We are a group of like minded people based in Wolverhampton, England. We have a common interest in spirituality, and mysticism.

We come from different ethnic and cultural backgrounds, but have come together in unity seeking to know our Creator. We aim to promote peace, harmony, and spiritual development in our own lives, and our communities.

Our inspiration comes from God, and the prophets which He sent out of His love and compassion for humankind. Our Prophet Muhammad was the last of these messengers who was sent as a Mercy for all creation.

His message has been kept alive and transmitted as the classical teachings of Islam, that are well established with more than a 1400 year history.

Our emphasis is on knowing God, through the spiritual disciplines known as Sufi tariqahs. These spiritual traditions have passed from teacher to student starting with the Prophet Muhammad himself.

We practice Sufi meditation techniques (Zikr), which have a number of spiritual and physical benefits. Some of these include; inner peace, stress reduction, shed negative attitudes and emotions, lose of fears, improved focus, increased consciousness of God, and more spiritual strength and vitality.

True spiritual disciplines are a medicine for the heart and soul, in a similar way other medicines are for the body. We live in a time when many, while addressing their physical needs are giving little thought to their spiritual needs.

People are essentially spiritual beings who are living, for a time in this world. Therefore while we do require certain physical things in order to get by, it is spirituality and self sacrifice which give the greatest rewards in this life and the next.

Email:

wulfruna.sufi@googlemail.com

Affiliation

Wulfruna Sufi Association supports and stands by the mission statement of the Sufi Muslim Council (SMC), reproduced below…

SMC aims to provide practical solutions for British Muslims, based on the traditional Islamic legal rulings of an international advisory board, many of whom are recognized as the highest ranking Islamic scholars in the world.
For the first time in the UK, we have tried to integrate traditional scholarship in resolving contemporary issues affecting the maintenance of Islamic beliefs in a modern, secular society.

STATEMENT

Muslims comprise the second largest religion in UK and live as any other citizens, looking after their families and attending to their work. The majority of Muslims have nothing to do with and vigorously condemn extremism and fringe organisations that incite unrest around the world for their own ideological purposes. It is also hoped that through this published series, Muslims in UK will understand that they have not been fully informed regarding the ideology, agenda and activities of many Muslim organisations and groups which they have faithfully supported for years.

Extremism In All Religions Condemned by SMC
While every religion rejects acts of tyranny, injustice and oppression, extremism is found in every religion. As Muslims we are supporters of love, peace, justice, respect and tolerance. Thus, we see it as our duty to continue to shed light on current events while doing our best to see that the wave of militant radicalism sweeping Muslim nations does not strike again in UK, where we live.
Therefore SMC, with all its members and directors, condemns all forms of terrorism and the oppression of human rights around the world, whether committed by Muslims, Christians, Jews or members of other faiths. We see that among members of every religion there are those who commit terrorist acts, but they must not be used to label a whole community.

As Muslims in UK, we declare that we do not support any extremists.
The Nazis–oppressors of many nations and of the Jews – stand condemned. Christian-Irish extremists engaged in fratricide stand condemned. Christian-Serbian extremists, oppressors of innocent Muslims in Bosnia and Kosova, stand condemned. Extremist Jews attacking innocents, stand condemned. Similarly, Muslim extremists, like bin Laden and his affiliates–such as Omar Bakri and Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri and their circles–must be condemned. Therefore, we stand up as Muslims in UK, declaring that we are not supporting any of these extremists, nor do we have anything to do with them.

UK Muslim Leaders Waver between Split Interests
Unfortunately, many UK Muslim organisations lack the courage to stand up and speak forthrightly about this matter. Too often we see leaders of the community, equivocating between implicit support for extremists and general condemnations of terrorism. Broad-brush, vague condemnations are nothing but a show to prove one’s moderation when Muslims sit around the interfaith table with Jews and Christians. This has the community spinning around in confused circles, for the people can’t help reflecting the actions and words of their leaders. Equivocation on clear moral issues can only lead to perplexity among the common worshippers and loss of confidence in the upright principles of Islam. The cause of these conflicting messages is that on the one hand leaders fear they might divide the community (which in reality is already divided into many factions), and on the other hand they fear for their own positions, due to their connections with extremists around the world through their UK offices.

Many extremist organisations operate under assumed identities as non-profit organisations or corporate businesses, hiding their origins and affiliations. These same disguised organisations hold massive fundraisers in London, Paris, New York, Washington DC, and elsewhere, and often feature ambassadors and politicians. Ironically, the organisations they secretly support are avowed enemies of the nations whose ambassadors they invite. However, whenever someone criticizes the extremists and militant movements, they issue press releases castigating the media as well as moderate Muslim organisations that have the courage to speak out.

Usama bin Laden is a case in point. As a Saudi inheriting $250 million from his large family and building a huge financial network and infrastructure, he is actively rebelling against his own government and seeking to destroy it. One cannot fail to notice how some organisations invite the ambassador of bin Laden’s homeland and approach its embassy for support, yet reject any criticism of bin Laden or his activities, defending them as somehow ” Islamic”. Similarly, their leaders met with Yasser Arafat and his emissaries when they went to the U.S. to sign the peace treaty with the Israelis, yet when one word is said about Hamas they become enraged. We say, they must show their true colours and affiliations and stop playing both sides of the fence.

