Islam And Sufism

Islam played a huge role in the historical development of the Middle East and in North Africa. In this essay, I will discuss the impact of Islam's conquest of the Levant region in the Middle East, and into North Africa, and Spain. I will also look at the affect that invading forces, namely the Mongols, had on shaping the development of Islam. Beginning in the Middle East, and looking at Abu Bakr, we see the overtaking of many cities. Using one of the sources provided for this course we are able to see how quickly Abu Bakr began his conquest of the Middle East, especially Western Syria in the region of the Levant, "After the death of Muhammad, Abu Bakr became king and sent an army of 30,000 Arabs to conquer Syria in the first year of his reign.

The rise of the Islamic religion and the growth of Islam’s territory happened rather quickly. During the life of their prophet and Islam’s originator, Muhammad, and interestly it even increased after his death, but how? Islam spread so fast after it was originated because of three things: trade, military conquest, and the appeal of its government.

There are few different branches of Islam but the two most prominent branches are Sharia law and Sufism. Sharia law and Sufism both seem to contradict each other. Sharia laws are the Qur’anic rules for the tangible world. The law includes predetermined punishment and rewards for actions, clearly defined by the Qur’an. It also has a spectrum of the lawfulness of actions, ranging from required to forbidden. Sufism, however, takes a more mystical approach to the practice of Islam. Sufism focuses on rejecting the material world and becoming one with God through self-annihilation. Despite the difference, I argue Sharia law and Sufism can be reconciled because although one person cannot practice both at the same time, but both versions of Islam

The Ottoman Empire rise after the fall of Baghdad to the Mongols. Consolidate their empire the sultans formed fighters group of slaves & Christian converts to Islam

Lecture seven illustrated Islamic Sufism; provided a variety of manifestation regarding the terminology of Sufi-Islam. The word Sufism may be manifested from a negative perspective, which therefore perceived as a hocus pocus tradition or a fictional Islam. This portation on Sufism came from various polemics and negatived perspectives on Islam. Some claimants upon Sufism is that Sufi sheiks or practitioners function the principles of Islam differently than other Muslim sects. These perceptions attempted some people to manifest it in a derogative way; to accuse it of plagiarism. However, Professor Asani stated that these manifestations were perceived differently, because of the initial illustration of Sufism, which emerged from Western Scholarships

Before the Crusades, during the Middle Ages, the Church was the center of daily life. People would attend markets and weddings on the steps of the town church. They whole-heartily believed that God placed them in a certain part of society for a reason (Greenblatt 16); this resulted in an extreme concentration on getting into Heaven not Hell. But these beliefs changed in the beginning of the 15th century when the Church went through a period of corruption and division within papal authority. The Cleric, at this time, were considered immoral by Church reformers, because of “their widespread greed, hypocrisy, and sexual immorality,” (Greenblatt 16). People who hold positions within the Church were supposed to be spiritual leaders who spread the messages of Christianity to communities throughout the world. However, Church leaders during the early 15th century were more interested in self-profit than profit for Christianity. They would sell indulgences to people who wanted a place in Heaven, get married or have affairs, and subsequently have children. This results in a decrease of Church reliance within the European population.

During the 1000 to 1500, the spread of Islam as an enduring religious, cultural, and political force was seen in world history. Islam spread to the Western Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean, West and Central Asia, and further out to India and Southeast Asia.

Influence, political power and envy triggered the tensions between two groups that we know as the Sunni and the Shiites during ancient Muslim history. This major problem began in the mid 1600s and caused Islam to divide into two immensely large groups. The Islamic community had two different opinions on who they thought should be the supreme leader, or caliph. This caused a major division among the empire which caused a downfall for the empire.

Dhawq is a tasting in which Sufis try to get direct knowledge of invisible realities or God. The knowledge gained from the experience is invalid, however, if it contradicts the Qur'an. The Qur'an is the Islamic sacred book, and is believed to be the word of God as dictated to Muhammad. All Sufis tend to stress the importance making personal experiences with god. Sufis distinguish themselves among other Muslims by their insistence that experiences with Allah can be achieved in the mortal life. This belief, and many others, made some Sufis sometimes receive great persecution from other Muslim groups.

