SUFISM AND PANDEMIC: Lesson Learned from Sufi Teachings and its Prominent Figures

Religious perspective is an important aspect to be used in dealing with the COVID-19 global pandemic and the Islamic one is not an exception. It is Sufism that concerns more on the spiritual dimension of Islam that might be taken into consideration. Based on several books on Sufi scholars and teachings, such as al-Isfahani’s Ḥilyat al-Auliyā’ wa-ṭabaqāt al-Aṣfiyā, al-Attar’s Tadhkirat al-Auliyā, al-Sakandari’s al-Ḥikam, and others, this article proposes Sufi teachings as inevitable tools in facing the pandemic. Using content analysis, intertextuality, and historical approaches, this paper concludes how Sufism with its basic teachings such as ‘uzlah, ṣumtu, qanā’ah, shukr, et cetera, will be the suitable elements for Muslims to face and overcome the pandemic. Several prominent Sufi scholars will also be used to strengthen the argument.

http://journal.walisongo.ac.id/index.php/teosofia This writing proposes Sufi teachings as a vehicle in facing the pandemic. Sufism has been one of the Islamic teachings which are important in Muslim society. It deals with the spiritual aspect of life. 9 Its teaching is numerous starting from the easiest to complicated ones. Its goal for Muslims is to achieve the so-called ma'rifatullāh.
There are a lot of sources written by scholars in this regard. We need to compare one source to another to find out how numerous the Sufi teachings which are useful to deal with the Covid-19. Using intertextuality 10 and content analysis 11 on several books on Sufi teachings and prominent Sufi figures, this article will be able to depict their significant aspects to facing the pandemic. In addition to both methods, the analysis of the Sufi figures will use a historical perspective to get its significance to this paper's topic.

B. Teachings of Sufism
Islam has Sufism tradition. Sufism understands religion based on the ethical dimensions rather than the ceremonial ones. To face the real threat of the Covid-19 is to face with ethical dimensions of religion. 12 Islamic Sufism has many practices that help people to cut the spreading of the Covid-19. Among those practices are 'uzlah, ṣumtu, and qanā'ah. 13 'Uzlah is avoiding a crowd and contact with other people. By doing 'uzlah, automatically, people do not have any direct physical contact with others which means keeping distance from others. In this regard, Arifin has examined 'uzlah among Santri communities in Islamic boarding schools (pesantren). 14 While Ṣumtu means keep 9 Muh. Mustakim 13 For more details on those teachings several following books might be usefull, Ibn Athaillah Al-Sakandari, Laṭā'if Al-Minan, ed. Abd al-Halim Mahmūd (Beirut: Dār al-Mina, 2007); Abu Hāmid Al-Ghazālī, Minhāj Al-'Abidīn Ilā Jannati Rabb Al-'Alamīn (Cairo: Dār al-Minhāj, 1998); Ihsan Muhammad Dahlan Al-Jampesi, Sirāj Al-Ṭālibīn (Beirut: Dar al-Fikr, 2002 The definition of 'uzlah in the Sufism tradition, according to al-Ḥikam, is to do tafakkur, think, digest the phenomena of Allah's creation with whole-souled. 16 Totality in tafakkur which merely to glorify Allah's names (Asma> ' Alla> h) and underestimate all His creations will bring optimism in facing the Covid-19 pandemic. In the context of Sufism, pandemics are equated with creatures, so there is no need to respond to them with excessive fear.
Silence in Sufism has also its own significance. Silence means being efficient by not communicating and interacting directly with others. 17 Keeping silent has an impact on reducing the potential for virus transmission. In this context, silence is golden. Avoiding the negative impact that may arise from direct face-to-face communication with silent activities is in line with the government's policy on social distancing.
Meanwhile, qanā'ah, accepting what it is, is also a very important means. This attitude is a blessing for all accidents that occur, whatever the conditions. The result of applied qanā'ah is that if someone succeeds in his/her efforts, it does not make him/her easy to be takabbur (pride). On the contrary, when failure happens, he/she is not easy to despair. This kind of character makes a person very healthy psychologically as well as the basic capital of a person's optimal role in society.
The attitude of qanā'ah is also a medicine for the heart in order not to be easily trapped in greed. The absence of a greedy attitude in someone will make him have more empathy for others. This is reinforced by not being miserly to share. In the context of the movement against the pandemic, the government certainly cannot afford it alone. Community support is a necessity. A sālik (a spiritual traveler in Sufism) 18 who makes qanā'ah as his attitude is the best factor for the success of the joint movement against the Covid-19 pandemic.
