A Literary History of the Arabs Part 24

[Sidenote: The derivation of '?ufi.']

[Sidenote: The beginnings of ?ufiism.]

The origin of the name '?ufi' is explained by the ?ufis themselves in many different ways, but of the derivations which have been proposed only three possess any claim to consideration, viz., those which connect it with s?f?? (wise) or with _?afa_ (purity) or with _?uf_ (wool).[439]

The first two are inadmissible on linguistic grounds, into which we need not enter, though it may be remarked that the derivation from _?afa_ is consecrated by the authority of the ?ufi Saints, and is generally accepted in the East.[440] The reason for this preference appears in such definitions as "The ?ufi is he who keeps his heart pure (_?afi_) with G.o.d,"[441] "?ufiism is 'the being chosen for purity'

(_i??ifa_): whoever is thus chosen and made pure from all except G.o.d is the true ?ufi."[442] Understood in this sense, the word had a lofty significance which commended it to the elect. Nevertheless it can be tracked to a quite humble source. Woollen garments were frequently worn by men of ascetic life in the early times of Islam in order (as Ibn Khaldun says) that they might distinguish themselves from those who affected a more luxurious fas.h.i.+on of dress. Hence the name '?ufi,' which denotes in the first instance an ascetic clad in wool (_?uf_), just as the Capuchins owed their designation to the hood (_cappuccio_) which they wore. According to Qushayri, the term came into common use before the end of the second century of the Hijra (= 815 A.D.). By this time, however, the ascetic movement in Islam had to some extent a.s.sumed a new character, and the meaning of '?ufi,' if the word already existed, must have undergone a corresponding change. It seems to me not unlikely that the epithet in question marks the point of departure from orthodox asceticism and that, as Jami states, it was first applied to Abu Has.h.i.+m of Kufa (_ob._ before 800 _A.D._), who founded a monastery (_khanaqah_) for ?ufis at Ramla in Palestine. Be that as it may, the distinction between asceticism (_zuhd_) and ?ufiism--a distinction which answers, broadly speaking, to the _via purgativa_ and the _via illuminativa_ of Western mediaeval mysticism--begins to show itself before the close of the Umayyad period, and rapidly develops in the early 'Abbasid age under the influence of foreign ideas and, in particular, of Greek philosophy.

Leaving this later development to be discussed in a subsequent chapter, we shall now briefly consider the origin of ?ufiism properly so called and the first manifestation of the peculiar tendencies on which it is based.

As regards its origin, we cannot do better than quote the observations with which Ibn Khaldun ( 1406 A.D.) introduces the chapter on ?ufiism in the Prolegomena to his great historical work:--

[Sidenote: Ibn Khaldun's account of the origin of ?ufiism.]

"This is one of the religious sciences which were born in Islam. The way of the ?ufis was regarded by the ancient Moslems and their ill.u.s.trious men--the Companions of the Prophet (_al-?a?aba_), the Successors (_al-Tabi'un_), and the generation which came after them--as the way of Truth and Salvation. To be a.s.siduous in piety, to give up all else for G.o.d's sake, to turn away from worldly gauds and vanities, to renounce pleasure, wealth, and power, which are the general objects of human ambition, to abandon society and to lead in seclusion a life devoted solely to the service of G.o.d--these were the fundamental principles of ?ufiism which prevailed among the Companions and the Moslems of old time. When, however, in the second generation and afterwards worldly tastes became widely spread, and men no longer shrank from such contamination, those who made piety their aim were distinguished by the t.i.tle of _?ufis_ or _Muta?awwifa_ (aspirants to ?ufiism).[443]

[Sidenote: The earliest form of ?ufiism.]

From this it is clear that ?ufiism, if not originally identical with the ascetic revolt of which, as we have seen, ?asan of Ba?ra was the most conspicuous representative, at any rate arose out of that movement. It was not a speculative system, like the Mu'tazilite heresy, but a practical religion and rule of life. "We derived ?ufiism," said Junayd, "from fasting and taking leave of the world and breaking familiar ties and renouncing what men deem good; not from disputation"

(_qil wa-qal_).[444] The oldest ?ufis were ascetics and hermits, but they were also something more. They brought out the spiritual and mystical element in Islam, or brought it in, if they did not find it there already.

[Sidenote: The difference between asceticism and ?ufiism.]

