In this Concert entitled Wajd—the ecstatic, blissful state induced by poetry and music—the Tarab Ensemble will perform selections of the Arabic Sufi repertoire.

Music in Sufism

Sufism is the mystical branch of Islam. There are many Sufi Tariqas (orders), the most prominent of which are the Mawlawiyya, Qadiriyya, Naqshabandiyya, Shadhiliyya, and ‘Issaawiyya, which have emerged at different times and are spread out geographically.

Despite their disagreement on the use of musical instruments, all Sufi orders consider music a central part of the zikr or dhikr ritual. Dhikr, an Arabic term which means to mention and remember the names of Allah and his prophet Muhammad, is an elaborate process that aims at making the devout reach kashf (revelation), which allows them to experience al-Haqq, Truth—one of the attributes of God—directly and in a whole way that does not separate the mind from the body or the spirit. Music and poetry are the conduits of such an experience.