Shaykha Müzeyyen Ansari
Es-Seyyida Es-Shaykha Muzeyyen Vargonen Tarsusi el Ansari er Rifai el Qadiri was born in Tarsus, Türkiye, where the culture of Sufism permeated her upbringing. She is the namesake of her grandmother, who was a Shaykha of the Naqshbandi Order. As a young woman, Shaykha Muzeyyen was initiated into the Qadiri Rifai Tariqa through Shaykh Nureddin Ozal, khalifa of Es-Seyyid Es-Shaykh Muhyiddin Ansari. Soon after, she and her husband, Es-Seyyid Es- Shaykh Taner Vargonen Ansari, were instructed to move to the US to establish the Ansari Qadiri Rifai Tariqa (AQRT).
Shaykha Muzeyyen and Shaykh Taner worked together to bring the loving way of Sufism to the modern seeker. They adapted the teachings of the original Turkish Sufi order to include a modern-day, science-oriented, understanding of the nature of Divine Reality. They established Sufi learning centers throughout the US and in Australia, Canada, Germany, Mauritius, Mexico, South Africa, Tanzania, and the United Kingdom.
Shaykha Muzeyyen and Shaykh Taner co-founded Ansari Holistic Healing Institute (AHHI). Shaykha Muzeyyen is a healer and teacher of Sufi healing, which includes spiritual, physical, and emotional modalities. She is dedicated to training and supporting holistic and complementary healers.
Shaykha Muzeyyen and Shaykh Taner established Ansari Publications (AP). They collaborated on and published all of Shaykh Taner’s books and articles on Sufism, healing, and sustainability. These works include Between the Loved and the Beloved: Sufi Poems and Sayings (AP 1995, 2nd edition 2023); The Sun Will Rise in the West: The Holy Trail (AP 2000); What About My Wood! 101 Sufi Stories (AP 2006); Alternative Healing: The Sufi Way (AP 2007); Grand Masters of Sufism: Abdul Qadir Geylani’s Secret of Secrets and Ahmed er Rifai’s Guidance to Mysticism (AP 2008); Ya Sin: Sura 36 of the Holy Quran from a Sufi Perspective (AP 2008); Surviving 2012 & Beyond (AP 2010); Dua: The Way of Supplication (AP 2019).
Shaykha Muzeyyen co-authored Aqim al Salat: Connections to the Divine (AP 2023), and was program director for Shaykh Taner’s decade-long translation project The Qur’an: Daily Reading for All Humanity, Chronological Edition (AP 2023) and companion book In-depth Analysis of the Qur’an (to be published 2024). Shaykha Muzeyyen has translated texts, songs (ilahis), poetry, and the history of various Sufi masters from Turkish into English. Her essay “A Journey to the Beloved” was published in Sufi Women: Journey Towards the Beloved (International Association of Sufism, 1998).
Shaykha Muzeyyen assumed the mantle of leadership of AQRT International upon the passing of her husband Shaykh Taner in 2023. In her role as Murshida of AQRT, Shaykha Muzeyyen oversees the spiritual development of AQRT students and develops the AQRT centers. Shaykha Muzeyyen has a special interest in the youth and works with young people in the Ansari Youth Club (AYC). The international headquarters of AQRT is in upstate New York, where Shaykha Muzeyyen resides when she is not traveling as Murshida of AQRT.