Sufi Classics · July 8, 2026

fātiḥat al-kitāb (Sufi Terminology)

This is the Sabʿ al-Mathānī (the Seven Oft-Repeated), and it contains these seven attributes of the nafs (the lower self): life, knowledge, will, qudra (power), hearing, sight, and kalām (speech). (Insān, I, 76) …

This is the Sabʿ al-Mathānī (the Seven Oft-Repeated), and it contains these seven attributes of the nafs (the lower self): life, knowledge, will, qudra (power), hearing, sight, and kalām (speech). (Insān, I, 76)

faḍīla/faḍāʾil (faḍl) Imām al-Shāfiʿī stated: The faḍāʾil (virtues) are divided into four: The first is ḥikma (wisdom), which means balance in the matter of fikra (reflection). The second is chastity, which signifies balance in the matter of shahwa (desire). The third is