The great name of Imām al-Shāfiʿī, may Allah have mercy on him, is no stranger to the Muslim world. His authority and stature are undisputed among Muslims. However, the public seems to know him more as an expert in Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh) and the founder of the principles of Uṣūl al-Fiqh, while other—indeed, more important—aspects of his life remain largely unknown.
One of these is his creed (ʿaqīdah), which was firmly grounded in the creed of the Salaf al-Ṣāliḥ, the creed of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) who learned directly from the Prophet ﷺ. This aspect has not been widely discussed, including his criticisms and refutations of several deviant sects, which clearly reveal how far such groups strayed from the straight path. His sharp remarks against these ideologies should leave a deep impression and serve as an important lesson for followers of his school of thought—so they may avoid the very sects their own Imām had rejected. There is a concern that some people who claim to follow the Shāfiʿī school in fiqh may, in fact, hold the creed or defend the ideas of groups refuted by Imām al-Shāfiʿī himself. Indeed, one sometimes hears statements such as: “I am Shāfiʿī in fiqh, Ashʿarī in creed, and Sufi in ethics.” (?!).
Below are some of Imām al-Shāfiʿī’s critiques and refutations of certain sects that existed in his time.
Imām al-Shāfiʿī’s Criticism of Sufism
The Sufi order spread widely across many Muslim lands. It is unclear who first initiated it, but as Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah, may Allah have mercy on him, stated:
“The term Sufi did not exist during the first three generations of the Muslim Ummah. It appeared only after that.”
In its early days, Sufism emphasized asceticism (zuhd), purification of the soul, and detachment from worldly affairs. However, over time, deviations emerged in creed and practice—such as the belief in waḥdat al-wujūd (unity of existence), the proliferation of Sufi orders (ṭuruq) each with its own special litanies (awrad) and rituals, and other practices closely tied to the movement. Sufism began to take shape in the third century Hijri, and interestingly, its leading figures in the third and fourth centuries were all Persian—none were Arab.
The Muslim response to Sufism was divided into two camps: those who supported it and practiced its teachings, and those who rejected it, warned against it, and kept their distance. How then should a Muslim view Sufism?
The standard by which a Muslim evaluates anything is the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of the Messenger ﷺ. When we examine the phenomenon, we find that the waḥdat al-wujūd belief—espoused by figures like Ibn ʿArabī—along with the existence of numerous orders, each teaching different practices depending on their shaykh, is enough to prove that this group is not upon the straight path. Add to that their practices of seeking intercession (tawassul) from the dead and introducing acts of worship never taught by the Prophet ﷺ, and the picture becomes clear.
It is therefore unsurprising that Imām al-Shāfiʿī, may Allah have mercy on him, openly criticized and refuted this movement. His views on Sufism and its followers are well-documented in the works that detail his biography.
One striking statement he made upon arriving in Egypt was:
"I left in Iraq something newly invented by the heretics (zindīqs) which they call taghbīr—by it they distract people from the Qur’an."
In another narration, he said:
"I left Baghdad, and the heretics there had introduced something new which they call samāʿ."
The term zindīq refers to someone whose religion has been corrupted. Here, Imām al-Shāfiʿī was referring to the mutasawwifah (Sufis). What he meant by taghbīr or samāʿ was singing and chanting that they performed.
He entered Egypt in 199 AH, and his statement shows that samāʿ was a religious innovation unknown to Muslims before then. His other recorded remarks indicate that these heretical practices were already known prior to that year.
Imām al-Bayhaqī, with his chain of narration, reported from Yūnus ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā that he heard Imām al-Shāfiʿī say:
"If a man becomes a Sufi in the morning, by midday you will find him to be a fool."
This alludes to the Sufi style of indoctrination, where a disciple (murīd) must show excessive reverence for his shaykh (and those considered saints), accepting all teachings without question—even when they contradict reason or the Sharīʿah. A disciple’s obedience to his master is likened to a corpse in the hands of the one washing it.
Consider, for instance, a claim recorded in Karāmāt al-Awliyāʾ (2/367) that a certain “saint” could complete the recitation of the Qur’an 360,000 times in a single day and night. If one’s mind remains intact and unclouded by excessive veneration of such figures, it is impossible to accept this. A day and night consist of 1440 minutes, meaning the so-called saint would need to complete 250 full Qur’an recitations every single minute—an absurd impossibility.
In another instance, Imām al-Shāfiʿī said:
"The foundation of Sufism is laziness."
He also remarked:
"A person will not be a (true) Sufi until four traits are found in him: extreme laziness, excessive eating, pessimism, and wasting much time on what is unnecessary."
These statements alone are enough to form a clear and critical view of Sufism and its teachings. It is not a path that benefits the Muslim Ummah—especially coming from the founder of Uṣūl al-Fiqh, who possessed deep knowledge of Islamic law.
May Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, return the Muslim Ummah to venerating and adhering to the guidance of the Messenger ﷺ.
Wallāhu aʿlam.
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