ṬARĪQAH. The Arabic word ṭarīqah, meaning a road or path, also signifies a "mode" or "method" of action as well as a "way" or code of belief. In the context of Sufism, ṭarīqah refers to both the path of spirituality itself—"the way"—and the manner of traveling (sulūk) along this path as the wayfarer passes through various stages (manāzil) and stations (maqāmāt) in the quest to approach nearer to God.

More concretely, however, ṭarīqah (and its plural, ṭurūq) is used as a generic term for the various organized brotherhoods or Ṣūfī orders that direct this spiritual quest into a particular code of practices pursued in a communal setting. It is in this sense that the word ṭarīqah is most frequently used: a confraternity founded around...