The Mystics Of Islam

the adventures and labours of individual seekers or groups of seekers in quest of reality.'

Sufism, the religious philosophy of Islam, is described in the oldest extant definition as

'the apprehension of divine realities,' and Mohammedan mystics are fond of calling

themselves Ahl al-Haqq, 'the followers of the Real.' {Al-Haqq is the term generally used by Sufis

when they refer to God.} In attempting to set forth their central doctrines from this point of

view, I shall draw to some extent on materials which I have collected during the last

twenty years for a general history of Islamic mysticism--a subject so vast and many-sided

that several large volumes would be required to do it anything like justice. Here I can

only sketch in broad outline certain principles, methods, and characteristic features of the

inner life as it has been lived by Moslems of every class and condition from the eighth

century of our era to the present day. Difficult are the paths which they threaded, dark

and bewildering the pathless heights beyond; but even if we may not hope to accompany

the travelers to their journey's end, any information that we have gathered concerning

their religious environment and spiritual history will help us to understand the strange

experiences of which they write