class 7th
chapter- devotional paths to the divine
Imagine yourself to be a part of gathering of any Sufi pir. What do you think would they preach in that gathering?
Answers
Answer:
Sufis were Muslim mystics who rejected hypocrisy in religion and emphasised love and devotion to God and compassion for fellow human beings.
Islam is a strictly monotheistic religion which believes in submission to one God, rejects idol worship, and preaches collective worship of God.
Muslim scholars developed a holy law called the Shariat which the sufis rejected because they wanted union with God just like a lover seeks unity with his beloved.
Sufis composed expressive poems and music, and also rich prose that included fables and anecdotes.
Great sufi saints include Ghazali, Rumi, and Sa'adi who believed that the heart can be trained to look at the world with a different perspective.
They used zikr (chanting of a name or formula), contemplation, sama (singing), raqs (dancing), discussion of parables, breath control, etc., under the guidance of a master called a pir.
Genealogies of sufis were known as silsilas, and each followed a different method of ritual practice and instruction.
After the establishment of the Delhi Sultanante, major sufi centres developed in India, of which the Chishti silsila was one of the most influential.
This order has had many thinkers, such as Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti of Ajmer, Qutbuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki of Delhi, Baba Farid of Punjab, Khwaja Nizam uddin
Auliya of Delhi, and Bandanawaz Gisudaraz of Gulbarga.
Sufi masters held assemblies in their khanqahs or hospices where all kinds of devotees came to discuss spiritual matters, solve their worldly problems, or attend music and dance sessions.
People mostly associated sufis with magical powers. So their tombs or dargahs became places of pilgrimage for people of all ages and castes to visit and pay their respects.