The Employment of Sufism in the Reign of Saladin to Establish the Ayyubid Rule in Egypt 567-589 A.H./1171-1193 A.D.

Abstract

The Ayyubid dynasty managed to overthrow the Fatimid Caliphate after the last caliph of the Fatimid dynasty (Died 567 A.H. /1171 A.D.) appointed Saladin as vizier. Saladin faced many obstacles after he abolished the Fatimid Caliphate and realigned the country's allegiance with the Sunni, Baghdad-based Abbasid Caliphate. The nascent system in Egypt faced many counterstrikes that were initiated by Fatimid supporters. As a result, Saladin formed some political alliances to mitigate these counterstrikes. Furthermore, Saladin and the political elite within the Ayyubid dynasty had a pre-existing tendency to transform the doctrine in Egypt from Ismailism (a branch of Shia Islam) to Sunni Islam for the purpose of gaining the political legitimacy. 

In order to achieve this goal, Saladin formed an alliance with the prevailing religious doctrines, such as Sufism, which had a significant influence and impact over people at that time.

Subsequently, many Sufism institutions emerged and played a critical role in shaping public opinion and in a way that had it support the rule of the Ayyubid political elite.

Additionally, prominent figures of Sufism in both Egypt and the Levant played an outstanding role in giving Ayyubid dynasty the religious and political legitimation it needed.

The research aims to study the role of the Sufi elite in enhancing the legitimacy of the Ayyubid authority that emerged during the reign of Saladin (567-589 A.H / 1174-1193 A.D). During this period of time, Saladin was working to establish Ayyubid rule in Egypt after the fall of the Fatimid caliphate. The study also aims to clarify the support provided by the Ayyubid authority in supporting the Sufis and their religious institutions.

The research applies the descriptive historical method.

The study reached many results, the most important of which is that the political elite spared no effort in using all available tools to enhance its political legitimacy, even if these tools were related to religion and clerics. The research also found that the Ayyubid political elite used Sufism and Sufi institutions in Egypt as a means to maintain the balance between the new Ayyubid authority and the Egyptian people, which led to the legitimization of Saladin's rule.

The researcher also concluded that some aspects of the research need to be studied more deeply in the future by researchers.