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Tazkiyah (Arabic:تزكية) is anArabic-Islamic term alluding totazkiyat al-nafs, meaning 'sanctification' or 'purification of the self'. This refers to the process of transforming thenafs (carnal self or desires) from its state of self-centrality through various spiritual stages towards the level of purity and submission to the will ofGod.[1] Its basis is in learning theshariah (Islamicreligious law) and deeds from the known authenticsunnah (traditions and practices of the Islamic prophetMuhammad) and applying these to one's own life, resulting in spiritual awareness of God (being constantly aware of his presence, knowledge omniscience, along with being in constant remembrance ordhikr of him in thoughts and actions).Tazkiyah is considered the highest level ofihsan (religious social responsibility), one of thethree dimensions of Islam. The person who purifies themself is called azaki (Arabic:زكيّ).
Tazkiyah, along with the related concepts oftarbiyah (self-development) andta'lim (training and education) does not limit itself to the conscious learning process. It is rather the task of giving form to the act of righteous living itself: treating every moment of life with remembering one's position in front of God.
Tazkiyah originally referred to pruning a plant—to remove what is harmful to its growth. When the term is applied to the human personality, it means to beautify it and remove from it all evil traces and spiritual diseases that are obstacles to experiencing God.[2] In Islam, the ultimate objective of the religion andshariah (Islamic law), and the real purpose of raisingprophets from among mankind, is performing and teachingtazkiyah.[3]
The term encompasses two meanings: one is to cleanse and purify from adulterants, while the other is to improve and develop towards the height of perfection. Technically, it conveys the sense of checking oneself for erroneous tendencies and beliefs, turning them to the path of virtue and piety (fear of God's displeasure), and developing them to attain the stage of perfection.
The wordzakat (alms tax) comes from the sameArabicverbal root, sincezakat purifies an individual's wealth by recognition of God’s right over a portion of it.[4] It finds its origin in theQuranic command to: "Takesadaqah (charity) from their property in order to purify and sanctify them" (At-Taubah: 103).[5] Other similarly used words to the term areIslah-iqalb ('reform of the heart'),Ihsan ('beautification'),taharat ('purification'),Ikhlas ('purity'),qalb-is-salim ('pure/safe/undamaged heart') and lastly,tasawuf (Sufism), which is an ideology rather than a term, mostly misinterpreted as the idea of sanctification in Islam.
The wordtazkiyah is used in many places in the Qur'an. It is used 18 times in 15 verses of 11surahs; inverses 129, 151, 174 ofsurah Al-Baqarah, in verses 77 and 164 ofsura Al-Imran, the verse ofNisa 49, verse 103 ofsurah Taubah, verse 76 ofsurah Taha, in the second verse ofsurah Al-Jumm'ah, verses 3 and 7 ofsurah Abasa, in verse 14 ofsurah al-A'la, verse 9 ofsurah Shams and in verse 18 ofsurah al-Layl.[6][7][8]
The wordtazkiyah is also found in a fewhadith, also meaning to purify and sanctify.[a]
Anas Karzoon saidtazkiyah al-nafs: "is the purification of the soul from inclination towards evils and sins, and the development of itsfitrah towards goodness, which leads to its uprightness and its reachingihsaan."[9]
Al-Khatib al-Baghdadi said in his "Tarikh" on the authority ofJabir that Muhammad returned from one of his campaigns and told his companions: "You have come forth in the best way of coming forth: you have come from the smaller jihad to the greater jihad." They said: "And what is the greaterjihad?" He replied: "The striving (mujahadat) of Allah's servants against their idle desires."[10]
The initial awakening to purification refers to recognition that the spiritual search is more important and meaningful than our previously valued worldly goods and ambitions. The process oftazkiyat al-nafs starts with "Verily deeds are according to intentions" and ends with the station of perfect character,Ihsan, "Worship Him as though you see Him", the reference being to the first hadith inSahih Bukhari and the oft-referred hadith famously known as the hadith of Gibril inSahih Muslim.[11]Ihsan is the highest level ofiman that the seeker can develop through their quest for reality. This is referred to asal-yaqin al-haqiqi; the reality of certainty and knowing that it brings true understanding and leads toal-iman ash-shuhudi, the true faith of witnessing the signs of Allah's Oneness everywhere. The only higher level of realization ismaqam al-ihsan. At this station of perfection, the seeker realizes that Allah is observing them at every moment.[12]
Saudi cleric Khalid Bin Abdullah al-Musleh listed seven obstacles in the way oftazkiyah in his book"Islahul Qulub" (reforming the hearts):[13]
Ha also listed eight ways to maintaintazkiyah:
Professor A.J. Arberry, in hisSufism said: "themaqām is a stage of spiritual attainment on the pilgrim's progress to God, which is the result of the mystic's personal efforts and endeavor, whereas thehal is a spiritual mood depending not upon the mystic but upon God." The Muslim philosopherAbd al-Karīm ibn Hawāzin al-Qushayri (b. 986Nishapur,Iran,d. 1074) summarized the difference between the two concepts in hisAr-Risāla-fi-'ilm-at-taşawwuf, where he maintained that, "states are gifts, the stations are earnings."[14]
