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Sufism
Below are the articles tagged as sufism on the Fountain Magazine.
Articles
Safar (Journeying)
31 August 2024 | Fethullah Gulen | Issue 161 (Sep - Oct 2024)
Literally meaning being transported from one place to another, journeying in the language of the Sufis is described as being freed from living a rest…
Guidance and the Guide (Irshad And Murshid)
30 June 2024 | Fethullah Gulen | Issue 160 (Jul - Aug 2024)
Do not offer your hand to whoever claims guidance, for he may lead you to a slope which is impossible to climb; whereas the path of a perfect guide i…
The Perfect Man (2)
30 April 2024 | Fethullah Gulen | Issue 159 (May - Jun 2024)
The perfect, universal man is a polished mirror for the Ultimate Truth and, in his relation to other beings, is like a star which stands still in its…
The Perfect Man-1
29 February 2024 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 158 (Mar - Apr 2024)
Also known as the perfect man (al-insanu’l-kamil), the universal man is the brightest mirror of God’s Acts, Names, Attributes, and even His Essential…
The Distance between Two Bows or Nearer
31 December 2023 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 157 (Jan - Feb 2024)
This metaphoric Qur’anic expression concerns God’s Messenger’s unparalleled nearness to God during his Ascension. From the viewpoint of Sufism, it de…
Another Way of Journeying and Initiation (2)
31 October 2023 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 156 (Nov - Dec 2023)
The third discipline: A carnal, evil-commanding soul that has not yet been able to step on the way to refinement through journeying in itself and the…
Another Way of Journeying and Initiation (1)
31 August 2023 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 155 (Sep - Oct 2023)
Some make spiritual journeys by refining and developing the faculties, while others purify the carnal soul within, causing it to take certain steps…
Initiate (Salik)
30 June 2023 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 154 (Jul - Aug 2023)
A salik (initiate) is a traveler who follows a way to a goal and makes efforts to meet with God. The way of traveling differs according to the capaci…
Journeying and Initiation - 3
28 February 2023 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 152 (Mar - Apr 2023)
In the eyes of those who have reached the stage of the soul at rest, all things, all colors and forms disappear with their peculiar features. They co…
Journeying and Initiation - 2
07 January 2023 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 151 (Jan - Feb 2023)
Sincerity or purity of intention (ikhlas) and perfect goodness or excellence (ihsan) are the two bases and the most important sources of power for jo…
Journeying and Initiation
31 October 2022 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 150 (Nov - Dec 2022)
In the language of Sufism, when used together, sayr u suluk (journeying and initiation) denotes becoming free of bodily and animal appetites to a cer…
Conversation and Communion (Sohba and Musahaba)
31 August 2022 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 149 (Sep - Oct 2022)
Sohba (Conversation) means making effective speeches to direct people to the Almighty, enlightening others with words and thoughts, using other’s goo…
Chela 2 (Suffering)
30 June 2022 | Fethullah Gulen | Issue 148 (Jul - Aug 2022)
Although suffering always takes on the same form, dervishes experience it differently according to their capacities and their powers of resistance. S…
Suffering – 1 (Chela)
30 April 2022 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 147 (May - Jun 2022)
Denoting abandonment of all (worldly) pleasures and delights, and the affliction and hardship one bears when overcoming corporeality, chila (sufferin…
Striving
28 February 2022 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 146 (Mar - Apr 2022)
According to people of the heart, mujahada (striving) means doing what is required by having been endowed with will-power. It includes struggling aga…
Wakefulness (Yaqada)
31 December 2021 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 145 (Jan - Feb 2022)
In the language of Sufism, yaqada (wakefulness) means that an initiate must be aware, careful and sensitive with respect to God’s commandments at the…
Unity - 2
31 October 2021 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 144 (Nov - Dec 2021)
(continued from the previous issue) God’s Lordship and the lights of His Existence and Lordship which shine on things and events are stressed in man…
Unity - 1
31 August 2021 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 143 (Sep - Oct 2021)
Tawhid, derived from wahda (oneness), means unifying, regarding as one, believing in God’s Oneness or Unity, and sincerely accepting the reality that…
Distinguishing (Farq)
30 June 2021 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 142 (Jul - Aug 2021)
In the language of Sufism, farq (distinguishing) has been interpreted as making a clear distinction between unity and multiplicity. To give a longer…
