Sufism- The Pinnacle of Mysticism

Having being a renowned authority in the specialty of Metaphysics, philosopher Frithjof Schuon, dubbed religion as a mere 'adaptation to a particular mentality'. Faith, spanning many fronts, both polytheistic and monotheistic, foresees an evident line of division and partitioning. Whether as a direct result of dispute regarding theological affairs or friction concerning the interpretation of sacred texts and scripts. Sufism is nothing short of predominant, having being fashioned over centuries by the likes of philosophers, theologians and mystics. Often the target of stigmatization, bigotry and prejudice, this denomination seeks the inner with the outer. A sect not concerning the prospect of a political or juristic basis, rather one concerned almost solely with the spirituality interwoven between the created and the creator. It aims to emulate and perserve to commitment to the greater Jihad, a struggle against one's intoxicating passions and illicit desires. It encompasses the very annihilation of the ego, coupled by the life-long destiny to seek an interconnectedness to God, the divine being. It is this faction of the Islamic faith, that intrigues some of the most eminent intellectual and theological authorities in the west and attracts the interest of its fellow muslim counterparts. Sufism reflects the ever-growing tendency to deviate from the heirachy of the religion. In the Islamic sense this stems from the minuscule numbers of Sufis in comparison to the conventional 'mainstream' Islam. It is bent on the love for the creator, a deep and spiritual love in which the Sufis are directed to encountering upon their initiation and their exotic religious journey. The Sufi faction reflects the exponential increase in the incidence of spirituality in the Mystic sense, independence on the theological front and sky-rocketing intolerance exhibited by those whose views and philosophy are bred as a result of narrow-mindedness and bigotry. Such a sect is indicative of the fragility of human spirituality, in the Sufi sense, it is that yearning, that passion and that destiny to seek that metaphysical and spiritual bond with the creator. Having observed the ever-tolerated stigma projected to the Islamic mystics, I sought the truth, immersing myself in literature dating back eras. To broaden one's horizons, one must profoundly loose sight of the land and employ a diverse mentality, one not riddled with the dogma, what is considered 'conventional' and 'mainstream'; rather one that has an ambience of assimilation, the will and desire to produce an output with the input. Sufism may remain a secluded faction in the spectre of the average muslim, but its undying persistence in fulfilling the shortcomings of human spirituality are paramount to a faith that is directed towards submission to the divine will of God. Sufism is analogous to a wayfarer, journeying the wilderness of the desert, yet as his destination approaches him nearer and nearer he tastes the fruits of the vegetation that proliferates  across the seemingly life-less landscape. That destination is God, the wayfarer is the Sufi and the fruits are the mystical means of faith. The Sufis remain here to thrive, honour and commend their movement or resent and vilify their belief, but they as nation, as a people and as a denomination are a resilient set of alpha-males destined to attain the love for God.