A Study Into Attar's Mistycal Stages Based On His Works

A mystical journey can be regarded as the core of mysticism and what distinguishes it from other epistemological systems. Exercising considerable restraints on his way, the real mystical wayfarer, thanks to God's blessings and under the supervision of a spiritual master, passes through the paths of mysticism one after another and as long as he has not completed a stage perfectly, he cannot enter the next one. Attar is a great mystic, putting forth mystical stages simply and poetically. He takes Tawba (repentance), Zuhd (renunciation) and Wara' (watchfulness) into a special consideration, presenting other stages of Faqr (poverty), Sabr (patience), Tawakkul (trust) and Rida (contentment) in detail. This article tries to compare mystical stages in different works of Attar and examine the way they have been presented, their frequency, quantity, and quality. It also attempts to resolve ambiguities and questions arisen in this respect we apply the data through a descriptive- analytic study.