The perfect man (al-insa:n al-ka:mil) in the quranic exegesis, hadith tradition and taṣawwuf

Abstract

The Qur’anic verses and prophetic traditions confirm the physical, ethical and universal perfection of a man. The highest level of perfection belongs to Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, and to his righteous successors. Every man, according to the Sufi teaching, can potentially become perfect, while the main purpose of a perfect man is to serve others making them happy in this world and hereafter. Perfect men are teachers and guides to other people. Inspired with other Sufi scholars, Bosnian Sufis wrote about the Perfect Man. Their teachings greatly relied upon Ibn ʻArabi and Al-Ru:mi. They clearly deny any form of pantheism, panentheism, anthropomorphism (a combination of God and man), the embodiment of the God, the God becoming a man etc. Shaykh Mustafa Colic, in his teaching of the Perfect Man uses a new term in the Bosnian language 'Allah's Revealed Entirety'. His teaching, also, relies on the teaching of early Sufis but it contains some new aspects as well. Keywords: taṣawwuf, the Perfect Man, Ibn ʻArabi:, Sheikh Mustafa Colic (Čolić), Allah’s Revealed Entirety.