Tasawwuf as ethical science: Embodied pedagogy in the poetics of Khoja Ahmad Yasawi

This article explores Tasawwuf (Sufism) as a foundational Islamic discipline of ethical and spiritual development, countering modern views that reduce it to mysticism or cultural ornament. Through close reading of Khwaja Ahmad Yasawi’s Dīwān-i Ḥikmat, the study shows how Sufi poetry serves as a form of moral instruction. Drawing on Islamic hermeneutics (taʾwīl) and Sufi pedagogy (tarbiya), it examines how practices such as dhikr (remembrance) and sulūk (spiritual striving) turn poetic language into a guide for moral refinement (tahdhīb al-akhlāq). These teachings are rooted in the Qur’anic concept of iḥsān, emphasizing excellence in worship, character, and inner intention.