Otoritas Epistemologis Kashf dalam Tasawuf Kontemporer: Telaah Pemikiran Seyyed Hossein Nasr dan William C. Chittick

Abstract

This study analyzes the epistemological authority of kashf in contemporary Sufism by bringing Seyyed Hossein Nasr’s concept of scientia sacra into dialogue with William C. Chittick’s interpretation of ‘alam al-khayal. It employs qualitative philosophical library research using philosophical hermeneutics and dialectical analysis of the thinkers’ primary works and relevant secondary literature. The analysis shows that Nasr provides a metaphysical foundation for spiritual knowledge by relating knowing to the Absolute, while Chittick explains the ontological possibility of spiritual unveiling through the imaginal realm as an intermediary between material and spiritual realities. Their complementary perspectives frame kashf as al-‘ilm al-hudhuri, or knowledge by presence, involving the subject’s existential participation in the reality known. Within this framework, its authority rests on the coherence of ontological structure, spiritual preparedness, and revelation as a normative horizon. Revelation, unveiling, and self-transformation constitute interconnected dimensions of Sufi epistemology rather than successive verification procedures. The study concludes that kashf possesses a conceptual foundation within the Islamic intellectual tradition, grounded in the unity of revelation, intellect, and self-purification. This synthesis enriches Islamic epistemology and broadens philosophical discussion of spiritual knowledge beyond empirical verification.