Islamic Studies Commons^™

Sunan Kalijaga: The Birth Of A Self-Actualized Pilgrimage Culture, F. P. Meachem

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Javanese Islam is incredibly unique in its style and practice. Despite boasting a Muslim population larger than the entire Middle East, Indonesia and its Islamic cultural practices are largely unknown in academic circles. This has made an introduction to Islam in the archipelago even more difficult for the rare interested Western reader. Frustratingly, what is lost on the rest of the world is basically second nature to 155 million Javanese Muslims, who learn from their families, schools, and pilgrimages about the Wali Songo, a group of nine semi-mythical figures credited with spreading Islam to Java. When we stop casting …

Syncretistic Religiosity In The Mausoleums Of Bangladesh: Exploring The Possibility Of A Blended Religious Identity, Sadia Afrin

MSU Graduate Theses

Firstly, this thesis investigates the syncretistic religious nature of Bangladeshi mausoleums, along with the historical background of the Sufi mausoleums and the flourishment of this syncretistic religiosity. The study explores the contribution of Sufis to the spread of Islam in Bengal. It discusses how the liberal attitude of mausoleum enshrined Sufis toward their followers of diverse faiths patronized syncretism. The study here hypothesizes that the religious practices of Bangladeshi mausoleums are syncretistic; they are neither exclusively Muslim nor Hindu but present a blended identity. It demonstrates how religious syncretism is an undeniable phenomenon in the mausoleums of Bangladesh and how …

On Types Of Certainty: From Buddhism To Islam And Beyond, Michael Chase

Comparative Philosophy

Studies the threefold hierarchy of certainty, from its origins in Mahāyāna Buddhism, through Islam, to 17^th century China. This tripartite scheme may be traced back to the ancient Buddhist scheme of the threefold wisdom as systematized by Vasubandhu of Gandhāra in the 4th-5th centuries CE. Following the advent of Islam in the 8th century, it was combined with Qur'anic notions of certainty (al-yaqīn). Initially taken up by early Islamic mystics such as Sahl al-Tustarī and al-Ḥākim al-Tirmiḏī (late 9th-early 10th centuries), the notion of yaqīn was gradually systematized into the three-level hierarchy of “knowledge or science of …

“Whenever We Crossed A Mountain / On This Earth, Yet Another One Appeared”: Circumstantial Poetry In ʿAbd Al-Ghanī Al-Nābulusī’S (D. 1143/1731) Travelogues, Tom J. Abi Samra

Comparative Literature M.A. Essays

This essay identifies an early modern aesthetic that mobilizes the mundane to make a point about the world or the grandiose. Through a close reading of the poetry in the travelogues of the 17th-century Ottoman Damascene scholar ʿAbd al-Ghanī al-Nābulusī (d. 1143/1731), this essay identifies, theorizes, and historicizes early modern Arabic circumstantial verse—what the 19th-century French poet Stéphane Mallarmé calls vers de circonstance. By drawing on Mikhail Bakhtin’s concept of the “chronotope,” this essay shows how the poetry in Nābulusī’s travelogues fits within, and sometimes advances, their linear narrative. If poetry is expected to transcend the chronotope in which …

For The Birds: The Mystery Of God’S Grace Through Attar’S The Conference Of The Birds, Matthew David Alvarado

Senior Projects Spring 2022

As a lover of Birds, I have a fascination with Attar of Nishapur's The Conference of the Birds, and what the poet's lyrical work says about Sufi theology. Questions of death, the afterlife, obliteration of the self in the presence of free will and predestination, all through the story of one hundred thousand birds as well as the fall of Iblis. What is God's grace and how does the death of Attar add value to the words he wrote? I explore how the nature of God as the unveiled Beloved plays into these questions and the essential contradictions that underpin …

Sufism And Sufi Gratitude, Ali Al-Ashi

Jerash for Research and Studies Journal مجلة جرش للبحوث والدراسات

The actual beginning of Sufism in Islam started at real utilization of the revealed verses to be ‎imposed in and out by good will and purity. Then the views of Sufism in knowledge and ‎Gnosticism and their methods in revelation and illumines emerged. Some of them imitated the ‎philosophers in an attempt to portray existentialism and divinity and applying tact and ‎rationalism. This approach was confronted by many of the imams of Sunnah as deviation from ‎the religion and the aims of true Islam, Other who rationalized as much as they could and ‎rejected whatever unacceptable respected it.‎ As it …

