Introduction

Mapping the C hishti Sabiri

Sufi O rder

T his book is a study of a living Sufi tradition. Drawing on both textual and
ethnographic materials, I trace the identity politics and ritual practices of a
contemporary South Asian Sufi order (silsila) through the contexts of late
colonial India and postcolonial Pakistan. My analysis focuses on the use of
sacred space, ritual, and mass media among the followers of a particular sub-
branch of a prominent Sufi lineage: the Chishti Sabiri silsila. These modern
Sufi adepts preserve a distinctive Muslim identity that is legitimized through
spiritual genealogy, inscribed in texts, communicated in the intimate
exchange between master and disciple and, above all, experienced through
ritual performance. Though connected to a sacred past, they are also fully
enmeshed in the living present. In response to shifts in the social, cultural,
ideological, and technological landscape of South Asia, Chishti Sabiris have
embraced a series of practical strategies designed to adapt Sufism to the
contingencies and complexities of twenty-first-century life.
As the inner or “mystical” dimension of Islam, Sufism (tasawwuf) stands
as an alternative nexus of Islamic authority, piety, and practice.1 Neither a sect
nor a cult, it is best understood as a spiritual quest, experienced and expressed
via an interpersonal teaching network centered on the fundamental master-
disciple relationship. Pushing the boundaries of normative Islam, Sufis strive
for a direct, intimate, and unmediated experience of the Divine. Sufi adepts
tend to emphasize the inward over the outward, intuition over intellect, spir-
itual contemplation over scholarly debate, and ecstatic poetry over legalistic
prose. Since the twelfth century, Sufi institutional orders—discrete spiritual
“paths” (tariqas)—proliferated throughout the Muslim world. Though they
vary in their teachings and techniques, most Sufis strictly follow the dictates
of the Qur'an and the shari'a (Divine law), and model their behavior on the
example of the Prophet Muhammad (sunna).

R. Rozehnal, Islamic Sufism Unbound

© Robert Rozehnal 2007
2 Islamic Sufism Unbound

Despite its deep roots in Islamic history, Sufism remains a controversial

and contested tradition. With their bold claims to experiential knowledge
and authority, Sufis have often been misunderstood. Much of this dissonance
stems from the fact that such a broad range of practices are subsumed under
the rubric of “Sufism.” At the level of everyday social practice, Sufism is often
equated with “popular” worship at shrines. In South Asia, the tombs of Sufi
saints provide an alternative outlet for piety and pilgrimage, especially for
women who are often marginalized from the public, gendered space of the
mosque (figure I.1).
This photograph captures a typical scene at Kalyar Sharif—a rural shrine
complex north of Delhi and the final resting place of the eponymous founder
of the Chishti Sabiri order: 'Ala ad-Din 'Ali Ahmad Sabir (d. 1291). Here
women dance in a state of ecstasy in front of the saint’s tomb while a group
of musicians (qawwals) perform to a crowd of pilgrims. In many ways, this
image encapsulates popular Sufism in the Subcontinent. However, these
same practices are flashpoints in public debates over Islamic authority and
authenticity. For conservative Islamist critics who reject any intermediaries
between human beings and God, the cult of Sufi saints is blasphemous idol-
atry and the worship at shrines corrupt superstition. Yet the story of Sufism
in South Asia does not end with saints and shrines. Throughout the
Subcontinent, Sufism has inspired myriad forms of artistic and aesthetic
expression—from vernacular poetry, to painting and architecture, to music and

Figure I.1 Women Dancing in Ecstasy at the Shrine of 'Ala ad-Din 'Ali Ahmad Sabir
(d. 1291), Kalyar Sharif, India
Source: Photograph by Robert Rozehnal