Similarities and Disparities between Morality and Mysticism in Aḥyā-yi ʿUlūm and Rasālah-yi Qushayrīyyah

Similarities and Disparities between Morality and Mysticism in Aḥyā-yi ʿUlūm and Rasālah-yi QushayrīyyahAbstract Abd al-Karīm Qushayrī’s Rasālah-yi Qushayrīyyah and Muḥammad Ghazzālī’s Aḥyā-yi ʿUlūm are two prominent works in mysticism and ethics. Rasālah-yi Qushayrīyyah is considered a major work in mysticism, while Aḥyā-yi ʿUlūm al-Dīn is renowned for its exploration of ethics. The authors present their perspectives on mysticism and ethics, analyzing various topics and offering definitions of ethical vices and virtues. This research employs an analogical-descriptive approach to examine concepts such as ego, good behavior, jealousy, repentance, happiness (riḍā), and patience in order to identify similarities and disparities between these two fields of mysticism and ethics. The findings indicate that while both works aim to cultivate the human ego, preventing vices and promoting virtues, they differ in their ultimate goals, solutions, principles, and approaches in addressing these issues and resolving subjects such as human ego and obedience to their leader (pīshwā). Keywords: Ethics, Mysticism, Ethical virtues, Aḥyā-yi ʿUlūm al-Dīn, Rasālah-yi QushayrīyyahSimilarities and Disparities between Morality and Mysticism in Aḥyā-yi ʿUlūm and Rasālah-yi QushayrīyyahAbstract Abd al-Karīm Qushayrī’s Rasālah-yi Qushayrīyyah and Muḥammad Ghazzālī’s Aḥyā-yi ʿUlūm are two prominent works in mysticism and ethics. Rasālah-yi Qushayrīyyah is considered a major work in mysticism, while Aḥyā-yi ʿUlūm al-Dīn is renowned for its exploration of ethics. The authors present their perspectives on mysticism and ethics, analyzing various topics and offering definitions of ethical vices and virtues. This research employs an analogical-descriptive approach to examine concepts such as ego, good behavior, jealousy, repentance, happiness (riḍā), and patience in order to identify similarities and disparities between these two fields of mysticism and ethics. The findings indicate that while both works aim to cultivate the human ego, preventing vices and promoting virtues, they differ in their ultimate goals, solutions,