“Journey” in Gnostic Prose Texts
Subject Areas : Research in Iranian classical literatureKeywords: Gnostics and Sufism journey apostolic custom Gnostic prose texts,
Abstract :
Islamic Gnostics/ Sufism mainly originates from the Quran and the apostolic custom; and is based on piety and pure devotion, with the flavor of love. “Journeying” is one of the issues and traditions which in two levels of external and internal (spiritual) has been of great importance and controversy for the Sufi elders and researchers. The present article studies the external journey during a long period of time, from the early stages of the development of Gnostics and Sufism up to the end of the 8th (Islamic) century. Types of journey, its motivations, advantages, goals and objectives, and requirements are studied according to the different views of the Sufis and other great figures of each period. The research was done by a descriptive-analytic method. In addition to reliance on the holy Quran and sacred sayings, we have also made references to the theoretical works on Sufism, and the biographies of the Sufi elders from the 5th to the 8th centuries.