Some Muslims might ask: Why bring up this subject now as it might cause more problems and difficulties for Muslims?
Many contempory western Constitutions have been taken from Islam, including in the USA, the Bill of Rights and its guarantees of freedom of speech, press, and religion. In the time that Muslims have resided in UK, we have not seen their arbitrary detainment until the advent of extremist organisations, striking here and there. These organisations have now established offices here and in Europe. Our intention is to prevent the majority of Muslims from suffering by being detained or being viewed with suspicion because of the misguided actions of others.

Struggle for Political and Financial Benefit: a False ” Jihad”
Thus we see the likes of bin Laden, with there network of militants, working to destroy the governments around the world including Saudi Arabia. This contradicts the explicit teaching of Prophet Muhammad (saws) not to oppose a ruler as long as he does not prevent the performance of prayer–even if he commits injustice. Thus extremists use Islam when it suits them and likewise contravene it at their convenience.
The same applies to other organisations in other nations. Small militant movements arise, and then come against their government and the common people, stirring conflict. This happened previously in Egypt, Syria and Lebanon, and is currently happening in other Muslim nations as well as places such as the former Soviet Union. When different movements discover they share something in common–in terms of ideology, methodology or a common enemy–they begin to work together. However, once one of them begins to surpass another, conflict ensues and they fight among themselves.
This took place within the Palestinian movement in Lebanon, Jordan and Syria. Initiated as a movement to liberate the land, when it began to grow and acquire power, divergent interests within the broader movement began to clash. When the conflicts ultimately ignited, seventy different Palestinian organisations could be found fighting each other in their own camps using heavy artillery and surface-to-surface rockets.

Too often we see Muslim leaders equivocating between implicit support for extremists and general condemnations of terrorism.
Eventually, they ended up as two main parties, Hamas and the PLO.
The same problem arose in Afghanistan. To fight the common enemy, the USSR, many different groups and tribes joined together. After their successful Jihad and the USSR fled, the once-aligned groups turned on each other, resulting in bloodshed and mayhem from which not one inch of Afghan soil was left untainted. In fact after the war, Muslim-generated bloodshed rivalled horrors inflicted by the Soviets. So we see despite an appearance, what is taking place in many of these countries is not and has not been an Islamic Jihad but is purely a struggle for political authority and monetary benefit.

Muslims Must Not Tolerate Extremists
Those organisations in the UK that are affiliated with the global militant movements are obligated to take responsibility for their actions instead of throwing this burden onto the whole Muslim community. Since there is no single leader who represents all of UK’s Muslims, we must not allow the actions of an individual or group to fall on the heads of the millions of peaceful Muslims in this country. We therefore appeal to Muslim organisations to take a courageous stand regarding all that is going on and openly disclose their ties to foreign groups and movements, as well as the nature of these associations. This act in itself will distinguish who bears responsibility for the senseless acts of a few.
SMC feels a heavy responsibility in presenting these articles for the thoughtful consideration of our Muslim brothers and sisters. Some disruptive elements in our community will cry that we are “Western agents,” but we are not bothered by false accusations. We are not the sole or even the first voice raising these issues that are openly discussed in the Arab media.
SMC is not affiliated with any government, and recognizes that it has a duty to stand up and speak the truth. The unacceptable alternative is to let extremist organisations who now operate on our own soil continue to flourish with donations from unwitting British Muslims, destroying our community from within.

Sufi Muslim Council CORE PRINCIPLES

SMC strongly adheres to the classic Quranic teaching: “Obey God, obey His Prophet and obey those in authority over you”. This is a fundamental principle to uphold the laws of the country in which one resides, with its safety and security in mind.
SMC reinforces this driving principle in all our community-based and religious programs.
SMC’s mission is to present classical, scholarly, Islamic perspectives on global issues and to work proactively with non-Muslim individuals and organisations to present Islam as a religion of moderation, tolerance, peace and justice.
SMC condemns terrorism in all its forms, whether political, cultural, intellectual or ideological.
SMC stresses the common heritage of Islam, Christianity and Judaism through
Conferences, seminars, publications, media relations and community outreach efforts.
SMC supports peace, wherever it exists, and the precept of “justice for all,” condemning all violations of human rights.
SMC provides practical solutions for Muslims on a broad range of social issues, based on traditional Islamic legal rulings, many issued by some of the highest-ranking Islamic scholars of the world that best serve all members of the pluralist society in which we live.
Not affiliated with any government, political party or political agenda, SMC stresses civic duty, active participation in politics, and taking responsibility for shaping the future of UK and the rest of the world..
With a view to countering the root causes that allow a minority to undertake the criminal acts on the 7th July, and the threat that has become ever increasing to our security, it is the Intention of the Sufi Muslim Council to work in partnerships with all organisations to
Discourage and disrupt the promulgation of the extremist Islamist ideology within the Muslim community both nationally and abroad
Educate UK policymakers, agencies, academia and media outlets on the distinct, irreconcilable differences between classical Islam and the radical tenets of extremist groups
Re-establish the primacy of classical Islamic theology and practice, versus current radicalised Islamist strains that have taken root in the West.