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Abū Sa‘īd al-Kharrāz (Arabic:أبو سعيد الخراز), also known as "the Cobbler", was apseudonym of Aḥmad bin ‘Īsā. He was a native ofBaghdad. He had a devotion towardSufism, and so went toEgypt and resided piously by the Ka‘bah. His profession was that of ashoemaker, and he was adisciple ofMuḥammad bin Manṣūr al-Ṭūsī. He associated with Dhū al-Nūn al-Miṣrī, al-Sarī al-Saqaṭī, Abū ‘Ubayd al-Baṣrī, and Bishr bin al-Ḥārith, and derived much spiritual instruction from them.[1]
To him is attributed the formulation of the mystical doctrine of passing away (fromhuman attributes) and continuance (inGod). He was the author of severalbooks, some of which have survived. The date of his death is uncertain, but probably was between 279A.H. (890AD) and 286 (899).[2]
He was the first person to speak of the states of“passing-away” (fanā’) and “continuance” (baqā’) in the mystical sense, summing up his wholedoctrine in these two terms.[3]
