The book of the Swedish orientalist and theologian Thor Andre "Islamic Mystics" is a study of the spiritual and practical foundations of Muslim asceticism and mysticism. Its heroes are figures of the Zahid movement (from the Arab, Zukhd - "abstinence"), who wanted to imitate Christ in their absolute renunciation of the world. However, having accepted the initial impulse of Christian asceticism, Islam subsequently abandons its simple reproduction and develops a special path of spiritual improvement (Sufism).