The Subtle Body in Sufism

This chapter is taking up the subtle body in the Islamic/Sufi traditions. It clarifies the place of subtle bodies in Islamic understanding through the lens of key Sufi thinkers from the ninth century to the modem time. Important to this work are the early chroniclers of Sufi doctrine and praxis (who are also compilers of major works of Sufism) such as Hujwiri, Attar and Rumi. This chapter aims to highlight important themes that are connected to the theory and practice of Sufism overall, but more importantly, to offer some degree of clarity on the fascinating subject of the subtle body in Sufism. The present brief examination also pays close attention to the synthesizing efforts and reformist impulse of the Sufis in the development of working theories of the subtle body.