i.e., people of the Book) among you?’ we said, ‘no.’ So he ordered the door locked
and said: ‘Raise your hands and say La ilaha illa Allah’, so we raised our hands and did that
for an hour (meaning, a while), then he stopped and said: ‘Praise be to Allah, You have sent
me with this word and ordered me with it and promised me paradise with it, and You don’t
break your promise.’ Then he said: ‘I give you glad tidings that you have been forgiven.’”

[Recorded by Imam Ahmad (4:124 #16499) with a strong chain, Hakim (1:501), Bazzar (Musnad: #2717 and #3483, Zawa’id: 1:13), Tabarani in his Mu’jam al-Kabir (7:347-48), and others, on the authority of ‘Ubada ibn Samit, and Shaddad ibn ‘Aws. Hafiz al-Haythami in Majma’ az-Zawa’id (1:18-19 and 10:81) and Hafiz Mundhiri in his Targhib (2:330 #2288) said it was Hasan.]

And Allah knows best...

[miirfan]

Jazakallahu wa ahsanal jaza

[Abu Zakir]

Zuhd and seeing Allah does not necessitate Tasawwuf.

You seem obsessed with labels. Tasawwuf is a word used to describe a particular practice and way, you can call it tazkiya, or ihsan, or the inner dimension of Islam...it makes little difference what you name it. Is it part of Islam? Of course it is, Islam is about external actions of prayer for example with fiqh rules to govern the outer aspects of human life, there are also inner conditions, like sincerity towards Allah swt, trust in Allah swt, love of Allah swt etc. These inner conditions can remain without a label or name if you prefer...and you can just speak about them separately as listed by me above. However we use labels and names for convenience to describe these collectively, we call them tazkiya, tassawuf etc.

I noticed you objected to tassawuf being equated with ihsan as well, however you did not give any reason for this other than your dislike of it, claiming there is no evidence for this. The question is have you looked for the evidence? Did the Salafus Salih have a special word for fiqh? No they did not, so does that mean they did not do any fiqh? Of course not...it was all part of their Islam...only later when Muslims needed to specialize did different branches get named.

[abdur.rahman]

All the dimensions of Islam are well explained in Quran and Sunnah. There are no inner, mysterious dimensions. Tazkia, Zhuhud, Zikr are integral parts of Islam. I think Dr.Ati also does them. If sufism is just a new name that people started to use for such aa'maal later on, I don't think there is any issue. People use word 'Namaz' for 'Salah'. No one says that 'Namaz' is a bidah. With this simple definition of 'sufism', I think that Dr.Ati is also a suffi.

But I feel sad that behind these good looking explanations, people have been fooled into innovations and misguidances. If someone points them out, sufis become defensive and confuse the questioner with similar things like sufism = tazkia, ehsan, ikhlas, etc. Who ever follows them blindly is sucked into peeri-mureedi and is told to believe stupid things about peers. Then there comes concepts of kamleen, those who recieve direct reveletions from Allah, some of them know matters of heart and future. People all told to spend money on peer, give him gifts, ayahs and hadiths that praise Rasulullah (S.A.W) are rebranded for peer and then more forms of shirk like grave worshipping creep in. To increase confusions, one group of sufis call others wrong, same as happening in other named sects who associate them with Islam, thus creating more confusions that help decieve a poor muslim that does not have knowledge of Quran and Sunnah.

I recommend every one not to go in the discussion of if sufism is right or wrong. People will confuse you. Learn Quran and Sunnah and the knowledge will direct you to the right path and all confusions will be resolved.