Huston Smith 4

8. What is Sufism and how did it come to be?

• Some Muslims after Muhammad's death were known as Sufis.
• Every message in the Koran is important and Sufis believe that it is very sacred and that every message told in it should be practiced as often and accurately as possible.
• Sufis wanted to encounter God directly in their everyday lives.
• Sufism is esoteric and only understood by a handful of outsiders. 
• Symbolism is a principle method as it gives them something to worship God with and give emphasis to a specific idea or concept. 
• Sufism came to be after the death of Muhammad, and is the dimension of Islam practiced mainly through symbols aimed at encountering Allah . 

9.How has Islam changed with the degradation of Muhammad's words

• Islam has become less of a practice and more of a "mere profession"
• Muslims have strayed from the words and path laid out by Muhammad.
• Prayer is an essential aspect to faithful Muslims. 
• Some aspects have remained unchanged, such as the statements that God is great and there is only one god. 
• Some traditions predating Islam may have become intermixed with the culture. 
•  Muhammad is still very important in the religion of Islam, but his words been changed slightly to a  different meaning now. This has lead to a modernization of the religion of sorts and also a change of the religion itself.