Qutb

<h2 id="scriptural-evidence">Scriptural evidence</h2>
In the teachings of <a href="/facts/Al-Hakim_al-Tirmidhi/1HEsf76L">Al-Hakim al-Tirmidhi</a>, there is evidence to suggest that the qutb is the head of the saintly hierarchy which provides scriptural evidence to support the belief in the qutb. The hadīth attributed to Ibn Mas‘ūd has been used as proof that a qutb exists.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7">7</a>

<h2 id="temporal-qutband-cosmic-qutb">Temporal qutb and cosmic qutb</h2>
<h3>Temporal qutb</h3>
There are two different conceptions of the qutb in Sufism: temporal qutb and cosmic qutb. The temporal and cosmic qutb are connected, which guarantees that God is present in the world at all times. The temporal qutb is known as "the helper" or al-ghawth and is located in a person on Earth. The cosmic qutb is manifested in the temporal qutb as a virtue which can be traced back to <a href="/facts/Al-Hallaj/Fwgljalr">al-Hallaj</a>. The temporal qutb is the spiritual leader for the earth-bound saints. It is said that all beings - secret, animate, and inanimate - must give the qutb their pledge which gives him great authority. The Only beings exempt from this are al-afrād, which belong to the angels; the djinn, who are under the jurisdiction of <a href="/facts/Khidr/Rr60MVCa">Khadir</a>; and those who belong to the tenth stratum of ridjālal-ghayb.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8">8</a>
Due to the nature of the qutb, the location where he resides, whether temporal or cosmic, is a matter of learned speculation. It is thought by most that the qutb is corporeally or spiritually present in <a href="/facts/Mecca/udqyuk0k">Mecca</a> at the <a href="/facts/Ka%2527ba/HtXr4Knl">Ka'ba</a>, which is referred to as his maqām.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9">9</a>
Sufi language forms a notable style of writing in Persian, which is full of novel spiritual ideas and metaphors, demonstrating a need to refrain from taking its words literally, if such should seem contrary to the teachings of Islam.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10">10</a>

<h3>Cosmic qutb</h3>
The cosmic qutb is the <a href="/facts/Axis_mundi/VeS2zEDd">Axis of the Universe</a> in a <a href="/facts/Planes_of_existence/LbUSaeRp">higher dimension</a> from which originates the power (ultimately from <a href="/facts/Allah/7U7KpU9p">Allah</a>) of the temporal qutb.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:11" href="#fn:11">11</a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:12" href="#fn:12">12</a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:13" href="#fn:13">13</a>

<h2 id="the-cosmic-hierarchy-of-the-qutb">The cosmic hierarchy of the qutb</h2>
The cosmic hierarchy forms the manifestation of the way in which spiritual power underpins the existence of the cosmos. Two descriptions of the hierarchy come from notable Sufis. The first is <a href="/facts/Ali_Hujwiri/1J3Svhz9">Ali Hujwiri</a>'s divine court. There are three hundred akhyār ("excellent ones"), forty <a href="/facts/Abdal/38uU3rvT">abdāl</a> ("substitutes"), seven abrār ("piously devoted ones"), four awtād ("pillars") three nuqabā ("leaders") and one qutb.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:14" href="#fn:14">14</a>
The second version is <a href="/facts/Ibn_Arabi/vyf4NoEE">Ibn Arabī</a>’s which has a different, more exclusive structure. There are eight nujabā ("nobles"), twelve nuqabā, seven abdāl, four awtād, two a’immah ("guides"), and the qutb.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:15" href="#fn:15">15</a>

<h2 id="people-named-qutb">People named Qutb</h2>
For those named Qutb ad-Din, with many variant transliterations, see <a href="/facts/Qutb_ad-Din/XIp8Kwuu">Qutb ad-Din</a>.

