A

Abu Bakr As-siddiq

First Khalifa after the Prophet

Adab

Spiritual courtesy or manners

Adhan (azan)

Call to prayer

Ahwal

Lit. "states," pl. of hal, a transitory mystical state.

Akbar

Greatest or greater

Alayhi salaam

"on him be peace"

Alayhis-salat was-Salam

"Upon Him be Blessing and Peace"

Ali Ibn Abu Talib

Fourth and last of the righteous Khalifas after the holy Prophet Muhammad (saws)

Arif

Mystic knower, gnostic

As-salaamu alaykum

"Peace be upon you"

Ash-hadu an la ilaha illallah

"I bear witness that there is no god but Allah"

Asma ul Husna

The 99 Names of God which are used individually or together in Zikr

Awliya

The saints and friends of God (plural)

Ayat

Sign, indication, verse

B

Baqa

The state of "subsistence," continuing awareness through Allah.

Baraka

The "grace" or spiritual energy emanating from Allah through the silsillah of the Tariqa through which all practices are accomplished.

Bast

The state of expansion or elation

Batin

Hidden, inner

Biat

A pledge or promis, initiation

Bismillah

"In the name of Allah"

Burhan

The state of spiritual pessession

D

Dede

Lit. "Grandfather," an elder dervish with spiritual standing within the order, usually the same level as a Khalifa

Dergah

"Royal court," the tomb of a saint and also the center which serves as the headquarters of a particular branch of an order

Dervish

"Poor one," synonymous with fakir, a formal member of an order. IN the Qadiri Rifai, a salik who has attained maturity on the path

Dhawq

Lit. "taste," perceptivity gained through divine grace.

Dua

A prayer or invocation

Dunya

Material world

E

Estaghfirullah

"I ask forgiveness of Allah"

F

Fana

Stage of "annihilation" in the journey to God, cessation of ego-awareness which may be accomplished in various degrees or at various levels or depths

Fatiha

Opening verse of the Qur'an

G

Ghawth

Helper, very high station in hierarchy

Ghawth-i-Azam

"The Greatest Help(er)" a title of Pir Abdul Qadir al Geylani

H

Hadith

Traditions of the prophet

Hadrah

Lit. "presence," a gathering for the practice of zikr often accompanied with movement

Haidar

The ornamental vest worn by a dervish

Hajj

Pilgrimage to Mecca

Hajji

A Pilgrim

Halal

Permissible by Islamic law.

Halka

Lit. "circle," a group which gathers to practice or study Sufism, usually a shaykh and murids.

Halwet

Spiritual retreat; the chille (Turk.) is often 40 days

Haqq

Truth

Haram

Forbidden

Himmah

Force of heart, decisiveness

Hu

Third person singular pronoun, without gender, used in invocation, Zikr

I

'Imbadat

Spiritual service

'Im

Knowledge of science

Iman

True faith

Insha'Allah

"If Allah wills"

Irada

The quality of spiritual aspiration

Irfan

Gnosis, direct perception of Reality

Irshad

Guidance or direction

Ishq

Passion or ardent desire

Islam

Submission

J

Jihad

Struggle or fight or effort

Jinn

Beings of the spirit world

Jubbe

A long gown with full sleeves

K

Kalimah

The Islamic Creed

Kashf

Intuition, occasionally experienced in lawami, sudden intuitions.

Khalifa

Lit. "vice-regent," a deputized teacher or (sometimes) the designated successor of a particular Shaykh

L

La ilaha illallah

"There is no god but Allah" or "There is no Reality but God"

Laqab (nickname)

"The white Falcon," al-Baz al-Ashab, a title of Pir Abdul Qadir al Geylani

M

Ma'rifa

Mystical knowledge of all types held to be valid

Mahabba

Love or attraction

Mahabbat

The state of effacement

Maqam

A station or state of spiritual development

Maqamat

Lit. "station," pl. of maqam, a more permanent condition of having refined one's nafs.

Masjid

"Mosque," in the West, literally "place of prostration"

Meydan-ji

Meydan is literally the "field" or "meeting place;" meydan-ji is an elder dervish who helps other students learn the proper customs and procedures of the Tariqa

Mi'raj

The night journey of the Prophet (saws), lit. the type of "ascension" which may be paralleled by advanced sufis

Mihdi

One who is guided

Mihrab

The niche in the wall which shows the direction of prayer

Mu'adh dhin

One who calls people to prayer

Muhabbest

Lit. "attracted one," someone attracted to an order, also called muhibb ("lover")

Muhasibi

Lit. "rendering account," taking stock of one's actions

Muhyi-ud-din

"The Reviver of the Faith," a title of Pir Abdul Qadir al Geylani

Muraqaba

Meditation practiced in solitude

Murid

Lit. "directed one," a person who has accepted a spiritual director

Murshid

Teacher of the Sufi Path, a title usually reserved for the head of an order

Muslim

One who submits to God

N

Nafs

Lit. "breath"; personality/ego clusters which control people and keep them from seeing Truth until the nafs is purified, refined, and transcended.

