Malamatiyya

The Malāmatiyya (ملامتية), or Malamatis, were an early Muslim organization and associated Islamic mystical movement active in 9th-century Greater Khorasan. The root word of their name is the Arabic word malāmah (ملامة) "blame". The Malamatiyya believed in the value of self-blame, that piety should be a private matter and that being held in good esteem would lead to worldly attachment. They concealed their knowledge and made sure their faults would be known, reminding them of their imperfection. The Malamati is one for whom the doctrine of "spiritual states" is fraught with subtle deceptions of the most despicable kind; he despises personal piety, not because he is focused on the perceptions or reactions of people, but as a consistent involuntary witness of his own "pious hypocrisy". "Malamati" can also refer to a method of teaching within Sufism based on taking blame.