1.9 - Brief History of Sufism in Islam

Scholars differ widely about the origin of Sufism, some of them insist that it is something alien to Islam, imported from the contact with Eastern religions when Islam began to spread outside the Arabian Peninsula. Many scholars, however, emphasize that Sufism is the core of Islam, and it has begun with it from the early stages at the time of the Prophet, peace be upon him. The truth is that the term is new but the concept is inherent in the originality of Islam itself. The Companions and the Followers were indeed Sufis, although they were not called so. At its core, Sufism is nothing but asceticism, worship and abandoning the lower world and appealing to God alone. However, the structural form of Sufism began to crystallize starting from the beginning of the second century AH, as did the rest of the Islamic sciences such as Jurisprudence, Hadith and Quran Interpretation, all of which were not known at the beginning of Islam.

People also differed very much about the origin of the word Sufi and its actual meaning. Some say that it refers to wearing wool (in Arabic: Souf, which signifies roughness and tolerance). Others relate the term to the people of Siffah, a group of poor people who used to live at the back of the mosque, and the Prophet peace be upon him used to take care of them. Other scholars yet relate the term to the concept of purity (in Arabic: Safaa), or: selecting or refining (Istifaa), or even: the first row (al-Saff al-Awal). All of these different words and concepts share the same root with Sufism (Tasawuf), as well as to the nearness of their meaning footnote{For more on this subject, see: Realities about Sufism, Abdul-Qadir Issa, Dar al-Albaab, Damascus, 2002..

1.9.1- The Meaning of Sufism According to Shaykh Muhyiddin

1.9.2- Some Early Sufis

1.9.3- Famous Sufi Ways

1.9.4- Deviation of Some Sufis

1.9.5- The Connection between Sufism and Early Religions

1.9.6- The Sufi Movement in Maghrib and Andalusia

1.9.7- Shaykh Muhyiddin and other Sufi Ways