In the spring of 2017, I traveled around Sudan exploring the country’s thriving Sufi community. I attended massive Sufi gatherings, multi-day-long festivals, and Sufism’s holy sites, as well as private Sufi meet-ups in villages and people’s backyards. What I discovered were majestic locations, soulful songs, passionate dances, and most importantly kind and generous people, who welcomed me as if I was one of their own. Before long, I was singing and dancing with them.
Sufis, known as Tasawwuf in the Arabic-speaking world, are the mystics of Islam. They believe in reincarnation and a mysterious world between heaven and earth, which can be visited through deep meditation and the performance of “Zikr”. Sufis believe that their Sheikhs (religious leaders of Sufism) and saints are immortal and can hear their songs and music even in their graves, therefore, Sufi rituals usually take place in or around cemeteries. Sufism is spread out in virtually every Islamic country, however, it compiles only about 5% of the world's Muslim population. Sudan boasts a particularly strong and influential Sufi community which is said to be the largest in the world. A popular Sudanese saying only confirms their strong presence in the country - "If there is a family in Sudan, of which at least one member is not a Sufi, they are not Sudanese".
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Participant in a Sufi gathering. Omdurman, Sudan.
12points
#2
Young Sufi devotee sports a tiger-print mantle at the weekly Sufi gathering in Omdurman, Sudan.
10points
#3
Participant of the Sufi gathering dances waving a traditional Sufi stick. Omdurman, Sudan.
8points
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People perform Zikr – a religious Sufi ritual that involves dancing and chanting religious texts. Omdurman, Sudan.
7points
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Every Friday afternoon hundreds of Sufis gather at Hamad El Neel cemetery. Omdurman, Sudan.
7points
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Sudanese brothers in Abu Haraz, Sudan.
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Men and women dance in front of a Sufi tomb in the village of Abu Haraz, Sudan.
7points
#8
Khatmiya mosque with Taka mountains in the background. Kassala, Sudan.
7points
#9
Men wave wooden sticks as they approach the Khatmiya mosque. Kasala, Sudan.
7points
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Young Sufi adherent in the Sufi festival in Kasala, Sudan.
7points
#11
The word Zikr in Sudanese Arabic means remembrance of God.
6points
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Participant in the Sufi gathering. Omdurman, Sudan.
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#13
Sufis kneel for an evening prayer. Omdurman, Sudan.
6points
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Portrait of a young Sufi devotee observing the evening prayer from above. Kassala, Sudan.
6points
#15
Hundreds of Sufi devotees participate in the evening prayer. Kassala, Sudan.
6points
#16
A man walks in Hamad El Neel cemetery where the weekly Sufi gatherings take place. Omdurman, Sudan.
5points
#17
People sing and pray as they sit among the tombstones. Omdurman, Sudan.
5points
#18
Sufi tombs near the village of Abu Haraz, Sudan.
5points
#19
Various tribes arrive at the festival of Sufism in Kassala, Sudan.
5points
#20
A young boy prays at the crumbling Khatmiya mosque. Kassala, Sudan.
5points