Concept

In this section Hujwiri makes explicit the pedagogical method underlying Kashf al-Mahjub. He argues that an answer can fulfill the questioner's aim only after the answerer first grasps the questioner's true purpose (مقصود), because every question arises from a difficulty (اشکال); a reply that fails to dissolve that difficulty is useless, and a difficulty can be dissolved only through first recognizing it (معرفت اشکال).

He then distinguishes two registers of response. The concise, summary answer (جواب بر جمله) suffices for an advanced enquirer who already knows the degrees and kindred categories of the question. The beginner (مبتدی), by contrast, needs a detailed exposition (تفصیل) with definitions and their divisions set out fully. Because his correspondent asked for the latter, Hujwiri commits to composing a systematically detailed book — this passage functions as the author's statement of method rather than as doctrine about Sufism itself.