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Tierno Bokar (Fula : Cerno Bokar, lit. 'Master Bokar' [note 1] ), full name Tierno Bokar Saalif Tall (1875 – 1939), was a Malian Sufi mystic and a Muslim spiritual teacher of the early twentieth century famous for his message of religious tolerance and universal love.
Tierno Bokar was born in Ségou, Mali, in 1875. Bokar was the son of Salif, a Tukolor prince, and Aissata. His grandfather, Seydou Hann, was respected as a great Sufi mystic. As a child, Bokar was educated in the Tijani order. By the age of 15, Tierno had memorized most of the Quran, Islamic rituals and laws, and the lives of many saints. In 1890, Bokar's father left his family in Ségou to continue to fight against the French as Ségou fell into French hands without resistance. Bokar moved with his mother to the village of Bandiagara in 1893. At the age of 18, he studied under Amadou Tafsir Ba, who introduced him to the secrets of the thought of the Tijani founder, Shaykh Ahmad al-Tijani. After completing his education, Ba requested that Bokar take over his school, but Bokar refused to be anything more than Ba's assistant until Ba died. At the age of 26, he married Nene Amadou Thiam. When he was 33, his teacher passed, and he became the leader of his school.
Tierno Bokar led his school for 29 years and, during its heyday, taught almost 200 students. He kept a simple schedule so repetitive that it could be known where he was at any time of the day. He woke up every morning at 3 am and prayed until dawn. At dawn, he would go from hut to hut, calling the people to Fajr prayer. Tierno Bokar did not lead the prayer but would mingle afterwards with those who had attended. After the prayer, he meditated and headed home to eat breakfast with his students. The students would then be separated by their levels of learning in the courtyard, and the lessons would begin. The morning would be dedicated to the Koran first, after which the law and commentaries would be studied until the second meal and Zuhr prayer of the day. After the second prayer, teaching would continue until the mid-afternoon prayer (Asr prayer), after which the students were dismissed to handle their own business. Tierno recited his rosary until the Maghrib prayer at the mosque, where he would remain until the Isha prayer. After that, he would visit his friends and family for enjoyment and social interaction until it was time for sleep.
In 1937, Tierno Bokar visited and became a follower of Hamahullah bin Muhammad bin Umar in Nioro du Sahel.
A disagreement over the proper number of repetitions for a Hamallayya Sufi prayer rose dramatically in scale. The difference in repetitions held little to no religious significance but, due to historical factors, was associated with rival clans. Intense infighting among rival clans and religious factions in French Sudan, as well as the involvement of the French colonial authority, eventually led to massacres and the exile of Hammallah. Tierno Bokar followed 11 repetitions in his prayer for religious reasons. Many members of his clan viewed it as a profound betrayal due to the prayer associated with a rival clan. In Bandiagara, Bokar was ostracized by his clan and family and forbidden to teach or pray publicly. Bokar's school was destroyed, and he and his two wives and children were placed under house arrest.
Bokar died in Bandiagara in 1939, where he is buried in the cemetery "at his mother's feet, under a small tree". [1]
Tierno Bokar describes the Primordial Pact between the soul and God. Bokar taught that each person was created in the image of Adam and was given a soul. The soul is the most precious gift that God bestows. It is the soul that separates humans from animals. It is the soul that allows us to make connections and understand religion and the world mentally. It is also the soul that will enable us to understand the Quran, the Sunnah and ijma. Those who dedicated their soul to the religion are promised an increase and a reward in Jannah. Those who dedicate their soul to the material world will bring great harm to themselves in the Hereafter (Jahannam).
Bokar taught that no matter how rigorous the trials around Paradise are, the torments of hell are worse. No matter how pleasurable things around Hell are, paradise is better. Therefore, undergoing a momentary trial for eternal bliss is better than enjoying momentary bliss and suffering perpetual torment.
Bokar believed there was only one true religion with unchangeable principles but varying expressions corresponding to the time and place in which the religion was revealed. Bokar stated that the great prophets teach this Religion, but most people only understand the outward forms of the religion, thus leading separate "religions" to conflict with each other. To explain this concept, Bokar cited several Quranic verses (al-Baqara 2:136, 2:62 and al-Rum 30:30).
Tierno Bokar advocated for civil inter-religious dialogue (al-Nahl 16:125, al-Ankabut 29:46) and admonished religious bigotry or chauvinism. He stated, "Certain truths only seem to be beyond our acceptance because, quite simply, our knowledge has not had access to them." He also advised his students to "Avoid confrontations. When something in some religion or belief shocks you, instead seek to understand it. Perhaps God will come to your aid and will enlighten you about what seems strange to you."
Throughout the increasingly violent fighting, Bokar preached a message of religious tolerance and universal love.
I pray God that at the moment I die, I have more enemies to whom I've done nothing than friends."
— Tierno Bokar [2]
The only struggle that really concerns me is the one that is aimed at our weaknesses. This struggle, alas, has nothing to do with the war that so many of Adam's sons wage in the name of a God they claim to love deeply…
— Tierno Bokar [2]
A constant smile which calls you
A forehead shining like a mirror
A mirror stampedWith the dark point of prostration. [1]
The Mouride brotherhood is a large tariqa most prominent in Senegal and The Gambia with headquarters in the city of Touba, which is a holy city for the order. Adherents are called Mourides, from the Arabic word murīd, a term used generally in Sufism to designate a disciple of a spiritual guide.The beliefs and practices of the Mourides constitute Mouridism. Mouride disciples call themselves taalibé in Wolof and must undergo a ritual of allegiance called njebbel, as it is considered highly important to have a sheikh "spiritual guide" in order to become a Mouride. The Mouride brotherhood was founded in 1883 in Senegal by Amadou Bamba. The Mouride make up around 40 percent of the total population, and their influence over everyday life can be seen throughout Senegal.
Peter Stephen Paul Brook was an English theatre and film director. He worked first in England, from 1945 at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre, from 1947 at the Royal Opera House, and from 1962 for the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC). With them, he directed the first English-language production in 1964 of Marat/Sade by Peter Weiss, which was transferred to Broadway in 1965 and won the Tony Award for Best Play, and Brook was named Best Director. He also directed films such as an iconic version of Lord of the Flies in 1963.
The music of Mali is, like that of most West African nations, ethnically diverse, but one influence predominates: that of the ancient Mali Empire of the Mandinka. Mande people make up around 50% of Mali's population; other ethnic groups include the Fula (17%), Gur-speakers 12%, Songhai people (6%), Tuareg and Moors (10%).
The Tijjani order is a Sufi order of Sunni Islam named after Ahmad al-Tijani. It originated in the Maghreb but now more widespread in West Africa, particularly in Senegal, Gambia, Mauritania, Mali, Guinea, Niger, Chad, Ghana, Northern and Southwestern Nigeria and some parts of Sudan. The Tijāniyyah order is also present in the states of Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka in India. Its adherents are called Tijānī. Tijānīs place great importance on culture and education and emphasize the individual adhesion of the disciple (murid). To become a member of the order, one must receive the Tijānī wird, or a sequence of holy phrases to be repeated twice daily, from a muqaddam, or representative of the order.
Amadou Hampâté Bâ was a Malian writer, historian, and ethnologist. He was an influential figure in the twentieth-century African literature and cultural heritage. A champion of Africa's oral tradition and traditional knowledge, he is remembered for the saying: "whenever an old man dies, it is as though a library were burning down".
Hadji Oumarûl Foutiyou Tall, born in Futa Tooro, present-day Senegal, was a Senegalese Tijani sufi Toucouleur Islamic scholar and military commander who founded the short-lived Toucouleur Empire, which encompassed much of what is now Senegal, Mauritania, Guinea and Mali.
The Tukulor Empire (1861–1890) was an Islamic state in the mid-nineteenth century founded by Elhadj Oumar Foutiyou Tall of the Toucouleur people of Senegal.
Tidiani Tall was a Toucouleur leader who succeeded his uncle, El Hadj Umar Tall, as head of the Toucouleur Empire in the former Massina Empire following Umar's 1864 death near Bandiagara.
Sheikhu Ahmadu was the Fulbe founder of the Massina Empire in the Inner Niger Delta, now the Mopti Region of Mali. He ruled as Almami from 1818 until his death in 1845, also taking the title sisse al-Masini.
Sufi studies is a particular branch of comparative studies that uses the technical lexicon of the Islamic mystics, the Sufis, to exemplify the nature of its ideas; hence the frequent reference to Sufi Orders. It may be divided into two main branches, the orientalist/academic and the spiritual.
Islam is the predominant religion in Senegal. 97 percent of the country's population is estimated to be Muslim. Islam has had a presence in Senegal since the 11th century. Sufi brotherhoods expanded with French colonization, as people turned to religious authority rather than the colonial administration. The main Sufi orders are the Tijaniyyah, the Muridiyyah or Mourides, and to a lesser extent, the pan-Islamic Qadiriyyah and the smaller Layene order. Approximately 1% are Shiites.
Gregory Mosher is an American director and producer of stage productions at the Lincoln Center and Goodman Theatres, on and off-Broadway, at the Royal National Theatre, and in the West End. He is also a film director and television director, producer, and writer. He currently serves as Senior Associate Dean for the Arts at Hunter College.
Articles related to Mali include:
Habib Dembélé is a Malian actor, director, and author, and a candidate for the Malian Presidential elections of 2002 and 2018.
A Spirit of Tolerance: The Inspiring Life of Tierno Bokar is the English translation of Amadou Hampate Ba's book Vie en enseignement de Tierno Bokar, le sage de Bandiagara, originally written in French. This book describes the life of Tierno Bokar, a Malian Sufi who preached a message of religious tolerance. It was adapted into a play directed by Peter Brook titled Tierno Bokar.
Hamallayya or Hamallism is a Sufi ṭarīqah originating in West Africa as an outgrowth from and reaction against the Tijaniyyah brotherhood. It was founded at the beginning of the 20th century by a mystic Muhammad ben Amadu of Maure and Fulani background, as reform movement of Tijaniyyah practice. Stressing opposition to hierarchy and downplaying the importance of education, the movement spread in the 1920s by Amadu's disciple Shaykh Hamahullah bin Muhammad bin Umar (1886–1943) in what was then French Soudan, modern Mali. It first took root amongst Wolof traders living in Nioro, but soon spread to servile caste Muslims in Mauretania and Mali.
Shaykh Shekna Ahmeda Hamahullah ben Muhammad ben Seydina Umar was a Sufi Muslim religious leader, born in French Soudan and died in France after being arrested and sent into exile in 1933 by the colonial government of French West Africa. While not the founder, he was the spiritual leader of a militant reform movement of the powerful Tijaniyyah sufi ṭarīqah, which has popularly taken his name, as Hamallayya or Hamallism.
In Sufism, the wazifa is a regular litany practiced by followers and comprising Quranic verses, hadiths of supplication and various Duas.
In Sufism, the lazimi or wird lazim is a regular litany (wird) practiced individually by followers (murids) in the Tijaniyya order.
In Sufism, the Salat al-Fatih is a regular litany (wird) and prayer for Muhammad practiced individually or in congregation by followers (murids) in the Tijaniyya order.
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