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Khalwa (Sufism)
Khalwa ( ar, خلوة, also khalwat; lit., "solitude"; pronounced in Iran, "khalvat"; spelling in Turkish, ''halvet'') has several meanings in Sufism, Islamic jurisprudence, and the Druze religion, which in some way derive from the concept of being alone or withdrawing from the world. Sufism In Sufism, a solitary retreat, traditionally for forty days, during which a disciple does extensive spiritual exercises under the direction of a shaykh. A Sufi murid will enter the khalwa spiritual retreat under the direction of a shaykh for a given period, sometimes for as long as 40 days, emerging only for salah (daily prayers) and, usually, to discuss dreams, visions and live with the shaykh. Once a major element of Sufi practice, khalwa has become less frequent in recent years. It is the act of total self-abandonment in desire for the Divine Presence. In complete seclusion, the Sufi continuously repeats the name of God as a highest form of dhikr, remembrance of God. Then, "Almigh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmenistan to the north, by Afghanistan and Pakistan to the east, and by the Gulf of Oman and the Persian Gulf to the south. It covers an area of , making it the 17th-largest country. Iran has a population of 86 million, making it the 17th-most populous country in the world, and the second-largest in the Middle East. Its largest cities, in descending order, are the capital Tehran, Mashhad, Isfahan, Karaj, Shiraz, and Tabriz. The country is home to one of the world's oldest civilizations, beginning with the formation of the Elamite kingdoms in the fourth millennium BC. It was first unified by the Medes, an ancient Iranian people, in the seventh century BC, and reached its territorial height in the sixth century BC, when Cyrus the Gr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dhikr
''Dhikr'' ( ar, ذِكْر}, , also spelled ''Zikr'', ''Thikr'', ''Zekr'', or ''Zikar'', literally meaning "remembrance, reminder" or "mention") is a form of Islamic meditation in which phrases or prayers are repeatedly chanted in order to remember God. It plays a central role in Sufi Islam, and each Sufi order has usually adopted a specific dhikr, typically accompanied by specific posture, breathing, and movement. In Sufi Islam, dhikr refers to both the act of this remembrance as well as the prayers used in these acts of remembrance. Dhikr can be performed in solitude or as a collective group. It can be counted on a set of prayer beads ('' Misbaha'' ) or through the fingers of the hand. A person who recites the Dhikr is called a ''Dhakir (, )'', literally "he who remembers." The content of the prayers includes the names of God, or a '' dua'' (prayer of supplication) taken from the hadiths or the Quran. Importance There are several verses in the Quran that emphasize the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Islamic Terminology
The following list consists of notable concepts that are derived from Islamic and associated cultural (Arab, Persian, Turkish) traditions, which are expressed as words in Arabic or Persian language. The main purpose of this list is to disambiguate multiple spellings, to make note of spellings no longer in use for these concepts, to define the concept in one or two lines, to make it easy for one to find and pin down specific concepts, and to provide a guide to unique concepts of Islam all in one place. Separating concepts in Islam from concepts specific to Arab culture, or from the language itself, can be difficult. Many Arabic concepts have an Arabic secular meaning as well as an Islamic meaning. One example is the concept of dawah. Arabic, like all languages, contains words whose meanings differ across various contexts. Arabic is written in its own alphabet, with letters, symbols, and orthographic conventions that do not have exact equivalents in the Latin alphabet (see Ara ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Islamic Practices
