Dhikr

This article concerns the Islamic community in contemporary Russia and the dynamic identities of Muslim migrants there. The focus of this study is the religious and wider social practices of those Muslim migrants who are considered leaders of local micro-communities, enjoy respect within their religious community, and have steadfast religious authority within their circles. These practices are considered in their local religious and migrant contexts through the prism of such concepts as religious individualism, everyday lived Islam, and tactical religion. The author shows multiple ties that emerge between the region’s Muslims, specifically between unofficial local leaders, and other believers who need this authority to elaborate their everyday Muslim practices in the context of migration and the authority crisis in Russian Islam. This study emphasizes the importance of the everyday in the formation of individual religiosity and shows how a local Muslim environment builds up around certain key figures outside the mosque.

The word 'God' (Allah[ST] in Arabic, Yahweh and Jehovah in Hebrew) is conceived of as the supreme being, creator deity, and principal object of faith. He is usually conceived as being omnipotent (all-powerful) (al-Qahir), omniscient (all-knowing) (al-Allam), omnipresent (all-present) (al-Hayye), and omnibenevolent (all-good) (al-Barr, al-Wadood) as well as having an eternal and necessary existence. Depending upon the faith of the individuals, this word may have different meaning to different people. "Yet there is, perhaps, some thread of meaning common to the diverse connotations attached to the word by all who use it.-If that were not the case, the atheist who denies God's existence, the agnostic who thinks that he cannot discover anything about God by rational inquiry, and the theist who affirm God's existence, either by faith or by reason, would not be opposed to one another and would have nothing to argue about. Even the pantheist, who identifies God with the infinite cosmos, thereby annulling the distinction between the nature and the supernatural, retains some meaning for the word 'God' that preserves what the word names as an object of reverence, if not worship." The object of this paper was to explore how we can think of such a being.

Our study suggests that the word God is a proper name associated with a unique being, who is a class in Himself, no one else belongs to that class. As such, we cannot  think of Him in terms of anyone else and hence we cannot think of Him in terms of images. The only way we can think about Him is through 'dhikr' and 'fikr'. We can do 'fikr' about Him by pondering over His creations, which remind us of His Asma-ul-Husna. We can do 'dhikr' about Him by counting all the blessings He has bestowed upon us. There is, however, a higher level of 'dhikr', which creates a feeling of awe in our heart. This can be done through the process of meditation, which ultimately leads to the states of Wahdat-ul-Wujood and Wahdat-ush-Shuhud.

Life is distracting, off-putting, disturbing, distressing; it addles us from remembering the greater meaning, and remembering our Creator, the Source of life. Over 80% of news headlines is sickening, many of what are seen, heard…were unpleasant to believer’s soul, thus, worrying, confusing and affecting believer’s connection with the source. To be more in synchronization with the soul and to develop a deeper visualization, going beyond the sight of the eyes and the signals of the minds, are being achieved by a constant connection through dhikr and du’aah.
Dhikr echoes a constant connection and loving bond with Allaah, nay, relieves the mind from anxieties and worries and produces joy and happiness in the heart by strengthens the body and mind, brightens the face and heart, and attracts one’s sustenance. It is also believed many loves to connect with Allaah but misguided by unqualified ones that misinterpret sharee’ah evidences in the way that suite their whims. Here in this book are the guideleines regarding dhikr and du’aah with reliable evidences.

How is the Sufi being constructed and what are the specific features of its asceticism? In is a study of Sufism -understood as the mystical aspect of Islam- in Buenos Aires, taking into account its inscription in the national religious matrix, emphasizing its ascetic practices. My main interest lies in exploring the ideological and symbolic dimensions of Sufi ritual practices, as well as contextualizing Sufi cultural production within the framework of the New Religious Movements.
I investigate how Islamic Sufism develops in our local context, paying special attention to its positioning in the national religious field and to the ways in which the actors experience it both in the ritual space and in their daily lives. To this end, I review some relevant historical aspects of Sufism, its arrival in the country and its relations with other groups of similar doctrine and/or sociological characteristics.

В настоящей статье рассматривается фольклорная практика «зикир чалуу» в контексте развития суфизма в Центральной Азии. Пользуясь аппаратом структурной антропологии, автор показывает, каким образом в зикрах объединяются исламские и шаманистские элементы культуры.

Бул макалада Орто Азиздагы суфий агымынын өнүгүшүн изилдеген фольклордук практикада антропологиялык аппаратты колдонуу менен «зикир чалуу» жөрөлгөсүндө ислам дини менен шамандык маданияттын элементтеринин кандайча аралашып кеткендиги тууралуу с өз болот.