Absorption (Jam’) - 2
01 May 2021 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 141 (May - Jun 2021)
Absorption can never mean the unity of being—the unity (union) of God and the universe or God’s being identical with the universe—in the sense that p…
Isolation (Tajrid)
01 November 2020 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 138 (Nov - Dec 2020)
Literally meaning to separate, abstract, peel away, or to isolate oneself from every occupation and engagement, tajrid (isolation) denotes the state…
Finding and Existence (Wujud) - 2
01 September 2020 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 137 (Sep - Oct 2020)
(Continuing from the previous issue) The All-Holy Unity (Wahidiya) has an inward and outer aspect. We can call the former the All-Holy Divinity (Ulu…
Finding and Existence (Wujud)
01 July 2020 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 136 (Jul - Aug 2020)
Wujud (finding and existence) is not what is meant in Qur’anic statements like the following: They assuredly find that God is One Who truly returns t…
Self-Concealment (Talbis)
01 May 2020 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 135 (May - Jun 2020)
Self-concealment means that the perfected servants of God who attribute to God whatever good or virtues that they may have, try to be known as ordina…
Verification (Tahqiq)
01 March 2020 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 134 (Mar - Apr 2020)
In the language of Sufism, tahqiq (verification) means that not only does an initiate who has almost come to the final step of the journey know the U…
Subsistence by God (Baqa Bi’llah)
01 January 2020 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 133 (Jan - Feb 2020)
Subsistence by God denotes that the servant of God regards all existence, including him or herself, as being non-existent in and of itself, and disco…
Annihilation in God (Fana Fi’llah)
01 November 2019 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 132 (Nov - Dec 2019)
Fana (annihilation), which is the opposite of permanence, has connections with some of the other concepts in Sufism. For example, sincere repentance…
Knowledge of God (Ma‘rifa)
21 October 2019 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 131 (Sep - Oct 2019)
Ma'rifa is a special knowledge that is acquired through reflective thought, sincere endeavor, using one’s conscience and inquiring into one’s inner w…
Parting and Reunion (Fasl and Wasl)
01 July 2019 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 130 (July - Aug 2019)
In the language of Sufism, fasl (parting) denotes renunciation of the world and the Hereafter with respect to their own being in themselves, but not…
Intoxication and Sobriety (Sakr and Sahw)
01 May 2019 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 129 (May - Jun 2019)
In the language of Sufism, sakr (intoxication) means that an initiate is enraptured by the rays of the manifestations of God’s “Facial” Light. His or…
Manifestation (Tajalli)
26 March 2019 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 127 (Jan - Feb 2019)
Tajalli (manifestation), which has almost the same meaning as showing itself, display, and appearance, in the language of Sufism means being favored…
Mushahada (Observation)
06 January 2019 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 126 (Nov - Dec 2018)
Mushahada (observation) means using insight to see in Divine Acts the Divine Names that give existence to them, and to become aware, in the manifesta…
Safa (Purity)
24 April 2018 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 122 (March - April 2018)
Safa, in the language of Islamic Sufism, signifies the state of a heart at peace because it has been purified of all kinds of things that contaminate…
Waqt (Time)
31 December 2017 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 121 (January - February 2018)
In the language of Islamic Sufism, waqt (time) denotes the time when the Divine gifts pour on a traveler to the Ultimate Truth in accordance with one…
Ghayba (Absence)
31 October 2017 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 120 (November - December 2017)
Literally meaning disappearance and no longer being existent, ghayba (absence) denotes that the heart has cut its relationship with the corporeal wor…
Istighraq (Immersion)
31 August 2017 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 119 (September - October 2017)
Literally meaning absorption, diving into, becoming deeply involved in, istighraq (immersion) denotes transportation by joy, oblivion of the world, t…
Ightirab - Doubled Separation
30 June 2017 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 118 (July - August 2017)
Ightirab (doubled separation) is a feeling resembling that which arises from falling into error after reform, or night following day, or the darkness…
Ghurba (Separation)
30 April 2017 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 117 (May - June 2017)
Literally meaning the state of being a foreigner, homelessness, loneliness, separation, and being a stranger in one’s own land, ghurba (separation) h…
