The Sufis’ and Ibn al-‘Arabī’s Attitudes Towards the Pillars of Islam

The present book examines the Sufis' and mainly Ibn al-̔Arabī's approaches to the five pillars of Islam. A chapter of ritual purity is added, because this precept is a necessary condition for the implementation of some pillars. The Sufis' approaches to these precepts vacillate between acceptance and rejection. Their acceptance of the pillars is expressed in different ways; mystical , theological, philosophical and ethical considerations are introduced to explain the formal rites of the five pillars. Some Sufis assert that the formal performance of the rules of a certain pillar gives rise to mystical notions and experiences.