Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

, ‘Irfan ( Arabic/ Persian/ Urdu: ; tr, İrfan), literally ‘knowledge, awareness, wisdom’, is gnosis. Islamic mysticism can be considered as a vast range that engulfs theoretical and practical and conventional mysticism, but the concept of Irfan is emphasised mostly within the Shia sect of Islam.

Concept of Irfan in Sunni mysticism

According to the founder of the Qadiriyya Tariqa, Sayyid Abdul Qadir Gilani Irfan is described as the acknowledgement of God's unity. This acknowledgement is achieved by studying under

islamic scholars In Islam, the ''ulama'' (; ar, علماء ', singular ', "scholar", literally "the learned ones", also spelled ''ulema''; feminine: ''alimah'' ingularand ''aalimath'' lural are the guardians, transmitters, and interpreters of religious ...

. One method how these scholars can help in gaining acknowledgement about God's unity is by giving more inside in the internal meaning of the practice of Islamic rituals, like the

Salah (, plural , romanized: or Old Arabic ͡sˤaˈloːh, ( or Old Arabic ͡sˤaˈloːtʰin construct state) ), also known as ( fa, نماز) and also spelled , are prayers performed by Muslims. Facing the , the direction of the Kaaba wit ...

. The reflection upon the practice of

with the knowledge of respected islamic scholars (in concreto Awliya Allah) is described by the Sayyid as "nearness to God", manifested in acknowledgement of him (Irfan).Sayyid Abdul Qadir Gilani in Sirr ul Asrar, section 1

Avicenna Ibn Sina ( fa, ابن سینا; 980 – June 1037 CE), commonly known in the West as Avicenna (), was a Persian polymath who is regarded as one of the most significant physicians, astronomers, philosophers, and writers of the Islamic G ...

also says in one of his books in definition of mystic as: the one that doesn't allow himself physical pleasures and overlooks this carnal world's pleasures is called "ascetic". The one that observes saying prayers and fasting, etc. is called "worshiper". The one that prevents his conscious from paying attention to the others but God and directed it to the transcendent world to be enlightened by God's light is known as "mystic". However, sometimes two or all these designations can be applied to a single person.

Shi'ite mysticism

In comparison to Sunni mysticism which is generally known as

Sufism Sufism ( ar, ''aṣ-ṣūfiyya''), also known as Tasawwuf ( ''at-taṣawwuf''), is a mystic body of religious practice, found mainly within Sunni Islam but also within Shia Islam, which is characterized by a focus on Islamic spirituality, r ...

, mysticism in

Twelver Shiism Twelver Shīʿīsm ( ar, ٱثْنَا عَشَرِيَّة; '), also known as Imāmīyyah ( ar, إِمَامِيَّة), is the largest branch of Shia Islam, Shīʿa Islam, comprising about 85 percent of all Shīʿa Muslims. The term ''Twelver ...

is generally known as Irfan, which specifically translates to gnosis. Among the most famous modern Shia proponents of Irfan were Usuli theologians Allāmah Tabatabai,

Ruhollah Khomeini Ruhollah Khomeini, Ayatollah Khomeini, Imam Khomeini ( , ; ; 17 May 1900 – 3 June 1989) was an Iranian political and religious leader who served as the first supreme leader of Iran from 1979 until his death in 1989. He was the founder of ...

, Mohammad-Taqi Bāhjat, Allameh Hassan Hassanzadeh Amoli, and Allāmah Qādhi Tabatabai. The scholars taught how gnosis can be attained by adhering to Islamic teachings with love for God. The 17th-century Mulla Sadra of Iran is generally seen as the historical ideologue for Irfan in Shi'ism.

References

External links

"Sufism of Iran" - A Reference website for Sufi books

Articles related to Irfan on Al-Islam.org
{{Authority control Islamic mysticism Shia Islam Islamic terminology

Concept of Irfan in Sunni mysticism

Shi'ite mysticism

See also

References

External links