This article considers folkloric practice «Zikir chaluu» in the context of development of Sufism Central Asia. Using the structural anthropology's apparatus criticus, the author shows how to islamic and shamanistic cultural elements are combined in dhikrs.

This contribution consists of two short translations from the Persian language pertaining to dance as a religious practice among Muslims. The texts are excerpted from hagiographies of Sufi masters famous for their teaching, practices, and long legacies. While situated within specific socio-historical circumstances, the perspectives on Sufi dance brought up here index issues that have mattered throughout history whenever dance has been the subject of Islamic religious discussion. These texts are especially helpful for giving us a sense for the place of traditional, psychosomatic, interpersonal, and social issues pertaining to dance within Sufi contexts.

The Prophet(SAW) has been reported to be saying that the best form of remembrance (dhikr) is ‘La ilaha il Allah (There is no deity but Allah).  This is also the first of the two statements required to be professed to enter into the fold of Islam. Whereas the starting point of this statement is for the verbal confession, the author has demonstrated that repeating ‘La ilaha il Allah’ in a slow rhythmic induces a state of extraordinary relaxation interrupting the constant stream of sensory information, which results in the (mystical) experiences. When mystics reach the highest state, they find themselves in a state in which there are no images, no desires, no thought, no affective feeling, no sensation, and no vision. When we reach the ultimate mystical level, we end up purging our consciousness of all the thoughts (la ilaha), the only thing that remains in our consciousness is Allah(ST) (il Allah). Though the mystical state can be reached by chanting any word or sound, since ‘La ilaha il Allah’ is the chant where our words match exactly with what happens to our consciousness, if it is chanted with understanding, it becomes the most effective and hence the best dhikr in reaching that state.

Many researches today are using modern methods to understand  the relationship between the mind and text, to understand this link they have put forward many beneficial research in the following areas; linguistics, structuralism and semantic in The Holy Quran. Modern trends have emerged in order to understand religious texts using various methods and techniques. One of these researchers include Muhammed Şahrûr who looks into this matter in his book written in 1990 entitled “ Books and The Holy Quran: A Contemporary Read “. A few other books published by Şahrûr include “ State and Society “-1994,  “ Islam and Fatih “-1996, “ Path to New Foundations  in Islamic Law “-2001. The piece “ Contemporary Reads on the Stories of The Holy Quran “ was rewritten in the year 2010. All these pieces are based on the linguistic structure methods in The Holy Kuran. On the other hand the primary structure of these pieces is to look up relevant words from the modern dictionary in order to understand The Holy Quran. This article is going to cover some of the ideas in the Quranic works of M.Şahrûr.

Tarekat tasawuf has been established in Negeri Sembilan since 1900 and began to strengthen its existence in spiritual activities such as the implementation of zikr tarekat tasawuf activities among the local community. This article will highlight the impact of implementing the zikr activities tarekat tasawuf, which is implemented periodically on the spiritual strengthening of the community in Negeri Sembilan. A qualitative approach is used involving library studies, review of relevant documents, and interviews with the Registrar of Tarekat, Tasawuf Division of the Negeri Sembilan Mufti Department, and the Syeikh of the tarekat involved. Basically, there are 13 Sufi practice centers around Negeri Sembilan that conduct regular zikr activities that impact the community. The existence of tarekat practice centers in Negeri Sembilan has been plotted to see the distribution and centralization of tarekat centers. In addition, the form of zikr practiced in the zikr ceremony is also explained ...

'Aziz Nasafi, the prominent 13th century Muslim mystic of Iran and Central Asia, was one of the first exponents of Islamic esoteric thought to draw the attention of western scholarship. Here, an introduction and translation of his impressive Persian "Epistle on Love" are presented. This epistle forms an important part of the author's Book of the Perfect Man (Kitab Insan al-Kamil).

»Im Atemholen sind zweierlei Gnaden: Die Luft einziehen, sich ihrer entladen.« Was Johann Wolfgang von Goethe im West-östlichen Divan anspricht, nimmt Bezug auf eine im Islam geübte Gebetspraxis, das iterative Rezitieren einer gottgedenkenden Formel, die mit dem arabischen Begriff ذكر dhikr, ›Erinnerung, Gedächtnis, Ruf‹, bezeichnet wird. Inhalt dieser knappen Sequenz ist eine Anrufung, ein Gotteslob und kann einer der neunundneunzig schönsten Namen Gottes sein oder auch der Anfang des islamischen Glaubensbekenntnisses.

