Persecution of Sufis

Persecution of Sufis over the course of centuries has included acts of religious discrimination, persecution, and violence both by Sunni and Shia Muslims,[1] such as destruction of Sufi shrines,[2] tombs and mosques, suppression of Sufi orders, murder, and terrorism against adherents of Sufism in a number of Muslim-majority countries.[3] The Republic of Turkey banned all Sufi orders and abolished their institutions in 1925, after Sufis opposed the new secular order. The Islamic Republic of Iran has harassed Sufis, reportedly for their lack of support for the government doctrine of "governance of the jurist" (i. e., that the supreme Shiite jurist should be the nation's political leader).

In most other Muslim-majority countries, attacks on Sufis and especially their shrines have come from adherents of puritanical and revivalist schools of Islamic thought (Deobandi,[3][4] Salafi movement, Wahhabism, and Islamic Modernism), who believe that practices such as visitation to and veneration of the tombs of Sufi saints, celebration of the birthdays of Sufi saints, and dhikr ("remembrance" of God) ceremonies are bid‘ah (impure "innovation") and shirk ("polytheistic").[3][4][5][6][7][8]

  1. ^ For further informations, see the articles Islam and violence and Sectarian violence among Muslims.
  2. ^ "300 arrested after Sufis clash with Iran police, killing 5". Arab News. 2018-02-20. Retrieved 2021-06-07.
  3. ^ a b c Cook, David (May 2015). "Mysticism in Sufi Islam". Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Religion. Oxford: Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/acrefore/9780199340378.013.51. ISBN 9780199340378. Archived from the original on 28 November 2018. Retrieved 4 January 2022.
  4. ^ a b Ingram, Brannon D. (June 2009). "Sufis, Scholars, and Scapegoats: Rashid Ahmad Gangohi (d. 1905) and the Deobandi Critique of Sufism". The Muslim World. 99 (3). Chichester, West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell: 478–501. doi:10.1111/j.1478-1913.2009.01281.x. Retrieved 24 November 2020 – via Academia.edu.
  5. ^ Specia, Megan (24 November 2017). "Who Are Sufi Muslims and Why Do Some Extremists Hate Them?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  6. ^ Salafi intolerance threatens Sufis |Baher Ibrahim |guardian.co.uk |10 May 2010
  7. ^ Mir, Tariq. "Kashmir: From Sufi to Salafi". November 5, 2012. Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting. Retrieved 20 February 2013.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference violence was invoked but never defined (see the help page).