Qalaq (Passion)
31 August 2016 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 113 (September - October 2016)
Literally meaning boredom with the place where one is and with the surrounding conditions, feeling discomfort as if in imprisonment or captivity, qal…
Zawq and ‘Atash (Pleasure and Thirst)
30 June 2016 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 112 (July - August 2016)
Meaning the feeling of happiness and satisfaction, and enjoyment and amusement, zawq (pleasure) in Sufi terminology is one of the first breezes of Di…
Barq (Lightning)
30 April 2016 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 111 (May - June 2016)
Barq (lightning) is a light that flashes in an initiate during the first steps of the journey toward sainthood. This is the first invitation to those…
Dahsha and Hayman (Amazement and Stupor)
29 February 2016 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 110 (March - April 2016)
While discussing ecstasy and willful rapture, we have mentioned the states of dahsha (utmost astonishment) and hayman (stupor). A few words will be s…
Wajd (Ecstasy)
31 December 2015 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 109 (January -February 2016)
Wajd (ecstasy) is overflowing with spiritual joy and enthusiasm, and rather than using reason, logic, or will, one follows the spiritual state in whi…
Firasa (Discernment)
31 October 2015 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 108 (November - December 2015)
Firasa (discernment) can be defined as profundity, productivity and coherence in thought and the forming of opinions, the ability to penetrate the me…
A History of Sufism for Western Readers
31 August 2015 | Sait Yavuz | Issue 107 (September - October 2015)
Among the general Western public, Sufism has often been confused with the mystical traditions of the Far East, and thus considered an independent rel…
Adab (Mannerliness)
30 April 2015 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 105 (May - June 2015)
Its meaning covers being sensible and reasonable, well-behaved, well-mannered, treating people kindly. Adab (mannerliness) is used in the terminology…
Freedom (Hurriya)
31 December 2014 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 103 (January - February 2015)
The realization of every lawful desire without hindrance, freedom from any pressure, confinement, or subservience, the right to elect, to be elected…
Riyada (Austerity)
31 October 2014 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 102 (November - December 2014)
Riyada (austerity), which we can describe as disciplining life, appetite and thirst, and sleeping and waking only in order to develop the feelings of…
Faqr and Ghina (Poverty and Richness)
31 August 2014 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 101 (September - October 2014)
For Sufis, poverty means that an initiate claims possession of nothing and is freed from all kinds of attachment toward worldly things, and that one…
Qabd and Bast (Contraction and Openness)
30 June 2014 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 100 (July - August 2014)
Qabd (contraction) and bast (openness), emotions felt by almost everyone during their lives, relate especially to those who live their lives consciou…
Dahsha and Hayra (Utter Astonishment and Amazement)
30 April 2014 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 99 (May - June 2014)
Every traveler journeying in the valleys of love and zeal sometimes burns with the fire of love, and sometimes overflows with joy owing to the "wine…
Jadhba and Injidhab (Attraction and the Feeling of Being Attracted toward God)
28 February 2014 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 98 (March - April 2014)
In the language of Sufism, jadhba (attraction) means that a servant is attracted toward God by God Himself, purified thereby of human imperfection in…
Shawq and Ishtiyaq (Joyful Zeal and Yearning)
31 December 2013 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 97 (January - February 2014)
Zeal means turning to the Beloved with all inner and outer feelings, and locking out all appetites other than those one feels to meet with Him. In th…
Ashq (Ecstatic Love)
31 October 2013 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 96 (November - December 2013)
'Ashq means intense love of and fondness for perfection, beauty, or physical charm. Sufis usually call this sort of love, for example, love for the o…
Mahabba (Love)
31 August 2013 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 95 (September - October 2013)
Mahabba means fondness, tender and kind feelings, preference, and love. Love that affects and invades one’s feelings is called passion; love that is…
Qurb and Bu'd (Nearness and Remoteness)
30 April 2013 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 93 (May - June 2013)
Nearness (qurb) means that one transcends corporeality in order to acquire perfect spirituality and proximity to God. Some interpret it as God's prox…
