International Association of Sufism
Encyclopedia
International Association of Sufism (IAS) is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization that brings together scholars, educators, translators, and artists interested in the discipline of Sufism
Sufism
Sufism or ' is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a '...

. It was the first Sufi organization to achieve the status of United Nations Department of Public Information
United Nations Department of Public Information
The United Nations Department of Public Information helps non-governmental organizations gain access to and disseminate information about United Nations issues so the public can better understand the aims and objectives of the organizations...

 / Non-governmental organization
Non-governmental organization
A non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...

 (DPI/NGO) and is the leading Islamic
Islam
Islam . The most common are and .   : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...

 education organization in Marin County, California
Marin County, California
Marin County is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. As of 2010, the population was 252,409. The county seat is San Rafael and the largest employer is the county government. Marin County is well...

. It won the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...

) "Messenger of Peace" award in 2000.

IAS runs conferences co-sponsored with the Humanities Department of Dominican University of California
Dominican University of California
Dominican University of California is a four year, accredited, private, Catholic-heritage, and co-educational institution located in San Rafael, California. Founded in 1890 as Dominican College, Dominican is one of the oldest universities in California. The U.S. News and World Report ranks...

, and organizes an annual international Sufi Symposium which attracts hundreds of Sufi practitioners from around the world.

IAS has played an important role in inter-faith dialogue and cooperation both in California and internationally. The association has been described as modernist
Modernism
Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...

 or avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....

 in outlook, and this is seen in the manner in which it promotes itself and, for example, in the way modern integrative psychotherapy
Integrative Psychotherapy
Integrative psychotherapy may involve the fusion of different schools of psychotherapy. The word 'integrative' in Integrative psychotherapy may also refer to integrating the personality and making it cohesive, and to the bringing together of the "affective, cognitive, behavioral, and physiological...

 is used in the Community Healing Centers (CHC) with which the IAS collaborates on some projects. With a foundation in Islam, which has a tradition of respect for women and rights for women dating back to the Prophet
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...

, the association and its departments stress and practice a gender-equitable approach in their work.

History

The IAS was established in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 in 1983 by Seyyedeh Dr. Nahid Angha and her husband Shah Nazar Seyyed Dr. Ali Kianfar. It is based in San Rafael, California
San Rafael, California
San Rafael is a city and the county seat of Marin County, California, United States. The city is located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area...

 and collaborates with the Community Healing Centers (CHC), a non-profit organization, in Mill Valley
Mill Valley, California
Mill Valley is a city in Marin County, California, United States located about north of San Francisco via the Golden Gate Bridge. The population was 13,903 at the 2010 census.Mill Valley is located on the western and northern shores of Richardson Bay...

, Novato
Novato, California
Novato is a city located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, in northern Marin County. Novato is located about north-northwest of San Rafael, at an elevation of 30 feet above sea level . The 2010 U.S. Census estimated the city population to be about 51,904. Novato is about ...

 and San Franscisco, which specialize in an integrative approach to psychotherapy
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...

.

Seyyedeh Dr. Nahid Angha, daughter of Moulana Shah Maghsoud, the twentieth century Persian Sufi of the Uwaisi
Uwaisi
Uwaisyaan refers to those Sufis who have gained the spiritual chain from another Sufi without physically meeting them in this world. Usually "Uwaisyan" are known as a school in Tasawwuf, and the word Uwaisi is its singular form.-Background:...

 (or Uwaiysi) School of Sufism, is the main representative of the IAS to the United Nations Department of Public Information / Non-governmental organization] (DPI/NGO), and an internationally published writer, including White Fire: A Portrait of Women Spiritual Leaders in America and Women in Sufism: A Hidden Treasure, along with over a dozen scholarly Islamic works.

Dr. Nahid Angha was elected to Marin Women's Hall of Fame, honoured for the part she plays in the Religion category, in 2005 She is also on the Board of Directors of The Foundation for the Advancement of Women in Religion.

Seyyed Dr. Kianfar is described on the IAS web site as "the spiritual son of Uwaiysi Sufi Master Moulana Shah Maghsoud", is Editor-in-Chief of the journal Sufism: An Inquiry, and has been teaching Sufism and Islamic philosophy for over forty years.

