THE ELEMENTS OF SUFISM
(Excerpts Only)

By: Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri

Chapter 11
Sufism and Society

We define Sufism as the art or the way that leads man to being in full harmony and balance. It is the way which enables him to attain inner perception, understanding and therefore contentment in every situation in which he happens to be. The Sufi's interaction in all circumstances is in such harmony and in such unity with the total ecology that his actions appear as the manifestation of love and contentment in all circumstances. What appears to us to be an illness, to such a person is only a condition which is necessary in order to redress an imbalance. So he sees in it  nothing other than deserved goodness and mercy. In a situation where he seems to us to be in contradiction, he himself is in contentment and witnessing that state without objection. Inwardly he is always in a state of acceptance with knowledge and joy.

The inward state of a Sufi is what every human being wishes to attain, for the Sufi's position is at the pinnacle of the pyramid of society. If the Sufi is an integrated member of the community or of the society, and his nobility and virtues are recognized, then we find that he is respected and sought after as a guide or a teacher. His rank is considered above that of ordinary religious teachers or scholars.

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The extent of the Sufis' interaction with society has always depended very much upon their own personalities and on the economic, social, political and religious environment in which they happen to be living. We find that Sufi social behavior varies considerably and widely, from their being unknown, quiet and seemingly ineffective persons, to their being in more or less visible positions of authority and leadership. Some Sufis have lived in the middle of a religious school, leading formal classes and producing other Sufi masters simultaneously. Others have lived in the outlying countryside, almost inaccessible to townspeople. A few have lived quietly in seclusion in remote mountain regions. Other Sufi masters alternate between spending time in the cities and in the countryside on a regular basis. Some Sufis have had only a few close followers, while others have had thousands. For example, Shaykh Sidi Ali al-Jamal's only really close follower appears to have been Shaykh Moulay al-Arabi ad-Darqawi, and yet from Shaykh ad-Darqawi literally hundreds of great men of wisdom and awakenening, and many spiritual masters, emerged.

Occasionally we find some Sufi masters performing all the orthodox functions of the religious scholars, such as, for example, Shaykh Ahmad az-Zarruq who is buried in Libya. As well as being a great spiritual master, he was very learned in the outer Islamic Law. He defined the Sufi as a jurist who acts by his knowledge, and was highly critical of those people who claim to be Sufis but who do not follow the way of Islam.

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One requirement of life is to recognize all the aspects of creation within us, and to be in spontaneous awareness of the unitive nature of reality at all times. That is why one is constantly interested in the code of conduct prescribed by the Sufis. Throughout history, we find that every now and then, whenever the outer aspect, the physical and material, has been developed and stabilized, then man's attention has been drawn more towards the inner aspect of life. This is what gives rise to the periodic emergence of the Sufis and their influence in society. Also, when the outer circumstances of a society become intolerable, and its people are in confusion and suffering privation, and are in dire need of understanding the purpose of life, then again, we find man's attention turning towards knowledge and the search for a way out of such an intolerable situation.

It is in these situations that the Sufi centers and Sufi masters emerge. When excessive materialism, consumerism and decadence reach their zenith, then the situation demands the need to balance itself by turning towards establishing spiritual awareness and awakening, which is when Sufism begins to rise. Thus it is often the particular quality of life and its specific demands which determine the appropriate counter-balance needed to restore equilibrium.

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