Hint Alt Kıtası Sûfîlerinden Muhammed Gavs Gevâliyârî ve Tasavvufî Düşüncesi

Muhammad Ghaus Gwaliori One of the Sufis of the Indian Subcontinent and His Mystical Views

Muhammad Ghaus Gwaliori (d. 970/1563) was one of the leading sūfi figures of the Shattāriyya order who lived in the Indian subcontinent in the X/XVI th century during the period of local dynasties and the establishment-development of the Mughal Empire, which resulted in the division of the Delhi Sultanate. In this ancient region, which has hosted various beliefs and cultures for thousands of years, the Shattāriyya tariqa, which has been adopted at the grassroots level, influenced by the culture of the people, developed an attitude of harmony in its teachings, and is considered within the sunnī tradition, has taken on a unique identity compared to other tariqas with its interesting teachings. Muhammad Ghaus, one of the leading figures in this order, is considered to be the founder of the Ghausiyya branch of the order. He had a bright period as a result of the good relations he established with Hindus, and in the following period, he had troubled days due to the fact that he used sentences expressed as shatahāt in his work Mirajnāma, in which he conveyed his spiritual experiences. In his works, he took a close approach to wahdat al-wujūd and tried to adapt cosmological knowledge and yogic elements of Hindu teachings to Sūfism. In his sūfi thought, Muhammad Ghaus occasionally went beyond the tradition and used transcendental/exuberant expressions in his works. Muhammad Ghaus, who contributed a significant literature on divine names and their effects, both benefited from the knowledge of sūfis before him and left a significant impact on those who came after him. In the Islamic sūfi tradition, he appears as a sūfi who mostly followed the line of Ibn al- ‘Arabī and developed his own terminology on some issues and presented in-depth views on various topics of sūfism. In this study, the life, sect, works and sūfi views of Muhammad Ghaus, who has made a name for himself with his life, science, the tariqa he belonged to and his activities in the region, are discussed.

Keywords: Sūfism; Indian subcontinent; Shattāriyya; Muhammad Ghaus; divine names