Fakir

Part of a series on Islam Sufism
Gongbei (tomb) of Yu Baba in Linxia City, China.
Ideas Abdal Al-Insān al-Kāmil Baqaa Dervish Dhawq Fakir Fana Hal Haqiqa Ihsan Irfan Ishq Karamat Kashf Lataif Manzil Ma'rifa Maqam Murid Murshid Nafs Nūr Qalandar Qutb Silsila Sufi cosmology Sufi metaphysics Sufi philosophy Sufi poetry Sufi psychology Salik Tazkiah Wali Yaqeen
Practices Anasheed Dhikr Haḍra Muraqabah Qawwali Sama Whirling Ziyarat
Sufi orders Sunni Qadiri Chishti Naqshbandi Mujaddadiya Shadhili Suhrawardi Rifa`i Xinjao Hufuye Khalwati Rahmani Badawi Desuqi Ba 'Alawi Tijani Darqawi Idrisi Senusi Bayrami Jelveti Maizbhandari Malamati Mouridi Sülaymaniyya Salihiyya Azeemia Kubrawi Mevlevi Shattari Uwaisi Shi'a Alians Bektashi Hurufi Ni'matullāhī Nuqtavi Qalandari Safavi Zahabiya Non-denominational Akbari Galibi Haqqani Anjuman Issawiyya Jerrahi Madari Mahdavi Noorbakshi Zahedi Zikri
List of sufis Notable early Notable modern Singers
Topics in Sufism Tawhid Sharia Tariqa Haqiqa Ma'rifa Art History Sufi music Persecution Ziyarat
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A fakir or faqir, is a Sufi who performs feats of endurance or magic. The word comes from faqr (Arabic: فقر), meaning "poverty".^[1]

In English, the word is often used for Sufi mystics. It can also be used to for a common street beggar who chants holy names, scriptures or verses. It has become a common Urdu and Hindi word for "beggar".

Many stereotypes of the great fakir exist, including a near-naked man easily walking barefoot on burning coals, sitting or sleeping on a bed of sharp nails, floating in the air while meditating, or "living on air" (refusing all food).

1. ↑ God Speaks, Meher Baba, Dodd Meade, 1955, 2nd Ed. p. 305