Here’s another bad sign in Iraq: the Sufis have taken up guns. The Sufis are the mystical Muslims, an old faction of Islam which isn’t entirely trusted and accepted by the mainstream Sunnis and Shia. They represent a kind-of “third way” in Islam, an interpretation of the Koran that seems more interested in spiritual exercises and the veneration of the saints than in spreading the sharia (Islamic law) throughout the world by geo-political methods. They interpret the concept of jihad as the fight against one’s own defects in the quest for spiritual perfection, and not as the fight against the infidels without. They’re our kind of Muslims (in a way; actually, the westernized Muslims who have gained a taste for Enlightment ideals are my favorite). Unfortunately they’re a small minority group, albeit one with staying power. The Sufis are most famous for their “whirling dervishes”, those who occasionally dance and spin in spiritual ecstasy during their prayer services.

(Worthless trivia break: wasn’t there an indie band called The Whirling Dervishes? Didn’t they do “You’re a Mean One, Mister Grinch”?)

The Sufis have historically been more prevalent in Iraq than in other Islamic countries. Up to now, they’ve kept away from all the armed violence going on in the name of either democracy or oil or Allah. They even cooperated with U.S. forces, up to a point. But no more Mister Nice Guy. They now have an armed brigade. Reportedly, they are doing this for self-defense against sectarian violence, not to take pot-shots against the Euro-American crusaders. They haven’t given in to Al Qaeda or the Madhi Army; they want to stay alive.

Things must be pretty bad in Iraq for the dervishes to stop their whirling and pick up M-1’s or AK-47’s and RPG’s. It’s just another sign that Mr. Bush’s great initiative in Iraq has turned into a Greek tragedy, and the furies have been set loose.