Contemporary Sufism: Piety, Politics, and Popular Culture PDF
Preview Contemporary Sufism: Piety, Politics, and Popular Culture
CONTEMPORARY SUFISM What is Sufism? Contemporary views vary tremendously, even among Sufis them- selves. Contemporary Sufism: Piety, Politics, and Popular Culture brings to light the religious frameworks that shape the views of Sufism’s friends, adversaries, admirers, and detractors and, in the process, helps readers better understand the diversity of contemporary Sufism, the pressures and cultural openings to which it responds, and the many divergent opinions about contemporary Sufism’s relationship to Islam. The three main themes: piety, politics, and popular culture are explored in relation to the Islamic and Western contexts that shape them, as well as to the historical conditions that frame contemporary debates. This book is split into three parts: • Sufism and anti-Sufism in contemporary contexts; • Contemporary Sufism in the West: Poetic influences and popular manifestations; • Gendering Sufism: Tradition and transformation. This book will fascinate anyone interested in the challenges of contemporary Sufism as well as its relationship to Islam, gender, and the West. It offers an ideal starting point from which undergraduate and postgraduate students, teachers, and lecturers can explore Sufism today. Meena Sharify-Funk is Associate Professor and Chair of the Religion and Cul- ture Department at Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada. William Rory Dickson is Assistant Professor of Islamic Religion and Culture at the University of Winnipeg, Canada. Merin Shobhana Xavier is Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Ithaca College, USA. CONTEMPORARY SUFISM Piety, Politics, and Popular Culture Meena Sharify-Funk, William Rory Dickson and Merin Shobhana Xavier First published 2018 by Routledge 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN and by Routledge 711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017 Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business © 2018 Meena Sharify-Funk, William Rory Dickson and Merin Shobhana Xavier The right of Meena Sharify-Funk, William Rory Dickson and Merin Shobhana Xavier to be identified as authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers. Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Sharify-Funk, Meena, author. | Dickson, William Rory, 1979, author. |Xavier, Merin Shobhana, author. Title: Contemporary Sufism: Piety, Politics, and Popular Culture / Meena Sharify-Funk, William Rory Dickson and Merin Shobhana Xavier. Description: New York : Routledge, 2018. | Includes bibliographical references and index. Identifiers: LCCN 2017035714| ISBN 9781138687288 (hardback) | ISBN 9781138687301 (pbk.) | ISBN 9781315542379 (ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Sufism. | Islam and culture.Classification: LCC BP189.S444 2018 | DDC 297.409/051--dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017035714 ISBN: 978-1-138-68728-8 (hbk) ISBN: 978-1-138-68730-1 (pbk) ISBN: 978-1-315-54237-9 (ebk) Typeset in Bembo by Sunrise Setting Ltd, Brixham, UK For Abdul Aziz Said, who taught generations of students that “the whole is reflected in its diverse parts and from its parts the information of the whole can be constructed. The total is greater than the parts but only when the parts are taken into account.” He is also known for saying, “When we empathize with each other, we discover that human life or the human predicament is so similar in its deeper significance and issues, whatever our society, religion, culture, or gender. When we begin to empathize we also start to learn the patterns of human con- nection. For the whole world needs the whole world.” CONTENTS List of figures ix Acknowledgments x Introduction xiii 1 Contextualizing the production of knowledge on contemporary Sufism in the West 1 PART I Sufism and anti-Sufism in contemporary contexts 33 2 Heart or heresy? The historical debate over Sufism’s place in Islam 35 3 Contesting Sufism today: Contemporary Sufi and anti-Sufi responses 62 PART II Contemporary Sufism in the West: Poetic influences and popular manifestations 99 4 Sufism in the eyes of the West: Colonialists, Romantics, and Transcendentalists 101 5 The era of Rumi: Contemporary Sufism and popular culture 140 viii Contents PART III Gendering Sufism: Tradition and transformation 183 6 Perfecting the self: Female Sufi saints in Islamic history 185 7 “Women of light”: Contemporary female Sufi leaders 213 8 Conclusion: Discourses of authenticity and complementary contradictions in contemporary Sufism 245 Index 262 FIGURES 7.1 Cemalnur Sargut Hoca at one of her many public speaking events 217 7.2 Shaykha Nur Artiran at the Şefik Can International Mevlana Education and Culture Foundation 217 7.3 Devi Tide, Head and Vice President of the Sufi Healing Order of North America, Australia, and New Zealand 218 7.4 Shaykha Fariha Friedrich leads dhikr at the Masjid al-Farah in Manhattan, NY 220
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