Diese Rezitation, die entweder bloss in Gedanken formuliert oder mit Stimme ausgesprochen beständig wiederholt wird, tritt oft in Kombination mit einer an den Wortlaut gebundenen Atemtechnik auf. So folgt beispielsweise der Negation im Ausatmen Lā ilāha ›Es gibt keinen Gott‹ die aufatmende Bezeugung illā ’llāhu ›ausser Gott‹. Die rhythmisierte Repetition lässt den Praktizierenden ganz in die von göttlichem Geben und Nehmen durchdrungene Welt eintreten, lässt ihn, wie in Sufi-Kreisen gesagt wird, entwerden in Gott.

Soldier send-off ceremonies (asker uğurlama törenleri) are one of the most prominent rites of passage for males in Turkey. These ceremonies carry old customs, which can be described in terms of their content, form and applied sound aesthetics. Even though these ceremonies contain religious features, particularly due to the popular conception of the army as the prophet’s hearth (peygamber ocağı), they are mostly celebrated as secular rites of passage. Nevertheless, especially in the last few years, performances of stylized zikir are increasingly observable as part of soldier send-off ceremonies as a recent development.

The factors that enable this can be examined through various disciplinary lenses. From the perspective of political science, for example, this new visibility of zikir may be considered a reflection of changing socio-political dynamics in Turkey.

The current government of the past fifteen years has been implementing a political agenda known for its explicit Islamic discourse and religiously motivated administration methods. These active policies have also enabled an Islamization of quasi-religious practices both in social and cultural realms. In this new, strategically Islamised socio-political atmosphere, the ongoing activities of local religious orders—whose content and modus operandi have been a topic of discussion since their official prohibition in 1925—have precipitated the rising visibility of zikir in the social domain.

Although it is not yet possible to date zikir’s first appearance as part of send-off ceremonies, the period after 2010/2012 demonstrates a visible increase. These ceremonies are usually celebrated with specific dances (e.g. halay) which are selected from the region’s profane music and dance repertoire and accompanied mainly by davul (double-sided large drum) and zurna (double-reed wind instrument). However, there is no clear data showing whether zikir is performed together with (before or after) the conventional davul-zurna-dance combination, or in replacement of it. On the other hand, in almost all online video recordings containing zikir and soldier send-off ceremonies both in open areas and bus stations, it is possible to observe a substitution of davul-zurna with bendir—a frame drum primarily played in religious contexts—and profane dances with zikir movements.
The continuity or variability of the above-mentioned political atmosphere in the future will also be decisive in the spread and persistence of this zikir form.

Religiosity is defined as the quality or state of being religious, a religious feeling or devotion. It is about religious orientations and involvement, which includes experiential, ritualistic, ideological, intellectual, consequential, creedal, communal, doctrinal, moral, and cultural dimensions. Spirituality, on the other hand, can be defined generally as an individual's search for ultimate or sacred meaning and purpose in life. Sometimes the two terms can be confused with each other. The purpose of this paper was to delineate the two concepts.

Religiosity is an external manifestation of religion. In Islam, it is expressed through five pillars: Shahadah, Salaat, Zakah, Sawm, and Hajj. Most of it is tangible. Spirituality, which means to connect with Allah(ST) , however, lies in the heart and is intangible. It starts with having a firm belief (Iman) in Allah(ST) with all of His attributes. There are higher levels of spirituality, the ultimate destination of which is to seek closeness with Allah(ST). The way to increase the level is through Dhikr, prolonged Sajdah during Salah, offering Salat-ut-Tahajjud, and Meditation. During meditation, the practitioner reaches a state where he loses his self which is called 'fana fillah'

Religiosity without spirituality leads to hypocrisy. Both are needed to reach the state of 'nafs-ul-mutmainnah [(To the righteous soul will be said:) "O (thou) soul, in (complete) rest and satisfaction! * "Come back thou to thy Lord,-well pleased (thyself), and well-pleasing unto Him! *. "Enter thou, then, among My devotees! *. "Yea, enter thou My Heaven! (The Quran 089.027-030.]

