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Shaykh Mohamed Faouzi al-Karkari

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Shaykh Mohamed Faouzi al-Karkari
Shaykh al-Karkari on the Day of Arafa (2023) at his zawiya in Nador.
Spiritual Master
BornWednesday July 2, 1974
Temsaman, Morocco
Venerated inIslam
InfluencesMuhammad, Ahmad al-Alawi, Ibn Ata Allah al-Iskandari
Tradition or genre
Shadhilli Sufism
Major worksFoundations of the Karkariya Order, The Sufi Path of Light, Introduction to Islamic Metaphysics

Shaykh Mohamed Faouzi al-Karkari (born 1974) (in full: Sīdī Shaykh Abū ʿAbd Allāh Mohamed Faouzi b. Ṭayyib al-Karkari al-Idrīsī al-Ḥasanī) is a Moroccan Sufi shaykh[1] and living founder of the Karkariya Tariqa,[2] a newly formed branch of the prominent Shadhili order;[3] whose mother zawiya is located in Al Aaroui, Morocco.[4][5]

al-Karkari's Karkariya tariqa is physically distinguished by the practice of the wearing of the muraqqa˓a, a colorful patched cloak[6] intended to generate humility in the disciple, as well to revive a Sunnah of Muhammad.[7][8]

Shaykh al-Karkari's tariqa has spread beyond Morocco[9] to other regions of the Maghreb,[10][11] and is beginning to proliferate internationally with burgeoning presence in France and North America.[5] His tariqa is spiritually distinct from other Sufi orders and spiritual paths by being centered on the witnessing of the Light of God, as attested to by a multitude of the Shaykh's disciples.[1][3] His disciples address him by the title Sīdī Shaykh.

Shaykh al-Karkari made his first visit to the United States in May 2023, on invitation from the University of Chicago's Divinity School, lecturing on artificial intelligence from the perspective of Sufism,[12] and other aspects of spiritual wayfaring[13] unique to his tariqa.[14] During his second tour of the United States in July 2024, Shaykh al-Karkari was invited by Stanford University's ATMA Club to speak in an interfaith dialogue on the topic of the spiritual life and the necessity of teachers in spiritual development.

Biography

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Shaykh al-Karkari was born on Wednesday July 2, 1974, inside of a zawiya in Temsaman, Morocco.[15]

Born to a Sharīf—Sīdī Mūlāy Ṭayyib al-Karkarī al-Idrīsī al-Ḥasanī—making Shaykh Al-Karkari a descendent of Muhammad.[15]

His recent ancestors were themselves masters of Tasawwuf under the Shadhili, including his paternal grandfather Sīdī Mūlāy Ṭāhir al-Karkarī (initiated by Shaykh Ahmad al-Alawi himself), and his uncle and own spiritual master Shaykh Mūlāy al-Ḥasan al-Karkari.[15]

Due to a trying experience in his late teens, al-Karkari left home, wandering across Morocco on foot. During this ten year physical and spiritual journey, termed a siyaha, al-Karkari learned tajrid or disengagement from other than God as well as total trust in God (tawakkul).[13]

After receiving a dream beckoning him to return home, al-Karkari returned to his family in Nador, Morocco.[13] Burning with the desire for repentance, al-Karkari formally entered into learning the sciences of tasawwuf, entering into ba'yah with his uncle and murshid Shaykh Mūlāy al-Ḥasan al-Karkari.[15]

He would be one of only a few disciples of Shaykh al-Ḥasan, initiated into the central science of Sufism: the invocation and reading of the name of Allah.

Prior to his passing, Shaykh al-Ḥasan would give Shaykh al-Karkari permission to transmit the tariqa and train disciples as a shaykh.[15]

Publications

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Several of Shaykh al-Karkari's books and teachings have been translated into English, including:

  • The Foundations of the Karkariya Order. Published: July 2, 2021, Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 9782930978567.[16]
  • The Sufi Path of Light. Published: February 23, 2023, Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 9782930978826.[17]
  • Introduction to Islamic Metaphysics. Published: August 11, 2021, Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 9782930978581.[18]
  • In the Footsteps of Moses: A Contemporary Sufi Commentary on the Story of God's Confidant (kalīm Allāh) in the Qurʾān. Published: January 18, 2021, Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 9782930978512.[19]
  • Sufism Revived: A Contemporary Treatise on Divine Light, Prophecy, and Sainthood. Published: January 25, 2021, Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 9782930978529.[20]
  • Candles on the Path. Published: December 10, 2023, Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 9782930978925.[21]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Sufism in Moroccan Public Life: Teaching Ethics and Performing Piety". escholarship.org. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  2. ^ "Introduction to Islamic Metaphysics". Martin Marty Center. Retrieved 2024-03-01.
  3. ^ a b Thibdeau, John C. (2022-09-30). "Visions and Virtues: The Minhāj al-Tarbiya of the ṭarīqa Karkariyya". Journal of Sufi Studies. 11 (2): 251–286. doi:10.1163/22105956-bja10013. ISSN 2210-5948. S2CID 252794208.
  4. ^ "AP PHOTOS: Sufi religious order finally able to gather again". AP News. 2021-10-24. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
  5. ^ a b Casewit, Yousef (2022-12-14), "Made in God's Image: A Contemporary Sufi Commentary on Sūrat al-Insān (Q 76) by the Moroccan Shaykh Mohamed Faouzi al-Karkari", Islamic Thought and the Art of Translation, Brill, pp. 516–527, ISBN 978-90-04-52903-8, retrieved 2024-02-29
  6. ^ "Members of Karkariya Sufi Order wearing colorful clothes gather to..." Getty Images. 2022-10-07. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
  7. ^ "Jami' at-Tirmidhi 1733 - The Book on Clothing - كتاب اللباس - Sunnah.com - Sayings and Teachings of Prophet Muhammad (صلى الله عليه و سلم)". sunnah.com. Retrieved 2024-03-02.
  8. ^ "Khirqa | Encyclopedia.com". www.encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
  9. ^ "The Karkariya: A Colorful Sufi Order Draws Accusations of Political Infiltration". www.moroccoworldnews.com. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
  10. ^ Algerians mistrust new Sufi sect, retrieved 2024-02-29
  11. ^ Farid, Sonia (14 September 2017). "The Karakaria in Algeria: Religious group or 'foreign conspiracy'?". Al Arabiya News.
  12. ^ "Living Sufism and Artificial Intelligence | The University of Chicago Divinity School". divinity.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
  13. ^ a b c "WATCH | Walking as a Spiritual Practice". Martin Marty Center. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
  14. ^ "Graduate Workshop on Ecstatic Sufi Literature". events.uchicago.edu. Retrieved 2024-02-29.
  15. ^ a b c d e Zaghdoudi, Jamil (2019). At the Service of Destiny: A Biography of the Living Moroccan Sufi Master Shaykh Mohamed Faouzi Al-Karkari, May God Sanctify His Secret. ISBN 978-2-930978-40-6.
  16. ^ Karkari, Mohamed Faouzi Al (2021-07-02). The Foundations of the Karkariya Order. Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 978-2-930978-56-7.
  17. ^ Karkari, Mohamed Faouzi Al (2023-02-23). The Sufi Path of Light. Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 978-2-930978-82-6.
  18. ^ Kakari, Mohamed Faouzi Al (2021-08-11). Introduction to Islamic Metaphysics. Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 978-2-930978-58-1.
  19. ^ Karkari, Mohamed Faouzi Al (2021-01-18). In the Footsteps of Moses: A Contemporary Sufi Commentary on the Story of God's Confidant (kalīm Allāh) in the Qurʾān. Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 978-2-930978-51-2.
  20. ^ Karkari, Mohamed Faouzi Al (2021-01-25). Sufism Revived: A Contemporary Treatise on Divine Light, Prophecy, and Sainthood. Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 978-2-930978-52-9.
  21. ^ Al-Karkari, Mohamed Faouzi (2023-12-10). Candles on the Path. Les 7 Lectures. ISBN 978-2-930978-92-5.
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