In addition to the described teachings in Sufism, there are also known steps of a sālik to get closer to Allah. These stages are takhalli, taḥalli, and tajalli. 19 All three are stages of a Sufi as an effort to cleanse oneself, draw closer to Allah and get the blessings of ma'rifat. Takhalli is the stage where a sālik cleanses himself of bad qualities, despicable and immoral actions that pollute the heart of a sālik. These traits include jealousy and envy, prejudice, pride, showing off, being short-tempered, self-centered, selfish, easy to blame others, and so on.
The prohibition to have qualities that are not commendable for a sālik makes him a proportional individual in his role in society. The distance of uncommendable traits makes a sālik able to become an influencer related to the still uncontrolled Covid-19 pandemic. The existing movement to minimize the transmission of the Covid-19 virus driven by the government can work more effectively by involving sālik in the world of Sufism and tharīqah.
A sālik will perform the next stage, namely taḥalli, after being able to cleanse himself of all attitudes and actions that are not commendable. This stage is selfdecoration with noble qualities, commendable character. All aspects of his life are decorated with positive deeds that not only have an impact on self-pity but also social piety. This social piety influences a conducive atmosphere for social order and society. The emergence of social piety in a person, of course, will be very positive if it is associated with a joint movement against the pandemic. The willingness to help, concern for others and the empathy possessed by a sālik become one of the important forces for the dissemination of the joint movement. The sālik is easy to become a volunteer and influencer in the community as strategic partners of the government in disseminating the public awareness movement against the pandemic.
The third stage is tajalli. In the view of the Sufi scholars, such as Ibn al-'Arabi, tajalli is the revelation of the divine light into the heart. The Sufis believe that one can gain the radiance of divine light after abandoning despicable qualities and practicing noble qualities. 20 The presence of the radiance of divine light into the heart of a sālik will make him more empathetic and more socially sensitive. His siding with the community, no longer individualistic, made him a role model in the community movement against the pandemic.
In addition to the principal teachings on Sufism, Islam also emphasizes the importance of cleanliness and clean living. A very popular jargon in Islam is "cleanliness is part of the faith". With the clean living behavior that is owned by the community and supported by the examples of the Sufis with their various teachings, the success of the movement against the Covid-19 pandemic is more to be expected. Yes, clean living behavior can be expected to eliminate the rate of virus transmission, at the same time, the pandemic reminds us of the substance of Islamic teachings, to always be able to maintain cleanliness.
Teosofia: Indonesian Journal of Islamic Mysticism, Vol. 10, No. 2, 2021 http://journal.walisongo.ac.id/index.php/teosofia It is still related to the teachings of Sufism which is no less important to restore the consciousness of mankind as religious beings. Teachings to be patient (ṣabr) 21 surrender to Allah (tawakkal) love to God (maḥabbah), 22 and various other forms of submission 23 are the pillars of the community's strength to face the pandemic.
Ṣabr, patience, brings people not to easily complain, especially when they are provoked by hoax news. It will train someone to be wiser in accepting situations, including when they are hit by a pandemic, which in turn will strengthen a person's maturity in interacting with the community. Likewise, a patient person will have the physical and mental strength to face various trials from Allah. With full confidence, a patient person always declares that he is a creature, on the other hand, the pandemic that is hitting is also a creature. Therefore, patient people have better endurance than those who are short-tempered.
Concerning combating the Covid-19 pandemic, patience is very important regarding the attitude of not being easily tempted to travel during the pandemic when there are no urgent necessities. Compliance with health protocols, a clean living culture are keys to reducing further spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. In this regard, obedience clearly requires patience, especially patience for keeping stay at home for safety reasons.
Tawakkal, surrender to Allah, is a teaching that strengthens self-confidence not to be excessively afraid of the pandemic. Death is God's secret for any of His servants whose time will definitely come. Amid the news that there is always death every day, when a person has put his trust in Allah, psychologically he will be calmer. Calm, surrender, and trust in God actually have an impact on strengthening the body's immune power which in turn will make a person more healthy.
In the perspective of Sufism, one will get more love for Allah due to his/her submission, tawakkal, and patience. Love or maḥabbah in the Sufi world brings a person to be fearless and psychologically become a truly healthy person. Mental health in turn will strengthen physical endurance. A healthy soul will make us physically healthy. In this regard, there is a significant relationship between Sufi values and mental-physical health for an individual. When these Sufistic teachings are cultivated in social life, people will be more resistant to the Covid-19 pandemic. This section will show several Sufi figures with their own character. What is meant by self-character is information about prominent traits in their Sufi life that can serve as role models for the current generation in the success of the mass movement against the Covid-19 pandemic. The personal information of the Sufis is taken from two authoritative sources; the first is Fariduddin al-Attar's writing entitled Tadhkīrāt al-Auliyā, and the second is the work of Abu Nu'aim al-Isfahani entitled Ḥilyat al-Auliyā wa-Ṭabaqāt al-Aṣfiyā'.
