SOAS Research Online

Abstract

The subject of this thesis is a Malay work entitled Manhalu'l-Safi. The work was written by Shaykh Daud al-Fatani, one of the famous Malay authors, who wrote in the most prolific manner ever seen in the history of Islamic literature of the Malay-Indonesian Archipelago. The main objective of this thesis is to present the text in the form of transliteration and translation, together with content analysis. The motive for the latter is to prove that the teachings of this work are not isolated in term of Sufi teaching in the Muslim world in general. They have, however, been presented in a form of summary for the purpose of educating the Malays in the subject of Sufism. This study also aims to demonstrate the important role of Daud, through this work, as a transmitter of Islamic knowledge to the Malay people in the Malay-Indonesian archipelago. The thesis is arranged into five chapters. An explanation of the methodological approach of the study undertaken is formulated in the introduction. Chapter one will include a brief discussion on the Islamisation of the Malay-Indonesian Archipelago, the emergence of the speculative Sufism, the source of the doctrine of Martabat Tujuh and its dissemination in the region. A biographical account of the life of Daud al-Fatani and his works is given in chapter two. In chapter three, discussion is focused on the Manhalu'l-Safi which includes the date of the work and its sources. The main part of the dissertation is chapter four. Therein, a description of all the extant MSS of the work is given. It is followed by a description of the philological method used in the edition of the text. Then, a selected manuscript of the work is transliterated, translated and provided with critical apparatus. In chapter five, an interpretation of the Sufi concepts elaborated in the work is offered. Finally, results drawn out of this study is given in the conclusion.