Aqim al Salat

Es-Seyyid Es-Shaykh Taner Vargonen Tarsusi el Ansari er Rifai el Qadiri was born in Tarsus, Türkiye, to a devout Muslim family of seyyids, descendants of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). He received a Bachelor degree in English Pedagogy from Gazi University in Ankara, Türkiye, and a Bachelor degree in Linguistics from Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo. In Michigan he helped found the Muslim Students Association of the United States and Canada. He later served as a professor of English Pedagogy at Cukurova University in Adana, Türkiye.

While completing his university studies in Michigan, Shaykh Taner was initiated into the Qadiri Rifai Tariqa in Istanbul by his dear shaykh Es-Seyyid Es-Shaykh Muhyiddin Ansari, from whom he later received his ijaza, the license to teach Sufism. His spiritual lineage also includes the Naqshbandi, Mevlevi, and Bektashi Sufi orders.

Later on, Shaykh Taner and Es-Seyyida Es-Shaykha Muzeyyen Vargonen Tarsusi el Ansari er Rifai el Qadiri were charged to create a new Sufi order called Ansari Qadiri Rifai Tariqa (AQRT). Throughout their life, Shaykh Taner and Shaykha Muzeyyen taught Sufism and guided seekers on the spiritual path in-person, online and through his books. They established centers of the AQRT in the United States, Canada, Mexico, South Africa, Tanzania, Mauritius, Germany, Australia, and the United Kingdom. Together they traveled extensively to speak on Sufism, Islam, alternative healing, and sustainable living, giving talks and interviews at universities including Harvard, Humboldt State, Boston University, and Napa Valley College, as well as at churches, synagogues, conferences, and interfaith gatherings. They spoke at the annual Sufi Symposium in California for many years, and gave weekly live internet talks to an international community of students.

Shaykh Taner and Shaykha Muzeyyen were also healers. They presented healing workshops for health professionals and spiritual seekers in many parts of the world.

Shaykh Taner wrote and published books on Sufism including Alternative Healing: The Sufi Way, Aqim Al Salat: Connections to The Divine, Between the Loved and the Beloved: Sufi Poems and Sayings, Dua: The Way of Supplication, Surviving 2012 & Beyond: A Must Have Survival Book, The Sun Will Rise in the West: The Holy Trail, What About My Wood! 101 Sufi Stories, and Grand Masters of Sufism, which contains his translations of Abdul Qadir Geylani’s Secret of Secrets and Ahmed er Rifai’s Guidance to Mysticism. He translated the Holy Qur’an into modern English from a Sufi perspective (The Qur’an: Daily Reading for All Humanity, Chronological Edition), having launched that project with a smaller publication of Sura Ya Sin. He also published numerous articles on spiritual topics. Posthumous publications of his works are forthcoming.

After Shaykh Taner passed away on August 27, 2023, Shaykha Muzeyyen Vargonen Ansari carries on their work and continues to act as Pir of the order. Shaykh Taner’s life work of teaching, healing, and guiding seekers of the path remains a lasting legacy.