The exemplary segment of the Sufis from these two authoritative sources is intended to strengthen the legitimacy of Sufi teachings as a tool against the pandemic. If it is only teaching, then the implication is only normative, on the contrary, teaching by involving its representative figures makes the norm have significance in the real world.
The daily characters of the Sufis and the number of prominent figures are so numerous so that it is impossible to take all of them in this limited paper. For this reason, considering the relevance of some norms of Sufi teachings that have been described previously, the following section limits four Sufi characters and their relevant examples to the context of the community movement against the pandemic. They are i) self-correction; ii) selfless and keep learning; iii) cheerful and joke; iv) friendly to take hints 1. Self-Correction Sufi figures are known as persons who are reminded by God when have done mistakes or wrong things. Sufis, because they are still human, sometimes also feel 'ujub and consider themselves to be better than others. Because of their piety, Allah gave them a warning so that they would not repeat the same mistake that causes heart diseases which are complicated and seem trivial, but can interfere with their piety status in front of God.
The movement to fight the pandemic requires leaders, community leaders who are not allergic to criticism. Each member of the community is also expected to stay away from heart diseases, such as jealousy, feel the most self-righteous, easily blame others, and always have excessive suspicion.
Such mental illness is a serious obstacle in building harmony in society. For this reason, a continuous awareness process is needed so that each member of the community based on religious-spiritual norms can avoid heart diseases, as well exemplified by Sufi figures. http://journal.walisongo.ac.id/index.php/teosofia

Selfless and Keep Learning A character named Bakr ibn Abdullah al-Muzani is called by the author of Ḥilyat
al-Auliyā as a person who is thirsty for learning, likes to advise others, intelligent, and confident. 25 Bakr bin Abdullah al-Muzani became important as one of the Sufi figures for the example of the movement against the pandemic because of his unique inherent character, namely acting selflessly, as well as representing a Sufi figure who has a lot of wealth.
The general public believes that people who study Sufism are people who stay away from the world because many studies have analyzed Sufi vocabulary derived from ṣufah [wool cloth] which reflects simplicity. In ancient times, in classical Islamic civilization, wool was a symbol of simplicity, compared to other types of fabric.
Hundreds of figures are mentioned in the literature of Sufi figures, the fact is simple, away from worldly luxuries. In addition, the teachings of the tariqa also many recommend 'uzlah, stay away from the world.
The figure of Bakr bin Abdullah al-Muzani is a representation of Sufism that does not prevent a person from having luxury, only an attitude to be modest and not limit himself in association with the public, especially the poor, making al-Muzani a character worthy of being a role model.
He is also known as a person who is consistent with the prayers that are said as a sami'tu ibn 'abdillah al-muzannī yad'u bi-hādza l-du'āi lā yada'uhu: allāhumma iftaḥ lanā min khazā'ini raḥmatika raḥmatan lā tu'adzdzibunā ba'dahā abadan fi l-dunyā wa l-ākhirah, wa-min faḍlika l-wāsi'i rizqan ḥalālan ṭayyiban lā tafqirunā ba'dahu ilā aḥadin siwāka abadan, tuzīdunā laka bi-himā syukran wa-ilaika fāqatan wa-faqran, wa-bika 'an-man siwāka ghaniyyan wa-ta'affufan [I heard Abu Bakr bin Abdullah Al Muzani pray with this prayer, he never left it: 'O Allah, open for us the treasuries of Your mercy, so that You do not punish us after that forever in this world and the hereafter, and from Your vast fadhilah, lawful and good sustenance, which does not make us need anyone other than You forever, which makes us even more grateful to 25   The wealth owned by Bakr al-Muzani did not prevent him from associating with the poor and needy, so the existence of his wealth became wasīlah that he helped many people in need.
