This paper explores the vision of human perfection and spiritual individualism in Western Sufism, focusing on Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri's (b. 1937) literary works and teachings. It addresses the question of how the vision of spiritual perfection in Shaykh Fadhlalla's teachings interplays with reflexive spirituality and modern individuation, shaping his vision for the Sufi community and providing an alternative to the tariqa-style Sufism in the West.
The main focus of this paper is the analysis of selected written texts by Shaykh Fadhlalla, in which he addresses issues of spiritual perfection through close reading, conceptual analysis, and cross-textual comparison. It argues that, despite some similarities with New Age concepts that imply minimal transcendence, Shaykh Fadhlalla's teachings are deeply rooted in the classical Sufi tradition and based on otherworldly transcendence, but articulated through the lens of reflexive spirituality. While contemporary Sufi communities in Western Europe navigate the opposing trends of 're-Islamization' and the development of 'post-tariqa' Sufism, this paper posits that Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri's vision of post-tariqa Sufism is shaped by his ideas on human perfection and the ways to attain it.