Work

The aims of the IAS are to introduce Sufism in all its varied forms to the public; to make known the interrelation between Sufi principles and scientific principles; to provide a forum for a continuing dialogue between the different schools of Sufism, and to preserve and advance the study and goals of Sufism. Through its work, the organization has achieved the status of United Nations Department of Public Information]/ Non-governmental organization (DPI/NGO). It runs an annual international Sufi symposium.

Departments

The IAS is organized into several departments, which include: collaboration with Community Healing Centers (CHC) which has staff qualified in psychotherapy and counselling; the Sufi Women Organization; Sufi Music; Sufi Youth International; Sufism and Psychology Forum (SPF), and Voices for Justice, which advocates the rights of children.

Programs

Its programs include Building Bridges of Understanding, a cooperative educational program, including conference organization, which it runs in cooperation with Humanities Department of Dominican University of California
Dominican University of California
Dominican University of California is a four year, accredited, private, Catholic-heritage, and co-educational institution located in San Rafael, California. Founded in 1890 as Dominican College, Dominican is one of the oldest universities in California. The U.S. News and World Report ranks...

, with support from the Marin Community Foundation; Forty Days: Alchemy of Tranquility, which consists of workshops allowing participants to access their hidden wisdom and to use it in daily life; Sufi Symposium, an international, multicultural festival; and Voices for Justice.

Symposia

The annual International Sufi Symposium, sponsored by the International Association of Sufism, attracts hundreds of Sufis from around the world.

At the 2000 symposium, "The Need for Sufism in a New Century - An Old Tradition for a New World",
IAS co-founder Dr Ali Kianfar delivered a speech entitled "Self and Discovery". He said:
The 2001 symposium, held in Fremont, California
Fremont, California
Fremont is a city in Alameda County, California. It was incorporated on January 23, 1956, from the merger of five smaller communities: Centerville, Niles, Irvington, Mission San Jose, and Warm Springs...

, had the theme of "The Soul's Longing: A Language of Spirit", where attendees explored "the wisdom and beauty of Sufism in society". More than a dozen Sufi masters spoke at the conference and led prayer and meditation (zikr), and there were presentations of Sufi music and poetry.

In September 2006 the symposium was convened at Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...

, the first time such an event had held in Europe. The event was sponsored by the International Association of Sufism, together with the Edinburgh Institute for Advanced Learning and the Edinburgh International Centre for World Spiritualities.

Conferences

The conferences organized by the IAS have brought together men and women from a wide variety of national backgrounds and "with different degrees of emphasis on Islamic sharia practice and customs". The meetings give prominence to Sufi Meditation, Zikr
Dhikr
Dhikr , plural ; ), is an Islamic devotional act, typically involving the repetition of the Names of God, supplications or formulas taken from hadith texts and verses of the Qur'an. Dhikr is usually done individually, but in some Sufi orders it is instituted as a ceremonial activity...

, music, poetry, interfaith discussions, and academic lectures by scholars, translators, physicians, and psychotherapists.

Projects

The IAS's projects include Literacy Project, in which members of the Sufi Women Organization help tutor those with literacy needs; Prison Project, an outreach programme to those in jail; Project Khaneghah, which is dedicated to building a Sufi community centre or Khanqah
Khanqah
A Khanqah, Khaniqah , ribat, zawiya, or tekke is a building designed specifically for gatherings of a Sufi brotherhood, or tariqa, and is a place for spiritual retreat and character reformation...

, and United Nations and Human Rights, in its role as United Nations NGO.

Modernism and equality

An important aspect of the International Association of Sufism is the role that women play in the organization. The IAS stresses a gender-equitable approach. With a foundation in Islam, which has a tradition of respect for women and rights for women dating back to the Prophet, the association and its departments stress and practice a gender-equitable approach in their work.