Besides being generous and selfless in helping, Bakr al-Muzani is also known as a person who is thirsty to learn kindness from others. He does not feel better than others, on the contrary, always puts himself as a person who is less good in front of others. As in Ḥilyat, it is narrated as follows: 28 ‫قبلى،‬ ‫هللا‬ ‫عبد‬ ‫مىن‬ ‫خري‬ ‫هذا‬ ‫قال:‬ ‫شيخا‬ ‫أى‬ ‫ر‬ ‫إذا‬ ‫هللا‬ ‫عبد‬ ‫إبن‬ ‫بكر‬ ‫كان‬ ‫أسلم:‬ ‫إبن‬ ‫سهل‬ ‫قال‬ ‫يقول:‬ ‫وكان‬ ‫تكب،‬ ‫إر‬ ‫ما‬ ‫من‬ ‫أكثر‬ ‫الذنوب‬ ‫من‬ ‫تكبت‬ ‫إر‬ ‫مىن‬ ‫خري‬ ‫هذا‬ ‫قال:‬ ‫شااب‬ ‫أى‬ ‫ر‬ ‫وإذا‬ ‫و‬ ‫ا‬ ‫أتمثو‬ ‫مل‬ ‫أخطأمت‬ ‫وإن‬ ‫أجرمت،‬ ‫أصبتم‬ ‫إن‬ ‫أبمر‬ ‫عليكم‬ ‫وإن‬ ‫ا‬ ‫تؤجرو‬ ‫مل‬ ‫أصبتم‬ ‫إن‬ ‫أمر‬ ‫وكل‬ ‫إايكم‬ ‫أخطأمت‬ ‫وإن‬ ‫ا‬ ‫تؤجرو‬ ‫مل‬ ‫أصبتم‬ ‫لو‬ ‫فإنكم‬ ‫ابلناس‬ ‫الظن‬ ‫سوء‬ ‫قال:‬ ‫هو؟‬ ‫ما‬ ‫قيل‬ ‫أمثتم،‬ ‫أخطأمت‬ ‫أمثتم‬ qāla sahl ibn aslam: kāna bakr ibn 'abdillāḥ idzā ra'ā syaikhan qāla: hādzā khairun minni 'abada allāha qablī, wa-idzā ra'ā syābbān qāla: hādzā khairun minnī irtakabtu min al-dzunūb aktsara min-mā irtakaba, wa-kāna yaqūlu: 'alaikum bi-amrin in aṣabtum ajartum wa-in akhṭa'tum lam ta'tsamū, wa-iyyākum wa-kulla amrin in aṣabtum lam tu'jarū wa-ina akhṭa'tum atsimtum, qīla mā huwa? qāla: sū'u ẓ-ẓonni bi l-nāsi fainnakum law aṣabtum lam tu'jarū wa-in akhṭa'tum atsimtum [Sahl bin Aslam said, "It was Bakr bin Abdullah when he saw an old man, he said: 'This man is better than me, he has been worshiping Allah since http://journal.walisongo.ac.id/index.php/teosofia before me.' And when he saw the young man he said, 'This man is better than me, I have committed more sins than he did.' He also said, 'You must carry out the orders. If you are right you will be rewarded, and if you are wrong then you are not sinful. And you should stay away from everything that if you are right you will not get a reward and if you are wrong you will sin.' Said, 'What is it?' He said, 'It's bad to think of other people. Because if you are right then you will not get a reward, but if you are wrong then you are sinful'.] The existence of Bakr al-Muzani is very important as a role model in society, whether as a figure or an ordinary citizen. An example for community leaders is modesty amid their wealth, at the same time feeling that their goodness is still lacking, although they have done a lot of good.
For members of society, this figure is also a mirror, rich, big, and influential people are still ordinary, modest, then why do poor people want to have a disproportionate and self-serving attitude. In short, the example of this figure is important in joint efforts in the community to increase mutual immunity and fight the epidemic that is still hitting. A person with the gift of wealth and then able to be modest and get along with anyone will be a supporter of togetherness in social life. wa-minhum dzū l-'aqli l-raṣīn wa-l-wara' al-matīn, al-muṭ'im li l-ikhwān wa l-zā'irīn wa-mu'ẓim al-rajā'a li l-mudznibīn abū bakr muhammad ibn sīrīn, kāna dzā wara'in wa-amānatin wa-ḥīṭatin wa-ṣiyānatin, kāna bi llaili bukā'an nā'iḥan wa-bi l-nahāri basāman sā'iḥan yaṣūmu yawman wayufṭiru yawman

Cheerful and Joke
[some of them were Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Sirin, who had a calm mind, wara' and steadfast, who loved to feed his brothers and travellers, and raise hope for the sinners. He has piety, trust, protection and maintenance. Ibn Sirin is told as a person who is cheerful and likes to joke, of course with jokes that are not excessive. As a Sufi figure and often a role model for the community, in addition to his qualified Islamic knowledge, ibn Sirin has the joy of generating optimism in the community.