"?ufiism," says Suhrawardi,[445] "is neither 'poverty' (_faqr_) nor asceticism (_zuhd_), but a term which comprehends the ideas of both, together with something besides. Without these superadded qualities a man is not a ?ufi, though he may be an ascetic (_zahid_) or a fakir (_faqir_). It is said that, notwithstanding the excellence of 'poverty,'

the end thereof is only the beginning of ?ufiism." A little further on he explains the difference thus:--

"The fakir holds fast to his 'poverty' and is profoundly convinced of its superior merit. He prefers it to riches because he longs for the Divine recompense of which his faith a.s.sures him ... and whenever he contemplates the everlasting reward, he abstains from the fleeting joys of this world and embraces poverty and indigence and fears that if he should cease to be 'poor' he will lose both the merit and the prize. Now this is absolutely unsound according to the doctrine of the ?ufis, because he hopes for recompense and renounces the world on that account, whereas the ?ufi does not renounce it for the sake of promised rewards but, on the contrary, for the sake of present 'states,' for he is the 'son of his time.'...[446] The theory that 'poverty' is the foundation of ?ufiism signifies that the diverse stages of ?ufiism are reached by the road of 'poverty'; it does not imply that the ?ufi is essentially a fakir."

[Sidenote: The early ?ufis.]

The keynote of ?ufiism is disinterested, selfless devotion, in a word, Love. Though not wholly strange, this idea was very far from being familiar to pious Mu?ammadans, who were more deeply impressed by the power and vengeance of G.o.d than by His goodness and mercy. The Koran generally represents Allah as a stern, unapproachable despot, requiring utter submission to His arbitrary will, but infinitely unconcerned with human feelings and aspirations. Such a Being could not satisfy the religious instinct, and the whole history of ?ufiism is a protest against the unnatural divorce between G.o.d and Man which this conception involves. Accordingly, I do not think that we need look beyond Islam for the origin of the ?ufi doctrines, although it would be a mistake not to recognise the part which Christian influence must have had in shaping their early development. The speculative character with which they gradually became imbued, and which in the course of time completely transformed them, was more or less latent during the Umayyad period and for nearly a century after the accession of the House of 'Abbas. The early ?ufis are still on orthodox ground: their relation to Islam is not unlike that of the mediaeval Spanish mystics to the Roman Catholic Church. They attach extraordinary value to certain points in Mu?ammad's teaching and emphasise them so as to leave the others almost a dead letter. They do not indulge in profound dialectic, but confine themselves to matters bearing on practical theology.

Self-abandonment, rigorous self-mortification, fervid piety, and quietism carried to the verge of apathy form the main features of their creed.

[Sidenote: Ibrahim b. Adham.]

A full and vivid picture of early ?ufiism might be drawn from the numerous biographies in Arabic and Persian, which supply abundant details concerning the manner of life of these Mu?ammadan Saints, and faithfully record their austerities, visions, miracles, and sayings.

Here we have only s.p.a.ce to add a few lines about the most important members of the group--Ibrahim b. Adham, Abu 'Ali Shaqiq, Fu?ayl b.

'Iya?, and Rabi'a--all of whom died between the middle and end of the second century after the Hijra (767-815 A.D.). Ibrahim belonged to the royal family of Balkh. Forty scimitars of gold and forty maces of gold were borne in front of him and behind. One day, while hunting, he heard a voice which cried, "Awake! wert thou created for this?" He exchanged his splendid robes for the humble garb and felt cap of a shepherd, bade farewell to his kingdom, and lived for nine years in a cave near Naysabur.[447] His customary prayer was, "O G.o.d, uplift me from the shame of disobedience to the glory of submission unto Thee!"

"O G.o.d!" he said, "Thou knowest that the Eight Paradises are little beside the honour which Thou hast done unto me, and beside Thy love, and beside Thy giving me intimacy with the praise of Thy name, and beside the peace of mind which Thou hast given me when I meditate on Thy majesty." And again: "You will not attain to righteousness until you traverse six pa.s.ses (_'aqabat_): the first is that you shut the door of pleasure and open the door of hards.h.i.+p; the second, that you shut the door of eminence and open the door of abas.e.m.e.nt; the third, that you shut the door of ease and open the door of affliction; the fourth, that you shut the door of sleep and open the door of wakefulness; the fifth, that you shut the door of riches and open the door of poverty; and the sixth, that you shut the door of expectation and open the door of making yourself ready for death."

[Sidenote: Shaqiq of Balkh.]

[Sidenote: Fu?ayl b. 'Iya?.]

[Sidenote: Rabi'a al-'Adawiyya.]

Shaqiq, also of Balkh, laid particular stress on the duty of leaving one's self entirely in G.o.d's hands (_tawakkul_), a term which is practically synonymous with pa.s.sivity; _e.g._, the _mutawakkil_ must make no effort to obtain even the barest livelihood, he must not ask for anything, nor engage in any trade: his business is with G.o.d alone. One of Shaqiq's sayings was, "Nine-tenths of devotion consist in flight from mankind, the remaining tenth in silence." Similarly, Fu?ayl b.