P

Pir-i-Dastgir

"Who Takes by the Hand," a title of Pir Abdul al Geylani

Postaki or Post

A sheepskin used in place of a prayer rug

Q

Qabz

Contraction or deflation

Qiblah

The direction towards which Muslims face to pray, towards the Kaabah in Mecca

Qur'an

Also Koran, Revelation from Allah

Qutb

Lit. "pole," a person of extremely high spiritual level who acts as administrator in the spiritual hierarchy of the world; a conduit of spiritual power from Allah, through whom it is distributed in the world.

R

Rabb

Lord, Sustainer

Rabbi

"My Lord"

Rabita

From the root "rab," "binding," to keep inward contact with one's guid through tawajjuh, concentrating one's being up on another

Rahbar

Lit. "conductor," a spiritual guide

Rak'at

A unit of ritual prayer including standing, bowing, sitting, and prostrating

Raqsh

Dancing

Rasul

A messenger

Ru'yah

Lit. "vision," esp. of a spiritual nature.

Ruh

Spirit, which contains divine secret

Ruhsat

Concession or permission given by a Shaykh to perform a certain practice or organizational function

S

Sahv

Lit. "sobriety," the condition of the mature practitioner who has returned to normative consciousness after sukr

Sajjada

A prayer rug which signifies the post of the SHaykh

Salams

The greeting of peace

Salat

Islamic prayer, synonymous with namaz (Pers.)

Salawat

Asking Allah for peace and blessigns upon the Prophet Muhammad

Salik

Lit. "traveler," a seeker of spiritual realization

Salla Allahu 'Alayhi wa Salam

"May Allah's peace and blessings be upon him," spoken or written after Muhammad's name

Sanjak

A flag representing the order and its founder

Sema

Lit. "audition," a spiritual concert or zikr accompanied by music and sometimes turning (whirling)

Shaykh

Lit. "elder," appointed master in an order of dervish's

Skirk

Sin, associating partners with Allah

Silsillah

Lit. "chain," the lineage of a Tariqa descending from the Prophet Muhammad (saws), through his Companion, Ali Ibn Abu Talib or (in some cases) Abu Bakr, or both. The chain of transmission includes all Murshids of the order up to the present.

Sirr

Secret, mystery

Soffreh

A cloth spread on the floor used for meals

Subhat

Lit. "association," spiritual affiliation

Sufi

Lit. "wearer of wool." In the Qadiri Rifai, one who has entered an order as a novice

Sukr

Mystical intoxication, often accompanying wajd or fana

T

Ta'ifa

Lit. "group," may designate a branch of an order

Tafsir

Explaining

Taj

Lit "crown," the hat worn by a dervish

Takbir

The great word

Tajalli

The state of irridation, epiphany, or theophany

Talib

A candidate or aspirant to formal membership in a Sufi order

Talqin

Private spiritual instruction, transmitted orally or through other, spiritual means

Tariqa

Lit. "way to," order of Sufism founded by a recognized member of a silsillah

Tassawuf

"Contemplative tradition," exact equivalent for Sufism as a whole

Tawhid

Unity and oneness of God, the direct perception of central tenet of Islam, Allah's absolute singularity

Tawwakul

Complete trust in and reliance upon God Alone

Tekke (Turk.)

Lit. "corner," a dervish gathering place, synonymous with Khaniqah (Pers.) and Zawiyya (Ar.)

Tesbih

String of beads used in counting prayers (Lit. "glorification")

V

Verd

A set prayer done in addition to the required 5 daily prayers (salat)

W

Wahdat al Wujud

"Oneness of Being," the absolute non-duality of existence

Wajd

The state of ecstasy

Wakil

A guardian, representative of a shaykh, lower in rank than a khalifa. In the Qadiri Rifai Tariqa, a wakil is permitted to lead a zikr

Wazifa

Repetition of a name of God, given as practices prescribed to the murid

Y

Yaqin

Lit. "certainty," usually connoting conviction (of various degrees) concerning the goal of the path

Z

Zakir

One who chants in the liturgy, also known as qawwal

Zikr

Lit. "remembrance," individual or collective meditation employing the names of God