Columbia International Affairs Online
CIAO DATE: 8/5/2007
Sufism in Central Asia: A Force for Moderation or a Cause of Politicization?
2007 June
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Abstract
Sufism is a mystical form of Islam that has flourished in the Muslim world for centuries. Sufism has placed a distinctive stamp on the way the religion has been practiced in many Arab countries, in parts of Africa, in Turkey, and especially in Central Asia.
Like so much else in a decentralized global faith such as Islam, the practice of Sufism has varied tremendously from region to region, and even within a country or a region over time. Although each Sufi order (tariqat) has its own character, shaped in large part by the teachings of its founder, much of how the Sufis in the order practice the founder’s teachings is shaped by the current generation of Sufi leaders.
Proponents and defenders of Sufism concentrate on the spiritual purification that the followers of the Sufi way receive, which is how believers bring themselves to the fulfillment of their faith.
Sufism offers a path to awakening and enlightenment—a personal connection to God through mystic and ascetic discipline—that attracts many Muslims. Non-Muslims, too, are sometimes attracted to the aesthetic strain of Sufism, which many see as intellectually distinct from more conventional forms of Islamic practice.