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or ''Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the main and final Islamic prophet.Peters, F. E. 2009. "Allāh." In , edited by J. L. Esposito. Oxford: Oxford University Press. . (See alsoquick reference) " e Muslims' understanding of Allāh is based...on the Qurʿān's public witness. Allāh is Unique, the Creator, Sovereign, and Judge of mankind. It is Allāh who directs the universe through his direct action on nature and who has guided human history through his prophets, Abraham, with whom he made his covenant, Moses/Moosa, Jesus/Eesa, and Muḥammad, through all of whom he founded his chosen communities, the 'Peoples of the Book.'" It is the world's second-largest religion behind Christianity, with its followers ranging between 1-1.8 billion globally, or around a quarter of the world's popu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The White Days
The White Days or Ayyām al-Bīḍ ( ar, ایّام البیض) are specific days of each Islamic month; they are holy days according to the Islamic prophet, Muhammad. These days are the 13th, 14th and 15th of every month in the Islamic calendar. Shia Muslims believe that ''the white days'' of the lunar months of Rajab, Sha'ban and Ramadan are very virtuous. They are called ''the white days'' because of the colour of the full moon on these days. The moon becomes very white and can be seen by the naked eye. About the idiom In the idiom ''Ayyam al-Beed'' ('' ar, ایّام البیض''), ''Ayyam'' ('' ar, ایّام'') is the Arabic plural of "'", meaning "''days''" and ''al-Beed'' is the Arabic plural of "'", meaning "''white''" and "''bright''". "The white days" is its equivalent to English. Etymology There are two views on the etymology of this idiom: # One is that due to the fact that the nights in these three days are bright and white due to the fullness of the moon, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khalwati Order
The Khalwati order (also known as Khalwatiyya, Khalwatiya, or Halveti, as it is known in Turkey) is an Islamic Sufi brotherhood (''tariqa''). Along with the Naqshbandi, Qadiri, and Shadhili orders, it is among the most famous Sufi orders. The order takes its name from the Arabic word ''khalwa'', meaning “method of withdrawal or isolation from the world for mystical purposes.” The order was founded by Umar al-Khalwati in the city of Herat in medieval Khorasan (now located in western Afghanistan). However, it was Umar's disciple, Yahya Shirvani, who founded the “Khalwati Way.” Yahya Shirvani wrote Wird al-Sattar, a devotional text read by the members of nearly all the branches of Khalwatiyya. The Khalwati order is known for its strict ritual training of its ''dervishes'' and its emphasis of individualism. Particularly, the order promoted individual asceticism (''zuhd'') and retreat (''khalwa''), differentiating themselves from other orders at the time. The order is asso ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sudanese Arabic
Sudanese Arabic, also referred to as the Sudanese dialect (), Colloquial Sudanese () or locally as Common Sudanese () refers to the various related varieties of Arabic spoken in Sudan as well as parts of Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and Chad. Sudanese Arabic has also influenced a number of Arabic-based pidgins and creoles, including Juba Arabic, widely used in South Sudan, as well as Ki-Nubi, spoken by the Nubi communities of Kenya and Uganda. Sudanese Arabic is highly diverse. Famed Sudanese linguist Awn ash-Sharif Gasim noted that "it is difficult to speak of a 'Sudanese colloquial language' in general, simply because there is not a single dialect used simultaneously in all the regions where Arabic is the mother tongue. Every region, and almost every tribe, has its own brand of Arabic." However, Gasim broadly distinguishes between the varieties spoken by sedentary groups along the Nile (such as the Ja'aliyyin) and pastoralist groups (such as the Baggara groups of west Sudan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Khalwa (school)
A Khalwa or al-Khalwa ( ; plural Khalawi) is an elementary Quranic school in Sudan, where children study and memorise the Quran, learn Arabic, and study Islamic jurisprudence ( Fiqh). The khalwa has an important and fundamental role in the history of children’s education in Sudan, due to the former dominance of Sufism in the country, with the term "''khalwa''" derived from the Khalwati order of Sufism. While the khalwa provides free meals, drinks, and accommodation, and has been considered integral in addressing illiteracy; investigative reports have revealed that some of these institutions have been involved in child abuse practices, including sexual assault, corporal punishment, torture and forced labour. The khalwa is similar to the Kuttab in Egypt, and Pesantren in Indonesia. It is also called in Mauritania, Daara in Senegal, and Almajiranci in Nigeria. History Islam entered Sudan in 651, after the fall of Makuria. The Funj Sultanate appeared in the early sixte ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Salah
