Critical Approach Of Ahmad Zarruq Towards Innovations

In this article, the reaction and the struggle of Ahmad Zarruq (899 - 1493/94), a scholar, a Sufi and a member of the Zarruqiyah branch of Shadhili Tariqa were discussed. Upon briefly mentioning the life of Zarruq, the concepts of sunnah and innovation were mentioned. In the era when he lived, he criticized the Sufist groups who abandoned the righteous way of Qur'an and sunnah and followed superstitious approaches, and he fought against innovations to reclaim sunnah. The parts of innovations and the concepts, as explicit, relative, and contradictory innovations, were described and explained from the perspective of Ahmad Zarruq. His struggle against innovations and his criticisms on the mistakes done by Ahl al-Tariq were discussed. His criticism on the abandonment of reading scripture and dhikr was elaborated on. His criticism towards those who prioritize the service to followers and conduct the worships incompletely is discussed. During this struggle, Ahmad Zarruq wrote his book "Umdatu'l-muridi's-sad？q" in order to create a reform project in a period when innovations and superstitions were popularized, many cults and sects bogged down in innovations, and social deterioration scaled up