أبو يزيد البسطامي

Abu Yazid al-Bistami (RH)

Also known as: Bayazid Bastami

c. 188–261 AH · c. 804–875 CE

Sufism & Theology Sufism

The Persian mystic of Bistam, famous for his ecstatic sayings.

Abu Yazid Tayfur ibn 'Isa lived most of his life in Bistam in northern Persia. He became the best-known example of the 'intoxicated' (sukr) style of Sufism, in which the seeker is overwhelmed by the experience of Allah's presence.

His ecstatic sayings (shatahat), recorded by later disciples, puzzled and troubled many. Al-Junayd and others interpreted them as words spoken in a state of being overwhelmed, not as statements of doctrine. He is also remembered for his strict following of the Sunnah, and the Naqshbandi order traces part of its chain through him.

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