The Contrastive Study of Theosophy’s and Sufi’s Characteristics from Mowlana’s and Sa’di’s Point of View

Theosophist and Sufi or theosophy or Sufism was almost synonyms during the period, but they were different in terms of meaning and terminology. Sufism is a devout way that is based on religious law and purification of soul by edification of the self and abandoning the world to approach the Right and travel towards the perfection of spirituality. Sufi wants to know who the creator of the world is. But theosophy is an exalted and deep thought and philosophical school and wants to know the Right, problems and secrets of knowledge not by the way of philosophers and sages but through the illumination and observation. He wants to discover the creator of the world. Mowlana and Sa’di consider Sufi as a novice and shortsighted one who pays attention to the appearance in Sufism such as clothing and the like. They also think of Sufi as naïve, prejudice and acute, while a theosophist is a clear-sighted, purified and illuminated sage that his heart has been enlightened through the light of God’s wisdom and illumination. Mowlana combines worship and mortification, praise and thinking with love, enthusiasm, rapture, ecstasy, pleasure, dancing and singing. Love and illumination are the main resources of his theosophy. His theosophy is the best stage of thought and spiritual and ethical elevation which is achieved through discipline, observation, gaining true knowledge and illumination, love of the Right and following the men of God, prophets and saints. Love is the main base of Mowlana’s practices and theosophical school. Sa’di believes on positive and helpful Sufism and theosophical training and ethics and recommends serving the creatures and companionship with people and learning. He considers benefiting from the blessings within the bounds and law. He prefers the sage relieving the people and serving the drowning [lost] to a devotee and sufi managing his own affairs. In this view, wisdom is not the way, but its light and the beginning of the way of refinement… and thereafter drunk with the breeze of God’s blessings, the beginning of which is delight of recollection, the duration of rapture, and the end is love which has no end itself.