'Iya?, a converted captain of banditti, declared that "to abstain for men's sake from doing anything is hypocrisy, while to do anything for men's sake is idolatry." It may be noticed as an argument against the Indian origin of ?ufiism that although the three ?ufis who have been mentioned were natives of Khurasan or Transoxania, and therefore presumably in touch with Buddhistic ideas, no trace can be found in their sayings of the doctrine of dying to self (_fana_), which plays a great part in subsequent ?ufiism, and which Von Kremer and others have identified with _Nirvana_. We now come to a more interesting personality, in whom the ascetic and quietistic type of ?ufiism is transfigured by emotion and begins clearly to reveal the direction of its next advance. Every one knows that women have borne a distinguished part in the annals of European mysticism: St. Teresa, Madame Guyon, Catharine of Siena, and Juliana of Norwich, to mention but a few names at random. And notwithstanding the intellectual death to which the majority of Moslem women are condemned by their Prophet's ordinance, the ?ufis, like the Roman Catholics, can boast a goodly number of female saints. The oldest of these, and by far the most renowned, is Rabi'a, who belonged to the tribe of 'Adi, whence she is generally called Rabi'a al-'Adawiyya. She was a native of Ba?ra and died at Jerusalem, probably towards the end of the second century of Islam: her tomb was an object of pilgrimage in the Middle Ages, as we learn from Ibn Khallikan ( 1282 A.D.). Although the sayings and verses attributed to her by ?ufi writers may be of doubtful authenticity, there is every reason to suppose that they fairly represent the actual character of her devotion, which resembled that of all feminine mystics in being inspired by tender and ardent feeling. She was asked: "Do you love G.o.d Almighty?"

"Yes." "Do you hate the Devil?" "My love of G.o.d," she replied, "leaves me no leisure to hate the Devil. I saw the Prophet in a dream. He said, 'O Rabi'a, do you love me?' I said, 'O Apostle of G.o.d, who does not love thee?--but love of G.o.d hath so absorbed me that neither love nor hate of any other thing remains in my heart.'" Rabi'a is said to have spoken the following verses:--

"Two ways I love Thee: selfishly, And next, as worthy is of Thee.

'Tis selfish love that I do naught Save think on Thee with every thought; 'Tis purest love when Thou dost raise The veil to my adoring gaze.

Not mine the praise in that or this, Thine is the praise in both, I wis."[448]

Whether genuine or not, these lines, with their mixture of devotion and speculation--the author distinguishes the illuminative from the contemplative life and manifestly regards the latter as the more excellent way--serve to mark the end of the ascetic school of ?ufiism and the rise of a new theosophy which, under the same name and still professing to be in full accord with the Koran and the _Sunna_, was founded to some extent upon ideas of extraneous origin--ideas irreconcilable with any revealed religion, and directly opposed to the severe and majestic simplicity of the Mu?ammadan articles of faith.

[Sidenote: Umayyad literature.]

[Sidenote: The decline of Arabian poetry not due to Mu?ammad.]

[Sidenote: The Umayyad poets.]

The opening century of Islam was not favourable to literature. At first conquest, expansion, and organisation, then civil strife absorbed the nation's energies; then, under the Umayyads, the old pagan spirit a.s.serted itself once more. Consequently the literature of this period consists almost exclusively of poetry, which bears few marks of Islamic influence. I need scarcely refer to the view which long prevailed in Europe that Mu?ammad corrupted the taste of his countrymen by setting up the Koran as an incomparable model of poetic style, and by condemning the admired productions of the heathen bards and the art of poetry itself; nor remind my readers that in the first place the Koran is not poetical in form (so that it could not serve as a model of this kind), and secondly, according to Mu?ammadan belief, is the actual Word of G.o.d, therefore _sui generis_ and beyond imitation. Again, the poets whom the Prophet condemned were his most dangerous opponents: he hated them not as poets but as propagators and defenders of false ideals, and because they ridiculed his teaching, while on the contrary he honoured and rewarded those who employed their talents in the right way. If the nomad minstrels and cavaliers who lived, as they sang, the free life of the desert were never equalled by the brilliant laureates of imperial Damascus and Baghdad, the causes of the decline cannot be traced to Mu?ammad's personal att.i.tude, but are due to various circ.u.mstances for which he is only responsible in so far as he founded a religious and political system that revolutionised Arabian society. The poets of the period with which we are now dealing follow slavishly in the footsteps of the ancients, as though Islam had never been. Instead of celebrating the splendid victories and heroic deeds of Moslem warriors, the bard living in a great city still weeps over the relics of his beloved's encampment in the wilderness, still rides away through the sandy waste on the peerless camel, whose fine points he particularly describes; and if he should happen to be addressing the Caliph, it is ten to one that he will credit that august personage with all the virtues of a Bedouin Shaykh. "Fortunately the imitation of the antique _qa?ida_, at any rate with the greatest Umayyad poets, is to some extent only accessory to another form of art that excites our historical interest in a high degree: namely, the occasional poems (very numerous in almost all these writers), which are suggested by the mood of the moment and can shed a vivid light on contemporary history."[449]

[Sidenote: Music and song in the Holy Cities.]