This article concerns with the interpretation of the Quranic verses on dhikr (rememberance) in their various forms and contexts. It seeks to explore a great variety of exegesis (tafsîr) literature written by Indonesian exegetes such as Mahmud Yunus, Hasby ash-Shiddieqy, Hamka and M. Quraish Shihab. Using the method of comparative exegesis (tafsîr muqârin), this article aims to reveal how these Indonesian exegetes (mufassirûn) interprete the verses of dhikr. The understanding of Indonesian exegetes towards dhikr varies greatly, causing difference in interpreting the verses. However, the exegetes share the understanding that dhikr is an activity of remembering God, spelling out the names of God orally, and actualizing God's teachings physically. Despite the fact that those exegetes shares commonalities in interpreting the verses of dhikr, they are also different to one another especially in dealing with their perspectives such as historical contexts and language aspects. Pendahuluan Sebagai kitab petunjuk, al-Qur'ân mengarahkan manusia mencapai hidup yang sejahtera di dunia dan di akhirat. Ibadah apapun yang dilakukan oleh manusia harus mengacu kepada pernyataan al-Qur'ân, karena petunjuk yang terdapat di dalam al-Qur'ân sudah mendapat jaminan dari Allah sesuai dengan akal dan kemampuan yang dimiliki oleh manusia. Petunjuk tersebut seharusnya dapat dijadikan sebagai kerangka acuan dalam setiap melakukan ibadah agar hakikat dari ibadah tersebut dapat diinternalisasi dengan baik. Salah satu yang ditunjuki oleh al-Qur'ân yang berkaitan dengan pengabdian manusia kepada Allah adalah zikir. Petunjuk al-Qur'ân tentang zikir ini

URL: https://sourcebook.stanford.edu/text/merciful-god-and-birds%E2%80%99-glorifications

Edited, translated, and introduced by Navid Saberi-Najafi.

Sanā’ī of Ghazna (d. 1131 C.E.) was the first major poet of classical Persian Sufi literature. He was a monumental poet not just because of his versification skills, but also because of his profound influence upon Sufi poets such as ‘Aṭṭār of Kadkan (d. 1225 C.E.) and Mawlavī (Rumi) (d. 1273 C.E.). “On the Merciful God and on the Birds’ Glorifications,” in the Dīvān [collection of poems], is a qaṣīda (laudatory poem) comprising three key themes: nature, the centrality of the Sufi concept of dhikr (remembrance) to man’s salvation, and tawḥīd (the Oneness of God).

At the very beginning of the poem, Sanā’ī depicts one of the blessings of God, which is in the form of bountiful rain. Spring is the ideal setting for the poet to portray the avian species’ glorifications, not only because the revivification of nature takes place, but more importantly, because spring’s abundant rain is a sign of God’s forgiveness toward mankind. Dhikr—a central practice, in Islamic esoterism, derived from the Qur’an—and tawḥīd are two themes communicated through multifarious talking birds, such as the humā—a mythical bird like an eagle, who acknowledges the Oneness of God by saying, “The Unequaled is One.” Medieval Persian authors deployed the bird metaphor to concretize abstract Sufi concepts (e.g., dhikr). Further, the Qur’an—an important source of influence upon Muslim thinkers—likens birds to human communities (6/Al-An‘ām: 38). Sanā’ī conceives of birds as purposeful signs for humans to make sense of the universe. The red pigeon, for instance, serves as a spiritual model for humans, saying huwa [He] “one-hundred times with each breath.”

Simply put, Sanā’ī of Ghazna offers a brilliant poetic exegesis of 16/Al-Naḥl: 79: “Have they not considered the birds, made subservient, in midair? None holds them save God. Truly in that are signs for a people who believe" (trans. S.H. Nasr et al.).

Tarekat tasawuf has been established in Negeri Sembilan since 1900 and began to strengthen its existence in spiritual activities such as the implementation of zikr tarekat tasawuf activities among the local community. This article will highlight the impact of implementing the zikr activities tarekat tasawuf, which is implemented periodically on the spiritual strengthening of the community in Negeri Sembilan. A qualitative approach is used involving library studies, review of relevant documents, and interviews with the Registrar of Tarekat, Tasawuf Division of the Negeri Sembilan Mufti Department, and the Syeikh of the tarekat involved. Basically, there are 13 Sufi practice centers around Negeri Sembilan that conduct regular zikr activities that impact the community. The existence of tarekat practice centers in Negeri Sembilan has been plotted to see the distribution and centralization of tarekat centers. In addition, the form of zikr practiced in the zikr ceremony is also explained ...

Abstract: Sufism plays an important part in the elaboration of the maulidi festival in the Lamu archipelago and contributes to its colourful character. The major thrust of this paper is to seek and discuss orthodoxy and those seeking more enthusiastic ways to express their faith centre on mysticism in Islam, what is called Sufism in the Lamu archipelago. Pouwels points out that the brotherhood in East African coast (the tariqas) went alongside the maulidi as a useful vehicle of expression (1987:4). It discusses at length the contribution of a leading Lamu Sufi Habib Swaleh Jamal al-Layl. This paper is premised on Trimingham‟s discussion of maulidi in the context of Sufism and holds the view that the various Sufi movements are largely responsible for the growth of Muslim liturgy after the process of establishing accepted rituals had been completed in the first few years after the death of the Prophet. Trimingham points out that little description of Sufi practice has survived in the ...