Read the following passage and answer the question:
By the eleventh century, Sufism evolved into a well-developed movement with a body of literature on Quranic studies and Sufi practices. Institutionally, the sufis began to organise communities around the hospice or Khanqah controlled by a teaching master known as shaikh. He enrolled disciples and appointed a successor. He established rules for spiritual conduct and interaction between inmates as well as between laypersons and the master. Sufi silsilas began to crystallise in different parts of the Islamic world around the twelfth century.
What is the word for ‘Sufism’ in Islamic texts?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Tasawwuf
Option (1) Tasawwuf — Correct. Sufism is an English word coined in the nineteenth century; the word used for it in Islamic texts is tasawwuf. Historians explain the origin of this term in several ways.
Option (2) Suf — Incorrect. Suf means wool. Some scholars derive tasawwuf from it, referring to the coarse woollen clothes worn by sufis; it is a possible root of the word, not the word itself.
Option (3) Safa — Incorrect. Safa means purity. Others derive tasawwuf from it; it too is only a suggested root.
Option (4) Suffa — Incorrect. Suffa was the platform outside the Prophet’s mosque, where a group of close followers assembled to learn about the faith. Tasawwuf may have been derived from it, but it is not the word for Sufism.
Note: A same/similar question was asked in CUET (UG) in the papers below.
| 2026 | 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
| – | 29-05 S1* | – | 02-07 S3 | – |
* A similar question.
NCERT (2026-27): “Sufism and tasawwuf … Sufism is an English word coined in the nineteenth century. The word used for Sufism in Islamic texts is tasawwuf . Historians have understood this term in several ways. According to some scholars, it is derived from suf, meaning wool, referring to the coarse woollen clothes worn by sufis. Others derive it from safa, meaning purity. It may also have been derived from suffa, the platform outside the Prophet’s mosque, where a group of close followers assembled to learn about the faith.” |