From Indus to Independence by Sanu Kainikara

Author:Sanu Kainikara [Kainikara, Sanu]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: History, Asia, India & South Asia, Reference, Southeast Asia
ISBN: 9789389620511
Google: 6mSRzQEACAAJ
Publisher: Vij Books India
Published: 2020-08-15T22:09:21+00:00

Sufism: Critical Element in the Spread of Islam in India

Sufism is the ascetic and mystical branch of Islam, deriving its name from the woollen garments worn by the ascetic followers. The Sufi movement developed and spread into India around the same time that Islam was coming into multifaceted contact with Hinduism, a religion with deep roots that had so far been able to absorb all kinds of interlopers who came into contact with it. Islam, although still in relative infancy, was distinctly different from the less developed religious and cultural ethos of the earlier invading groups and was already sufficiently evolved to ensure that it did not succumb to the indistinct formlessness of Hindu beliefs and become diluted. In that sense Hinduism had met its match. Sufism provided the bridge to gap the great separation that existed between the two religions.

“Glory to Him who made His servant go by night from the Sacred Temple to the farther Sacred Temple whose surroundings We have blessed, that We might show him some of Our signs. He alone hears all and observes all.”

Koran The Night Journey (Tr 1956) sura 17, verse I.

As quoted in M.J. Cohen & John Major (eds),

History in Quotations, p. 133

(In the Mi’raj (Ascent or Night Journey) the Prophet Muhammad was taken by the angel Gabriel from Mecca to the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, and from there up to the seven heavens and the throne of God. This became a paradigmatic text for the mystical journeys of the Sufi saints.)

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