The Image of Spiritual Liberty in the Western Sufi Movement Following Hazrat Inayat Khan

Book excerpt: This is a study of how present-day Sufis following Hazrat Inayat Khan seek to experience spiritual liberty in daily life. Hazrat Inayat Khan (1882-1927) was an Indian mystic who left for America in 1910 in order to bring a universal Sufi Message to the Western world. His teachings, The Sufi Message, describe Unity of Being as the mystical relationship between God, man and creation. The Sufi Movement is an international organisation of people following the Sufi Message. It functions as a framework for people searching an embodied spirituality that transcends the varieties of religious beliefs. This study reveals dimensions of the individual's spiritual and psychological development and shows how this is prompted by guidance and esoteric practices. The individual's development process involves different important elements including gradual annihilation of the ego and assimilation of more complex images of the self. Self-realisation is pictured as an outcome of this process. Personal experience of God within is seen significant for self-realisation. In addition to the individual and organisational dimensions explored, this book also gives insight into the historical development of the Sufi Movement and its reception in The Netherlands.