a Muslim who represents the mystical dimension of Islam; a Muslim who seeks direct experience of Allah; mainly in Iran of or relating to the Sufis or to Sufism
Commonly considered to be the mystical element in Islam, Sufism almost certainly predates the Prophet Mohammed, and may be impossible to locate precisely or even to define To be sure, there are Teachers and Saints who are described as Sufis, and one reads and hears about such things as "the Sufi Way " However, Sufis seem to avoid labels, preferring to describe themselves as, in the words of one such, "we friends" or "people like us " Whatever Sufism is, we have never come across anyone or anything related to it that is not beautiful, inspiring, and spiritually nourishing For more, please consider "The Sufis" by Idries Shah, available from TZF's Bookstore
An exponent of (tasawwuf) Sufism, the commonest term for that aspect of Islam which is based on realizing the seen and unseen The Arabic faqir and the Persian darvish, both meaning 'poor', are applied to Sufis in reference to their poor or wandering life