(, plural , romanized: or Old Arabic ͡sˤaˈloːh, ( or Old Arabic ͡sˤaˈloːtʰin construct state) ), also known as ( fa, نماز) and also spelled , are prayers performed by Muslims. Facing the , the direction of the Kaaba with respect to those praying, Muslims pray first standing and later kneeling or sitting on the ground, reciting prescribed prayers and phrases from the Quran as they bow and prostrate themselves in between. is composed of prescribed repetitive cycles of bows and prostrations, called ( ). The number of s, also known as units of prayer, varies from prayer to prayer. Ritual purity and are prerequisites for performing the prayers. The daily obligatory prayers collectively form the second of the five pillars in Islam, observed three or five times (the latter being the majority) every day at prescribed times. These are usually (observed at dawn), (observed at noon), (observed late in the afternoon), (observed after sunset), and (observ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Turkish Language
Turkish ( , ), also referred to as Turkish of Turkey (''Türkiye Türkçesi''), is the most widely spoken of the Turkic languages, with around 80 to 90 million speakers. It is the national language of Turkey and Northern Cyprus. Significant smaller groups of Turkish speakers also exist in Iraq, Syria, Germany, Austria, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Greece, the Caucasus, and other parts of Europe and Central Asia. Cyprus has requested the European Union to add Turkish as an official language, even though Turkey is not a member state. Turkish is the 13th most spoken language in the world. To the west, the influence of Ottoman Turkish—the variety of the Turkish language that was used as the administrative and literary language of the Ottoman Empire—spread as the Ottoman Empire expanded. In 1928, as one of Atatürk's Reforms in the early years of the Republic of Turkey, the Ottoman Turkish alphabet was replaced with a Latin alphabet. The distinctive characteristics of the Turk ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Murid
In Sufism, a ''murīd'' (Arabic مُرِيد 'one who seeks') is a novice committed to spiritual enlightenment by ''sulūk'' (traversing a path) under a spiritual guide, who may take the title murshid, ''pir'' or '' shaykh''. A ''sālik'' or Sufi follower only becomes a ''murīd'' when he makes a pledge (''bayʿah'') to a ''murshid''. The equivalent Persian term is ''shāgird''. The initiation process of a ''murīd'' is known as ''ʿahd'' ( ar, عَهْد) or ''bai'ath''. Before initiation, a ''murid'' is instructed by his guide, who must first accept the initiate as his disciple. Throughout the instruction period, the ''murīd'' typically experiences waridates like visions and dreams during personal spiritual awrads and exercises. These visions are interpreted by the ''murshid''. A common practice among the early Sufi orders was to grant a '' khirqa'' or a robe to the ''murīd'' upon the initiation or after he had progressed through a series of increasingly difficult and si ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sheikh (Sufism)
A Sheikh or shaykh (Arabic: شيخ shaykh; ; pl. شيوخ shuyūkh), of Sufism is a Sufi who is authorized to teach, initiate and guide aspiring dervishes in the Islamic faith. He distracts himself from worldly riches and women. The sheik is vital to the path of the novice Sufi, for the sheik has himself travelled the path of mysticism. Viewed as the spiritual master, the sheik forms a formal allegiance (''bay'a'') to the disciple of Sufism and authorizes the disciple's travels and helps the disciple along the mystical path. Islamic tradition focuses on the importance of chains and legitimization. In Sufism, sheiks are connected by a continuous spiritual chain (''isnad'', sanad, silsila). This chain links every previous Sufi sheik, and eventually can be traced back to the Successors, and in later times to the Prophet himself. As Sufism grew, influential shayks began to acquire spiritual centers and waypoints known as khanqah, ribat, and zaouia. Sheikhs duplicate the Prophetic r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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