Sufism or taṣawwuf (Arabic: تصوّف‎) is defined by its adherents as the inner, mystical dimension of Islam. A practitioner of this tradition is generally known as a ṣūfī (صُوفِيّ).

Classical Sufi scholars have defined Sufism as "a science whose objective is the reparation of the heart and turning it away from all else but God". Alternatively, in the words of the Darqawi Sufi teacher Ahmad ibn Ajiba, "a science through which one can know how to travel into the presence of the Divine, purify one's inner self from filth, and beautify it with a variety of praiseworthy traits".

Classical Sufis were characterised by their attachment to dhikr (a practice of repeating the names of God) and asceticism. Sufism gained adherents among a number of Muslims as a reaction against the worldliness of the early Umayyad Caliphate (661-750 CE). Sufis have spanned several continents and cultures over a millennium, at first expressed through Arabic, then through Persian, Turkish and a dozen other languages. "Orders" (ṭuruq), which are either Sunnī or Shī'ī or mixed in doctrine, trace many of their original precepts from the Islamic Prophet Muhammad through his cousin 'Alī, with the notable exception of the Naqshbandi who trace their origins through the first Caliph, Abu Bakr. Other exclusive schools of Sufism describe themselves as distinctly Sufi. Modern Sufis often perform dhikr after the conclusion of prayers.

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan (Punjabi: نصرت فتح علی خان (Shahmukhī)) (October 13, 1948 – August 16, 1997), a world-renowned Pakistani musician, was primarily a singer of Qawwali, the devotional music of the Sufis (a mystical tradition within Islam). Considered one of the greatest singers ever recorded, he possessed a six-octave vocal range^{[citation needed]} and could perform at a high level of intensity for several hours. Extending the 600-year old Qawwali tradition of his family, Khan is widely credited with introducing Sufi music to international audiences. He was popularly known as "Shahenshah-e-Qawwali", meaning "The King of Kings of Qawwali".

Born in Faisalabad, Pakistan, Khan had his first public performance at age of 16, at his father's chelum. He officially became the head of the family qawwali party in 1971, and was signed by Oriental Star Agencies (OSA), Birmingham, U.K., in the early 1980s. In subsequent years, Khan released movie scores and albums for various labels in Pakistan, Europe, Japan and the U.S. He engaged in collaborations and experiments with Western artists, becoming a well-known world music artist in the process. He toured extensively, performing in over 40 countries.

Sanam Marvi (Urdu: صنم ماروی) (born 1986) is a Sindhi folk and sufi singer. She sings in Urdu, Sindhi and Saraiki languages.

Sanam Marvi was born in Hyderabad, Sindh, Pakistan in a Sindhi family. Her father's name is Faqeer Ghulam Rasool, a sufi singer. She had eight siblings. She started training at the age of seven and used to accompany her father to his performances at various shrines of sufis in Pakistan, including Sindh and Punjab. She later trained under Ustad Fateh Ali Khan of Gwalior gharana.

Sanam Marvi debuted at ‘Virsa Heritage’, a programme on PTV. She became popular after her performance at Coke Studio, a Pakistani television series featuring live music performances. She has since appeared in two seasons of the Coke studio.

She perform sufi concerts around the world. She is among the finest performers in the Sufi, ghazal and folk genres She sings compositions of Allama Iqbal, Baba Bulleh Shah, Baba Sheikh Farid, Alam Lohar, Sachal Sarmast, the Sufi mystic from Sindh, Shah Abdul Latif Bhittai.

Kavita Seth (born 1970) is an Indian singer, who is most known as a playback singer in Hindi cinema, as well as a performer of Ghazals and Sufi music, and has formed her musical group, Karwaan Group, a band of Sufi musicians

She won the Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer in 2010 for her classical Sufi rendition "Gunja Sa Koi Iktara" for the film Wake Up Sid (2009), she also won the Star Screen Award for Best Female Playback for the same song, which was one of the biggest chartbusters in 2009.

Born in Bareily, Uttar Pradesh, where was and brought up and did her schooling as well as her graduation.

After her marriage she moved to Delhi, where she started performing for All India Radio (AIR) and Doordarshan. Meanwhile she also did her post graduation in Music, Sangeet Alankar from Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, Delhi and received M.A. degree in Hindi literature from the University of Delhi.

She received her musical training in Hindustani classical music under N.D.Sharma of Gwalior Gharana, Vinod from Gandharva Mahavidyalaya, and Ustad Iqbal Ahmed Khan of the Delhi Gharana.

Anandmurti Gurumaa (Devnagari: आनन्दमूर्ति गुरुमाँ Punjabi: ਅਨੰਦ੍ਮੁਰਤੀ ਮਾਂ), also known as Gurumaa born in Amritsar, Punjab India, is a New Age spiritual guide. She is respected by followers of many faiths including Christianity, Hinduism, Sikhism, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and Sufism. Her message transcends gender, religious, political, geographic and material boundaries. She claims to be well versed with varied subjects like Zen, Buddhism, Art, Upanishad, Yoga and fuses scientific aptitude with ancient wisdom which enables her to take a pragmatic approach to life and its varied shades.

Anandmurti means “an embodiment of Divine Bliss” and Gurumaa means “Master Mother” in Hindi. Gurumaa teaches the disciplines of meditation, yoga, present moment awareness and self realisation, using meditation techniques from yoga, zen, tantra, sufism, sikhism, buddhism and devised methods. Gurumaa's core teachings include meditation, self realisation, evolving consciousness and non-duality.

Gurumaa was born on the 8 April 1966 at Amritsar in Punjab, India. She was educated in a convent school and did graduation in arts. In her childhood she used to accompany her mother to spiritual discourses, gatherings, satsangs. She would also have assemblies of sadhus coming home. Some of the friendly mahatmas would pick her to speak to.