Silsilah

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Silsilah (Arab., salsala, ‘make a chain’). The chain of transmission in Sūfī Islam from the initial blessing (baraka) of God, running down in succession to the present shaykh. Most silsilahs are traced back to Muḥammad, one (the Tijāniy(y)a) claiming to be derived from a direct vision of Muḥammad to the founder. The Khāḍiriy(y)a claim to be founded directly by Khiḍr. It is an initial obligation on joining an order to learn the silsilah in order to understand how the baraka has been transmitted.