[Sidenote: 'Umar b. Abi Rabi'a.]

The conquests made by the successors of the Prophet brought enormous wealth into Mecca and Medina, and when the Umayyad aristocracy gained the upper hand in 'Uthman's Caliphate, these towns developed a voluptuous and dissolute life which broke through every restriction that Islam had imposed. The increase of luxury produced a corresponding refinement of the poetic art. Although music was not unknown to the pagan Arabs, it had hitherto been cultivated chiefly by foreigners, especially Greek and Persian singing-girls. But in the first century after the Hijra we hear of several Arab singers,[450] natives of Mecca and Medina, who set favourite pa.s.sages to music: henceforth the words and the melody are inseparably united, as we learn from the _Kitabu 'l-Aghani_ or 'Book of Songs,' where hundreds of examples are to be found. Amidst the gay throng of pleasure-seekers women naturally played a prominent part, and love, which had hitherto formed in most cases merely the conventional prelude to an ode, now began to be sung for its own sake. In this Peninsular school, as it may be named in contrast with the bold and masculine strain of the great Provincial poets whom we are about to mention, the palm unquestionably belongs to 'Umar b. Abi Rabi'a ( 719 A.D.), the son of a rich Meccan merchant. He pa.s.sed the best part of his life in the pursuit of n.o.ble dames, who alone inspired him to sing. His poetry was so seductive that it was regarded by devout Moslems as "the greatest crime ever committed against G.o.d," and so charming withal that 'Abdullah b. 'Abbas, the Prophet's cousin and a famous authority on the Koran and the Traditions, could not refrain from getting by heart some erotic verses which 'Umar recited to him.[451] The Arabs said, with truth, that the tribe of Quraysh had won distinction in every field save poetry, but we must allow that 'Umar b. Abi Rabi'a is a clear exception to this rule. His diction, like that of Catullus, has all the unaffected ease of refined conversation. Here are a few lines:--

"Blame me no more, O comrades! but to-day Quietly with me beside the howdahs stay.

Blame not my love for Zaynab, for to her And hers my heart is pledged a prisoner.

Ah, can I ever think of how we met Once at al-Khayf, and feel no fond regret?

My song of other women was but jest: She reigns alone, eclipsing all the rest.

Hers is my love sincere, 'tis she the flame Of pa.s.sion kindles--so, a truce to blame!"[452]

[Sidenote: Love-ballads.]

We have no s.p.a.ce to dwell on the minor poets of the same school, al-'Arji (a kinsman of the Umayyads), al-A?wa?, and many others.

It has been pointed out by Dr. C. Brockelmann that the love-poetry of this epoch is largely of popular origin; _e.g._, the songs attributed to Jamil, in which Buthayna is addressed, and to Majnun--the hero of countless Persian and Turkish romances which celebrate his love for Layla--are true folk-songs such as occur in the _Arabian Nights_, and may be heard in the streets of Beyrout or on the banks of the Tigris at the present day. Many of them are extremely beautiful. I take the following verses from a poem which is said to have been composed by Jamil:--

"Oh, might it flower anew, that youthful prime, And restore to us, Buthayna, the bygone time!

And might we again be blest as we wont to be, When thy folk were nigh and grudged what thou gavest me!

Shall I ever meet Buthayna alone again, Each of us full of love as a cloud of rain?

Fast in her net was I when a lad, and till This day my love is growing and waxing still.

I have spent my lifetime, waiting for her to speak, And the bloom of youth is faded from off my cheek; But I will not suffer that she my suit deny, My love remains undying, though all things die!"[453]

[Sidenote: Poetry in the provinces.]

The names of al-Akh?al, al-Farazdaq, and Jarir stand out pre-eminently in the list of Umayyad poets. They were men of a very different stamp from the languis.h.i.+ng Minnesingers and carpet-knights who, like Jamil, refused to battle except on the field of love. It is noteworthy that all three were born and bred in Mesopotamia. The motherland was exhausted; her ambitious and enterprising youth poured into the provinces, which now become the main centres of intellectual activity.

[Sidenote: The _Naqa'i?_ of Jarir and Farazdaq.]

[Sidenote: General interest in poetry.]