Most of the major religions are, by definition, transcendental, and understanding that statement is easy. Transcendental means that something about the belief that is a major tenet of the religion is outside of the natural world. For example, Judaism, Islam and Christianity all hold the belief that there is a single all powerful God. They all may have different beliefs that coincide with this, but that faith is the central belief of these religions. Believing in a God that has no physical manifestation (although Christians would argue that the primary figure in that religion did have a physical presence for a short time) is the essence of being a transcendental religion (Bloch). However, Islam is different in many ways from Judaism and Christianity in its transcendental belief system. Most sects do believe in the power of Allah, but they cling closely to their belief on his prophet also. The Sunni and Shi'ite are distinct for their beliefs in the predominance of different imams, but there is one sect that is completely tied to the transcendental nature of Islam. This essay is about Sufi Islam and why it is the most transcendental of all religious sects.

Legend has it that he arrived at Madanpur mauza of Netrakona district in 1053 and preached Islam there for next fifty years; the location of our ethnographic study Chhandhara is approximately ten miles south of Madanpur. It is believed that majority of the people of this region was introduced to Islam by Shah Sultan Rumi and his companions. It has been argued that early Sufis or holy man played the vital role in converting the majority people of Bengal into Islam (Eaton 1993). Up until today, Sufi ideologies of different traditions have a great influence upon the daily lives of most Bangladeshi Muslims. Like in the early days of Islam in Bengal, Sufis still maintain important connections between Islam and the masses. In fact, a large majority of Bangladeshi Muslims perceives Sufis as sources of their spiritual wisdom and guidance and their khanqahs (lodges-cum-learning centers) and dargahs (shrines) as the nerve centers of

Sufis insist on remembering God not only in a contemplative way but also by witnessing (mushahada) the “signs” (ayat) around them. Because, as some Sufis believe, God discloses Himself in every existing thing. One of the signs of such disclosure (tajalli) is the time itself; signs are also revealed in the Book and in the nature. Witnessing as well as embodying the signs, which is also a cultivated virtue, is called ihsan or “doing the beautiful,” to quote William C. Chittick (2000, 4-6), is a method of becoming a Muslim. It emphasizes on knowing, knowing one’s own self. This ihsan or “doing the beautiful” along with sincerity or ikhlas constitutes tasawwuf.

This historical study will examine the problems of monastic issues in preservation of roman civilization and the problem of Christian conversions for pagan societies in Europe during the early Medieval period of Europe. The purpose of European monasteries was to act in accordance with the Church of Rome’s policy to preserve Roman traditions in government and Christian practices in primarily pagan tribal communities. During this time, the primary writings of St. Benedict define the purpose of the monastery to spread Christianity as a source of religious power throughout Europe. More so, the role of monastic culture in Europe society defines the preservation of roman administration and culture throughout areas considered to be “barbaric”, such as the German tribal kingdom along the Rhine that St. Columban describes in the Boat Song. In addition to preserving Christian society in the Roman Catholic model, the writings of St. Columba define the monastic rules of the early medieval monastery as a vehicle to promote Roman Catholic cultural values as a replacement for the polder pagan tribal models found throughout Europe. In essence, the successful rise of Roman Catholic monasteries in the early medieval period define the problems of preserving Roman civilization and by converting pagans that monks had to endure within European pagan culture.

soul comes from God and the body is made out of clay. A Sufi believes that the

There are disagreements regarding the origin of this belief among scholars. Some say that Sufism is the mystical school of Islam and had its beginnings in the first centuries following the life of the Prophet Mohammad and others say that they are traced back to the pre-Islamic roots of Sufism through the early Christian mystics of Syria and Egypt, to the Essenes, the ancient Pythagorean orders, and the mystery schools of the Egyptians and Zoroastrians, among others. [2]