Ashk: The Sufi Concept for Love

Eros, agapē, and philia are distinct concepts of love, which the modern world has inherited from Plato. This paper discusses how the Islamic concept of love (Turkish ashk), while also rooted in Plato, has been omitted from the scholarship of love and philosophy. There are specialized studies of ashk; however, these deal only with the concept within the Islamic context, it has not been introduced into broader discussions of love. In Sufi cosmology, the world is created out of ashk and for the sake of ashk. Ashk is a concept, which transcends the division of sacred and profane. All beings are made of love and deserve care, compassion, and mercy. It is claimed here that the omission of ashk from general discussions of love has been ideological; the worldwide European cultural and economic expansion suppressed and ignored non-European elements. Likewise, the scope of the concept of romantic love has only recently been expanded from a Eurocentric to a world-embracing one, while the Eurocentric approach still abides in certain sectors of academia. This chapter proposes to position ashk next to eros and agapē as a missing link in the Platonic heritage. The particularity of Sufi ashk, and its parallels and disparities with eros are examined. This paper calls into question the historical neglect of ashk with regard to European colonialism as well as hostilities toward Sufism within the Islamic world.