Tariqa

Tariqa (or tariqah; Arabic: طريقة ṭarīqah) is an Islamic term to describe the spiritual path of a Sufi. The Sufi will take this path to get to the knowledge of Allah. In a broader sense, it is the name for a group of Muslims following such a path. This group is called Sufi order. It has a murshid (guide) who plays the role of leader or spiritual director. The members or followers of a tariqa are known as muridin (singular murid), meaning "desirous", viz. "desiring the knowledge of God and loving God" (also called a faqir). Tariqa is also believed to be the same as Tzadik of Judaism meaning the "rightly guided one". They seek haqiqa, which translates as "ultimate truth".

The first tariqas were founded in the 12th and 13th century and many of them still exist today. The head of a tariqa is called a sheikh, the disciples are called dervishes.

Related pages

Dargah
Dervish
Khanqah
Zawiya (institution)
Noble Eightfold Path

References

Bibliography

J. M. Abun-Nasr, "The Tijaniyya", London 1965
M. Berger, "Islam in Egypt today - social and political aspects of popular religion", London, 1970
J. K. Birge, "The Bektashi Order of Dervishes", London and Hartford, 1937
Clayer, Nathalie, Muslim Brotherhood Networks, EGO - European History Online, Mainz: Institute of European History Archived 2016-02-19 at the Wayback Machine, 2011, retrieved: May 23, 2011.
O. Depont and X. Coppolani, "Les confreries religieuses musulmans" (the Muslim brotherhoods as they existed then), Algiers, 1897
E. E. Evans-Pritchard, "The Sanusi of Cyrenaica", Oxford, 1949
M. D. Gilsenen, "Saint and Sufi in Modern Egypt", Oxford, 1978
G. H. Jansen, "Militant Islam", Pan, London 1979
F. de Jong, "Turuq and Turuq-Linked Institutions in Nineteenth-Century Egypt", Brill, Leiden,1978
J. W. McPherson, "The Moulids of Egypt", Cairo, 1941
Mateus Soares de Azevedo, "Ordens Sufis no Islã: Iniciação às Confrarias Esotéricas muçulmanas no Irã xiita e no mundo sunita", São Paulo, Polar Editora, 2020

Other websites

PHILTAR (Philosophy of Theology and Religion at the Division of Religion and Philosophy of St Martin's College) has a very useful Graphical illustration of the Sufi schools.
Infographics on the evolution of Tasawwuf and notable Sufi masters in history. Unveiling the Mystical World of Tasawwuf and Sufi Stories: Personal Experiences and Perspectives Archived 2023-08-04 at the Wayback Machine