American Journal of Interdisciplinary Research and Development ISSN Online: 2771-8948 Website: www.ajird.journalspark.org Volume 27, April - 2024 53 | P a g e HARITH AL-MUSAHIBI AND HIS COGNITIVE THEORY Алимов Х. М. доцент кафедры «Психология религии и педагогика» Международной исламской академии Узбекистана, доктор психологических наук (DSc) Abstract This article is devoted to the life and work of Harith al-Musahibi, as well as his cognitive theory. Harith al-Musahibi is the founder of the psychology of Sufism. Harith al- Musahibi's moral teaching is based on muhasabat al-nafs, i.e., self-reporting. It offers the means to overcome human weaknesses and to serve God wholeheartedly. Keywords: life and work of Harith al-Musahibi, cognitive theory, psychology, Sufism, muhasabat al-nafs, introspection, human weaknesses, ulterior motives, self-denial. Introduction Harith al-Musahibi is considered one of the founders of the psychology of Sufism. Because he was one of the first to mystically interpret the complex psychological concept called self- consciousness and to systematize the psychological knowledge accumulated by that time. Farididdin Attar assessed Harith al-Musahibi as follows: "Shaykh Hazrat Harith Muhasibi (peace be upon him) was the Shaykh ul-Mashaikh of his time. He was unique in pharosat and service" (4.57). Little information has been preserved about the life and work of Harith al-Musahibi. It is known that he was born into an Arab family in Basra, where he was introduced to the traditions of asceticism handed down from Hassan Basri and where he received his first lesson in hadith studies. Later, he came to Baghdad and acquired all religious knowledge, including jurisprudence. It is known that during this period, the famous scientist of his time, the founder of the Shafi'i Sunni sect, Muhammad bin Idris al-Shafi'i, lived in Baghdad. According to information, he studies at a Shafi'i school. Harith al-Musahibi worked as a mudarris in Baghdad and therefore had many students and like-minded people in that city. If we pay attention to the structure of the works created by Harith al-Musahibi, we can see that they are written mainly in the form of the Master's answers to the questions of the disciples. His collections are also autobiographical. In them, the scientist describes his experience in the process of searching for religious truth, his personal conclusions and ways of salvation. However, some of his views were criticized by Ahmad bin Hanbal, a well-known scholar at the time, the founder of the Sunni sect of Hanbali, and his teachings on psychological self-observation and introspection were declared heresy. As a result, Harith al-Musahibi was forced to move to the city of Kufa. According to historical sources, he sent a letter from Kufa to Ahmad bin Hanbal regretting his mistakes and errors, but Ahmad bin Hanbal did not react to it. It can be seen that some Western psychologists approach this question incorrectly. For example, A.D. Knish writes about this in his book "Muslim American Journal of Interdisciplinary Research and Development ISSN Online: 2771-8948 Website: www.ajird.journalspark.org Volume 27, April - 2024 54 | P a g e Mysticism: A Brief HistoryAhmad bin Hanbal "did this out of jealousy of Harith al- Musahibi." Because he was an eloquent and broad-minded scholar like Ahmad bin Hanbal" (5.51). In our view, this situation is a superficial explanation of the relationship between them. There are two sides to this: first, it is logically incorrect and the sources have not proven that a man like Ahmad bin Hanbal could be jealous and oppress others with his envy; Secondly, the essence of this debate is related to the long debate between "scholars and Sufis", that is, it is related to the issues of khulul. Harith al-Musahibi spent the last years of his life in Baghdad. It is said that only four of his students attended his funeral when he died. Let us now consider the contribution of Harith al-Musahibi to the teachings and practice of Sufism, in particular to Sufi psychology. It is known that the moral teaching of Harith al- Musahibi is based on muhasabat al-nafs, that is, an account of oneself. In his book Kitab al- ri'aya li-huquq Allah (The Book of Obligations to Allah), he describes in detail the process of introspection, the path that must be followed by anyone who seeks to serve Allah. Anyone who reads the book will notice that Harith al-Musahibi has a deep understanding of human nature and its weaknesses. It offers the means to overcome these human weaknesses and to serve God wholeheartedly. When he writes about human psychology, he shows the qualities of great wisdom and sincerity of a true teacher-feast. Harith al-Musahibi explored the hidden motives hidden in the deepest recesses of the human soul, far ahead of the hermits. It is known that asceticism was dominated by such states as self-denial, voluntary poverty, and extinguishment of worldly love, but Harith al- Musahibi discouraged his followers from performing these acts in order to show them to the people. He considered riyo (the act of being seen by the people) to be the main obstacle to spiritual purification and perfection. Constant avoidance of riyo is one of the characteristics of the "friends of Allah" – wali. According to Harith al-Musahibi, in order to identify riyo and get rid of it, it is necessary to deeply analyze one's thoughts and intentions in the context of performing any actions, whether mundane or supernatural. Only through such introspection can one truly serve God. Through introspection, a person achieves two goals: first, he repents of his sins; Second, arrogance is avoided. Arif derives these qualities from the fear of God and hope in God. One of Harith al-Musahibi's contributions to the psychology of Sufism is his introduction of a process of introspection into the theory and practice of Sufism. However, he has not yet come to the concept of the unity of the opposite pair of fear and hope to the wahdat. References 1. Алимов Х. Тасаввуф таълимоти ва амалиёти: психологик таҳлил. Монография. – Т.: “МОВАРОУННАҲР”, 2019. 262 бет 2. Алимов Х. Тасаввуф таълимоти ва амалиётини тадқиқ қилишнинг психологик жиҳатлари. Монография. – Т.: “Қақнус медиа МЧЖ”, 2019. 188 бет American Journal of Interdisciplinary Research and Development ISSN Online: 2771-8948 Website: www.ajird.journalspark.org Volume 27, April - 2024 55 | P a g e 3. Алимов Х. Мотуридий таълимоти ва билишнинг тасаввуфий назарияси. Имом Абу Мансур Мотуридий ва мотуридия таълимоти: ўтмиш ва бугун. Халқаро конференция материаллари. Тошкент ш. 2020 йил. 103-107 бетлар. 4. Attor Farididdin. 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