Sufi Hat

Iran

Late 20th century

Felted wool, cotton

Sufism is a mystical dimension of Islam in which Muslims seek divine truth and love through the direct experience of God. The devotional practice is grounded in normal Islamic observances, but Sufis also follow their own, divergent spiritual paths to God and toward an enlightened inner being.

The Arabic inscriptions on this hat are from a poem that reads:

They saw my silence, solitude

They allowed me to step in the pathway (of the Divine)  

They gave me refuge in the house of love

Permitted my souls to be elevated.

From this felt, they sewed me a hat. 

Oh Ali, Oh Ali, Oh Ali.