Perceiving The Intangible: Introspective & Meditational Practices In Moroccan Sufism, Anna Gray Morales

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Sufism has earned an exponentially prominent role within Morocco’s political and social arenas through recent decades. The Moroccan monarchy’s endorsement of the religious variant and its prevalence in pop-cultural events, national journalism, and literature are a few indicators of its growing influence. However, the tradition is, by no means, a modern construction and has existed since the beginning of the larger Islamic tradition. What qualities, then, has granted Sufism its relevance as a cornerstone of Moroccan society today? Its chief focus on introspective and meditational practices, rather than physical religious discipline, may foster a more inclusive and liberal form of …

Between Mysticism And Philosophical Rationality: Al-Ghazālī On The Reasons Of The Heart, Marilie Coetsee

Comparative Philosophy

In his seminal Orientalism and Religion (1999), Richard King argues that Western scholars of religion have constructed a conceptual dichotomy between “mysticism” and “rationality” that has caused them to systematically distort the claims and arguments of Eastern thinkers. While King focuses primarily on Western scholarship on the Buddhist and Hindu traditions, this essay shows that his argument can also be extended to apply to Western scholarship on al-Ghazālī, whose sympathy for Sufism and apparent rejection of Greek philosophy has often earned him the reputation of being a champion of Islamic mysticism. I argue that al-Ghazālī transcends the dueling categories of …

الْكِتَابَاتُ الْمُنْجَزَةُ حَوْلَ التَّصَوّفِ الْمَغْرِبِيّ، تَقْدِيم وَقِرَاءَة, لطيفة شراس

Dirassat

This publication stated that the Sufi heritage, whether in manuscript or publication, is an immense scientific material that reflects two main issues: the ethical and educational aspirations of those who created it as well as their intellectual orientation, and that this heritage indirectly symbolizes the living conditions and the social and political conditions of those who created it. In addition, the author mentioned that the literature written about the heritage of Sufism is varied and numerous which is usually dependent on the multiplicity and diversity of the intellectual visions and the methodological trends of those who compiled it. These writings …

Safeguarding Guardianship: Symbolic Capital And Political Cohesion In The Kettaniyya Order, 1908-1909, Suyang Wu

Senior Theses and Projects

In Moroccan history, Sufis maintained close ties with the makhzan, the sharifian state. Nevertheless, these ties were predicated on a balance of power relations between the two sides. A great deal of existing sources deal primarily with political activism and mystical aspects of the Sufi orders. Yet, researchers have neglected the rather complicated and nuanced connection between religious dimension and political landscapes of the sharifian state. Thus, this tendency has led to potential bias and, at worst, false pictures of the religio-political role of Sufism in interacting with the central sultanate in pre-protectorate-period Morocco.

This thesis proposes a new interpretation …

الصوفية العرفانية الأندلسية بين ارتدادات الغنوص عند النخب الصوفية وإسلام العوام في حاضرة تلمسان, محمد الناصر صديقي

Dirassat

Andalusia’s Sufism Between the apostasy of gnosis among the Sufi elites and the Islam of the lay people in Tlemcen

Sufism allows the practitioners to discover the mysterious secrets about the world and the universe through introspection and the perception of hidden things. It opens a window that allows one to see the origin of the world, for example, the hierarchy of divine powers and what is hidden from the essence of man. Gnosticism as a doctrine is based on a person's knowledge of himself and the deep voice within through an understanding of inner insight. This article attempts to …

The Formation Of Ottoman Sufism And Eşrefoğlu Rumi: A 15th Century Shaykh Between Popular Religion And Sufi Ideals, Baris Basturk

