by Ali Jamnia and Mojdeh Bayat
Why did Hafiz keep his Sufi identity a secret, and why did he not reveal the name of his master? And why is it an issue? Is it an issue because if he was a Sufi, then he would have followed one school of thought? If so, his poems could be interpreted in that light and this interpretation would bring a sense of coherence to his work. There does not seem to be any known reason why he should have kept his Sufi identity a secret. However, there have been certain branches of the Malamatiayya Sufi Order in the course of history whose members insisted on keeping their Sufi identity and that of their master a secret. Whether Hafiz belonged to such an order is not clear. The followers of this branch believed in subjecting their egos to the blame of others as a means of purification. Hafiz has made a few references to this approach in his work.
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