Companions on the Way: Sufism in 21st Century Oakland, California

Abstract

This project explores the religious philosophy, pedagogical practices and story of Mahmoud Malamatian, an Iranian-American Sufi teacher who practices in present-day Oakland, California. I have known Mahmoud, his wife Rozaneh and their family for eight years. To honour my proximity to the 'subject,' I employed a Lived Religion theoretical framework and gathered data using the qualitative autoethnographic research method.

This dissertation highlights three themes in particular, (1) Mahmoud's pedagogical approach for teaching Sufism, (2) his lack of affiliation with any religious institution, and (3) Sufi tabaqat, a genre of Islamic and Sufi biographical manuals. The tabaqat serve as a tool for historically and religiously contextualizing, as well as defining Mahmoud's philosophy and practices. In particular, I consulted the tabaqat of the medieval Persian Sufi masters Sulami (d. 1034), Hujwiri (d. 1077) and Qushayri (d. 1072/3) and the work of Sufi poets and storytellers like Rumi (d. 1273) and Attar (d. 1221).

This autoethnographic case study of contemporary Sufism, focusing specifically upon Mahmoud's philosophy, pedagogy and practices, explores these themes in the context of six specific subjects: Sufism generally; love (muhabba; ishq); lineage and transmission (silsilah); adab and companionship; storytellers and stories in Sufism; and gender and power. Ultimately, this work provides a window into a contemporary expression of Sufism that is profoundly traditional but adapted for its time and place.