This testimony of joy was put forward by Habib bin al-Shahid one time when ibn Sirin was teaching. Some of these happy stories were written by Abu Nu'aim as follows: 30 A character named Yusuf bin Athiyah Abu Sahl gave a similar testimony that one day he saw ibn Sirin as a person who joked and laughed a lot. Once, according to Abu Syaudzab's narrative, it is still written on the same page, Ibn Sirin used to joke with his friends, and he once said to his friends, "welcome, O al-mudarfisyīn". The word al-mudarfisyūn is the person who witnesses the corpse and carries it to the grave.
The cheerful and joking nature of the Sufis, aka humorous, is not well known to the public. They get the image that the Sufis are only engrossed in their God, their days are full of dhikr, 'uzlah, and various activities that stay away from the world.
Ibn Sirin represents a unique Sufi character, with his cheerfulness and humor. This is very important to complete the Sufistic teachings about patience, tawakkal, http://journal.walisongo.ac.id/index.php/teosofia and avoiding various heart diseases. When in a society, both the characters and their members are humorous; then many things can be handled jokingly in finding solutions. This includes the existence of a pandemic with a very high level of danger. The tense atmosphere that haunts the community due to a large number of deaths makes people need relaxation with humor, so they don't get confused and get carried away in depression.
4. Friendly to take hints The figure in terms of being friendly to take guidance is Abdullah al-Mursi. This is expressed as part of the principle of a tharīqah, namely the Syadziliyah congregation. The basic principles of the Syadziliyah teachings are stated in al-Mafākhir as follows: 31 ‫اإلقتداء‬ ‫مع‬ ‫الصادقة‬ ‫احملبة‬ ‫و‬ ‫اإلهتداء‬ ‫مع‬ ‫الصاحلة‬ ‫الصحبة‬ ‫الشاذلية‬ ‫يق‬ ‫طر‬ ‫ىف‬ ‫العمدة‬ ‫إن‬ [inna l-'umdata fī ṭarīqi l-syādziliyyati al-ṣuḥbatu al-ṣāliḥatu ma'a lihtidā'i wa l-maḥabbatu al-ṣādiqatu ma'a l-iqtidā'i] [In fact, the basic principles in the teachings of the Syadziliyah congregation are good friends to take guidance and true love to imitate] Good friendship in the tariqa is to seek and take guidance about goodness. A good friendship certainly involves goodness, because the intention in the friendship is also for the good. Meanwhile, true love is love that is based on the spirit of imitation.
A tariqa student, for example, when he loves his murshid or teacher, the context of his love is to imitate the teacher's daily life as a whole, at the same time accompanied by sincere devotion. Likewise, a murshid or teacher is required to have a sense of love in guiding spiritually the students. Based on their love for God, the students' perseverance in studying Sufism to seek God's pleasure is firmly embedded in their souls.
In the context of the community movement against the pandemic, Sufi figures who are always friendly to seek guidance and kindness are very relevant. Such a teacher-student relationship becomes a social role model for the community, to always establish friendships and work for hand in hand to face the pandemic. Generally, in society, if someone is infected with the virus, the community's empathy for those who are undergoing self-isolation deserves appreciation. Limited access for survivors who are in self-isolation requires the help of neighbors regarding their daily needs. The movement to help each other meet the basic needs of survivors by the community is identical to the teacher-student love relationship in the tariqa world.
The practice of community life that works together needs to be strengthened in terms of religious values. The Sufistic perspective that teaches togetherness, empathy for helping each other becomes a strengthening of society because what they do is a Teosofia: Indonesian Journal of Islamic Mysticism, Vol. 10, No. 2, 2021 http://journal.walisongo.ac.id/index.php/teosofia real embodiment of religious teachings, especially the teachings of Sufism which is the embodiment of Islamic values. Thus, Islamic values become a legitimator for the social practice of the community to be even stronger because it has a legitimacy basis.

D. Conclusion
So many Sufi teachings from simple to complex levels encourage strengthening the community to face and fight the Covid 19 pandemic. The data from the Sufi literature show that the teachings are very diverse and well-practiced by Sufis. This shows very strongly that Sufi teachings can be used as concrete examples in the community who are struggling together against the Covid 19 pandemic. Piety, total submission to God, an attitude of accepting existence, far from being greedy and miserly, and various other Sufi teachings become the legitimator of the community movement to respond to the pandemic proportionally and boost their ability to fight it.