Sufism and Islamic Reform in Egypt: The Battle for Islamic Tradition.

Najjar, Fauzi M.

By JULIAN JOHANSEN. Oxford: THE CLARENDON PRESS, 1996. Pp. 325. $80.

In this neatly produced and scholarly volume, Julian Johansen, formerly a Junior Research Fellow at St. Edmund, Oxford, and now a trainee solicitor, expounds the thought and reformist ideas of Shaykh Muhammad Zaki Ibrahim, leader of the Ashira Muhammadiyya and its core of initiates, who form the Muhammadiyya Shadhiliyya Sufi order (tariqa). Special attention is given to the controversies between Sufi orders in Egypt and their critics. In the introduction, he points out the complexities that challenge the researcher into Sufism, simply because it is essentially a deep inner experience, and words cannot do it justice. The derivation and origin of the term "sufism" remains ambiguous.

In chapter one, the author gives a brief account of reformist thought in Egypt, as a "background against which to examine present-day concerns." He focuses on Jamal al-Din al-Afghani, Muhammad Abduh, and Muhammad Tawfiq al-Bakri. The three share, in different degrees, the tendency to combine reformist ambitions and mystical inclinations. He then goes on to define the Ashira as an informal grouping of non-initiates, who attend Friday prayer in one of its thirty mosques. Within the Ashira there is the core of initiates who are closer to the leader, and are distinguished by their costumes (white gowns). A brief overview of the life of the leader sketches his distinguished lineage, great knowledge and learning, and high profile in the religious establishment. The claim by his biographers that Shaykh Muhammad is a mujaddid of the caliber of Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (1058-1111) betrays their zealous adoration of their leader. Yet his serious commitment to reform, and his outspokenness in advocating it, which had gotten him into conflict with the Supreme Council of the Sufi orders, seem to be the source of his "greatness."

Shaykh Muhammad Zaki Ibrahim is the grand-nephew of Shaykh Mahmud Abu Ilyan (b. 1840), the first member of the family to inherit the leadership of the Nasiriyya Shadhiliyya. Shaykh Aba Ilyan was regarded as the mujaddid of the Sufis of his age. He was a man of physical strength and authority, generous and helpful. Some of his attributes were compared to those of the Prophet. He even was reputed to have performed miracles, or actions beyond human power. These biographical notes are drawn mainly from the Handbook of the Tariqa Muhammadiyya, al-Dalil. All members of the Order are depicted as having some connection either to the Prophet or to the early Sufis of the Shadhiliyya. Shaykh Ibrahim Ibn al-Khalil al-Shadhili, Shaykh Aba Ilyan's son-in-law, started his career in politics, and was one of the founders of the National Party in 1907, and associated closely with Mustafa Kamil and Muhammad Farid. Disappointed in politics, he turned to trade, using his money to spread his religious message, and spending most of his time in religious retreat. The forced move from Bulaq to more modest accommodations in Qaytbay, beside the tomb of his father-in-law, "heralded" Shaykh Ibrahim's "enlightenment, and God's great pleasure," manifested in his saintly miracles. Genealogical and initiatic links between the founders of the Order and the leading shaykhs of the age are stressed by Sufi biographers.

Following the biographical accounts of the leading personalities of the Muhammadiyya Shadhiliyya, Johansen elaborates on the contrast between the Ashira and the Tariqa, the former comprising the whole community, and being "at the service of tasawwuf in general, without being partisan toward any particular order" (p. 61). Its aims are to eradicate religious illiteracy, establish God's law, express concerns for Muslims in general and Sufis in particular, initiate Sufi reform, and revivify Muslims at all levels. Doctrinal unity in the Muslim community is to be achieved through true tasawwuf (tariqa). The social welfare activities of the Ashira are mentioned as evidence of its concern for the needy, and as a means to mobilize more followers.

Having witnessed the general celebrations of the Sufi orders, Johansen gives a detailed and vivid picture of what they involve. The most important of these celebrations is the mawlid, the birthdate of the Prophet or of a saint. The festivities and the merrymaking practiced on such occasions are a subject of controversy among the various orders. Some regard them as extravagant, and inimical to the essence of tasawwuf. Others see them as necessary to elevate the spirits and strengthen the unity of the community. The Muhammadiyya Shadhiliyya stresses order, dignity, good faith, and respect for religion and the call in general. Arguments in favor and against listening to music (sama) are adduced from such authorities as al-Ghazali, Ibn Khaldun, al-Jabarti, and Shaykh Muhammad himself.

