The Sufis

Having read many positive reviews of Ibn Warraq's "Leaving Islam", I naturally had to get a copy for myself. Here is an excellent quote from Warraq from Chapter 4, "Sufism, or Islamic Mysticism and the Rejection of Islam":

The great achievement of the Sufis was their insistence that true religion had nothing to do with the doctrinal and legal system of orthodoxy, which only restricted man's religious horizon. In the mystic's vision there were no heavenly rewards and hellish punishments; the written word of God was abrogated by a direct and intimate revelation. Instead of being ruled by fear, the mystic is more concerned with the love and knowledge of God, detachment from the self, and "the divine service is regarded as a service of hearts," rather than the observance of external rules that have to be obeyed blindly.

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