Khatm ul Awliya


The Seal of the Saints or "Khatam ul Awliya" is a central concept in the writings of 12th-century Islamic thinker and spiritual leader Ibn Arabi.

Concept of ''The Seal of the Saints'' in Ibn Arabi's writings

Ibn Arabi, in his "Meccan Revelation", explains that all the prophets and saints derive their light from the spirit of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam.
In Ibn Arabi's thinking, the prophets and saints are manifestations of the spirit of Muhammad, which is the start and end point of the whole spiritual hierarchy. The first manifestation of the spirit of Muhammad was the first man, Adam. The last and most perfect was Muhammad himself.

Two lines of spiritual transmission

In the mystical branch of Islam, Sufism, there are two main lines of spiritual transmission:
  1. The 40 tariqas, which trace their line of Spiritual Transmission through Ali Ibn abi Thalib to the prophet Muhammad. The Seal of Saints of the 40 Tariqas line is said to be Ibn Arabi himself.
  2. The chain of transmission which runs through Abu Bakr as-Ṣiddīq to Muhammad. The Seal of Saints of the Abu Bakr as-Ṣiddīq line is Abdullah Faiz Dagistani. This is the Naqshbandi Tariqa.
Ibn Arabi, in his book "The Astonishing Phoenix – on the Seal of the Saints and the Sun of the West", explains that the name of the Seal of Saints is Abdullah, who is a despised ajami. Ibn Arabi describes the Seal of Saints in detail, using notably difficult symbolic language.
Similarly, Sharafuddin ad Dagistani, Moulana Sheikh Nazim and Adnan Kabbani explain that the Seal of Saints of the Siddiqi or Naqshbandi Tariqa is Abdullah Faiz Dagistani.