Qabd and Bast (Contraction and Openness)
Qabd (contraction) and bast (openness), emotions felt by almost everyone during their lives, relate especially to those who…
Sufism
107 articles
Dahsha and Hayra (Utter Astonishment and Amazement)
Every traveler journeying in the valleys of love and zeal sometimes burns with the fire of love, and…
Jadhba and Injidhab (Attraction and the Feeling of Being Attracted toward God)
In the language of Sufism, jadhba (attraction) means that a servant is attracted toward God by God Himself,…
Shawq and Ishtiyaq (Joyful Zeal and Yearning)
Zeal means turning to the Beloved with all inner and outer feelings, and locking out all appetites other…
Ashq (Ecstatic Love)
‘Ashq means intense love of and fondness for perfection, beauty, or physical charm. Sufis usually call this sort…
Mahabba (Love)
Mahabba means fondness, tender and kind feelings, preference, and love. Love that affects and invades one’s feelings is…
Ma’rifa (Spiritual Knowledge of God)
Ma‘rifa literally denotes skill or talent, a special ability that belongs to certain people, and knowing by certain…
Qurb and Bu’d (Nearness and Remoteness)
Nearness (qurb) means that one transcends corporeality in order to acquire perfect spirituality and proximity to God. Some…
Sakina – Itmi’nan (Serenity and Peacefulness)
Literally meaning calmness, silence, steadiness, solemnity, familiarity, the subsidence of the waves and tranquility, sakina (serenity) is the…
Basira and Firasa
Literally meaning perception, intelligence, discretion, evidence, and witness, insight (basira) is defined as having an eye of the…
Dhikr (Recitation of God’s Names)
Literally meaning mentioning, remembrance, and recollection, in the terminology of the Sufis dhikr denotes regular recitation of one…
Yaqin (Certainty)
Yaqin (certainty) means having no doubt about the truth of a matter and arriving at accurate, doubt-free knowledge…
Irada, Murid, and Murad (Will, the Willing One, and the Willed One)
Irada (will) is the mental power by which a person can direct his or her thoughts and actions…
Qast and Azm (Decision And Resolution)
Qast means confidence, determination, choosing, and advancing straight toward a destination, thinking and reasoning moderately and deliberately, and…
Inbisat (Expansion)
Literally meaning growing larger and deeper, spreading and expanding, Sufis use inbisat to signify the relaxing of one’s…