Tazkiyah is a continuous process of purification to maintain spiritual health.[15] Similar to the process of maintaining physicalhealth, any lapse in the regimen can cause one to lose their previous gains, and thus caution must always be used to not deviate from the path. Regarding this, it has been related that Imam Muhammad al-Busayri asked Shaykh Abul-Hasan 'Ali ibn Ja'far al-Kharqani (d. 1033) about the major seventeen negative psychological traits ormawāni' (impediments) which thesālik must avoid in their struggle towards purification. If thesālik does not rigorously abstain from these aspects, their efforts will be wasted. Known asal-Akhlaqu 'dh-Dhamimah (the ruinous traits), they are also referred to as the Tree of Bad Manners:[16]
There are three principal stations ofnafs or human consciousness that are specifically mentioned in the Qur'an. They are stages in the process of development, refinement and mastery of thenafs.[17]
The Sufi's journey begins with the challenge of freeing oneself from the influence ofShaytan and thenafs-al-ammara.Al-Kashani defines it as follows: the commanding soul is that which leans towards the bodily nature (al-tabī'a al-badaniyya) and commands one to sensual pleasures and lusts and pulls the heart (qalb) in a downward direction. It is the resting place of evil and the source of blameworthy morals and bad actions.[19] In its primitive stage thenafs incites mankind to commit evil: this is thenafs as the lower self or the base instincts.[20] In the eponymoussurah of the Qur'an, the prophetYusef says "Yet I claim not that mynafs was innocent: Verily thenafs of man incites to evil."[Quran 12:53] Here he is explaining the circumstances in which he came to be falsely imprisoned for the supposed seduction ofZuleikā, the wife of the King's minister (ʻAzīz, Qur'an (12:30[21])).
If the soul undertakes this struggle it then becomesnafs-al-lawwama (reproachful soul): this is the stage where "theconscience is awakened and the self accuses one for listening to one's selfish mind. The original reference to this state is insurahQiyama:
I call to witness the regretful self (the accusing voice of man's own conscience)
The sense of the Arabic wordlawwama is that of resisting wrongdoing and asking God's forgiveness after becoming conscious of wrongdoing. At this stage, one begins to understand the negative effects of a habitual self-centered approach to the world, even though they do not yet have the ability to change. One's misdeeds now begin to become repellent to them, and one enters a cycle of erring, regretting mistakes, and then erring again.[22]
Thesālik must purify himself from these bad traits and rid his heart of the underlying ailments that are at their source. Outward adherence to thefive pillars of Islam is not sufficient: he must be perfect in behavior. This requires a program of self-evaluation, purification, seclusion and establishing a practice of remembrance and contemplation under the guidance of an authorized Shaykh of Spiritual Discipline (shaykh at-tarbiyyah). In this way the seeker is able to achieve a state in which his heart is ready to receive Divine Inspiration and observe Divine Realities.
The Qur'an explains how one can achieve the state of the satisfied soul insuraAr-Ra'd: "Those who believe, and whose hearts find their rest in the remembrance of God – for, verily, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find satisfaction (tatmainnu alquloobu)."[Quran 13:28] Once the seeker can successfully transcend the reproachful soul, the process of transformation concludes withnafs-al-mutma'inna (soul at peace). However, for some Sufis orders the final stage isnafs-as-safiya wa kamila (soul restful and perfected in Allah's presence). The term is conceptually synonymous withTasawwuf, Islah al-Batini etc.[24] Another closely related but not identical concept istazkiah-al-qalb, or cleansing of the heart, which is also a necessary spiritual discipline for travelers on the Sufi path. The aim is the erasure of everything that stands in the way of purifying Allah's love (Ishq).[25]
The aim oftazkiah and moral development is to attainfalah or happiness, thus realizing thenafs al-mutma'inna. This is the ideal stage of mind for Sufis. On this level one is firm in one's faith and leaves bad manners behind. The soul becomes tranquil, at peace. At this stage Sufis have relieved themselves of allmaterialism and worldly problems and are satisfied with the will of God. Man's most consummate felicity is reflecting Divine attributes. Tranquillization of the soul means an individual's knowledge is founded on such firm belief that no vicissitudes of distress, comfort, pain or pleasure can alter his trust in Allah and his expecting only good from Him. Instead, he remains pleased with Allah and satisfied with His decrees. Similarly, the foundations of deeds are laid in such firm character that no temptations, in adversity, prosperity, fear or hope, removes him from the shar'iah, so he fulfills the demands made by Allah and thus becomes His desirable servant.[26]
According toQatada ibn al-Nu'man, thenafs al-mutma'inna is, "the soul of the believer, made calm by what Allah has promised. Its owner is at complete rest and content with his knowledge ofAllah's Names and Attributes..."[27]
In suraFajr of the Quran, Allah addresses the peaceful soul in the following words:[Quran 89:27]
89:27 يَا أَيَّتُهَا النَّفْسُ الْمُطْمَئِنَّةُ
89:28 ارْجِعِي إِلَى رَبِّكِ رَاضِيَةً مَّرْضِيَّةً
89:29 فَادْخُلِي فِي عِبَادِي
89:30 وَادْخُلِي جَنَّتِي
The level of human perfection is determined by discipline and effort. Man stands between two extremes, the lowest is below beasts and the highest surpasses theangels. Movement between these extremes is discussed by`ilm al-akhlaq or the science ofethics. TraditionalMuslimphilosophers believed that without ethics and purification (tazkiah), mastery over other sciences is not only devoid of value, but obstructs insight. That is why the Sufi saintBayazid al-Bustami has said that, 'knowledge is the thickest of veils', which prevents man from seeing reality (haqiqah).