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation evaluates a transformative period in the history of the Ottoman State in which the processes of Islamization and Turkification coincided with the expansion and imperialization of the Ottoman polity. This study focuses on an Ottoman Sufi figure, Eşrefoğlu Rumi (?-1469), who benefited form this context, embarked upon a mystical path, and authored seminal works that shaped Ottoman Sufism for generations. This dissertation discusses Eşrefoğlu Rumi’s role in the construction of Islamic orthodoxy based in his Sufi ideals which he disseminated to an Anatolian and Balkan Turkish-speaking Ottoman audience. The significance of this dissertation is that it emphasizes the …

Devotional Literature Of The Prophet Muhammad In South Asia, Zahra F. Syed

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Many Sufi poets are known for their literary masterpieces that combine the tropes of love, religion, and the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH). In a thorough analysis of these works, readers find that not only were these prominent authors drawing from Sufi ideals to venerate the Prophet, but also outputting significant propositions and arguments that helped maintain the preservation of Islamic values, and rebuild Muslim culture in a South Asian subcontinent that had been in a state of colonization for centuries. The continued practice of both ritualistic and literary veneration of the Prophet became a key factor in this preservation and rejuvenation …

No Riddle But Time: Historical Consciousness In Two Islamicate Films, David Sander

Journal of Religion & Film

This article explores ways in which film expresses “internal history” in the context of Muslim cultures. As such, it enquires how film can work as both Islamic art and historical contemplation. The films discussed here, Nacer Khemir’s Wanderers in the Desert and Muhammad Rasoulof’s Iron Island, inhabit and explore the borderline between imagination and reality. The films in question offer an imaginal interspace between “modern” and “traditional” worlds. As such they open up critical perspectives on the meaning of history. What follows is a discussion of how each film offers a window onto differing perceptions of time, and what …

The Gaze And A Sufi Ethics Of Vision In Majidi’S The Willow Tree: Form, Meaning, And The Real, Cyrus A. Zargar

Journal of Religion & Film

In his 2005 film The Willow Tree (Bīd-i Majnūn), Majid Majidi offers a complex moral commentary on the faculty of sight. To do so, the filmmaker draws from Sufi theories of gazing, in which desire must be for ultimate meaning (maʿnā), as conveyed through the vehicle of perceivable form (ṣūra), a distinction with both metaphysical and ethical implications. Majidi presents sight, when devoid of contemplation, as a sort of voyeurism, especially in contrast to the privacy and immediacy of speech and especially within the context of the modern city. Moreover, his use of a …

“Al-Mavahib Us-Sarmadia” And The Sources Given In It Concerning The Nakshbandi Tarikah, Davronbek Kadirov

The Light of Islam

The article focuses on the historical importance of sources containing information about the life, qualities, deeds and genealogy of the awliya ( saints) who belongs to the chain of Naqshbandi tariqa and the theory and practice of the Naqshbandi order given in the book “Al-Mawahib us-Sarmadia” of the Egyptian Sheikh Muhammad Amin al-Kurdi. It is known that according to the views of the Sufis, in order to achieve the Truth, a person must experience suffering, undergo torment and work hard on himself. And only by mystical and existential experience, and not by training, he will achieve what he wants. According …

Religious Principles In The Political Views Of Amir Temur, Tulkin Alimardonov

The Light of Islam

This article explores the balance between religion and state in the politics of the great commander and statesman Amir Temur. It is revealed that in his political activities he was an accomplished figure who managed to incorporate Islamic law into the principles of the secular state. It has been studied comparatively that the government has followed the teachings of its teachers in the creation of just instruments and methods, and these religious and philosophical views have served as an important theoretical principle in the development of the country. This political philosophy of Amir Temur’s national statehood as a great historical …

Sacred Places Of Nakkshbandia And Yassavia In Navoi Region, Anvarjon Kandaharov

The Light of Islam

This article reflects the life and work of the scholars of the Naqshbandiya doctrine of Mavlana Arif Deggarani (1313– 1375), Khodja Khusrav (XIV c.), Sheikh Nuriddin (XIV c.) and the sheikhs of Yassaviya Sayyid Ata (1318–1390), Badr Ata (XIV c.), Hazret Kasim Sheikh Azizon (1500–1578), who lived in the territory of the current Navai region and had a significant influence on the socio-political and spiritual life of Central Asia in the Middle Ages, and also presents some fragments from their activities cultural life of the country.

