Date of Award

Spring 5-1-2026

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

Religious Studies

First Advisor

Vernon Schubel

Second Advisor

Noah Tetenbaum

Abstract

The Būdshīshiyya Qadiriyya Ṭarīqa is Morocco’s largest Sufi order, with disciples numbering in the hundreds of thousands. In the Moroccan media and foreign scholarship, the order has been attributed with influencing King Muhammad VI’s liberal approach to Islamic affairs and aggressive stance on counter-terrorism. However, the specific mechanics of how a Sufi order influences the politics of a modern state often go unexamined. This thesis aims to explore the ways disciples of the Sufi path interpret mystical teachings to navigate the political issues of the material world. Disciples must negotiate diverse positionalities brought to the order with the teachings of the Shaykh, which has resulted in literature with diverse viewpoints on the permissibility of political engagement, the need for balance loyalty between the Moroccan king as the Amīr al-Muʾminīn and the global umma, and the relationship of their tradition to others inside and out of Islam. Influential disciples, such as Faouzi Skali, Ahmed Toufiq, and Taha Abderrahman, shape and are shaped by these negotiations, and in doing so, influence the state’s approach to religious policy.

Rights Statement

All rights reserved. This copy is provided to the Kenyon Community solely for individual academic use. For any other use, please contact the copyright holder for permission.

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