Page 2 of 9
Tasawwuf in the Qur'an & Hadith
Just as the external acts of worship are mentioned in the Qur'an and Hadith so are the internal states and love for Allah subhaanahu wata'ala. Along with verses which command us to establish Salaat and Zakaat so there are verses commanding Shukr (Gratitude), Sabr (patience) abstaining from Riyaa (show), Hasad (jealousy) etc. Similarly in the Hadith just as one will find chapters on Prayer, Fasting, Trade & Commerce, Marraige & Divorce etc so one will find chapters on Sincerity, Pride & Arrogance, Love for Allah subhaanahu wata'ala etc.
The Term "Tasawwuf/Sufism"
Tasawwuf is a branch of Islamic knowledge which focuses on the spiritual development of a Muslim. Allah sent His final messenger, Prophet Muhammad sallallaahu 'alayhi wasallam as a source of knowledge for the entire Ummah. He was the fountain of Qur'an, Hadith, Tafseer, Rhetoric, Fiqh and so on. After the Prophet, the scholars of this Ummah carried and propagated each of these branches of knowledge. However because no one person can attain the perfection of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wasallam who single handedly assumed all of these roles, various branches of the Islamic sciences developed. For example, Imam Abu Hanifah preserved the science of Fiqh and after him thousands of scholars continued in his footsteps. Hence these scholars preserved the Fiqh of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wasallam. Similarly Imam Bukhari and the other famous scholars of Hadith preserved the words of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wasallam. The scholars of Tajweed preserved the recitation of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wasallam.
The Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wasallam was the model of spirituality for the world. His God-consciousness, deep spirituality, acts of worship, and love for Allah subhaanahu wata'ala were preserved and propagated by an Islamic science called Tasawwuf.
Sufism
Studying the life of the Prophet sallallaahu 'alayhi wasallam, the Scholars who propagated the science of Tasawwuf understood that a requisite for approaching Allah subhaanahu wata'ala was abandonment of the common pursuits of the world. They often wore wool because of its simplicity and low cost. In Arabic the word for wool is
suf and thus, those who wore it became known as the
Sufis. Another possible derivation of the word comes from the root word
safa, which means "to clean." Because the Scholars of Tasawwuf focused on cleansing the heart, they later became known as the Sufis.
(From Tasawwuf.org) 