ABSTRACT
This book presents Sufism as both a political and a mystical phenomenon. Located within the Islamic framework, mysticism was as much a mode of political intervention as it was a method for individual development. This is supported using a wide range of historical evidence, as well as contemporary Sufi hagiographies and literary productions. The main methodical approach of the project has been historiographical, but a significant portion of this study was substantiated by fieldwork research, including a pilot study and several high-profile interviews with leading contemporary Sufi figures of several global orders based in Asia.
