A Study of the Theological Dimensions of Qaw[<id al-Ta~awwuf (original) (raw)

The mediaeval North African scholar A+mad Zarr]q (d. 899¦1493) expertly melded Sufism with theology and jurisprudence. His familiarity with the three systems of thought led him to devise Sufi adages on the model of legal and theological maxims. A conviction that right belief and correct practice were the basic conditions for becoming a Sufi further impelled Zarr]q to formulate a number of legal and theological rules applicable within the sphere of Sufism. As an Ash<ar\ theologian, Zarr]q stated certain theological precepts that he then interpreted in the Sufi context. My paper aims to evaluate the theological dimensions of Qaw[<id al-Ta~awwuf, with special attention to its author’s integrative discourse on theology and Sufism.