munafiqun See hypocrites.
murid
This is an aspirant or disciple associated with a
Sufi order, who has sworn allegiance to a Sufi
master (murshid or shaykh). This term, derived
from the Arabic root irada, or desire, is generally
used to describe those who participated in tariqas
(Sufi orders) from approximately the 12th to the
15th centuries throughout Islamdom. This period
is characterized by sUFism’s organization into hier-
archical structures, with each Sufi master guid-
ing his murids along a certain method or path of
mystical knowledge, which he in turn had learned
from his master and the long silsila or chain of
mystical teachers before him. Murids typically
would undergo initiation ceremonies, in which
they would be presented with a cloak or a hat.
Expected to memorize the names of all previous
masters in the silsila of his tariqa, the murid also
prepared to learn its particular mystical teachings,
so that he in turn could transmit them to others
when he would become a master. The word murid
is still used today in a similar way, characterizing
the relationship of one who is under the guidance
of a Sufi master.
Many manuals were written expressing the
correct relationship between the master and his
disciple, which was one of complete surrender
reflecting divine hierarchy, and in particular the
Islamic emphasis on surrender to God. It was said
that the murid should be as passive as a corpse
being washed. Feminine imagery is found in
medieval Sufi literature as well, with advice that
this submission should be as a bride to a bride-
groom, and a description of the Sufi master as
nourishing his murid like a mother does a child.
Sophia PandyaFurther reading: Carl W. Ernst, Shambhala Guide to
Sufism (Boston: Shambhala, 1997); Margaret Malamud,
“Gender and Spiritual Self-Fashioning: The Master-
Disciple Relationship in Classical Sufism.” Journal of
the American Academy of Religion 64 (1996): 89–117; J.
Spencer Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (Oxford:
Clarendon Press, 1971).Muridi Sufi Order (Muridiyya)
A Sufi order established among the Wolof tribe
of Senegal in Touba around 1886 by the shaykh
ahmadU bamba (1850–1927). Originally an off-
shoot of the qadiri sUFi order, the order pro-
duced its own rituals and litanies and developed
a unique emphasis upon the value of hard work,
which would become a hallmark of the Muridi-
yya. Disciples were taught to obey their shaykhs,
renounce worldly pleasures, and devote them-
selves to productive occupations. Over time,
the Muridiyya became an economic force in the
region, particularly due to their cultivation and
sale of peanuts.
Muridiyya independence could be viewed as
resistance to the French colonial regime, a fact
that increased their attractiveness to the Wolof
and caused French administrators to view them
with suspicion. For this reason, colonial authori-
ties twice exiled Bamba from Senegal, hoping
to diminish his popularity. When this failed,
the French attempted to co-opt the Muridiyya,
finally establishing a modus vivendi with the
group in recognition of their stabilizing influence.
The Muridiyya attracted Wolof from all different
social strata, emphasizing the development of
a community that transcended normal societal
divisions. Bamba’s religious knowledge, integrity,
and humble piety, when combined with his orga-
nizational abilities, helped him to create an order
that provided much-needed structure for a Sen-
egalese society disrupted by colonial domination.
Bamba eventually won the confidence of French
authorities by demonstrating a lack of interest in
temporal authority and by cooperating with them
in tangible ways.
Following the shaykh’s death in 1927, the
Muridiyya continued this policy of cooperation
with political authorities, despite internal succes-K (^502) munafiqun