On Becoming A Member
One person
wrote an e-mail to us wanting to know how to become a member of a Sufi organization.
I'm not
quite certain in what way to respond to your recent request for information on how to join
Sufi organization or group. We are not an organization in the usual sense of the term to which interested
people can apply, as one can join, for example, the Democratic or Republican parties, or
even, for that matter, as one can take out a membership at a public library.
We don't
have any membership lists that we compile or cards which we give out with an official
stamp. We don't have any regular or irregular Newsletter which we send out to members.
We don't
have annual dues. Furthermore, there are no form notices which are sent out requesting
members to make a contribution for this or that project.
There are no
annual elections for this or that office within the Order. The only officer, so to speak,
is the sufi shaykh, teacher, elder, master, or guide (take your pick) who has been
selected for reasons of spirituality, sincerity, commitment, understanding, teaching
abilities, and so on, by the elders of the Sufi Order in question in order to serve the
needs of the Order - part of which is to assist, in whatever way God permits, those who
are thinking about becoming, or who decide to become, committed to being, God willing, a
traveler of the mystical Path.
Notwithstanding
the foregoing disclaimers of what membership in relation to our Sufi Order does not
involve, there are a variety of senses in which interested individuals can become involved
in what we do. However, all of these senses revolve around, on the one hand, the issue of
learning about how to, or if, one wishes to become a practitioner of, and traveler on, the
Sufi Path, and, on the other hand, the observance of various Sufi celebrations and
gatherings during which various kinds of Sufi teachings and spiritual activities are given
expression.
For us,
membership in a Sufi Order - whether ours or some other Order - tends to mean that one has
decided to commit oneself, as best one can and as circumstances permit, to inculcating and
implementing, under the guidance of a qualified teacher, the teachings, practices, and
values of the Sufi approach to engaging life. However, since not everyone can be certain
right away whether or not the Sufi path appeals to her or his mind, heart, soul and
spirit, there is a period of exploration, questioning, reflection and so on which is
necessary before an individual feels that she or he knows enough to be able to make a
decision about whether that person wishes to pursue things more deeply.
Naturally,
an individual in the latter condition is not involved in things in the same way as someone
who has reached an affirmative decision concerning the Sufi Path. Nonetheless, such people
can still attend Sufi functions, gatherings and activities and, in this sense, these
individuals are undergoing a sort of trial-membership.
However, one
of the basic tenets of the Sufi Path is that there can be no compulsion in matters of Deen
- that is, in matters involving the process of coming to realize one's true spiritual
identity and one's essential and unique spiritual capacity. Consequently, this
"trial-membership" comes with no strings attached, no hidden agenda, no
pressure, and no expectations from the Order's side of things.
Each
individual must decide, for himself or herself, whether or not to become a fully committed
member - that is, traveler - on the Sufi Path. Each individual arrives at this decision in
her or his own way and according to that person's time-table, not someone else's
time-table.
So, one can
become a "trial-member" in the foregoing sense. Or, one can become a
full-fledged member as outlined above.
Which kind
of membership is chosen, and for how long, and with what degree of participation, is up to
the individual. In either case, as I am sure you will agree, the idea of membership is not
that of a card-carrying, dues-paying, notice-receiving, officer-electing official member.
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