Arife Ellen Hammerle wrote an article entitled Women and Islam for Human Beams magazine in August 1999. Speaking from her personal experiences as a woman, mother, Sufi and American, she relates:

IAS is modernist despite its traditional Sufi trappings. In the preface to The Sufi orders in Islam, John O.Voll talks of the growing strength of Sufi tariqas amongst modern people who are not trying to escape modernity, that traditionalists would have difficulty conceiving or crediting, citing the International Association of Sufism, whose annual meeting in California was attended by 800 people in 1996.

In Sufism and the 'Modern' in Islam, the authors write: "The [IAS] is very much in the avant-garde of transnational Sufism, hardly resembling traditional orders or spirituality at all. Instead, it represents itself as as 'educational organization' and a UN affiliated NGO that carries out a UN Human Rights project."

Sufism and psychology

Speaking of the way in which the science of modern psychology explains Sufi practice and experience and appeals to the European Sufi, in Sufism in the West, the editors Jamil Malik and John R. Hinnells write that examples of this connection "may be found in the Shah Maghsoud Angha lineage, the International Association of Sufism and the Maktab Tarighat Oveyssi Shahmaghsoudi (MTO)". The editors go on to say that The Gift of the Robe, published by a member of IAS, "exemplifies an understanding of the role of science in proving spiritual truths."

Notable publications by prominent members of the IAS include Psychology in Sufism by Amineh Amelia Pryor, Ph.D., Director of the IAS's Sufism and Psychology Forum. This is described as "an introductory text in which the psychological process of transformation of the self is explored from within the context of Sufism."

Other works by prominent members include The Sufi Book of Life: 99 Pathways of the Heart for the Modern Dervish by Neil Douglas-Klotz.

Another key figure in the psychotherapeutic activities carried out in collaboration with the IAS is Arife Ellen Hammerle, Ph.D. She is a practising Sufi psychologist with a doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies
California Institute of Integral Studies
California Institute of Integral Studies is a private institution of higher education founded in 1968 and based in San Francisco, California. It currently operates in three locations just south of the Civic Center district...

 and a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT #32398). Dr. Hammerle is the director and a clinician the International Association of Sufism's San Francisco and Marin County
Marin County, California
Marin County is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. As of 2010, the population was 252,409. The county seat is San Rafael and the largest employer is the county government. Marin County is well...

 Healing Centers in California, at Mill Valley
Mill Valley, California
Mill Valley is a city in Marin County, California, United States located about north of San Francisco via the Golden Gate Bridge. The population was 13,903 at the 2010 census.Mill Valley is located on the western and northern shores of Richardson Bay...

, Novato
Novato, California
Novato is a city located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, in northern Marin County. Novato is located about north-northwest of San Rafael, at an elevation of 30 feet above sea level . The 2010 U.S. Census estimated the city population to be about 51,904. Novato is about ...

 and San Franscisco, which specialize in an integrative approach to psychotherapy
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...

 (i.e. integrative psychotherapy
Integrative Psychotherapy
Integrative psychotherapy may involve the fusion of different schools of psychotherapy. The word 'integrative' in Integrative psychotherapy may also refer to integrating the personality and making it cohesive, and to the bringing together of the "affective, cognitive, behavioral, and physiological...

). She is also Clinical Coordinator at Catholic Charities
Catholic Charities
Catholic Charities is a network of charities whose aim is "to provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire church and other people of good will to do the same." It is one of the largest charities in the United States...

.

A senior student of the Uwaiysi Tariqat
Tariqah
A tariqa is an Islamic religious order. In Sufism one starts with Islamic law, the exoteric or mundane practice of Islam and then is initiated onto the mystical path of a tariqa. Through spiritual practices and guidance of a tariqa the aspirant seeks ḥaqīqah - ultimate truth.-Meaning:A tariqa is a...

 of Sufism, Dr. Hammerle is also a regular teacher at the Institute for Sufi Studies and Santa Rosa Junior College, where she teaches psychology, stress management and sufi courses. She is an active member of the Boards for the Marin Interfaith Council, the Center for Women and Religion, and the Marin Integrative Healing Network. Arife Ellen Hammerle also serves as a representative to the United Nations Department of Public Information
United Nations Department of Public Information
The United Nations Department of Public Information helps non-governmental organizations gain access to and disseminate information about United Nations issues so the public can better understand the aims and objectives of the organizations...

, representing and acting as coordinator for the International Association of Sufism and Sufi Women Organization. In addition, she has written the book The Sacred Journey: Unfolding Self Essence (2000).

International cooperation

Working with other faiths, Community Healing Centers director, Uwaiysi Sufi and qualified psychotherapist, Arife Ellen Hammerle, was invited to make a presentation at the Council for a Parliament of the World's Religions
Parliament of the World's Religions
There have been several meetings referred to as a Parliament of the World’s Religions, most notably the World's Parliament of Religions of 1893, the first attempt to create a global dialogue of faiths. The event was celebrated by another conference on its centenary in 1993...

in 1999.

In August 2000, representatives of the IAS were amongst one thousand religious leaders, including the Grand Mufti of Syria and Chief Rabbi of Israel, who attended the Millennium World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual Leaders held at the United Nations HQ in New York.

The IAS was also invited to participate in the Interreligious Engagement Project (IEP21) Global Dialogue of Civilizations Project in 2007.

IAS journal

The IAS regularly publishes a journal, Sufism Journal. Sufism: An Inquiry is also available on the internet.

IAS books

Members of the association have published a number of books, many under the association's own imprint, including translations of the works of Moulana Shah Maghsoud which often adopt a scientific approach to spiritual matters.
  • Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D. (translator), Deliverance: Words from the Prophet
  • Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., Ecstasy: The World of Sufi Poetry and Prayer
  • Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., The Journey of the Lovers
  • Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., The Journey: Seyr va Soluk
  • Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., The Nature of Miracle
  • Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., Principles of Sufism
  • Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D. (translator), Selections: Poems from Khayam, Rumi, Hafez, and Shah Maghsoud
  • Etemad-Moghadam (Angha), Mah Talat, translated by Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., Al-Momenon: The Faithful
  • Hammerle, Arife Ellen, Ph.D., The Sacred Journey: Unfolding Self Essence
  • Institute for Sufi Studies, Unveiling Islam
  • Kianfar, Seyyedeh Hamaseh A. and Seyyedeh Sahar A. Kianfar (translators and compilers), Sufi Stories
  • Kianfar, Shah Nazar Seyyed Ali, Ph.D., An Introduction to Religion
  • Kianfar, Shah Nazar Seyyed Ali, Ph.D., The Zekr
  • Levin, E.L., The Road to Infinity
  • Maeda, Dr. Yoshimichi, Sahar (Dawn)
  • Maghsoud, Moulana Shah, Diwan-e-Ghazal (in Persian)
  • Maghsoud, Moulana Shah , translated by Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., Manifestations of Thought
  • Maghsoud, Moulana Shah, translated by Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., A Meditation
  • Maghsoud, Moulana Shah, translated by Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., Psalms of Gods
  • Mohammed, Hazrat Mir Ghotbeddin, translated by Nahid Angha, Ph.D., Destination: Eternity
  • Newman, Safa Ali Michael, The Gift of the Robe: Uwaysieh
  • Pryor, Amineh Amelia, Ph.D., Psychology in Sufism, Volume One
  • Shah Nazar Seyyed Ali Kianfar, Ph.D., Fatemah (peace be upon her)
  • Sufi Women Organization members, Sufi Women Cookbook
  • Various, Sufi Women: The Journey Towards the Beloved (collected essays)
  • Various, The Veil: Hijab (collected essays)
  • Various, Women's Wisdom: Women in Action Conference (collected essays)

Further reading

  • Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., White Fire: A Portrait of Women Spiritual Leaders in America, SkyLight Paths Publishing, US, 2003
  • Angha, Seyyedeh Nahid, Ph.D., Women in Sufism: A Hidden Treasure, Shambhala, 2003
  • Douglas-Klotz, Neil, The Sufi Book of Life: 99 Pathways of the Heart for the Modern Dervish, Viking Penguin, 2005
  • Mijares, Sharon Grace, Modern Psychology and Ancient Wisdom: Psychological Healing Practices from the World's Religious Traditions, Routledge, 2003 (the author is on the advisory board of the IAS)

External links



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