Sufi Brotherhoods (ṭarīqa pl.ṭuruq) have traditionally been considered training workshops where fundamental elements oftazkiah and its practical applications are taught. Sufis see themselves as seekers (murīdūn) and wayfarers (sālikūn) on the path to God. For proper training, murīdūn are urged to put themselves under the guidance of a master (murshid). The search for God (irāda,ṭalab) and the wayfaring (sulūk) on the path (ṭarīq) involve a gradual inner and ethical transformation through various stages. Although some have considerably more, most orders adopted sevenmaqāmāt (maqam pl.maqamat, a station on the voyage towards spiritual transformation). Although some of these stations are ascetical in nature, their primary functions are ethical, psychological and educational: they are designed as a means for combating the lower-self (mujāhadat al-nafs) and as a tool for its training and education (riyāḍat al-nafs).
In one of the earliest authoritative texts of Sufism, theKitāb al-luma’, Abu Nasr al-Sarraj al-Tusi (d. 988), mentions sevenmaqāmāt that have become famous in later movements, they include:
Sufi sheikhs such as 'Alā' al-Dawlah Simnāni have described themaqāmāt in terms of the 'seven prophets' of one's inner being, with each prophet corresponding to one of man's inner states and also virtues.[31] Others likeKhwājah 'Abdallah Ansāri have gone into great detail in dividing the stages oftazkiah into a hundred stations. Nonetheless, through all these descriptions the main features of the stations marking the journey towards Allah are the same. One of the finest accounts ofmaqāmāt in Sufism is theForty Stations (Maqāmāt-i Arba'in), written by the eleventh centurymurshidAbū-Sa'īd Abul-Khayr.[32]
In order to combat and train the lower-self, Sufis practice fasting (ṣawm), food and drink deprivation (jūʿ'), wakefulness at night for the recitation of Quranic passages (qiyām al-layl), periods of seclusion (khalawāt), roaming uninhabited places in states of poverty and deprivation, and lengthy meditations (murāqaba, jam' al-hamm). The effortful path of self-denial and transformation through gradual maqāmāt is interwoven with effortless mystical experiences (aḥwāl).[33]
The Persian murshidAbu al-Najib al-Suhrawardi further described this process by saying that it is only through constancy in action for God ('aml li- allāh), remembrance (dhikr allāh), recitation from the Quran, prayers and meditation (muraqabah) that a mystic can hope to obtain his objective, which isubudiyyah – perfect obedience to Allah. Another practice that is often associated with Sufism is the spiritual concert, or "listening,"samā', in which poetic recitations, music and dances are performed by the participants, sometimes in states of ecstasy and elation. Most Sufiṭuruq have established graded programs in which initially every new seeker (murīdūn) is educated in the ritual known aszikr-al-lisani (zikr with the tongue) and is finally taughtzikr-al-qalbi, which is practiced from the onset.[34]
Although highly critical of numerousSufi practices,Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab states:[35][36]
"We do not negate the way of theSufis and the purification of the inner self (i.e.,tazkiah) from the vices of those sins connected to the heart and the limbs as long as the individual firmly adheres to the rules of Shari‘ah and the correct and observed way. However, we will not take it on ourselves to allegorically interpret (ta’wil) his speech and his actions. We only place our reliance on, seek help from, beseech aid from and place our confidence in all our dealings inAllah Most High. He is enough for us, the best trustee, the bestmawla and the best helper."
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