And munshids (münşid, those who recite devotional hymns) are appointed.
The zāwiya (Sufi lodge) is a place composed of many local quarters made up of small houses built for the stay of visitors during their visits, for the accommodation of the homeless and destitute poor, and for poor families to reside. There are rooms there for the elderly, the sick, shaykhs among these poor, and for the indigent affiliated with the tariqa (Sufi path/order) who possess nothing. In the zāwiya, a section is also reserved for women. There is a house where the shaykh, his household, and his children reside.
The greatness of the zāwiya is not related to the magnificence or appearance of the building. This greatness depends on the degree of the shaykh, his rank in the divine stations (maqām), and the extent of the secrets, lights, sciences, understandings, sound training, and perfect Muhammadan adab (kāmil Muḥammadan etiquette) that Allah has granted him. The kamāl (perfection) in perfect human beings is the mirror of Muhammadan kamāl, and Muhammadan kamāl is the mirror of divine kamāl.
Undoubtedly, the zāwiya always attains exaltedness by being attributed to the unique person of the time, the sole possessor of the moment (waqt). It is a place where the gaze (naẓar) of the Real (al-Ḥaqq) falls among the people. It is a mosque where the obligatory acts of religion are upheld and the sunnah of the Messenger of God (peace be upon him) is revived; a madrasa where the sciences of sharia (the sacred law) and ḥaqīqa (inner reality) are studied and the majesty of Allah is witnessed, a place for tahajjud (night vigil), contemplation, and absorption (istighrāq), and a corner for the murīd (aspirant, disciple) to undertake the spiritual journey (sulūk). (Rihle, 164)
My shaykh is my qalb (the heart), my zāwiya is my head. Wherever I go, they are with me. (Nafahāt, 133)