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Sufsm and the Transcendent Unity o ReligionsSeyyed Hossein Nasr, Javad Nurbakhsh, Robert Frager, and abir
Helminski
1. Being itself the message of the essence in the form or of the Center at
the periphery, Susm can guide man from the phenomena to the
noumena, from the form (rah) to the meaning (man) to use the
Su technical terminology itself. This fact coupled with the universal
character of slam, as re!ected in the insistence of the "ur#an upon
man#s accepting the authenticity of previous religions, has made of the
Sus throughout history the great proponents of the $transcendent
unity of religions#, whose principles they have e%plicitly formulated.
Some li&e 'n $ra' and *awl+n+ al+l al-n /0m have even applied
this concept to specic teachings of non-slamic religions. Susm
provides the metaphysics necessary to carry out the study of
comparative religion in depth so that man can accept the validity of
every detail of the authentic religions of man&ind and at the same
time see 'eyond these details to the transcendent unity of these
religions. (Seyyed ossein 2asr, Living Sufsm 34ondon5 *andala
Boo&s, 6nwin 7aper'ac&s, 189:;, p. it includes the faithful of slam along with followers
of other religions, as is evidenced 'y the "ur#anic assertion, ?@erily,
those who have faith (in what is revealed to the 7rophet) and those
who are ews and Christians and Sa'aeans Awhoseover has fear in
od and the 4ast ay and does rightA surely their reward is with their
4ord, and no fear shall overcome them and neither shall they grieve
(
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paths ultimately lead to the same place5 the 'solute Truth, which is,
in fact, one and the same for everyone. (avad 2ur'a&hsh, ?4ove5 The
7ath of 6nity, Suf, ournal of Susm, ssue 18 3utumn 188H;, p. =).G. t is only through the 'inding force of love can humanity leave 'ehind
its diIerences, its condition of multiplicity, and 3can; arrive at a state
of Eneness. Enly through love can we come to see that all acts of
worship, when performed with sincerity of the heart, lead to the same
end, 3and; come from the same source. (2ur'a&hsh, ?4ove5 The 7ath of
6nity, p. =).D. Susm is no diIerent from the mysticism at the heart of all religions.
ust as a river passes through many countries and is claimed 'y each
of its own, there is only one river. ll mysticism has the same goal, the
direct e%perience of the divine. (3Shei&h; /o'ert 3/agi'; Jrager, Heart,
Sel, & Soul" The Suf 's%()olog% o *ro+th, alan(e, and Harmon%
.heaton, !llinois" /uest ooks, Theoso0hi(al 'u1lishing house, 2333;,p. i%
=. *ost Sus 'elieve that there is a fundamental truth in all religions and
that the great religions are the same in essence. The various prophets
and spiritual teachers are li&e light 'ul's that illuminate a room. The
'ul's are diIerent, 'ut the current comes from one source, which is
od. n a room with many light 'ul's, you cannot distinguish the light
of one 'ul' from the light of another. t is all the same light, and the
indovidual 'ul's all receive electricity from a single source, even if
some 'ul's provide more light than others. The Kuality of the light isthe same and so is the source. (Jrager, Heart, Sel, & Soul, pp. %-%).
L. Jrom a certain point of view one need not even 'ecome a *uslim, in
the sociological sense, to live in harmony with or value the "ur#an#s
guidance and message. Since, for instance, esus is viewed in slam as
a prophet of od, Must as *uhammad is, there can 'e no essential
con!ict 'etween the way of esus and the way of *uhammad. ny
Christian who sincerely follows the message of esus is in fact a
?*uslim from the point of view of the "urNan. (3Shei&h; Oa'ir
elmins&i, The 4no+ing Heart" 5 Suf 'ath o Transormation 3Boston P
4ondon5 Sham'ala, 1888;, p. 188).9. Those who have encountered and lived with the message of the
"ur#an must ac&nowledge that od#s Compassion, enerosity, and
*ercy operate through all religions, and in fact through all the
phenomena of e%istence. od#s Kualities rain down upon the faithful of
all faiths and even upon those who deny this reality. (elmins&i, The
4no+ing Heart,p. 188).
Notes
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Seyyed Hossein Nasris a noted ranian scholar and Su thin&er. e is
6niversity 7rofessor of slamic Studies at eorge Qashington 6niversity.
The author of ever thirty 'oo&s and three hundred articles, he is a former
president of ryahamehr 6niversity in ran, and the founder and the rst
president of the ranian cademy of 7hilosophy. is pu'lications include!deal and 6ealities o !slam, Living Sufsm, 4no+ledge and the Sa(red, and
The Heart o !slam7
Javad Nurbakhshis the present Shei&h of the 2i#matullah Erder, which
was founded in ran 'y Shei&h 2ur al-in *uhammad 2i$mat llah (d.
1GH1). Jor more than D: years, 2ur'a&hsh esta'lished more than one
hundred khani8ahsand numerous li'raries and museums throughout ran
and the greater world. is pu'lications include The 'ath" Suf 'ra(ti(es,
9is(ourses on the Suf 'ath, The 's%(holog% o Sufsm, and Suf
S%m1olism" The :ur1akhsh #n(%(lo0edia o Suf Terminolog%7
Sheikh Robert Ragib Frager is a Shei&h of the elveti-erahi Erder,
which was founded 'y Shei&h 2ur al-in *uhammad al-arrah of stan'ul
(d. 1L
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