Dear spirit3-ga,
A very interesting question indeed!
A first part of your question refers to the differences between
christian mysticism and sufism.
the extract i am quoting is from following url
http://www.ndu.edu.lb/academics/palma/20010701/SufismChristianMysticism.htm
quote
".......The kinship between all forms of mysticism, Christian
mysticism, Sufism, Hinduism, Taoism and Buddhism, has become
common knowledge. ........"
"One of the basic differences between Christian mysticism and Sufism
is that the first adheres to the authority of the
established church while the second places the mystical experience
above the authorities of traditional dogmas or doctrines.
Commenting on the relation between experience and dogma in Christian
mysticism, H. P. Owen explains:
These mystics constantly appeal to the Church's authority in the realm
of religious belief. They accept unconditionally those
dogmas that the Church teaches and in which all Christians believe.
Moreover in varying degrees they show a detailed
knowledge of the ways in which dogmas have been formulated (1983, 156)."
"Another difference between Christian mysticism and Sufism is apparent
in a definition of the latter presented by A. J.
Arberry, who asserts that "Sufism may be defined as the mystical
movement of an uncompromising Monotheism" (1972, 12). To the
Sufi, Allah is One and only One ("La ?lah ?lla Allah"). The Prophet
Muhammad does not share Allah's Godhead, and in no way is
he equal to Allah. It follows that the Muslim and the Sufi do not
recognize an incarnate God, a Savior acting as a medium
between Allah and his worshipers. The Prophet is only the vehicle of
the Divine Message to man, and the Qur'an is this Divine
Message. Via ardent repetition of verses from the Qur'an, the Sufi
empties himself from himself and becomes one with this
Divine Message, thus becoming one with Allah. Christian mystic
believes in the doctrine of Trinity. Bernard McGinn asserts
that "Christian understanding of mystical union must be radically
different from Jewish and Muslim ones, if only because
union, however understood, is with the triune God, Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit" (1996, 187). Thus the Christian mystic's
object of contemplation and meditation is God or God Incarnate, Jesus
Christ; the Bible is not his immediate channel for
achieving the mystical experience. This rather apparent difference
entails Sufi features......."
unquote
see also
http://www.sufistudies.net/world-community/
extract from the above:
"Sufism is a way of life. It is neither a religion nor a philosophy.
There are Hindu Sufis, Muslim Sufis, Christian Sufis ?
My Reverend Guru Maharaj was a Muslim. . . . We do not belong to any
country or any civilization, but we work always
according to the need of the people of the time.
? Radha Mohan Lal (Bhai Sahib)
In a time marked by misunderstandings and violence between various
religions and cultures, the tradition of Sufism could play
an increasingly central role in contemporary efforts to build bridges
between different cultures and spiritual traditions.
While Sufism has been defined as the innermost, mystical tradition of
Islam ? and has certainly been deeply and beautifully
shaped by Islamic culture and symbolism ? there is also a universal
dimension to the vision of Sufism. Someone once said that
?the closer you get to God, the more all religions look the same?; and
as the Sufi poet Shabistari proclaimed above,
ultimately there is One Light at the center of all reality. When this
One Light is apprehended, outer religious differences ?
?the bonds of sects and creeds? ? fall away.
In this sense, we can imagine that a Sufi mystic, a Jewish kabbalist,
a Christian mystic, and a Tibetan Buddhist, all
gathered at a banquet, would probably have little difficulty and
communicating with one another with a deep sense of
engagement and understanding.
Moreover, while Sufism is ?Islamic mysticism,? classical Sufis have
themselves identified pre-Islamic figures such as
Pythagoras, Plato, Solomon, Jesus, and Hermes Trismegistus as Sufis or
Sufi teachers. From this perspective, it seems that
something like Sufism has always existed.
The Sufi teacher and poet Jalaluddin Rumi counted Muslims, Christians,
Jews, and Zoroastrians among his students. When Rumi
died, Christians and many others followed in his funeral procession.
When asked why they should lament the death of a Muslim,
one person replied: ?He is the Moses, the David, the Jesus, of the
age. We are his followers, his disciples. This is why we
weep........."
so, to your second question.
It makes no difference. "All who seek" are sufis irrespective of their religion.
Where the ordinary christians in the West are losing is in their
belief in dogmas and their all pervading materialistic persuits.
By the way have you read " The monk who sold his Ferrari"?
regards,
cheyuta |
