THE SPIRITUAL PATH OF TARIQATS: FROM ASIA TO AFRICA

Bobokhonov R.

Sufism emerged in the Islamic world in the 8th century as an ascetic movement. Over its long history, it has gone through three stages. The first stage is the period of asceticism (8th–9th centuries), when Sufis sought spiritual purification through self-denial. The second stage is the period of Sufi schools and movements (9th–11th centuries), when various philosophical and spiritual trends began to form. The third stage is the period of Sufi tariqats (since the 12th century), when brotherhoods emerged that united Sufis according to the principles and methods of spiritual guidance. The first two stages paved the way for the emergence of tariqats, which became an important part of Sufism. Despite the resistance of Sunni theologians, who saw Sufi figures as their rivals in the struggle for influence over believers, Sufism became an important element of the religious life of Muslim society in the 12th–13th centuries. In the mid-12th – early 13th centuries, Sufi tariqahs began to form around the zawiyas, especially in the cities. Sufi tariqahs, unlike Christian monastic orders, were less structured and did not have a centralized management. The first tariqahs, Suhrawardiya and Qadiriyya, arose in Baghdad and spread throughout the Islamic world.

Keywords:Islam, Sufism, tariqah, sharia, murshid, murid, sheikh, muqaddam, maqam, sislsila, ma'rifat, haqiqah