Shahab al-Din Abu Hafs Umar Suhrawardi

Shahāb al-Din Abu Hafs Umar Suhrawardi
Religion Islam, Sunni
Other names Shahabudin, Shahabuddin, Soharwardi, al-Suhrawardi, Soharwardy, Shahab ad-Din
Personal
Born 1145
Died 1234
Baghdad
Senior posting
Title Shaykh al-Islam
Period in office 12th-13th century

Shaykh Shahab al-Din Abu Hafs Umar Suhrawardi (Kurdish: عمر سهروردى c.1145-1234) was a Kurdish[1] or Persian[2] Sufi and nephew of Abu al-Najib Suhrawardi. He expanded the Sufi order of Suhrawardiyya that had been created by his uncle Abu al-Najib Suhrawardi, and is the person responsible for officially formalizing the order.[3] Suhrawardi is the author of the Awarif ul-Maarif, which is recognized as the first textbook of Sufism.

Other transliterations: Shaykh Shihab al-Din ‘Umar al-Suhrawardi, Shaykh 'Abu Hafs al-Suhrawardi, Hadrat Shaykh Shihab al-Din `Umar b. `Abd Allah al-Suhrawardi, Shaykh Shahabuddin Abu Hafs Umar Suhrawardi, Shaykh Shahabuddin Abu Hafs Umar Soharwardi, Shaykh Shahabuddin Abu Hafs Umar Soharwardy, Shaykh Shahabuddin Soharwardi, Shaykh Shahabuddin Soharwardy, Shaykh Umar Shahabuddin Soharwardi.

Life

Suhrawardi traces his lineage back to Abu Bakr, the first Caliph.[4] From an early age onwards, Suhrawardi studied Islamic jurisprudence, law, logic, theology, Quranic studies and Hadith studies.[3] Suhrawardi quickly excelled in his studies and mastered, at an early age, the Shafi'i and Hanbali madhabs.[3] One of his most notable teachers was the famous Sufi, Abdul Qadir Jilani.[3] Suhrawardi was eventually designated as Shaykh al-Islam by al-Nasir under the Abbasids.[3]

The Awarif ul Maarif

Suhrawardi wrote the Awarif ul-Maarif, or "The Knowledge of the Spiritually Learned."[5] The Awarif ul-Maarif quickly became one of the most popular books on Sufism throughout the Muslim world. This book was translated into English by Henry Wilberforce-Clarke and published as "A Dervish Textbook" in 1891. It was reprinted by Octagon Press in 1980.

References

  1. ↑ Muḥammad Kamāl, Mulla Sadra's Transcendent Philosophy, Ashgate Publishing Inc, 2006, ISBN 0-7546-5271-8, p. 12.
  2. ↑ Medieval Islamic Civilization: An Encyclopedia. New York: Routledge. 2006. p. 775. ISBN 0415966906. Retrieved 2015-03-19.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 Medieval Islamic Civilization: An Encyclopedia (2006), p. 775
  4. ↑ Sheikh Shahabudin Umar Soharwardi
  5. ↑ Medieval Islamic Civilization: An Encyclopedia (2006), p. 776

Bibliography

External links