It also provides information based on historical sources and archival documents on the development …

The Study Of In The West And The Schools Of Sufizm, Nilufar Tuychieva

The Light of Islam

This article gives information on the reasons for the prevalence of Sufism in the West, its adaptation to secularization processes, and the growing interest in Sufism.

The problems, trends, stages and different perspectives of research presented by representatives of The School of Sufism in the West were studied in comparative-analytical study, showing the general and different aspects.

This article also focuses on the promoting methods of the representatives of Sufism in the West, their structure and their differences from traditional ones. Initially, the modern tariqa members caused the spread of Islam by promoting Sufism. But, nowadays, they are claiming that …

Hakim Termizi’S Place In The Scientific And Spiritual Environment Of Central Asia And Contribution To The Sciences Of Tafsir And Lexicography, Faxriddinov Zafar

The Light of Islam

This article is consists of two parts, the first part is entitled «Influence of the Hakim Termizi Heritage on Sufi Environment in Maverannahra». It describes in detail, the influence of the views of Hakim Termizi on the Sufi environment in Central Asia, in particular on the dissemination of the ideas of futuwwa. Also, it is necessary to reveal how exactly the ideas of «futuwwa» are reflected in the works of Hakim Termizi. Thus, we directly refer to the work of Hakim Termizi and the work of modern scholars who have studied the scientific and spiritual heritage of Hakim Termizi. In …

Sufis In A 'Foreign' Zawiya: Moroccan Perceptions Of The Tijani Pilgrimage To Fes, Joel Green

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The purpose of this ISP is to investigate Moroccan perceptions of sub-Saharan members of the Tijaniyya during the completion of their religious pilgrimage to Fes. The relationship between Moroccans andTijani pilgrims is particularly complex as it occurs at an intersection of various identities, most prominently including race, religion, class and nationality. This project focuses on Moroccans who work in the area surrounding the shrine of Ahmed al-Tijani and either market their business towards Tijani pilgrims or frequently serve Tijani pilgrims as customers. In the course of interviews with five Moroccans, three major themes emerged: 1. Condemnation of Tijani religious practice. …

Bangladesh, Megan Adamson Sijapati

Religious Studies Faculty Publications

Bangladesh (formally the People's Republic of Bangladesh) is a Muslim-majority parliamentary democracy located in South Asia. Originally called East Pakistan, it was created during the partition of India in 1947 as the eastern wing of the country of Pakistan. Its name was later changed to East Bengal and then to Bangladesh after its union with West Pakistan was broken following a bloody war of secession in 1971. [excerpt]

Las Cuestiones Sicilianas De Ibn Sab‘Īn: El Texto, Sus Fuentes Y Su Contexto Histórico, Anna Ayşe Akasoy

Publications and Research

The Sicilian Questions are the earliest pre-served text of the philosopher and Sufi Ibn Sab‘īn of Murcia (c. 614/1217-668/1270). Even though the prologue of the text claims that it is a response to questions sent by Frederick II to the Arab world, it seems more likely that it was an introductory manual for Arab students of philosophy, dealing with four specific and controversial problems as away of presenting general concepts of Aristotelian philosophy. This article analyses the structure and way of argumentation in the Sicilian Questions. Particular attention is being paid to the relationship between mysticism and philosophy and …

La Dimension Cachée De L’Art Sénégalais Contemporain, Allen F. Roberts, Mary Nooter Roberts

Présence Francophone: Revue internationale de langue et de littérature

For nearly fifty years now, Dakar has been an epicenter of contemporary art, not just for continental Africa but for the entire world. Senegalese artists are well known internationally through participation in biennials, exhibitions, and gallery shows ; and many argue that they are contemporary artists from Senegal rather than “Senegalese artists” defined or constrained by their african identity. Among these, however, some match the global techniques and aesthetics of their works with local meanings derived from mystical Islam. Indeed, this “hidden side” can be very significant to the artists themselves even though it may be ignored by cosmopolitan connoisseurs.

Naqshbandiyya In Damascus: Strategies To Establish And Strengthen The Order In A Changing Society, Leif Stenberg

Book Chapters / Conference Papers

No abstract provided.