Flowers for the Women Wearing Veils - Volume I — Page 104
! ! 104 purification of the heart and others view it in other ways. The general opinion is that it concerns th e purification of the heart : h ow to develop an attachment and grow near to Alla h. M any great a ulia [saints] ha ve passed away. Secondly, there is the history of Sufism. When did it start, and who started it? What was their purpose and w hat did they do? What changes took place in Sufism in the past ? Thirdly, there is the matter of the various sects of Sufism. This delves into whether there are difference s among these sects and i f so, what are their dissimilarities ? Within this sect, different movements have formed, such as Qadri, Chishti, Suharwardi, and Naqshbandi. There is no fundamental difference , but they do differ in some respects. These differences revolve primarily around spiritual exercises. It appears they have absorbed the practices of their particular regions as well as using those remedies in medical healing which they witnessed in their own culture, just as doctors use their own methods. For example, some may prescribe Quinine for fever and others may use purgatives. In addition to their larger sects , there are several smaller ones. In Sufism, there is a sect called Mulaeheda which has abolished Shariah. They assert that they have reached the ir destination or something along those line s. The y argue that if a person travel ing in a boat has reached the riverbank, should he disembark or stay in the boa t? They deceive people by claiming such absurdities. h. Malamati S ect: They too are corrupted. In reality, they are not immoral, but they believe hypocrisy or pretense lead s to destruction. To counter this, they indulge in such activ it ies , which will disparage their name. For example, they will go and sleep in a brothel house and offer Tahajjud prayers there. However, this way is fraught with danger. B y adopting such behavior s, people are ruined. I n believing that they are safeguarding their ego, they often end up entangled in various vices. The reality is that the outcome is often tragic. 8. Knowledge of Judgment : This deals with judgments over matters of dispute. For example, this covers the recording of witness’ statement s , its cross examination, evaluating the