Sheikh Abu Abd Al Rahman Al Sulami
40 Hadith on Sufism presents a classical collection of Prophetic traditions assembled by Sheikh Abu Abd al-Rahman al-Sulami (325-412 AH), a major early authority on Islamic spirituality and hadith. The volume offers the original Arabic alongside an English translation, preserving the textual character of the collection while making it accessible to contemporary readers.Al-Sulami’s forty traditions illuminate Sufism through the transmitted sources of Islam. The collection addresses spiritual poverty, contentment, generosity, remembrance of Allah, patience, scrupulousness, companionship, hospitality, restraint from luxury, service, sainthood, and the cultivation of inward and outward integrity.The work is also significant for its hadith framework. Imam al-Sakhawi (831-902 AH), an eminent scholar of hadith, later produced a takhrij of al-Sulami’s collection, examining its transmissions and providing corroborating reports. Brief footnotes in this edition are gleaned and paraphrased from al-Sakhawi’s work. The translator notes that while individual reports do not all possess the same degree of authenticity, the principles represented by the collection occupy a central place within the classical Sufi tradition and its relationship to the Shariah. Among the subjects examined are good conduct, trust in Allah, miracles associated with saints, charitable spending, contentment, remembrance and gratitude, abandonment of worldly excess, concern for the needy, concealment of personal misfortune, generosity, worship in secret, companionship, patched clothing, communal eating, esoteric knowledge, hospitality, perspicacity, and service to Allah.The Arabic-English presentation additionally enables readers to engage directly with the original wording and chains of transmission.A valuable source for scholars and students of Hadith, Sufism, Islamic spirituality, Islamic ethics, and the history of classical Muslim scholarship, this volume is particularly suited to university, seminary, research, and institutional library collections.40 Hadith on Sufism preserves an important early articulation of Islamic spirituality as a discipline grounded in transmitted tradition, ethical refinement, and fidelity to the religious law.
