Date: Thu, 2 Dec 1993 11:43:03 -0500
From: habib@world.std.com (Steve H Rose)
To: ceci@lysator.liu.se
Subject: "Welcome to tariqas" message


Dear Friend,

This note is a preliminary version of a welcome note which will be sent
to all new members of our discussion group.  I welcome any feedback you
have on this note - and any corrections you would offer to my limited
knowledge of Arabic etc.

yours,

Habibullah

***

Assalamu alaykum (may peace be with you).

Welcome to 'tariqas'!

'tariqas' is a discussion group focusing on spiritual paths/ways/orders.
The word "tariqas" is Arabic, and literally means "paths" or "ways."
It is applied to the various Sufi Orders (e.g. the Mevlevi tariqa;
the Naqshbandi tariqa).

Members of all Sufi Orders, whether Muslims or non-Muslims, are welcome
to participate in our group.  But, this group is not exclusive to Muslims,
or even to those following a specifically Sufi path.  If you are a Muslim,
and are interested in also participating in a group exclusively for Muslims
involved with the Sufi path, you are welcome to contact palmer@netcom.com
who runs a similar discussion group, titled 'sufi'.

'tariqas' is intended for any person involved in any spiritual path, who
is open to sharing in an open and honest way with others - who may be 
involved in the same path, or one which may appear, on the surface at least,
to be very different.  In general, most of the participants in 'tariqas'
are involved in "paths of the heart" - of love.

Paricipating in the group is easy - all you have to do is to send a 
message to tariqas@world.std.com and your message will automatically 
be forwarded to all members of the group.  All members of the group are
encouraged to feel comfortable to contribute to the discussion.  Since
most of us are involved in "paths of the heart" - and since we all 
have a heart - we all have something to say.

Any personal messages to the group founder, Habib Rose, or any messages 
regarding changes, additions, or deletions to the mailing list, should be 
sent to habib@world.std.com

Yours,

Habib Rose
(Habibullah)