Christopher Melchert proposes to historicize Islamic renunciant piety (zuhd). As the conquest
period wound down in the early eighth century c.e. renunciants set out to maintain the
contempt of worldly comfort and loyalty to a greater cause that had characterized the community
of Muslims in the seventh century. Instead of reckless endangerment on the battlefield they
cultivated intense fear of the Last Judgement to come. They spent nights weeping reciting the
Qur'an and performing supererogatory ritual prayers. They stressed other-worldliness to the
extent of minimizing good works in this world. Then the decline of tribute from the conquered
peoples and conversion to Islam made it increasingly unfeasible for most Muslims to keep up any
such régime. Professional differentiation also provoked increasing criticism of austerity.
Finally in the later ninth century a form of Sufism emerged that would accommodate those
willing and able to spend most of their time on religious devotions those willing and able to
spend their time on other religious pursuits such as law and hadith and those unwilling or
unable to do either.
