The History of the Ideas of “Absence” and “Presence” in the Khafīfīyya Order in Shiraz

The Khafīfīyya Order is attributed to Ibn Khafīf, Sūfī of the fourth century AH (۸۸۲/۹۸۲) who lived in Shiraz. The concepts of Absence (ghaybah) and Presence (ḥoḍūr) are central ideas in Ibn Khafīf's school. However, the existing literature provides only a brief mention of this attribution to Ibn Khafīf, the founder of the Khafīfīyya Order. Given the lack of in-depth study on Ibn Khafīf's social approaches, this article seeks to elucidate the significance of mentioned ideas within Ibn Khafīf's intellectual framework and expound on the interpretation of their meanings. This research adopts Chandler's semiotic approach to delve into the ideas of "absence and presence" within context. The findings of this study reveal that Ibn Khafīf endeavored to show isolation and seclusion as different and sometimes even contradictory acts of abstinent (tark) from worldly matters.

Keywords:

Sūfīsm , Ibn Khafīf-Khafīfīyya , Absence , Presence , Seclusion