Maqam – i.e. station and HAL – i.e. state The various stages of self awareness on the Sufi path are known as maqamat, or the ‘stations’, which are attainable through continuous spiritual practices and sincere efforts. However, hal or ‘state’ can only happen by the Grace of GOD. Rumi has described these stages…

By getting involved in these practices, a disciple gradually passes through a process of the purification of the soul that consists of three stages. a) The Carnal soul or Nafs Al Ammara: Nafs al-ammara is the tendency in man to disobey GOD, and to take pleasure in evil deed and thought. A…

Fana fi-llah i.e. Extinction and Baqa bi-llah’i.e. subsistence in Allah. Extinction and subsistence in ALLAH i.e. ‘fana fi-llah’ and ‘baqa bi-llah’: The ‘extinction of the self in ALLAH’ i.e. fana fi-llah is the transition to the state of baqa bi-llah or the ‘eternal life in union with ALLAH. ‘ By passing away from self,…

It is the Quran that provides the raw materials of spiritual practice for Sufis: Dhikr (ZIKR) Ashgaal Muraqba Maqam – i.e. station and HAL – i.e. state Dhikr (ZIKR) Zikr means ‘Remembering ALLAH,’ usually by pronouncing His name or by uttering a number of recognized formulae. Zikr may be practiced as jahri (loudly) or khafi (quietly).…

The Sufi way is a love-oriented path. Anyone can taste that fire of love in the poetry, music and dance created by the Sufis like Rumi, Hafiz, Jami, Iraqi, Khusro to name a few. The Sufi way has given birth to a culture of beautiful human beings with hearts of pure love and a highly developed aesthetic sense.…

The foundation of Islam is based on Tawheed. To a Sufi ‘La ilaha illal lah (there is no GOD but ALLAH) means La mojud illal lah (i.e. nothing exist but ALLAH). This is the most important reality of a Sufi’s life that determines his relationship with GOD. According to the Sufis, The Creator is not distant from His Creation rather there is…

ALLAH says in Quran, “Wa maa Khalakthul jinna wal insa illa li ya’budoon” i.e., I have not created the jinns and humans except for worshipping (ME). (Al Quran 51:56).   However Sufis interpret, ‘ya’budoon‘ (worshipping) as ‘ya’reefoon‘ (knowing) as is substantiated by the famous Hadith Qudsi which reads, “Kuntu kanzan makhfiyya fa…

Tasawwuf i.e. the Sufi path is an esoteric dimension of Islam; rather it is the soul of Islam. It has been defined in various ways, which simply leads to a conclusion that it cannot be defined through words. This path leads towards an understanding of the flame of life that happens at…