Re-visioning Sufism

Sufism is often described as 'the mystical branch of Islam'. Giving some more attention to this underexposed spiritual side, it is often proposed, could help us to ease certain contemporary societal tensions. One finger then points toward the rigorous religious aggression of fundamentalism as 'the problem', while another points toward the soft beauty of mysticism as 'the solution'.

Yet, no matter how well-intended the contemporary focus on Sufism might often be, in the end, it repeatedly por...