Sufism , Mystical movement within Islam that seeks to find divine love and knowledge through direct personal experience of God. It consists of a variety of mystical paths that are designed to ascertain the nature of mankind and God and to facilitate the experience of divine love and wisdom in the world. Sufism arose as an organized movement after the death of Muhammad (632 CE), among different groups who found orthodox Islam to be spiritually stifling. The practices of contemporary Sufi orders and suborders vary, but most include the recitation of the name of God or of certain phrases from the Quʾrān as a way to loosen the bonds of the lower self, enabling the soul to experience the higher reality toward which it naturally aspires. Though Sufi practitioners have often been at odds with the mainstream of Islamic theology and law, the importance of Sufism in the history of Islam is incalculable. Sufi literature, especially love poetry, represents a golden age in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Urdu languages. See also Aḥmadiyyah; dervish; Malāmatiyyah; tariqa.
Sufism is a unique version of Islam that incorporates elements of mysticism with the worship of Allah. While some view Sufi as a distinct Islamic group or even a fringe group that is unrelated to Islam, the predominating view, and the view held by Sufis themselves, is that Sufi is an aspect of mainstream Islam. Mysticism is a belief system that states that the most essential divine truths are learned while an individual is in an altered state of consciousness. In other words, mysticism stresses the importance of experiencing sacred moments through being mentally, physically, or spiritually close to sacred things. Sufis incorporate religious mantras, rituals, and prayers into their mystic practices. While Sufism is a part of Islam, it is a unique religious group within the umbrella of Islam, and its practices and beliefs are not shared by all Muslims.
