Spread of Islamic Sufism in West Asia and Central Asia (1070s)

Timeline

1. 1071–1075Baghdad · IraqSufi shaykhs in Baghdad and Khurasan presided over khanqahs, teaching dhikr, meditation, and the shaykh-disciple (murid) transmission system. Al-Qushayri (d. 1072) had already seen his Risala widely circulated before then, becoming an important later classic of Sufi doctrine.
2. 1073–1080Damascus-Nisibis corridor · SyriaAfter the Seljuk Turks gained control of Syria and eastern Anatolia, Sufi orders spread into newly conquered regions along trade routes and military garrisons. Local sultans and notables sponsored the construction of lodges, and Sufi practitioners participated in urban religious life, forming a complementary rather than simply opposed relationship with Sunni jurisprudential traditions.
3. 1071–1080Samarkand, Bukhara · TransoxianaUnder Seljuk vassal rule, Transoxiana's ancient cities such as Bukhara and Samarkand continued as centers of Islamic scholarship and Sufi practice. Young scholars such as Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (b. 1058) received their education in this period, and would later profoundly influence the convergence of Sufism and orthodox theology.