146Here,then,isaroughsketchoftheSufiworldinwhichḤāfiẓhadtosituatehim-
self–arealworld,wheretheinfluenceofSufismwasthedominantfactor,inShīrāz
aswellasinKirmān,inwhich‘ImādFaqīhKirmānīoccupiedapositionthatcan
hardlybeunderestimated.Alreadywell-knownaspoetwhenMubārizal-Dīnwas
stillonlyagovernorintheserviceofthelastMongolemperorAbūSa‘īd(reg.
717/1317–736/1335),‘ImādwasattachedtothelastoftheprincesoftheĪnjūid
dynastyandtothemostcelebratedoftheMuẓaffarids.Whilehehadaspiritualand
moralinfluenceontheseprincesandtheiraristocraticcircles,healsoactedasa
protectorofthepooranddowntroddenagainsttheinterestsof‘thepowerfuland
therich’.^6 Justasmuchashewasapanegyristwhocomposedmuchadulatoryverse
forthoseinpower,healsoactedasaSufishaykhtoseveralgenerationsoffaithful
disciplesinhismonastery(khānaqāh)inKirmān.Hewasaprofoundlyreligiousper-
sonalitywhosefaithisevidentfromnumerousexquisitesupplications(munājāt)and
lovelyprayersimbuedwithsincerity.Insummary,thepersonandthelifeof‘Imād
FaqīhKirmānībringtomindthegreatmodelofcollegialSufism,ShaykhShihābal-
DīnAbūḤafṣ‘UmarSuhrawardī(539/1144–632/1234),whoinhabitedthehighest
echelonofBaghdadsociety,wherehewaspoliticallyattachedtotheAbbasidCaliph
Al-NāṣirBi’llāh(575/1180–622/1225),asiswell-known.
BeforedealingwithḤāfiẓ’sviewsonSufism,onemustaskhowthemastersof
intellectualthoughtinthatageclassifiedhumanbeings.Fromstudyingtheirworks,
weareledtounderstandthattheydidsoinproportiontotheirrespectivedegrees
ofperfection.Thus,inhisṬarīqat-nāma,^7 condensingforhisdiscipleswhat‘Izzal-
Dīn Kāshānī had elaborated in hisMiṣbāḥ al-hidāyat,^8 which in turn had been
extractedfromthe‘Awārifof‘UmarSuhrawardī,‘ImādFaqīhKirmānīexplainedthat
humanbeings(mardum)canbesubdividedintothreelevels.Onthefirstlevelare
thoseperfecthumanbeings,whohavealreadyarrivedatthedivinegoalordained
byGod.Onthesecondlevelarethosewhowalkontheroadtoperfection.Thelow-
estleveliscalled‘theterrainofinsufficiency’,whichisinhabitedbyinferiortypes
ofhumanbeings.TheperfecthumanbeingswhoarefavouredbyGodarerecipients
ofprimordialdivinegrace:‘Suchwayfarersarethejust,companionsoftheRight.
Thosewhotarryonthewayarerebels,companionsoftheLeftHand.’^9
ThosewhohavearrivedattheendoftheWay(wāṣilān)areofthreegroups.First
andforemostofthemaretheProphets,whoGodsendsbackamongsthumankind
aftertheyattainperfectionsoastoguidethosewhoarestillimperfect.Nextcome
theSufimasters(mashāyikh-iṣūfiyya),who‘haveattainedthestationofdivineunion
[wuṣūl] by means of their perfect obedience and following of the Prophet.
Afterwards,theyhavebeenauthorizedandcommissionedtocomebackamongst
meninordertobidthemtofollowthePathoftheProphet.’Thissecondgroup,
statesKāshānī,
areperfectmenwhoarecapableofbringingotherstoperfection[kāmilān-i
mukammal].ThisisbecausebyeternalProvidence’soverflowinggrace,after
havingbeenimmersedinthesourceofunion[‘aynal-jam‘]anddrownedintheḤāfiẓandtheReligionofLoveinClassicalPersianPoetry