Itlak Yolu, the Sufi path of annihilation, contains three main facets: zikr or breathing exercises; fasting; and mental suffering. The author illustrates how suffering--“the searing fire of contrition”--is the most effective instrument of spiritual progress, for it is suffering that burns and purifies the Self. Through faithful practice, the Self is ultimately annihilated so that higher levels of perception take hold and one finds oneself on the path to sainthood and immortality.