<h2 id="buildings">Buildings</h2>
<ul><li><a href="/facts/Qutb_complex/6VpDYa3G">Qutb complex</a>, a group of monuments and buildings at Mehrauli in Delhi, India</li>
<li><a href="/facts/Qutb_Minar/1DBkERra">Qutb Minar</a>, a tall brick minaret in Delhi, India</li></ul>
<h2 id="notes">Notes</h2>

<h2 id="references">References</h2>

<ol>
<li id="fn:1">also romanized as qutub, kutb, kutub, or kotb <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:2">Esposito, John L. (2003). The Oxford dictionary of Islam. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc. <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:3">Hobson, J. Peter (2001). The Concise Encyclopaedia of Islam. London, England: Stacey International & Cyril Glasse. p. 374. <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:4">Brill, E.J. (1938). Encyclopaedia of Islam. A Dictionary of the Geography, Ethnography and Biography of the Muhammadan peoples. Netherlands: Leiden. pp. 1165–1166. ISBN 90-04-09796-1. {{cite book}}: ISBN / Date incompatibility (help) <a href="90-04-09796-1" target="_blank">90-04-09796-1</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:5">Esposito, John L. (2003). The Oxford dictionary of Islam. New York: Oxford University Press, Inc. <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:6">A glossary of terms, The Institute of Ismaili Studies Archived 2010-10-09 at the Wayback Machine <a href="http://www.iis.ac.uk/glossary_list.asp?f=l&t=q&l=en" target="_blank">http://www.iis.ac.uk/glossary_list.asp?f=l&t=q&l=en</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:7">Bearman, P.; Kunitzsch, P.; Jong, F. "Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition". Koninklijke Brill NV. Retrieved April 2, 2011. <a href="http://www.brillonline.nl/subscriber/entry?entry=islam_COM-0550" target="_blank">http://www.brillonline.nl/subscriber/entry?entry=islam_COM-0550</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:8">Bearman, P.; Kunitzsch, P.; Jong, F. "Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition". Koninklijke Brill NV. Retrieved April 2, 2011. <a href="http://www.brillonline.nl/subscriber/entry?entry=islam_COM-0550" target="_blank">http://www.brillonline.nl/subscriber/entry?entry=islam_COM-0550</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:9">Lewisohn, Leonard (1999). "An Introduction to the History of Modern Persian Sufism, Part II: A Socio-Cultural Profile of Sufism, from the Dahahbi Revival to the Present Day". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London. 62 (1): 36–59. doi:10.1017/s0041977x00017559. JSTOR 3107388. S2CID 154491288. <a href="/wiki/Doi_(identifier)" target="_blank">/wiki/Doi_(identifier)</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:10">Jaberi, Sareh; Abdullah, Imran Ho; Vengadasamy, Ravichandran (2015). "A Traveler in God's Path: Sufi Words and the Metaphor of Journey. Asian Social Science". doi:10.5539/ass.v11n16p160. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help) <a href="https://doi.org/10.5539%2Fass.v11n16p160" target="_blank">https://doi.org/10.5539%2Fass.v11n16p160</a> <a href="#fnref:10" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:11">"Idris and Al Khidr"--see Axis of the Universe about one-fourth of the way down the web page: <a href="http://khidr.org/gunawardhana.htm" target="_blank">http://khidr.org/gunawardhana.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:11" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:12">"The Tree Symbol in Islam" by Noble Ross: <a href="http://www.studiesincomparativereligion.com/Public/articles/The_Tree_Symbol_in_Islam-by_Noble_Ross_Reat.aspx" target="_blank">http://www.studiesincomparativereligion.com/Public/articles/The_Tree_Symbol_in_Islam-by_Noble_Ross_Reat.aspx</a> <a href="#fnref:12" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:13">"How many worlds are there?" – Discussion of the Planes of existence as conceived in Shi’ism <a href="http://www.shiachat.com/forum/index.php?/topic/35435-how-many-worlds-are-there/" target="_blank">http://www.shiachat.com/forum/index.php?/topic/35435-how-many-worlds-are-there/</a> <a href="#fnref:13" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:14">The Saints of Islam, quoting The Mystics of Islam by Dr. Reynold A. Nicholson <a href="http://sunnirazvi.net/qadiri/sufis/awliya.htm" target="_blank">http://sunnirazvi.net/qadiri/sufis/awliya.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:14" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
<li id="fn:15">Jones, Lindsay (2005). Encyclopedia of Religion, Second Edition. Farmington Hills, MI: Thomson Gale. p. 8821. ISBN 0-02-865733-0. <a href="0-02-865733-0" target="_blank">0-02-865733-0</a> <a href="#fnref:15" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></li>
</ol>

Qutb open-in-new

Qutb