Innovative Understandings of Sufi Terminology by Ayn al-Qudat Hamadhani

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 M.A. in Persian language and literature, Faculty of Letters and Humanities, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran

2 Corresponding Author, Associate Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Dr. Ali Shariati Faculty of Letters and Humanities, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran

Abstract

Ayn al-Quḍāt Hamadānī, a tradition-breaking and norm-challenging mystic of the 5th and 6th centuries AH, enriched Islamic mysticism and Sufism with his innovative and fresh ideas. The characteristic of breaking tradition in ʿAyn al-Quḍāt Hamadānī is evident in all aspects of his life, including his approach to mystical terminology. To the extent that a comparison between the mystical terms used in his works and the heritage preserved in classical books of mysticism and Sufism reveals that ʿAyn al-Quḍāt Hamadānī sometimes disrupted the prevailing order and the usual semantic trajectory of mystical concepts. He offered new and original interpretations of terminology. The findings of the present article clearly show that some of his unique and fresh interpretations of mystical terms such as "īmān" (faith), "bāzār-i khawāṣ", "zunnār", "Majmaʿ al-Baḥrayn "(The Confluence of the Tow Seas), and most instances of "ḥijāb"(veil) and "namaz"(prayer) were entirely constructed and developed by ʿAyn al-Quḍāt Hamadānī himself. These do not appear in the writings of earlier mystics and Sufis. Furthermore, certain other terms such as "ẓulm", "faqr "(poverty), and "kufr"(unbelief) were influenced by brief statements from earlier Sufis and mystics. ʿAyn al-Quḍāt Hamadānī expanded these concepts and addressed them extensively and in great detail throughout his own works.

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References

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Comparative Study of Religions and Mysticism
Volume 10, Issue 1
November 2025
Pages 87-113

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History

  • Receive Date: 21 July 2025
  • Revise Date: 08 September 2025
  • Accept Date: 19 November 2025

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