The Influence of Bakhtiar’s Sufī Belief in Futuwwa on Her Qur’ān Translation

Qur’ān translations are forms of traditional or rational tafāsīr [exegeses]. Laleh Bakhtiar, an Iranian-American who converted from Christianity to Islam, applied a rational approach in her Qur’ān translation. Extensive research has surveyed Bakhtiar’s femi nist perspectives (Kidwai, 2018) and her reliance on dictionaries (Hassen, 2012). However, the investigation of the influence of her Sufī views on her translation has not been previously addressed. This paper is an empirical account of the impact of Bakhtiar’s Sufī belief in futuwwa on her translation choices. To achieve this goal, Bakhtiar’s translations of the verses that include th e term

Although Sufī teachings first attracted Sunnīs, and a large number of early Muslims lived spiritual lives out of unbounded piety, today it is common to find Sufīs who hold Sunnī beliefs and at the same time value Shiʿī leaders.Several scholars consider Sufism as the heart of Islam, yet others perceive it as an unacceptable distortion of Islamic beliefs and way of life (Rahim, 2013).The opponents of Sufism defend their stance by confirming that it did not exist during the time of Prophet Muhammad and that Sufīs apply a subjective approach in their interpretation of the Qur'ān (Musharraf, 2013).They believe that each verse in the Qur'ān has up to seven deeper meanings; they rely on the hidden meanings (Sands, 2006;Ayoub, 1984).Thus, Sufīs invoke allegorical hermeneutics and incorporate exegetical views that are not compatible with the literal sense of the Qur'ānic verses.This paper is based on a chapter in my PhD thesis, in which I compare four Qur'ān translations to explore the impact of the translators' ideologies on their translation choices.While examining the paratexts of the selected translations (prefaces, introductions, forewords & footnotes), I realised that the preface of Laleh Bakhtiar's translation (2012) sends messages that Bakhtiar believes in Sufism, and she "practices spiritual integrity (futuwwa) or spiritual chivalry" (xix).She mentioned that she was educated in Sufism which comprises both Sunnī and Shiʿī views.This statement raises the question of whether, in her Qur'ān translation, Bakhtiar utilises aẓ-ẓahir [exoteric] meaning common in Sunnī schools or al-bāṭin [esoteric] meaning frequently applied by Shiʿīs.
In order to answer this question, I implement an eclectic approach, a combination of Genette's paratexts (1997) and Raof's criteria of the Sufī approach to Qur'ānic exegesis (2012).First, I review articles about Sufism and the concept of futuwwa as an element of Sufī beliefs.According to Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri (2019), the Sufī path of self-transformation ends with futuwwa, jihad an-nafs to reach makarin al-akhlaq [good morals] or spiritual enlightenment.The term relates to the characteristics of al-fatā, Ali Ibn Abi Talib.Therefore, I read the whole Qur'ān, verse-by-verse, and select the ten verses that include the word ‫ى‬ ً ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatā [a young man] and its derivatives.Then I analytically compare Bakhtiar's translation of these ten verses to another Sufī translation and a Shiʿi translation, with the aim of exploring the impact of Bakhtiar's Sufī belief in futuwwa on her translation choices for these terms.