Sakina - Itmi’nan (Serenity and Peacefulness)
28 February 2013 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 92 (March - April 2013)
Literally meaning calmness, silence, steadiness, solemnity, familiarity, the subsidence of the waves and tranquility, sakina (serenity) is the opposi…
Basira and Firasa
31 December 2012 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 91 (January - February 2013)
Literally meaning perception, intelligence, discretion, evidence, and witness, insight (basira) is defined as having an eye of the heart open, deep p…
Dhikr (Recitation of God's Names)
31 August 2012 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 89 (September - October 2012)
Literally meaning mentioning, remembrance, and recollection, in the terminology of the Sufis dhikr denotes regular recitation of one or some of God's…
Yaqin (Certainty)
30 June 2012 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 88 (July - August 2012)
Yaqin (certainty) means having no doubt about the truth of a matter and arriving at accurate, doubt-free knowledge through exact verification. Used a…
Irada, Murid, and Murad (Will, the Willing One, and the Willed One)
30 April 2012 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 87 (May - June 2012)
Irada (will) is the mental power by which a person can direct his or her thoughts and actions and makes a choice between alternatives. Will has been…
Qast and Azm (Decision And Resolution)
29 February 2012 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 86 (March - April 2012)
Qast means confidence, determination, choosing, and advancing straight toward a destination, thinking and reasoning moderately and deliberately, and…
Inbisat (Expansion)
31 December 2011 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 85 (January - February 2012)
Literally meaning growing larger and deeper, spreading and expanding, Sufis use inbisat to signify the relaxing of one's heart, to the extent allowed…
Rida (Resignation)-2
31 October 2011 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 84 (November - December 2011)
For ordinary people, resignation means not objecting to what God has willed for them. For those with a deeper spiritual knowledge of God, resignation…
Rida (Resignation)
31 August 2011 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 83 (September - October 2011)
Resignation means showing no rancor or rebellion against misfortune, and accepting all manifestations of destiny without complaint and even better pe…
Sabr (Patience)
30 June 2011 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 82 (July - August 2011)
Sabr literally means enduring, bearing, and resisting pain; suffering and difficulty; and dealing calmly with problems. In more general terms it mean…
Shukr (Thankfulness)
30 April 2011 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 81 (May - June 2011)
Literally meaning gladness felt about and gratitude shown for the good done to one, Sufis use shukr to mean using one's body, abilities, feelings, an…
Haya (Modesty)
28 February 2011 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 80 (March - April 2011)
Sufis use haya, which literally means shame, bashfulness, and refraining from saying or doing anything improper or indecent, to describe one who, out…
Sidq (Truthfulness)
31 December 2010 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 79 (January - February 2011)
Meaning true thought, true words and true actions, sidq is reflected in the life of a traveler on the path to God as follows: he or she does not lie…
Futuwwa (Youth and Chivalry)
31 October 2010 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 78 (November - December 2010)
They were young men who had believed in their Lord, and We increased them in guidance. And We strengthened their hearts, when they rose up and declar…
Humility (Tawadu)
31 August 2010 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 77 (September - October 2010)
Tawadu (modesty and humility) is the opposite of arrogance, pride, and haughtiness. It can also be interpreted as one's awareness of one's real posit…
Good Nature (Khuluq)
30 June 2010 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 76 (July - August 2010)
Good nature, in addition to meaning temperament, disposition, and character, is a goal to which a traveler aspires, for it is the most important dime…
Tawakkul, Taslim, Tafwiz, and Thiqa (Reliance, Surrender, Commitment, and Confidence)
30 April 2010 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 75 (May - June 2010)
Reliance, surrender, commitment, and confidence are the four steps or stations of a spiritual journey beginning with reliance on (or trust in) God, c…
Istiqama (Straightforwardness)
28 February 2010 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 74 (March - April 2010)
People of truth have interpreted straightforwardness as avoiding all deviation and extremes, and as following in the footsteps of the Prophets, the f…
Ikhlas (Sincerity or Purity of Intention)
