He quotes the following statements without reference: 1. Imam Hanbal: “Sufis are like a fountain of knowledge, they recite the remembrance of God in their hearts. They have the most spiritual power.” 2. Imam Malik explicitly enjoined tasawwuf as a duty of scholars in his statement: “He who practices Tasawwuf without learning Sacred Law corrupts his faith, while he who learns Sacred Law without practicing Tasawwuf corrupts himself. Only he who combines the two proves true.” 3. Imam Shafi`i said: Three things in this world have been made lovely to me: avoiding affectation, treating people kindly, and following the way of tasawwuf.(2) Are these statements authentic and how does this tie in with the statements attributed to Imam Shafi?I i.e. 1. “If a person exercised Sufism (Tasawafa) at the beginning of the day, he does not come to Thur except an idiot.” [Talbees Iblees]. 2. “Nobody accompanied the Sufis forty days and had his brain return (ever).” [Talbees Iblees]. Available on the website http://www.allaahuakbar.net under Sufism. I understand that the right attitude towards Sufism, or any other thing, is to accept what is in agreement with the Quran and the Sunnah, and reject what does not agree but these statements above are contradictory and I have no way at present to confirm which is true or false. Please assist, as this type of information breeds division amongst Islam which is contrary to the teachings of our beloved Prophet (SAW), Shukkran.
What you should understand is that while Tasawwuf is based on the Qur’aan and Sunnah, in every era there were those Sufis whose practices contradicted the Qur’aan and Sunnah, because of whom Tasawwuf was at times given a bad name.
Keeping this in mind, whichever statement of the Salaf you come across, in criticism of Tasawwuf, , then remember that this was said in the context of the Tasawwuf which is against the Qur’aan and Sunnah, not regarding true Tasawwuf.
The website you quoted from is one designed to lead people astray. We would advise you to stay away from it.
and Allah Ta’ala Knows Best
Ml. Husain Kadodia
STUDENT: Darul Ifta
CHECKED & APPROVED: Mufti Ebrahim Desai