2011 HSC Studies of Religion Exam solutions Question 4 Islam (15 marks) (a) Summarise the contribution of ONE

E significant person or school of thought, other than Muhammad and the Four ightl! "uided #aliphs, to the de$elopment and e%pression of &slam' 3 Sufism or (asa))uf in *rabic is an &slamic school of thought and it is recognised as the m!stical branch of &slam, it is belie$ed to ha$e started appro%imatel! one hundred !ears after the death of Muhammad' Sufis ha$e contributed hugel! to &slamic and )estern literature and some belie$e that Sufis are responsible for shaping &slamic histor!' Sufism is based on the principle of lo$e for all humanit! and both Sunni and Shiite Muslims can also be Sufis' (b) Summarise the impact of the significant person or school of thought chosen in part (a)' 4 Sufism is a minorit! group )ithin &slam, but because Sufis sho) a strong de$otion to "od, Sufis ha$e moulded &slamic thought throughout histor!' Sufis ha$e contributed significantl! to &slamic literature and )riters and m!stics such as abia al *da)i!!a, umi, Omar +ha!!,m and *l-"ha.ali are )ell kno)n for their philosophical contributions to Sufi poetr! and te%ts' Sufism is not confined to &slam and Sufi philosoph! has e%tended be!ond &slam into the )estern )orld' &t has been cited b! /estern philosophers, )riters and theologians' Sufis ha$e been important in the dispersal of the &slamic faith taking the philosoph! from the Middle East to *frica, &ndia and the *sia'

(c)

All aspects of life are worship for a Muslim.

0o) )ell does the statement reflect the impact of the significant person or school of thought chosen in part (a)1 (he )ord Sufi deri$es from the )ord for )ool because some of the earl! Sufis )ore )oollen garments, though some suggest that the )ord comes from the "reek sophia or )isdom' Most importantl! a Sufi is a person of religious learning' Sufism is not a sect of &slam2 rather Sufism is a dimension or an alternate facet of &slam' Sufism s goal is to )orship *llah' Sufis belie$e that kno)ledge of &slam should be gained from instructors and not solel! from
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books, these instructors or masters are e%perienced practitioners of Sufism and because of this, Sufism is based on a Master56isciple relationship' Follo)ing the teaching *sk those )ho kno) if !ou kno) not 7uran 189:;' (ari<as or schools of Sufism e%ist around the )orld and man! of these trace their lineage back for almost 1,;== !ears' Sufi scholars attempt to model themsel$es on their teachers and their spiritual li$es' Sufis follo) a path of spiritual de$elopment2 this de$elopment in$ol$es stages of sincere contemplation and meditation through )hich a Sufi aims to become closer to *llah' * Sufis life is li$ed in total dedication to *llah and as such the life of a Sufi becomes a life dedicated to )orship' >ike all Muslims, Sufis belie$e in the oneness of *llah - Shahadah, pra! fi$e times a da! - Salat, gi$e alms to the poor - ?akat, fast at amadam and practice pilgrimage - 0a@@, in fact Sufis adhere strictl! to the out)ard realisation of &slam' &n addition Sufis also adhere to a spiritual dimension of the faith' &n "od, there is no sorro) or suffering or affliction' Sufi masters teach that dhikr or remembrance of "od, focuses the belief, kno)ledge, and faith of a Sufi b! centreing his or her attention on "od and the lo$e for "od alone' Sufis practice dhikr as a form of worship by reciting the divine names of God or verses from the Qur an, this becomes a source of mediation and peace. Dhikr as practised b! Sufis is the in$ocation of *llahAs di$ine names, $erses from the 7urAan, or sa!ings of the 4rophet in order to glorif! 0im' 6hikr is encouraged either indi$iduall! or in groups and is ultimatel! a source of tran<uillit!, hearts become tran<uil through the remembrance of *llah' 7uran 1;9BC' Sufism deepens a belie$ers faith to a ne) le$el and as a disciple of Sufism mo$es from one stage to another he5she lessens their ego, selfishness and self-centeredness (nafs) and ac<uires through pra!er and )orship a greater closeness to *llah' &f !ou )ant to be free of all affliction and suffering, hold fast to "od, and turn )holl! to 0im, and to no one else' &ndeed, all !our suffering comes from this9 that !ou do not turn to)ard "od and no one else' *l "ha.ali' Sufism emphasises that through selfless lo$e for *llah, de$otion, pra!er, meditation, in$ocation and )orship a person can rid oneself of nafs and become closer to the di$ine'

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