Even Sufis Are 'Partially Free' Souls

By Sumit Paul, New Age Islam 2 January 2022 Sufism Is Also An Ism. It's A Label Or A Tag That Sticks To A Person Who Practises And Follows It. It's True That Whether It Was Rumi Or Hafiz Or Anwari, They All Called Themselves Muslims (Though They Later Shed Their Sunni Islam) And Followed The Fundamental Tenets Of Islam, Albeit Liberally And They Also Believed That Muhammad Was A Prophet Sent To The World By Allah ------- I'm delighted to read that the Sufi master Esref Efendi recently visited Krishnamurthy Foundation. Once someone asked Krishnamurthy what did he think of Sufis. " Sufis are partially free and enlightened souls," pat came the answer. Just ponder over the term 'partially free' (Neem Aazaad in Persian; the prefix Neem connotes, Half, Quasi, Partial, Well-nigh or Almost). " But why partially or well-nigh, " asked the man. " Why not complete? " " Because, a Sufi, however great or evolved he may be, remains a Muslim and is not unconditionally free, " Jiddu explained. So very true! Sufism is also an ism. It's a label or a tag that sticks to a person who practises and follows it. It's true that whether it was Rumi or Hafiz or Anwari, they all called themselves Muslims (though they later shed their Sunni Islam) and followed the fundamental tenets of Islam, albeit liberally and they also believed that Muhammad was a prophet sent to the world by Allah. Where's unconditional freedom or absolute emancipation? All of us are bound by our appendages of upbringing. Even a person like Sahir Ludhianvi who criticised Islam and called himself an Ilhadi (Munkir-e-Zaat or an atheist) was accorded an Islamic burial. Lifelong nonbelievers like Christopher Hitchens and Stephen Hawking were also given a Christian burial. Well, there's nothing wrong with that but when these individuals were so vocal against god and religion and proudly called themselves atheists, a religious adieu shouldn't have been given to them or they should have strictly instructed their near and dear ones not to accord any ritualistic au revoir to them after their death. Then only can one become totally free. So long as we live, we've thousands of ideological bindings and attachments. Show me a completely free man. I'm afraid, there's NONE. Even the enlightened Jiddu had vestiges of Brahminical supremacy buried deep down in his psyche. He was a Tamil Brahmin by birth and the remnants of his Brahminical persona were never fully dispensed with in Jiddu's case. I'm in search of an individual like myself who doesn't belong to any ideology and is just a human sans any affinity for any country, group, religion or god. That's why, I chose to remain single as I knew that I'd never find such an emancipated and rational woman anywhere on earth. All these frills and peripherals of nation, caste and creed are mere accidents of birth. I've willed that if my body, including my skeleton, remains intact, it must be donated to the nearest hospital for medical and research purposes. I've no fear of Afterlife and I don't care a fig for obsequies. I'm far from being enlightened. But I can think in an evolved and ideologically free manner. Why can't others, who're much more educated, try to emulate me? What stops them? Perhaps all of us love to be manacled by ideological trappings. To be totally free is to be god and we're all apprehensive of becoming god. Mind you, here god is a metaphor for becoming absolutely free and nothing else. Join me if you've the guts and gumption. Sorry, you don't have. ---- A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several languages including Persian. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/sufis-partially-souls/d/128773 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism