The dark side of Sufism
<p>Neither does one need to look very far to find examples of established power structures that based themselves on Islamic mysticism. In the Ottoman Empire, among others, various <a href="http://amzn.to/2gHQIdC" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">Sufi tariqas were supported both financially and ideologically by the sultans</a>, which, in return, assured the loyalty of many sheiks. Another example is the Safavid Empire, one of the important dynasties in Persian history, which was in power between the 16th and the 18th century. Its “state view” on Islam also had a mystical outlook since <a href="http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/safa/hd_safa.htm" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">it based its chain of authority on the sheiks of the Safaviyya tariqa</a>.</p>
<p>Today as well, Islamic mysticism is often interwoven with politics, and sometimes in quite unexpected places. Ayatollah Khomeini, for example, encouraged Michael Gorbatsjov to read the works of classical mystical philosphers such as Ibn Arabi, Ibn Sina and Sohrawardi.</p>
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