Tasawwuf(Sufism)

Tasawwuf is the most vibrant yet the most controversial dimension of Islam; vibrant because it deals primarily with the life, vigour and activity of the inward, and controversial because right from definition to ultimate vision, and from origin to theories and practices there are controversies continuing since the 3rd century A.H. The central object of Tasawwuf is Allah. Sufi's quest is in fact a quest for the center from which everything emerges and to which everything returns, and this journey takes place in the heart where the divine mysteries are unfolded.
Tasawwuf is a particular method of approaching reality and calls into play the contemplative, intuitive and spiritual faculties through strenuous training carried on under an experienced preceptor who helps the aspirant remove the veils lying between the self and the real in order that the aspirant may be able to behold reality, absorb and interiorize the epiphanies and attain divine contentment (rida) or achieve love (mahabbah) and gnosis (ma'rifah), or realize servitude ('abdiyyah), as the final object.
A natural development within Islam and firmly routed in the Qur'an and the Prophetic precept, Tasawwuf aims at attaining direct experience of communion with Allah,ensuring that Islam was neither confined to a legalistic directive nor to a systematic theology, nor to institutionalized forms of religion, nor to a formal codes of ethics. It did receive radiations from the mystic life and thought of other religions, yet the Qur'anic spirit of God-consciousness  (taqwa), self-purification (tazkiyah), self-surrender (taslim), truthfulness (sidq), rectitude (istiqamah), permanent remembrance and recollection (zikr), stimulative reflection (fikr), disinterested love (mahabbah/hubb) constant struggle (jihad) and strife for excellence (ihsan) flowed into the lives and modes of expression of the Sufi devotees and ascetics.
The real Sufis had never thought of freeing themselves from the legal prescriptions of Islam as these constituted the minimal declared expectations of then: Beloved. They rather tried to free their souls from the confines of the illusory prison of ego, and tearing its roots from the outer world plunged their souls in the Divine nature which resides at the center of their heart. They interiorized the rites and underwent a transformation from within, subscribing scrupulously to the entire gamut of Shar'ah at both the outward and the inward levels.
The tradition of Tasawwuf in the Indian subcontinent is as old as the coming of Islam in it. The "'Muballigin' or the propagators of Islam in India were the Sufis like Malik Bin Dinar, Ali Bin Usman al-Hujiwiri (d.481/1089), Moinuddin Hasan Chishti, Bahauddin Zakariya Multani (d.l262A.D.), etc. These Sufis, who were the embodiment of Islamic Ideology and culture, influenced the Indian mind in many ways.
Chishti order in India was introduced by Shaikh Muinuddin Hasan Chishti Ajmeri (d. 1235 A.D.). It was propagated by Shaikh Qutubuddin Bakhtiyar Kaki (d. 1236 A.D.) and Shaikh Fariduddin Ganj-e-Shakar (d. 1265). But it reached its zenith at the time of Shaikh Nizamuddin Auliya (d. 1325 A.D.). After the death of Baba Farid, the Chishti order was divided into two main subdivisions; known respectively as the Nizamiya and Sabiriya order. The Sabiriyah order was founded by Alauddin Ali Ahmad Sabir Kaliyari (d. 1291 A.D.) This contemporary of Shaikh Nizamuddin Awliya was a great mystic in his own way. Sheikh Ali Sabir isolated himself from the world and lived the life of a reclue. But the Sabiriya suborder reached its zenith by preaching and teaching of Ahmad Abdul Haq (d.l434A.D.) in the valley of the Gangas in the fifteenth century.
The end of the 16 Century brought with itself an outstanding personality and Sufi named.
Shaikh Muhibbullah Allahabadi (1587-1648 A.D.), the disciple and Khalifa of Shaikh Abu Sayeed Gangohi (d.l640A.D.), the grandson of Shaikh Abdul quddus Gangohi (d.l537A.D.). The credit of preaching and expansion of the Sufi thought of Wahadat-al Wujud in India mainly goes to Shaikh Muhibbullah, who finally settled at Allahabad in the early seventeenth century.
When at attempt is made to knows whether the eminent Chishti saints ever wrote any book on Wahdat-al WuJud; we fined they did not take to writing their own thought. Thus we see that among the Chishti saints, it is Shaikh Muhibbullah for the first time took to writing on Wahdat-ul-Wujud. He was a prolific writer and had written a good number of books both in Persian and Arabic. It would be interesting to see the view point of Shaikh Muhibbullah  and how far he accepted and rejected the approach of Shaikh Muhiuddin Ibn-e-Arabi and what he said about the latter's doctrine of Wahdat- ul Wujud.
Further, the characteristic feature of the thought of the 16th century was that Sufi philosophy of Wahdat-al Shuhud was predominant over Wujudi philosophy. In this period great emphasis had been laid on Shuhudi philosophy as the summum bonum for Sufi, as advocated by Shaikh Ahmad Sirhindi. Shaikh Muhibbullah with the help of his writings and discussions tried his best to refute their arguments in order to purify Wujudi philosophy of Ibn-e-Arabi, From this point of view, this humble attempt to present the Sufi thought of Shaikh Muhibbullah is very significant and occupies an important place in the development of Sufi thought in India.
For the sake of systematization, precision and brevity, the present work has been divided into six chapters apart from introduction and conclusion. The first chapter concerns with brief history of life and times of Shaikh Muhibbullah Allahabadi. Shaikh Muhibbulah was born at Sadrpur, a village of Khairabad in Awadh province in 996A.H./1587A.D.during Akbar's reign. As Allahabad became the main center of his preaching where he passed his last twenty years of life therefore he was called Allahabadi.
 Shaikh Muhibbulah was a prolific and voluminous writer. As a great scholar and Sufi, Shaikh Muhibbullah has covered almost all the aspects of Tasawwuf in his works in Arabic and Persian language. Shaikh Muhibbullah is the author of the following works: Tarjamatul Quran, Sharah Fusus al-Hikam, Anfas alKhawas, Risalah Haft Ahkam, Aqaid al-Khawas, Maghali-tul-Ammah, Ibadat ul-Khawas, Taswiya, Manazir Akhassul Khawas. 
Shaikh Muhibbullah's Sufi thought. Shaikh Muhibbulah's teachings and thoughts show that he is firm in faith and practice. He is very much conscious of his moral responsibility and observance of religious laws. He thinks that Tasawwuf teaches us how to purify self, improve one's moral and build up one's inner and outer life in order to attain perpetual bliss.
Shaikh Muhibbullah Allahabadi on Ibn-e-Arabi's works. Shaikh Muhibbullah wrote many commentaries on Ibn-e-Arabi's works. In these Arabic and Persian books he tried to elaborate, interpret and elucidate the Sufi thought of great celebrity. Most of the commentaries of Shaikh Muhibbulah are related to various discussion of the Fusus al-Hikam. Apart from this, he also tried to provide to theological basis for the thought of Ibn-e-Arabi from the Quran. The Shaikh is basically interested in the principal doctrine of Ibn-e-Arabi i.e. Wahdat-al Wujud.
 Shaikh Muhibbullah like other thinkers has developed his Sufi thought on two major planes (a) Metaphysical and (b) Epistemological. But we should not neglect the fact that his philosophy is basically that of a Sufi, not of a philosopher even though he did his best to explain his doctrines in a philosophical way. The chief source of his doctrine is the philosophy of Ibn-e-Arabi.