THE DEVIANT BELIEFS AND HISTORY OF SUFISM (TASAWWUF)
07/06/2017
Sufism or in other words “tasawwuf” is an innovation that later came in to existence after the death of the prophet (sal) and his companions. There is debate on the origin of the word Sufi. Some Sufi’s erroneously claim that the word Sufi is derived from “Ahlussuffah”.The Ahlussuffah were poor sahabah who were the muhajireen. These companions did not have a place to stay and had to sleep in the mosques. The Ahlussuffah stayed in the mosque of the prophet (sal) due to necessity. The Sufis are heretics who live like Buddhist and Jain monks by going to the forest or staying in secluded areas by detaching themselves from their families. This kind of seclusion is alien to the true teaching of Islam during the time of the prophet (sal) and his companions. Let us analyze the story of Abu hurayrah (rali) who was a close companion of the prophet (sal) and was also among the asab us suffah
Abu Hurayrah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported:
“I saw seventy of the people of the Suffah and none of them had a cloak. They had either a lower garment or a blanket which they suspended from their necks. Some (cloaks) reached halfway down to the legs and some to the ankles; and the man would manage to keep it in his hand to avoid exposing his private parts”.
[Al- Bukhari].
Abu hurayrah was a ashab us suffah
‘You people say that Abu Hurayrah tells many narrations from Allah's Apostle and you also wonder why the emigrants and Ansar do not narrate from Allah's Apostle as Abu Hurayrah does. My emigrant brothers were busy in the market while I used to stick to Allah's Apostle content with what fills my stomach; so I used to be present when they were absent and I used to remember when they used to forget, and my Ansari brothers used to be busy with their properties and I was one of the poor men of Suffa. I used to remember the narrations when they used to forget. No doubt, Allah's Apostle once said, "Whoever spreads his garment till I have finished my present speech and then gathers it to himself, will remember whatever I will say." So, I spread my colored garment which I was wearing till Allah's Apostle had finished his saying, and then I gathered it to my chest. So, I did not forget any of their narrations’
(Sahih al Bukhari)
From the above hadiths we can see that Abu hurayrah (rali) was also among the asab us suffah. From the above hadiths on important point can be understood. That is, the asab us suffah were not always in poverty. Their condition was temporary. This is contrary to the deviant beliefs of the Sufis who shun the world and live a life hidden in jungles like Christian, Buddhist, Jain monks. This is what the Sufis try to prove from the meaning of ashab us suffah which has no basis. This kind of abstinence from worldly life is an innovation that is alien to the true teachings of Islam. Monasticism is condemned by Allah (swt) in the Quran. There are many Sufi sects like the naqshabandi,Qadriyya,chishtiya,Suharwadiya etc. and all of them practice complete shirk ,kufr and bidah.
The Monasticism which they invented for themselves
(Al Quran-57-27)
This wrongly interpreted way of Zuhd of refraining of preoccupation of worldy affairs and to
And to live like hermits was totally against the way of the salaf. The prophet (sal) said;
“How excellent is honest wealth for a righteous person.”
(Ahmed-with a saheeh isnad)
And also the prophet (sal) said to Anas (rali);
“O Allah grant him increase in wealth and children and bless him in that.”
(Sahih Al Bukhari)
This is how Islam teaches Muslims to live in moderation without going in to extremes in worldly affairs as well as the hereafter. The Sufis put hardship upon themselves whereas Islam teaches us ease. Allah (swt) says
“Allah intends for you ease, and He does not want to make things difficult for you.”
(Al Quran 2:185).
The Shirk of grave worship among the Sufis-also blind following of sheikhs
The Sufis consider themselves as having higher and hidden knowledge also known as "ahlul baatin. They look down on other Muslims who follow the Quran and the Sunnah as "ahlul dhahir" or people who know the apparent (knowing only the sharia.
“Say: “None in the heavens and the earth knows the Ghaib (Unseen) except Allah, nor can they perceive when they shall be resurrected”
(Al-Quran 27:65)
““(He Alone is) the All‑Knower of the Ghaib (Unseen) and He reveals to none His Ghaib (Unseen)”
(Al-Quran 72:26].
The Sufis are grave worshippers and one of their early propagandists Abu Hamid al gazali also known as imam gazali was a supporter of
This shirk and kufr. In his infamous shirk book" Ihya ulum ud deen Volume 1, pp. 258-261, he says
"It is recommended the pilgrim should go daily to the Baqi ‘cemetery and after saluting the Prophet, make pilgrimage to the tombs of Hasan ibn 'Ali, 'Ali ibn al-Husayn, Muhammad ibn 'Ali and Ja'far ibn Muhammad, and also perform the salat in the mosque of Fatimah."
The prophet (sal) forbade this and went to the level of cursing such acts.
Narrated by Aisha(rali);Umm Salamah mentioned to the Prophet (ﷺ) regarding a church she had seen in the land of Abyssinia (Ethiopia) which had within it pictures [of people]. So the Prophet (ﷺ) said: “When there used to die a righteous man or servant from amongst them, they would build over his grave a place of worship – and they would make in it these pictures. They are the worst of creatures in the sight of Allah.”
(Bukhari and Muslim)
reported from Jundub Ibn ‛Abdullah (I) who said: I heard the Prophet (ﷺ) five days before his death saying: “I free myself before Allah from taking any of you as a special close friend (khaleel) for indeed Allah has taken me as a khaleel just as he took Ibrahim as a khaleel. And if I was to take anyone from my Ummah as a khaleel, then surely I would’ve taken Abu Bakr as a khaleel. Indeed those who came before you would take the graves of their Prophets as places of worship (as mosques). Do not take graves as places of worship, for indeed I forbid you from that.
