Introduction to Sufi Doctrine

Translated into English in 1959 from the French original entitled Du Soufisme, World Wisdom's 2008 republication of Titus Burckhardt's Introduction to Sufi Doctrine provides a succinct yet penetrating look into the central ideas and doctrines of Islamic mysticism. This new edition is complemented with the inclusion of a foreword by William Chittick, a leading scholar in the field of Islamic thought. Here, Chittick notes Burckhardt's influence on his own scholarship and situates the present work within the field of contemporary Western literature on Sufism.

In the book's preface, Burckhardt states that his primary concern does not lie with modern methods of scholarship but, rather, in uncovering and exploring the unity underlying the plurality of spiritual traditions. For him, scientific approaches to mystical doctrine serve only to demarcate and define traditions in terms of their historical differences in space and time. Instead, what Burckhardt advocates in this study is the adoption of an interior perspective, an approach that he deems capable of "assimilating" (xiii) the universal meaning that lies at the heart of the diverse forms of religious thought and expression. In this way, Burckhardt aims to convey the unique perspective and expression of Sufism while simultaneously drawing parallels with other spiritual traditions. This method, he points out, does not undermine or challenge Sufism's own significance but, rather, reflects the relative nature of the diverse ways in which the Sacred is revealed.

Paying particular attention to Ibn 'Arabī, Burckhardt divides the book into three sections, outlining the nature of Sufism, its doctrinal foundations, and aspects of spiritual realization. Nonetheless, he acknowledges the incompleteness of his work, briefly mentioning the various topics and subject areas that his book does not cover in detail, such as cosmology.

In the first section, Burckhardt explains the essential nature of Sufism, beginning with the notion of taṣawwuf, the Arabic word most frequently used to denote Sufism as a whole. He briefly explains this concept as the inner, esoteric (bāṭin) nature of Islam that lies beneath the outer manifestations of faith (ẓāhir). Whereas the exoteric following of religious injunctions is aimed at the ultimate goal of eschatological salvation, the aim of Sufism is to attain direct experiential knowledge of the Real, the result of which is "reintegration into the Divine Reality" (15) and liberation from the egoself, which Burckhardt describes as parallel to the Hindu conception of moksa. In this way, he identifies Sufism as the very essence of Islam, which simultaneously lies at the core of the tradition yet transcends the relative nature of external forms. Following this is a brief description of love for the Divine, identified by the author as an essential attitude within the Sufi path in no way counter to the contemplative aspect characterized by major Sufi figures, such as Ibn 'Arabī. Rather, he asserts that there is no fundamental division between both spiritual impulses. The section concludes with a discussion of the hermeneutical nature of Sufism, serving as an esoteric interpretation of the Quran.

After providing an overview of the nature of Sufism, Burckhardt proceeds to explain the central ideas of Sufi doctrine. He describes the Sufi notion of Unity (al-Aḥadīyah) vis-à-vis Ibn 'Arabī, namely, that all things in their essence are God, yet God is not any of these things: i.e., the basis of all things is the Divine, yet the Divinity itself is not encapsulated, bounded, or contained in any conceivable entity. Although all things are emanations from the Divine source, nothing serves to define, divide, or constitute the Divinity, which always remains ineffable and beyond all conception. Since all things derive their reality from God in this way, the universe is in effect the self-revelation of the Divine to Itself. As Burckhardt asserts, all relative things possess no existence of their own since there is no being except Being Itself. Following this, he explains the notion of the "immutable essences" (al-a'yān ath-thābitah), which he likens to the Platonic Ideas or archetypes (53), as well as a short discussion of the notion of the Universal Man, who is the microcosm that reflects the macrocosm and hence contains all universal potentials within himself. Burckhardt ends this section by presenting the notion of spiritual union between the human being and the Divine, according to the thought of Ibn 'Arabī.

In the final section of the book, Burckhardt describes various aspects of spiritual realization in Sufism. He begins with the practice of spiritual alchemy, whereby doctrinal "truths" are internalized through the will of the individual, leading to self-transformation and the unfolding of spiritual virtues within the human being. Burckhardt notes that all such spiritual virtues are encapsulated by the notion of spiritual poverty (al-faqr), which he equates with the Christian conception of vacare Deo, or the emptying of the self for God (78). After this, the author discusses the human intellectual faculties, asserting the essential connection between knowledge and being. Furthermore, he explains the notion of rites as an extension of Revelation, with specific reference to the Sufi practice of recollection (dhikr). Finally, the book ends with a brief mention of the Sufi conception of meditation (at-tafakkur), as well as a discussion of Ibn 'Arabī's notion of contemplation of the Divine.

The strength of Burckhardt's work lies in the broadness and cross-traditional relevance of his ideas. Drawing frequent parallels between Islam and other spiritual traditions, he clearly demonstrates the striking similarities between many of the fundamental metaphysical and mystical ideas articulated by the world's diverse religions. In presenting this comparative perspective, Burckhardt makes his work accessible to a wider audience that may not have the means to approach such a spectrum of spiritual teachings and philosophies due to linguistic constraints as well as the sheer amount of available sources. That being said, Burckhardt makes little reference to secondary sources other than his own, making it difficult to draw comparisons between his conclusions and those of other scholars of religion. In addition, the lack of a comprehensive bibliography makes it difficult to use this book as a starting point for further investigations on Islamic mysticism. The inclusion of a detailed glossary/index of key Arabic terms employed in Sufi writings as well as relevant primary sources is extremely helpful, although it omits key concepts from other spiritual traditions mentioned in the book.

Introduction to Sufi Doctrine provides an informative articulation of the central concepts of Sufism, unique in its ability to draw parallels with a multiplicity of spiritual traditions and mystical teachings. Despite being one of the most insightful introductions to the topic available in English, it is definitely not the simplest. Although Burckhardt's writing is lucid, the book demands careful and attentive reading in order to absorb the full import of the author's statements. Read alongside other introductions to Sufism, Burckhardt's work provides a deeper and, in many ways, more advanced understanding of Sufi concepts than expected in such a concise publication.