Atlas
About this atlas
The atlas holds the chains of transmission from the Prophet as the standard references and the classical sources record them: the Sufi orders, the chains of Qurʾān recitation, the teachers of the schools of law and ḥadīth, and the lines of the Prophet's family, with the places they spread and the living houses and teachers who carry them today. Every link shows its sources; where they differ, both readings are shown, and we do not rule on any community's claims. Ibn ʿArabī's own life, teachers and readers are on their own page.
أبو الفتح الواسطي
Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī
Died 632/1234-35 · Alexandria
Caliph sent to Alexandria; credited with organising the order in Egypt
Sources for this person
The chain up to the Prophet
Dates are given where the sources give them. Years are CE; the Hijri year is in each name's detail.
Route 1 of 3, the best-sourced: Rifāʿiyya. Tap a rule to read its basis, sources and checks.
- The Prophet Muhammadمحمد632
- Ghulām b. Turkānغلام بن تركان
the community's own accountin Rifāʿiyya
initiation · Ghulām b. Turkān to Abū l-Faḍl ʿAlī al-Wāsiṭī · The community's own account
Chain via Aḥmad's first shaykh, as TDV gives it: Ghulām b. Turkān → Abū l-Faḍl al-Wāsiṭī.
TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Rifâiyye'Checked against
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L13843-13848 · silentNo intermediate names are given in Trimingham's summary of the Tiryāq.
Abū l-Faḍl ʿAlī al-Wāsiṭīأبو الفضل علي الواسطيtwo sourcesin Rifāʿiyya
gave the khirqa · Abū l-Faḍl ʿAlī al-Wāsiṭī to Aḥmad al-Rifāʿī · Two independent sources
TDV: al-Wāsiṭī taught Aḥmad, gave him ijāza and his cloak (hırka).
TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Ahmed er-Rifâî'TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Rifâiyye'Checked against
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L2285-2288 · agreesAḥmad's shaykh al-suhba, who invested him with his first khirqa, was ʿAlī Abū l-Faḍl al-Qārī al-Wāsiṭī.
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L13843-13846 · agreesTaqī al-Dīn al-Wāsiṭī: his first initiator ʿAlī Abū l-Faḍl al-Qārī al-Wāsiṭī is linked to al-Junayd.
Aḥmad al-Rifāʿīأحمد الرفاعي1182two sourcesin Rifāʿiyya
gave the khirqa · Aḥmad al-Rifāʿī to Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī · Two independent sources
TDV: sent to Alexandria; credited with organising the order in Egypt.
TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Rifâiyye'Checked against
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L2386-2387 · agreesThe Rifāʿiyya spread into Egypt through Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī (d. 632/1234).
- al-Shaʿrānī, al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubrā (= Lawāqiḥ al-anwār, OpenITI), 0973CabdWahhabShacrani.LawaqihAnwar.JK009301-ara1#L8841-8843 · agreesShaʿrānī: Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī was among the companions of Ibn al-Rifāʿī, who sent him to Alexandria; shaykh of the shaykhs of Lower Egypt.
Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭīأبو الفتح الواسطي1234
Other routes (2)
Route 2 of 3: Rifāʿiyya
- The Prophet Muhammadمحمد632
- Abū Manṣūr al-Ṭayyibأبو منصور الطيب
the community's own accountin Rifāʿiyyasources differ
initiation · Abū Manṣūr al-Ṭayyib to Manṣūr al-Baṭāʾiḥī · The community's own account
Chain via Aḥmad's uncle, as TDV gives it: Abū Manṣūr al-Ṭayyib → Manṣūr al-Baṭāʾiḥī.
TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Rifâiyye'Checked against
- al-Shaʿrānī, al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubrā (= Lawāqiḥ al-anwār, OpenITI), 0973CabdWahhabShacrani.LawaqihAnwar.JK009301-ara1#L5788-5790 · differsShaʿrānī: Manṣūr al-Baṭāʾiḥī trained under Shaykh Muḥammad al-Shunbukī.
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L13846-13850 · differsTrimingham (via al-Wāsiṭī): Manṣūr's three silsilas were hereditary to al-Junayd, via Maʿrūf and the ʿAlid line, and via Abū Bakr al-Hawāzanī al-Baṭāʾiḥī; the Ruwaym route is not among them.
Where the sources differ, side by side. We do not rule between them.
- Shaʿrānī (Ṭabaqāt, Lawāqiḥ al-anwār, l.5788–5790) makes Muḥammad al-Shunbukī the shaykh of Manṣūr al-Baṭāʾiḥī; Trimingham (1971, p. 263, summarising al-Wāsiṭī's Tiryāq) lists Manṣūr's silsilas as: hereditary to al-Junayd; via Maʿrūf al-Karkhī and the ʿAlid line; and via Abū Bakr al-Hawāzanī al-Baṭāʾiḥī to Sahl al-Tustarī, Dhū l-Nūn, Isrāfīl and ʿAlī. The Ruwaym → Sundūsī → Karmazī → Najjār → Ṭayyib route of the first pass is not in either.Shaʿrānī; Trimingham 1971
Manṣūr al-Baṭāʾiḥīمنصور البطائحيtwo sourcesin Rifāʿiyya
gave the khirqa · Manṣūr al-Baṭāʾiḥī to Aḥmad al-Rifāʿī · Two independent sources
TDV: Manṣūr, Aḥmad's maternal uncle, gave him the caliphate and the title shaykh al-shuyūkh; the Umm ʿAbīda lodge was placed under him in 540/1145-46.
TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Ahmed er-Rifâî'TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Rifâiyye'Checked against
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L2286-2290 · agreesMaternal uncle Manṣūr al-Baṭāʾiḥī (d. 540/1145) gave him the khirqa in his 27th year, then the mashyakha before his death.
- al-Shaʿrānī, al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubrā (= Lawāqiḥ al-anwār, OpenITI), 0973CabdWahhabShacrani.LawaqihAnwar.JK009301-ara1#L5788 · agreesShaʿrānī: Manṣūr al-Baṭāʾiḥī is Aḥmad b. al-Rifāʿī's maternal uncle and Aḥmad trained in his company.
Aḥmad al-Rifāʿīأحمد الرفاعي1182two sourcesin Rifāʿiyya
gave the khirqa · Aḥmad al-Rifāʿī to Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī · Two independent sources
TDV: sent to Alexandria; credited with organising the order in Egypt.
TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Rifâiyye'Checked against
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L2386-2387 · agreesThe Rifāʿiyya spread into Egypt through Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī (d. 632/1234).
- al-Shaʿrānī, al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubrā (= Lawāqiḥ al-anwār, OpenITI), 0973CabdWahhabShacrani.LawaqihAnwar.JK009301-ara1#L8841-8843 · agreesShaʿrānī: Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī was among the companions of Ibn al-Rifāʿī, who sent him to Alexandria; shaykh of the shaykhs of Lower Egypt.
Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭīأبو الفتح الواسطي1234
Route 3 of 3: Rifāʿiyya
- The Prophet Muhammadمحمد632
- Ghulām b. Turkānغلام بن تركان
the community's own accountin Rifāʿiyya
initiation · Ghulām b. Turkān to Abū l-Faḍl ʿAlī al-Wāsiṭī · The community's own account
Chain via Aḥmad's first shaykh, as TDV gives it: Ghulām b. Turkān → Abū l-Faḍl al-Wāsiṭī.
TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Rifâiyye'Checked against
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L13843-13848 · silentNo intermediate names are given in Trimingham's summary of the Tiryāq.
Abū l-Faḍl ʿAlī al-Wāsiṭīأبو الفضل علي الواسطيtwo sourcesin Rifāʿiyya
gave the khirqa · Abū l-Faḍl ʿAlī al-Wāsiṭī to Aḥmad al-Rifāʿī · Two independent sources
TDV: al-Wāsiṭī taught Aḥmad, gave him ijāza and his cloak (hırka).
TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Ahmed er-Rifâî'TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Rifâiyye'Checked against
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L2285-2288 · agreesAḥmad's shaykh al-suhba, who invested him with his first khirqa, was ʿAlī Abū l-Faḍl al-Qārī al-Wāsiṭī.
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L13843-13846 · agreesTaqī al-Dīn al-Wāsiṭī: his first initiator ʿAlī Abū l-Faḍl al-Qārī al-Wāsiṭī is linked to al-Junayd.
Aḥmad al-Rifāʿīأحمد الرفاعي1182two sourcesin Rifāʿiyya
gave the khirqa · Aḥmad al-Rifāʿī to Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī · Two independent sources
TDV: sent to Alexandria; credited with organising the order in Egypt.
TDV İslâm Ansiklopedisi, 'Rifâiyye'Checked against
- Trimingham, The Sufi Orders in Islam (1971), owner text, trimingham_sufi-orders-in-islam_1971.txt#L2386-2387 · agreesThe Rifāʿiyya spread into Egypt through Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī (d. 632/1234).
- al-Shaʿrānī, al-Ṭabaqāt al-kubrā (= Lawāqiḥ al-anwār, OpenITI), 0973CabdWahhabShacrani.LawaqihAnwar.JK009301-ara1#L8841-8843 · agreesShaʿrānī: Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī was among the companions of Ibn al-Rifāʿī, who sent him to Alexandria; shaykh of the shaykhs of Lower Egypt.
Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭīأبو الفتح الواسطي1234
How to read the marks
- Two sources: a solid rule. Two independent references give the same link.
- One source: a lighter rule, so labelled.
- The community's own account: a dotted rule. The order tells it; we have not yet read it against a reference source.
- A gap in the rule: the sources omit names between the two. The label says which.
- The sources differ: tap the ≠ to read each reading with its source.
- A ring: a spiritual link, without a meeting (uwaysī).
Who received from Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī
No one is recorded below this person in the sources read.
How to cite
Mashraba Reader, Atlas of transmission, “Abū l-Fatḥ al-Wāsiṭī”, https://www.mashraba.org/atlas/figure/abu-l-fath-wasiti (data of 31 October 2026).