One of his near relatives, Moadeb Naficy, served as personal physician to the late Shah of Iran, Raza Pehalvi.

Tasawuf or Sufism is supposed to be a pilgrimage of love and a way to find God by breaking the prison of the self. Most Sufi writings are in either Arabic or Persian and thus their teaching has always been a matter of dispute. Many renowned scholars including Allama Iqbal denounced it bitterly while others consider its teachings next to the Quran.

Sufism is popularly regarded as the 'liberal version of Islam.' Sufism flourished in Persia and assumed unprecedented importance, especially in view of the great mystic poetry that it inspired. During the Pehlavi dynasty there emerged a tendency to interpret all national and cultural phenomena in the light of ancient Aryan traditions in order to build a separate niche for Iran.

Nafisi and a number of his colleagues helped the state in achieving this end. In this book Nafisi has made a deliberate attempt to prove that the sources of Persian Sufism lay somewhere other than in the teachings of Islam.

According to him, Persian mysticism is the extreme form of shaobiat (tribalism) and had its roots in anti-Arab feelings. In this regard, while referring to what he calls a historical reality he argues that all political, social and even religious movements in Iran emerged as reactions to social and class discrimination — be it Maniism or Sufism.

In order to prove the distinct character of Iranian mysticism, he divides Sufism into three separate geographical zones Iraqi tasawuf which was influenced by Nestorians; Iranian and Indian Sufism which was derived from the teachings of Zoroaster, Mani and Buddha; and the Egyptian/Syrian tasawuf which emerged under the influence of Jewish teachings and Neoplatonism. Hence, according to him the sources of all the three varieties differ.

Nafisi maintains that Irani Sufism is unique because of its extreme liberalism and because it views Muslims, Hindus and even Jews with the same eye. It has the essence of tareeqat (catharsis) but never that of Shariah. However, two factors proved great obstacles for Irani Sufis while reaching the final reality a cryptic mode of expression involving symbols and metaphors, and the attitude of European Orientalists towards the understanding of Persian mysticism.

Quoting extensively from the original book which is written in Persian, the author contends that Nafisi's claims and conclusions on various counts are not only illogical but they do not find any support from history. However, he does not come out with any strong counter evidence.

The book provides food for thought, although it leaves many questions unanswered.

Irani Tasawuf
(SPIRITUALITY)
By Dr Kabir Ahmed Jaeesy
Qirtas, Karachi
215pp. Rs150