Sufism and the Sufī Belief in Futuwwa
The term Sufism was coined in Kufa when Jabir Ibn Hayyan was described as a sufī, a man who seeks deeper and more intimate relation to God (Ibn Arabī, 1961;Nicholson, 1947).The Sufī school in Kufa was close to Shiʿa teachings of the unification with God and the inner experience of tawḥīd [God's unity].Linguistically, the term Sufī literally means "woollen," "someone wearing wool," or "practicing purification to achieve makarim al-akhlaq [good morals]" (Al-Muʿjam Al-Wasīṭ, 2004, p. 529).Sulaiman Lebbe Rifai (2021) confirms that Sufism is a spiritual journey to purify one's heart and soul in order to find the truth of divine love and knowledge.According to Sachiko Murata (1992), the Sufī path comprises three stages: It begins with muruwwa, moral reasonableness, which leads to futuwwa, spiritual integrity, and then ends with walāya, sainthood.
Sufīs value muruwwa and futuwwa and consider them significant virtues toward self-development.Cyrus Ali Zargar, (2019) states that muruwwa means manliness, and before Islam, Bedouin tribes linked muruwwa to characteristics such as "loyalty, generosity, patronage, and retaliation" (p.6), while futuwwa, translated as chivalry, refers to a young man with good morals.He declares that "In Islamic ethical texts more broadly, futuwwa came to represent all that might be noble in a young man: courage, self-restraint, humility, modesty, and honesty" (p.2).Lloyd Ridgeon (2010) and Erik Ohlander (2008) contend that, in Iran, futuwwa movements, absorbed by Sufī orders, relate the term futuwwa to the fatā, Ali Ibn Abi Talib, the symbol of good manners and manliness.Although the two components of virtue: futuwwa and muruwwa were defined as traits of the honorable young man, Sufīs focus on futuwwa since it is al-maqsid [the purpose], spiritual chivalry.
Sufīs use the term futuwwa to describe young men as ideal warriors who reached makarim al-akhlaq.Sufīs do not use the term for slaves nor women since, for them, women's virtue is "modesty, or ḥayā" (Zargar, 2019, p. 4).By confining this term to men, Sufīs endow it with a patriarchal framework.However, examining Bakhtiar's translation, I found that she utilises the Sufī term futuwwa for men and women.For example, she uses it for Abraham in Q 21: 60, the fitya [young men] of the cave mentioned in Q 18: 13, and fatayātikum in Q 24: 33.Bakhtiar's choices show the changes in the usage of the term from focusing on the patriarchal theme of great men to employing it for men and women.Thus, de-gendering the term futuwwa in Bakhtiar's translation requires investigating the criteria of the Sufī approach to Qur'ānic exegesis.

Detecting Sufī Beliefs in the Paratexts of Bakhtiar's Translation
Paratexts are elements around the text; they impact the reception of the target text (TT).Paratexts comprise peritexts and epitexts (Genette, 1997, pp.1-2).Peritexts are divided into publishers' and translators'.Examples of publishers' peritexts are the covers of the books, the visibility of the translators' names, titles, title pages, and blurbs, whereas translators' peritexts are prefaces, forewords, introductions, and footnotes.Epitexts are interviews, reviews, TV shows, self-commentaries by the translators, and the awards received by the translators (Batchelor, 2018).These tools send messages about the translated text.
The preface of Bakhtiar's translation shows that she was a Sufī Iranian-American psychologist.Her father was an Iranian physician from Tehran, and her mother was a Protestant American from Idaho.It also reveals that Bakhtiar married an Iranian-Muslim architect and moved to Iran when she was twenty-four years.At that age, she converted from Christianity to Islam, and, at Tehran University, she learned the teachings of Islam, Qur'ānic Arabic, and Sufism by Seyyed Hossein Nasr.
Furthermore, the preface of Bakhtiar's translation gives information about her methodology of Qur'ān translation.She confirms beginning with the words, preparing lists of all the nouns, verbs, and particles that appear in the Qur'ān, translating from these lists, and then creating a database.Bakhtiar states that she applied formal equivalence to produce Qur'ānic translation that relates to a larger audience through using inclusive language.
Additionally, in her preface, Bakhtiar (2012) states that she neither uses footnotes nor parenthetical phrases because "the Qur'ān is not a historic text, frozen in the time period of its revelation" (xvi).She agrees with "Al-Ghazzali [who] says each person should read or recite [the Qur'ān], not as a historical document, because then it loses its eternal quality, but as it relates to the person reading or reciting it" (p.xvi).This statement sends a message that Bakhtiar's choices reflect her understanding of the Qur'ān and display her theological views.
Moreover, in her preface, Bakhtiar reveals her belief in futuwwa.She states that her translation "is the translation of a person who practices spiritual integrity (futuwwa)" (xix) and that in the Sufī path muruwwa [manliness] leads to "futuwwa [young manliness] or spiritual chivalry" (xx).According to Tymoczko (2003), "[T]he ideology of a translation resides not simply in the text translated, but in the voicing and stance of the translator, and in its relevance to the receiving audience" (p.183).Bakhtiar's position in her translation aligns with the beliefs of her Sufī teacher who states: The guilds and different orders of chivalry (futuwwât) reveal a link between Shiʿism and Sufism because on the one hand they grew in a Shiʿite climate with particular devotion to ʿAlî and on the other hand many of them became attached to Sufi orders and became their extension in the form of 'craft initiations'.(Nasr, 1970, p. 238) Nasr's quote explains that the term futuwwa is a Shiʿī-Sufī expression since its core is the Shiʿī belief in Imām Ali Ibn Abi Talib, and it is attached to the Sufī orders.Thus, the translation of the word ‫ى‬ ً ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatā [a young man] and its derivatives are analysed and compared to the Sufī translation by Hulusi (2013) and the Shiʿi translation by Naqvi (2016) to explore the impact of Bakhtiar's views on her translation choices.

Analysing Bakhtiar's Translations of the Derivatives of the Word ‫ًى‬ ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatā in Q 18
The word ‫ى‬ ً ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatā [a young man] and its derivatives are mentioned in ten verses: Q 4: 25, Q 12: 30, Q 12: 36, Q 12: 62, Q 18: 10, Q 18: 13, Q 18: 60, Q 18: 62, Q 21: 60, and Q 24: 33.Four of these verses are in Sūrat Al-Kahf, and in her translation of these verses, Bakhtiar adheres to the Sufī belief in futuwwa and renders the word ‫ى‬ ً ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatā as "a spiritual warrior (m)" (Bakhtiar, 2012, p. 350).Examining these verses will reveal the impact of Bakhtiar's Sufī beliefs on her choices.Thus, in this paper, I investigate the effect of Bakhtiar's Sufī beliefs on shaping the meanings and messages of the selected verses.
Q 18 opens and closes with references to the Qur'ān; it takes its name Al-Kahf from the story of the people of the cave (verses [9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26].This Sūra also deals with other two stories: the story of Mūsā and the man of knowledge (verses 60-82), and the story of Dhul-Qarnayn and his life and travels in the service of God (verses 83-99).The words ‫ة‬ َ ‫ي‬ ْ ‫ِت‬ ‫ْف‬ ‫ال‬ al-fityā and ‫ة‬ َ ‫ي‬ ْ ‫ِت‬ ‫ف‬ fityā appear in the story of the sleepers of the cave, and the word ‫ة‬ َ ‫ي‬ ْ ‫ِت‬ ‫ْف‬ ‫ال‬ appears twice in the story of Mūsā.  1 shows that Bakhtiar renders the term ‫ة‬ َ ‫ي‬ ْ ‫ِت‬ ‫ْف‬ ‫ال‬ al-fityā as "the spiritual warriors" although the meaning of the word is "young men between adolescence and manhood" (Al-Muʿjam Al-Wasīṭ, 2004, p. 673).In Q 18: 10, God tells the story of the young men who fled from their people for the sake of their religion.They feared persecution, so they fled taking refuge in the cave of a mountain to hide from their people.When they entered the cave, they asked God to show mercy and kindness towards them (Ibn Kathīr, 2002).Unlike Bakhtiar, both the Sufī Hulusi (2013) and the Shiʿi Naqvi (2016) rendere the word ‫ة‬ َ ‫ي‬ ْ ‫ِت‬ ‫ْف‬ ‫ال‬ al-fityā as "youths".Bakhtiar's unusual choice shows that she imbues her translation with an ideological colour of Sufism, which flourished in Iran since the Mongols-domination period in the 12 th century (Lewisohn, 1998).Her choice of "the spiritual warriors" reflects her Sufī belief in futuwwa, which symbolises a series of ethical values.Hence, Bakhtiar utilises al-maʿna al-bāṭin [the esoteric meaning]; this choice endows the term with specific characteristics not shown in the verse.Table 2 shows that Bakhtiar renders the term ‫ة‬ َ ‫ي‬ ْ ‫ِت‬ ‫ف‬ fityā [young men] in Q 18: 13 as "male spiritual warriors" unlike the Sufī Hulusi (2013) and the Shiʿi Naqvi (2016) who utilise "youths".In Q 18: 13, God gives the story of the people of the cave in detail stating that they were young men who believed in God and that God increased them in guidance (Ibn Kathīr, 2002).Similar to Sufīs who believe that each verse in the Qur'ān has seven layers of meanings, Bakhtiar transfers the deepest meaning of the verse to convey the message that these young males were more accepting of the truth and more guided than the elders who adhered to the religion of falsehood.Sufīs who believe in futuwwa link the term to makārim al-akhlāq [good morals] which is "attained through jihad an-nafs" (Ali, 2020, p. 9; Al-Jader, 1999).Bakhtiar's choice reflects her Sufī belief in the spirituality of Prophet Mohammad and confirms that futuwwa is part of al-akhlāq represented in al-fatā, Imām Ali Ibn Abi Talib, Prophet Muhammad's cousin and sonin-law.
Similarly in translation the verses about the story of Mūsā, Bakhtiar transfers the word ‫ه‬ ٰ ‫ى‬ َ ‫َت‬ ‫ِف‬ ‫ل‬ lifatāh applying al-bāṭin [esoteric] meaning although the term has a different meaning than the meanings of the words ‫ة‬ َ ‫ي‬ ْ ‫ِت‬ ‫ْف‬ ‫ال‬ al-fityā and ‫ة‬ َ ‫ي‬ ْ ‫ِت‬ ‫ف‬ fityā in Q 18: 10 and Q 18: 13.Table 3 below highlights Bakhtiar's translation of Q 18: 60: Table 5 shows that Bakhtiar utilises "her spiritual warrior" for the word ‫ا‬ َ ‫ه‬ ٰ ‫ى‬ َ ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatāhā, whose ẓahir [exoteric] meaning is "slave".It is rendered as "slave boy" by the Shiʿi Naqvi (2016) and "slave" by the Sufī Hulusi (2013).In Q 12: 30, God states that the news of what happened between the wife of ʿAziz of Misr and Yūsuf spread in the city as women of chiefs said that she was luring her servant to have sex with her, and they criticised her and considered her astray (Ibn Kathīr, 2002).Based on tafāsīr [exegeses], al-maʿna aẓ-ẓahir [exoteric meaning] is "slave", while al-maʿna al-bāṭin [esoteric] meaning is fatā, from futuwwa, a spiritual warrior who reached makarim al-akhlaq [good morals] (Bendjebbar & Jidel, 2021).Bakhtiar's choice reflects her belief in Yūsuf's chastity.Table 6 demonstrates that Bakhtiar employs "two male spiritual warriors" for the word ِ ‫ان‬ َ ‫ي‬ َ ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatayān.Q 12: 36 says that when Yūsuf arrived at the prison, he met two other sentenced criminals, who were also admitted there.One of them was the cup-bearer of the king, and the other was a cook.These two were accused of trying to poison the king through food or drink, and their case was under investigation; therefore, they were kept in prison.These prisoners thought Yūsuf was a man of piety, so they asked him to give an interpretation of their dreams (Ibn Kathīr, 2002).Bakhtiar's choice of al-bāṭin [esoteric] meaning of fatā equates these prisoners to Yushaʿ as a spiritual warrior who seeks makarim al-akhlaq [good morals]; however, by this choice, she decontextualises the term and changes its meaning.She expands the connotations of the term and generalise its use.
And Joseph said to his spiritual warriors: Lay their merchandise into their saddlebags so that perhaps they will recognize it when they turned about to their household so that perhaps they will return.Table 7 shows that the Shiʿī translator Naqvi (2016, p. 243) considers the context and renders the term ‫ِهِ‬ ‫ن‬ ٰ َ ‫ي‬ ۡ ‫ِت‬ ‫ِف‬ ‫ل‬ as "young ones [servants]", and the Sufī Hulusi (2013) transfers it as "servants", while Bakhtiar sticks to al-bāṭinī [esoteric] Sufī meaning in all contexts.In Q 12: 62, when Yūsuf's brothers entered on him in his court, he knew them, but they did not recognise them because they threw him away when he was a child.Yūsuf ordered ‫ِهِ‬ ‫ن‬ ٰ ‫ـ‬ َ ‫ي‬ ْ ‫ِت‬ ‫ف‬ fityānihi [his servants/ slaves] to put the money or the merchandise his brothers brought with them to exchange for food into their saddlebags (Ibn Kathīr, 2002).Bakhtiar's insistence to use al-bāṭin [esoteric] meaning deviates the contextual meaning since Yūsuf's servants cannot be equated to the people of the cave, Yūsuf, or Yushaʿin their morals and purification.

Analysing Bakhtiar's Translation of the Word ‫ًى‬ ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatā in Q 21
Q 21 takes its name Al-Anbiyā' from the list of prophets mentioned from verse 48 to verse 91.It aims at reassuring Prophet Mohammad by reminding him of God's grace and support to his prophets.Q 21 stresses the fact that Prophet Muhammad has Table 10 shows that Bahktiar renders the word ْ ‫م‬ ‫ِك‬ ‫ت‬ ٰ ‫ـ‬ َ ‫ي‬ َ ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatayātikum in Q 24: 33 as "your spiritual warriors (f)"; however, the contextual meaning is "slave girls" (Ibn Kathīr, 2002).The Shiʿī translator Naqvi (2016) transfers the term as "slave girls"; similarly, the Sufī translator Hulusi (2013) utilises "bondmaids".Bakhtiar's different choice confirms that Iranian "Sufīs were not convinced by the apparent meaning (al-ẓahir) of the verses, but they sought to discover (al-bātin) the hidden meanings of the Qur'ān's phrases" (Musharraf, 2013, p. 34).Bakhtiar selects the esoteric meaning of the word, which is only understood by Sufīs who are familiar with this hidden meaning, which is not mentioned in the ST.Furthermore, table 10 demonstrates that Bakhtiar adds the letter "f" to emphasise the feminist perspective common in America.Table 11 below summarises Bakhtiar's translations of the word ‫ى‬ ً ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatā and its derivatives in the ten verses in the Qur'ān to highlight her views:  11 highlights Bakhtiar's consistency in using "spiritual warrior" for the term ‫ى‬ ً ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatā and its derivatives.It also shows that Bakhtiar utilises the concept futuwwa to men and women, which reflects the expansion and generalisation of using the term.Thus, Bakhtiar's translation of the word ‫اتِ‬ َ ‫ي‬ َ ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatayāt confirms not only her theological stance but also her sociocultural ideologies regarding gender equality since she does not confine faith, generosity, integrity, and jihad an-nafs [self-improvement] to men.

