Abstract
SUFI ATTITUDES AND APPROACHES IN THE TRANSITION FROM RATIONAL TAWHID TO INTUITIVE TAWHID
‘Tawhid', or belief in God's unity, constitutes the essence of Islam. Even if tawhid is the focus of the study of such disciplines as scholastic theology, it is effectively one of the main concerns of Sufism. The development of the Sufis' approach to tawhid began with the classical Islamic approach and ultimately reached intuitive awareness of tawhid beyond reason, with the heart and conscience, peaking with the concept of Wahdat al-Wujud, or "Oneness of Being." Every Sufi need not possess such an understanding and it is erroneous to speak of such an obligation. The unity expounded by the Qur'an is sufficient for every Muslim; however, some Sufis seeking to attain true tawhid have not refrained from undertaking diverse paths in this regard. Impeling them in their pursuit is their declaring God to be above having any imperfections or deficiencies (tanzih), God's unity with regard to Wujud, as well as His being the Only One worthy of worship, and their attempt at deeper comprehension of these.
Keywords
Tawhid, Wahdaniyya, Wujud, Tanzih, Junayd
