Sufism East And West

Sufism East and West, edited by Jamal Malik and Saeed Zarrabi-Zadeh, investigates the redirection and dynamics of Sufism in the modern era, specifically from the perspective of cross-cultural exchange in the resonance spaces of “East” and “West.”

For more than a millennium, Sufism has been the core of the spiritual experience of countless Muslims. As the chief mystical tradition of Islam, it has helped to shape the history of Islamic societies. Although it is the Sufi face of Islam that has often appealed to Westerners, Sufis and Sufism remain mysterious to many in the West, and are still widely misunderstood. In this new, redesigned paperback edition of this bestselling book, a scholar with long experience of Sufism in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and Europe succinctly presents the essentials of Sufism and shows how Sufis live and worship, and why. As well as what Sufism is and where it comes from, the book discusses Sufi orders not only in the Islamic world but also in the West. The political, social, and economic significance of Sufism is outlined, and the question of how and why Sufism has become one of the more controversial aspects of contemporary Islamic religious life is addressed. This book assumes no prior knowledge of the subject. It is a penetrating and concise introduction for everyone interested in Islam and Islamic societies.

Sufism in Western Contexts explores both historical trajectories and multiple contemporary manifestations of Islamic mystical movements, ideas, and practices in diverse European, North and South American countries, as well as in Australia – all traditionally non-Muslim regions of the “global West”. From early French and British colonial administrators who admired Persian poetry to nineteenth-century American transcendentalists, followed by South Asian and Middle Eastern immigrant Sufi guides and their movements, expansive and many-faceted expressions of Sufism such as its role in Western esotericism, female whirling dervishes and Rumi cafes, and new articulations in cyberspace, are traced and analyzed by international experts in the field.

Considers how Lessing's exposure to a particular aspect of tasawwuf, the classical Sufi Way, has shaped her work. Impresses upon the reader the degree to which Lessing is seriously offering her space-fiction utopias as plausible and even necessary alternatives to our present Western ways of life.

With the increasing Muslim diaspora in post-modern Western societies, Sufism – intellectually as well as sociologically – may eventually become Islam itself due to its versatile potential. Although Sufism has always provoked considerable interest in the West, no volume has so far been written which discusses this aspect of Islam in terms of how it is practised in Western societies. Bringing together leading international authorities to survey the history of Islamic mysticism in North America and Europe, this book elaborates the ideas and institutions which organize Sufism and folk-religious practices. The chapters cover: the orders and movements their social base organization and institutionalization recruitment-patterns in new environments channels of disseminating ideas, such as ritual, charisma, and organization reasons for their popularity among certain social groups the nature of their affiliation with the countries of their origin. Providing a fascinating insight into how Sufism operates within different spheres of society, Sufism in the West is essential reading for students and academics with research interests in Islam, Islamic history and social anthropology.

This rare and remarkable book brings together the life and teachings of eight torch-bearers of Sufism -- among them Rabia, Abu Hasan, Junnuna Misri and Sachal. An inspired and elevating work from the pen of Sadhu Vaswani, the book offers us the distilled wisdom and devotion of Sufism. The Sufi saints can indeed teach us valuable truths that will help us discover the true meaning and purpose of our life upon this earth.

East and West applies Sufi thought to some of Doris Lessing's novels and studies the manifestations of Sufi influence on Lessing. Various Sufi-like characters and their unconventional lifestyles are evaluated and explicated for Western readers unfamiliar with Sufism. This book also evaluates the role of spirituality in Lessing's work and considers the implications of taking Lessing's Sufism seriously when reading her works or when doing Lessing criticism. It also impresses upon the reader the degree to which Lessing is seriously offering her space-fiction utopias as plausible and even necessary alternatives to our present Western ways of life.