31 December 2009 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 73 (January - February 2010)
Ikhlas has been interpreted as being upright, sincere, and pure; being distant from show and ostentation in one’s intention and conduct; and being cl…
Muraqaba
31 October 2009 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 72 (November - December 2009)
Muraqaba has been defined as watching, supervising, controlling, and living in the consciousness of being controlled (by God). Sufis take this furthe…
Wara' (Abstinence)
30 June 2009 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 70 (July - August 2009)
Wara' relates to both the inner and outer aspects of a believer's life and conduct. A traveler on the path of wara' must reach the peaks of taqwa…
Translation of Sufi Poetry
30 April 2009 | Aalia Sohail Khan | Issue 69 (May - June 2009)
The misunderstanding and the misconception by some Western readers that Sufi poetry is strongly tinged with sensuality and replete with erotic and ba…
Taqwa (Piety)
30 April 2009 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 69 (May - June 2009)
Taqwa is derived from wiqaya, which means self-defense and avoidance. Sufis define it as protecting oneself from God’s punishment by performing His c…
Zuhd (Asceticism)
28 February 2009 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 68 (March - April 2009)
Zuhd, which literally means renouncing worldly pleasures and resisting carnal desires, is defined by Sufis as indifference to worldly appetites, livi…
Raja (Hope or Expectation)
31 December 2008 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 67 (January - February 2009)
For a Sufi, Raja means waiting for that which he or she wholeheartedly desires to come into existence, acceptance of good deeds, and forgiveness of s…
Khawf and Khashya (Fear and Reverence)
31 October 2008 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 66 (November - December 2008)
In Sufism, khawf (fear) denotes abstaining not only from all that is forbidden, but also from deeds from which it is advisable to refrain. It also si…
Huzn (Sadness or Sorrow)
31 August 2008 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 65 (September - October 2008)
Sufis use the word huzn (sadness) as the opposite of rejoicing and joy, and to express the pain one suffers while fulfilling his or her duties and re…
Qalb (Heart) - 2
30 June 2008 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 64 (July - August 2008)
Belief is the life of the heart; worship is the blood flowing in its veins; and reflection, self-supervision, and self-criticism are the foundations…
Qalb (Heart) - 1
30 April 2008 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 63 (May - June 2008)
In the words of Ibrahim Haqqi of Erzurum: The heart is the home of God; purify it from whatever is other than Him So that the All-Merciful may des…
Hal and Maqam (State and Station)
29 February 2008 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 62 (March - April 2008)
Hal (state) denotes experiencing in one’s inner world the “breaths” blowing from the realms beyond the world, and feeling the difference between the…
Firar and I'tisam (Fleeing and Taking Shelter)
30 September 2007 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 60 (October - December 2007)
Firar, which literally means to run away from something, is used in Sufism to denote the journey from the created to the Creator, sheltering from the…
Tafakkur (Reflection)
30 June 2007 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 59 (July - September 2007)
Tafakkur literally means to think on a subject deeply, systematically, and in great detail. In this context, it signifies reflection, which is the he…
Muhasaba (Self-Criticism or Self-Interrogation)
31 March 2007 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 58 (April - June 2007)
The word muhasaba literally means reckoning, settling accounts, and self-interrogation. In a spiritual context, however, it takes on the additional m…
Tawba (Repentance), Inaba (Sincere Penitence), and Awba (Turning to God in Contrition)
31 December 2006 | M. Fethullah Gulen | Issue 57 (January - March 2007)
I HAVE REPENTED AND TURNED TO GOD SO SINCERELY THAT I WILL NOT BREAK [THE VOW OF REPENTANCE] UNTIL MY SOUL LEAVES MY BODY. ( RUMI) Tawba (repen…
What is Sufism?
30 June 2004 | Hikmet Isik | Issue 47 (July - September 2004)
Q: What is Sufism? A: Sufism is a path followed by Sufis (adherents of Islamic mysticism) to reach the Truth-God. While the term Sufism usually expr…
Religion, Violence, and Reconciliation
31 December 2003 | The Fountain | Issue 45 (January - March 2004)
Thomas Petriano, Ph.D, is the chairperson of the Religious Studies Department of St. Joseph's College in Patchogue, NY. He teaches comparative religi…
Sufism and Quantum Physics
30 June 2002 | Dr. Ibrahim B. Syed | Issue 39 (July - September 2002)
Sufism and quantum theory have several things in common. For example, Sufis and physicists have very similar views of the world. In contrast to the W…
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