Manifestly, the Prophet of Islam is central to Sufi beliefs and practices. He is regarded as "the supreme example of human dignity, temperance, fortitude, and wisdom" (p. 92). However, there is disagreement as to the degree of his infallibility. Al-Afghani and Ali Abd al-Raziq are cited as two contemporary authorities who maintained that the Prophet was "fallible in his judgment and possessed an incomplete knowledge of worldly affairs" (ibid.). Such a generalization requires qualification: in his famous work, al-Islam wa Usul al-Hukm, where he argues that Islam is a religion and not a state, a message and not a government, Abd al-Raziq does not imply that the Prophet lacked knowledge of worldly affairs, as much as he seeks to emphasize that the Prophet meant to leave matters political to his community to manage according to time and place.

On the other hand, there is a second view, commonly held in Sufi circles, that the Prophet was infallible in his judgment. For example, Ismat al-Nabi is the title of a book by Shaykh Muhammad, in which he disputes the views of two contemporary authors who have questioned not only the Prophet's infallibility, but also the concept of prophethood. While he finds such views objectionable, Shaykh Muhammad goes to the other extreme to claim that the Hanbalite Ibn Taymiyya, the "archinquisitor" of Sufism, was quite fair to Sufism and the Sufis. He might have a lot of arguing to do. However, ambivalence, caution, and prudence are exercised in commenting on the miracles attributed to the Prophet. In the process of defending his ability to perform miracles, Shaykh Muhammad argues that except for the fabricated and obviously spurious, the traditions that speak of the miracles of the Prophet are to be taken seriously. Yet there is the hint that only certain individuals are capable of understanding such "potentially problematical ideas." Needless to say, strict Sunni theory adheres to the principle that the Prophet was an ordinary human being, who was chosen to deliver a message; he was only a Messenger (al-rasul). God alone performs miracles.

In "Ideal and Image of Orthodoxy," the author discusses a number of controversial practices, contrasting the views of contemporary scholars with those of earlier authorities. One such issue is the visitation of the tombs of the Prophet or the saints. The fundamentalist Ibn Taymiyya opposed such practice, except in the case of the Prophet and on condition that the visitation be made "with the intention of praying to God for him" (p. 136). A contemporary Egyptian academic, Dr. al-Husayni Abu Farha, basing his judgment on a Tradition, seems to condone visiting tombs, and is also in favor of the circumambulation of the tombs of the Awliya, as well as the celebration of the mawlids, on condition it is purged of superstitions and innovations. In contrast, Shaykh Umar Abd al-Rahman, a well-known extremist (now languishing in a New York prison), opposes all such practices. "Tombs are a manifestation of paganism," he argues. He is critical of all Sufi orders, which he regards as un-Islamic. Those who favor these and similar practices, including Shaykh Muhammad, stress the importance of decorum, and condemn the "anarchy" of celebrating the mawlids.

Having observed those aspects of ritual and association in the Muhammadiyya Shadhiliyya, Johansen provides a detailed and vivid description of its meetings and celebrations (e.g., Friday prayer, the twice-weekly hadra, and the festivals). What comes out in such congregational invocations is the intimate relationships between Shaykh Muhammad and members of his congregation. He patiently answers their questions, addresses their concerns, and even corrects their grammar and syntax. One mawlid celebration, described in some detail, with extensive quotations from a speech by one of the prominent participants, makes the reader feel as if he were present at the event.

After a summary of Shaykh Muhammad's handbook of Sufism, The Alphabet of Sufism, which covers in a more systematic manner questions and practices already touched upon, a discussion of the processes of conversion, initiation, and succession in the Shadhili order concludes this volume. Behavior as well as intention are preconditions for initiation into Sufism. A period of instruction and probation precedes full membership in the tariqa. As Johansen puts it, "the act of joining the tariqa . . . implies turning one's back on and dying to the things of this world" (p. 232). Hostility toward Sufism, especially among Sunni conservatives, has militated against conversion, only to be counterbalanced by Shaykh Muhammad's reform efforts, augmented by disenchantment with many aspects of modern life.

This is a well-researched and documented volume. It is a welcome addition to a growing body of literature on Sufism and Sufi orders, a topic that has attracted the attention and interest of many in the West. The appendices, glossary, and index add to its usefulness. The extensive use of Arabic words in parentheses may be distracting to the general reader, but those who know Arabic will appreciate the nuances imparted by this rich and beautiful language. Misprints are rare and minor, but the number of Surat al-Rahman must be corrected from LXV to LV (p. 230).

FAUZI M. NAJJAR MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY