Paper short abstract:

This paper delves in the complex structures within the ḥaḍra of the Wazzāniyah in Morocco embedded in their practices of poetry production and performance, which constitute a process of meaning-making and contribute to the identity formation of this Sufi ṭarīqa.

Paper long abstract:

Al-Ḥaḍra (presence [of God] arab.) is a spiritual Sufi performance that involves a unique experience of expanded consciousness accessed through meditative liturgical recitation in a collective ritual; a journey toward God in the hope of being in his divine presence. For the Wazzāniyah disciples in Morocco, the ḥaḍra poetry performance constitutes the aesthetic and performative enactment of their ṭarīqa (Sufi path/Sufi Brotherhood, arab.) in the absence of a detailed and generalized doctrine amongst its disciples. Relying on the performative ḥaḍra to preserve their doctrine, the ṭarīqa moves from a text practice into embodying the doctrine through a fluid and ever-changing ritual; a semi-conscience choice to abandon a long-established logocentric tradition and express an identity which inherently adopts fluidity and renewal as its main pillars. In this research, I delve into the complex layers and structures of power and authority within the ḥaḍra as a result of constant acts of re-inscription and erasure that are embedded in their practices of textual production, transmission, and performance, which in turn constitute a process of meaning-making and contributes to the identity formation of this community.