(Sahih Muslim)
The prophet (sal) also said;
“Indeed the most evil of people will be those who are alive when the Final Hour reaches them, and those who take the graves as places of worship.”
(Ahmed-graded sahih by Albani)
In a hadith Qudsi Allah (swt) says
“I am free from need of partners being associated with me; so whoever does an action seeking in that to associate others along with me in that act, then I abandon him and his polytheism.”
(Sahih Muslim)
From the above hadiths it is very clear that there is no place for grave and saint worship in Islam. Allah (swt) challengers those who invoke saints and others besides Allah to answer them if they can.He says in the Quran:
“Verily, those whom you call upon besides Allah are servants like you. So call upon them and let them answer you if you are truthful".
(Al Quran-7:194)
Sufis and Shias are the same in many ways.
When you look at the shias and the Sufis, the differences between these two sects are minimal compared to the similarities they have between them. A Persian Shia called Ma'soom Ali shah on his book "Taraa’iq ul-Haqaa’iq, 2 vol.1, p.251 said:
"All chains of Sufism have to constantly have, from Adam to the end of the world, a
Connection to the master of the worlds and the leader of the believers".
ama'doom ali shah intends from the above words to mean that is Ali(rali).
Ibn khaldoun said:
When they began wearing tatty clothing as the basis of their way and ideas they ascribed
This to ’Ali (rali) and claimed that he was also of this understanding.3 yet ’Ali
(rali) out of all of the Companions was not given a special way or path to
adhere different from the rest,4 whether that be in regards to clothing or practices. Rather,
Aboo Bakr and ’Umar (rali) were the most ascetic of the people after the Messenger of Allah (sal) and they were the most plentiful in their
worship, yet with that neither of them were given a special particular way of the deen or
abstinence (wara’). Indeed, all of the Companions were the best examples in terms of their
deen, wara’, Zuhd and mujaahadah, their lives testify to this. So yes, the Shi’a imagined, due to
what they transmitted about this, that ’Ali had particular special qualities of virtue
unmatched by anyone else from the Companions which lead them to their well-known
beliefs of Shi’ism. What is apparent then is that the Sufis of Iraq, when the Ismaa’ilis
emerged out of the Shi’a and manifested their words regarding the Imamate and its well-known
insinuations.(Muqaddimah, vol.2, p.809)
Apart from this, the Sufis and Shia’s have the same belief when it comes to Imam Mahdi. The Shia heretics believe that Imam Mahdi is hidden somewhere and the same is believed by the Sufis as well. One of the leading Sufi’s Ash-Sha’raanee said in his book"al-Yawaaqeet wa’l-Jawaahir fee Bayan ’Aqaa’id al-Akaabir, vol.2, p.143:
"The emergence of the Mahdi (alayhis-salaam): he is from the children of Hasan al-
’Askaree, born on the middle night during Sha’baan in 255 AH. He remains alive
and will be gathered with Eesaa (alayhis-salaam). His age now during out time of
958 AH, is 706 years old. This is what Shaykh Hasan al-’Iraaqee, who is buried at
in Egypt informed us about from Imam al-Mahdi when he was with him"
The shias believe that their imams are infallible. This is evident from their most authentic hadith book Al kafi this is what's mentioned
"“All the Imams are infallible just like the prophets. The Shia derive their religion from their immaculate Imams.” (Al-Kafi, p. 22)
“The Imams possess all the knowledge granted to the angels, Prophets and Messengers.” (Al-Kulaini, Al-Kafi, p.255)
The same deviant belief is held by Sufi’s as well. Ibn Arabi as Sufi who is considered as a leading Sufi and a hero among them
said:
"“From the conditions of an inner Imam is that he is infallible.”
(al-Futoohaat al-Makiyyah, vol.3, p.183)
Apart from this, Sufis believe that Allah is omnipresent and resides in everything. This is a deviant belief of the Hindus Mansoor al hallaj the kafir who was executed for his deviant belief that he dwells in Allah and Allah dwells in him... Allah the most high is above and far removed from that. The truth is Allah is above the arsh and separate from his creations. Hallaj is attributed to have said
“Glory to Him who manifested His human nature, Hiding the piercing brightness of His divinity: Till His creation saw Him openly, In the form of one eating and drinking”
(Attributed by al-Wakeel to the book at Tawaaseen of al Hallaj (p.130).Taken from the book “The reality of Sufism by Shaykh rabee al madhkali)
The Sufis give high importance to philosophical thought taken from Hindus, Greeks and Buddhists. This deviant thinking is the main point that has shaped their deviant ideology that is against the true teachings of Islam. Apart from this they also believe in the concept of "Wahdatul wujood" a deviant pantheistic concept that was promoted by Ibn Arabi as Sufi. Ibn Arabi said
"So the person with complete
understanding is he who sees every object of worship to be a manifestation of
the truth contained therein, for which it is worshipped. Therefore, they call
it a god, along with its particular name, whether it is a rock, or a tree, or
an animal, or a person, or a star, or an angel."
(Al-Fuscous al-Hickam (1/95)
"Allah manifests Himself in a special way in every creature. He is the Outwardly Manifest in every graspable sense, and He is the Inwardly Hidden from every understanding except the understanding of the one who says that the universe is His form (4) and His He-ness (huwiyya), and it is the name, the Outwardly Manifest. Since He is, by meaning, the spirit of whatever is outwardly manifest; He is also the Inwardly Hidden. His relation to whatever is manifested of the forms of the world is the relation of the governing spirit to the form."(Al Fusus al hikam page 17- translated in English by Aisha bewley)