The Sufis emphasize also the Prophet’s self-imposed poverty, contempt
of wealth and luxurious living, as well as his fasts, night vigils and additional
prayers. The Companions of the Prophet faithfully followed his footsteps
and lived simple lives. The Pious Caliphs refused to indulge themselves
even in ordinary comforts, in spite of having the wealth of the whole Islamic
world at their disposal. They considered the love of wealth as one of the
greatest obstacles in the path of their devotion to God.
Like the other branches of Islamic learning, Sufism too believes that
the true knowledge is the knowledge of God and it is passed down from a
master to a disciple. The master’s oral instructions give life to the articles
of faith.Thus the master’s fundamental concern is to shape the character of
the disciple and help him in attaining his goal, which is to come near to
God and become one with Him. This concept of
pir-o-murid
6
relationship
emphasizes the personal dimension of the relationship between the Divine
and the human.
The Sufi Concept of Meditation (Dhikr and Muraqaba)
Sufism, the form which mysticism has taken in Islam, is not so much a
set of doctrines as a mode of thinking and feeling within a specific religious
domain. In a way, it represents a reaction against the intellectualism and
literalism of the scholars as well as the worldly attitude of the rulers.
Mysticism has been traced to the Prophet and the times of the Pious
Caliphs, but it gathered strength during the Umayyad rule (660-750) and
grew further over the centuries. Islam prohibited its adherents from
practicing the mortifying austerity and asceticism of Christian monks or,
6
For an exposition on the Sufi master-disciple relationship, see
Pir-Murid relationship: A Study of the
Nizamuddin Dargah
by Desiderio Pinto, Manohar, New Delhi, 1995.
