Mulay al-Arabi al-Darqawi al-Hasani محمد العربي الدرقاوي الحسني

Abu Abdullah Muhammad al-Arabi al-Darqawi al-Hasani, rahimahullah (1760-1823), was a Moroccan Sufi master and one of the most influential figures in the Shadhili tariqa in North Africa. He was descended from a Hasanid-Idrissid sharif family that lived among the Beni Zerwal Berbers in the hills to the northeast of Fez. His spiritual teaching centered on dhikr, the remembrance of God, and he authored a collection of letters offering guidance on the spiritual path and instructions for daily life - a corpus now translated as 'Letters On The Spiritual Path.' He strongly emphasized non-involvement in worldly affairs and spoke against Sufi orders that exploited claims of barakah. His relationship with political authority was fraught: he was imprisoned by the Moroccan Sultan Mulay Slimane (r. 1792-1822) for his association with revolts against the throne, but was subsequently released under Sultan Abderrahmane (r. 1822-1859). After his death, his disciples organized the Darqawa, a distinct branch of the Shadhili order, around his teachings. The Darqawa once constituted the most widespread tariqa in Morocco, drawing members from across social groups before its influence waned as it spread throughout North Africa. His tomb remains in the Zawiya Bou Brih in the Rif.