Conclusion
In this paper, I aimed to analyse Bakhtiar's translation of the Qur'ān into English to explore the influence of her belief in the Sufī concept futuwwa on her translation choices.I used Genette's paratexts (1997) to detect Bakhtiar's Sufī views in her preface and introduction along with Raof's criteria of the Sufī approach to Qur'ānic exegesis (2012) to investigate her translation of the ten verses that include the term ‫ى‬ ً ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatā [a young man] and its derivatives.
The main finding is that Bakhtiar relied on al-bāṭin [esoteric] meaning and ignores aẓ-ẓahir [exoteric] meaning, which makes her translation different from Qur'ān interpretations based on orthodox Islamic traditions.Bakhtiar was affected by living in Iran and America; her use of "spiritual warriors" for the word ‫ى‬ ً ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatā [a young man] reflects her Sufī stance.Adding the letter "(f)" to indicate that the word refers to the feminine gender echoes her feminist perspectives.Secondly, Bakhtiar developed the connotation of the virtue of futuwwa, existing in a patriarchal framework (Zargar, 2019), as she generalised the meaning of this specific term and utilised it for men and women.She interpreted the term allegorically as a symbolic term for honorable morals, We relate this tiding to you with The Truth.Truly, they were male spiritual warriors who believed in their Lord and We increased them in guidance.

Table 2
Table 2 below demonstrates that Bakhtiar adheres to the same choice in her translation of Q 18: 13: Bakhtiar's Translation of Q 18: 13 Table 6 below shows Bakhtiar's translation of Q 12: 36, which includes the word ِ ‫ان‬ َ ‫ي‬ َ ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ fatayān:

Table 11
The Different Lexis for the Word ‫ى‬ ً ‫َت‬ ‫ف‬ Fatā [a Young Man] and Its Derivatives