A Treasure

By John Smith, *Speaker offers insights into Sufi way of Islam* - Reading Eagle - USA
Saturday, January 30, 2010

Attendees at the monthly Spirit on Tap program Tuesday at the Reading Crowne Plaza Hotel, Wyomissing, learned of the third "S" of Islam, whose adherents believe that "love is the brew that keeps the cosmos going."

In addition to the well-known Sunnis and Shiites, who split over who should succeed Muhammad, there are the Sufis.

Dr. A. Hind Rifai, a psychiatrist at St. Joseph Medical Center, explained the "way" these devout people have trod for many centuries.

The Sufis are the mystical or psycho-spiritual dimension of Islam, coming mainly from the Sunnis but also from the Shiites. One could very roughly parallel them in Christianity with the charismatics, who can be found in so many varied branches.

Rifai gave a detailed - at times too detailed - account of the Sufis from the very early days. One principle is that God loves them and they love God.

Why did God create man? Because "He was a treasure and desired to be known."

One thing the Sufis do not know is the origin of their name. Rifai suggested three roots: soof, or wool, because the earliest Sufis wore it; sufah, bench or porch, where they gathered; or sufa, purity. A fourth possibility is saff, meaning first rank.

The Sufis exist in about 20 orders worldwide, Rifai said. In some countries there are large numbers, but the closest worship center to Reading is in suburban Philadelphia.

Rifai listed four Sufi goals: discerning unity from multiplicity, dying (to the world) before you die, accepting what is happening at the moment and communing with God.

The Sufis are very big on Quran study. They would put to shame the most ardent biblical literalist, finding meaning in every letter.

Jihad came up once, but not in the 9/11 sense. She talked of the importance of a jihad against the ego, which begins as the commander, but ends at rest, so we can be nearer to God "than our jugular vein."

"The Sufis believe in no revenge," she said; "they forbid the shedding of other peoples's blood."

She offered a diagram of the Sufis' ladder, from material nature to inner consciousness, where only God is perceived, to innermost consciousness, where only God exists.

Differences with mainstream Muslims: wardrobe, little, Sufis might be a bit looser; diet, meals are simpler, fasting is more often; marriage, a gift they encourage, but realize it might not happen.

One expert, Dr. Alan Godlas, University of Georgia, has defined Sufism as "surrender to God, over and over, embracing with love at each moment the content of consciousness as manifestations of God."

Local Muslim leader Steve Elmarzouky gave a thumb's up to the presentation, noting differences are largely a matter of emphasis.