"You are all aware of the symbiotic relationship which has always existed between Imarate Al Muminin (Commandership of the Faithful) in this nation and the chief Sufi leaders. They have endeavoured together to preserve the country's Sunni creed and its doctrinal orientations," the king said in a message to the second World Sidi Chiker Gathering, which opened on Friday in Marrakech under the high patronage of the sovereign, with the participation of around one thousand Sufi partisans from several countries.

The message, which was read by Moroccan Minister of Religious Affairs, said the school of Moroccan Sufism trained a wide range of righteous reformists who were knowledgeable about and attuned to their epoch, and have left a legacy which attests to their good perception of the true designs of religion and of the connotations of love and fraternity underpinning it.

The king also emphasised Morocco’s contribution, throughout its history, to the preservation of the spiritual heritage of Islam.

The Kingdom of Morocco “has also been instrumental in fostering bastions of wisdom and faith, building on the spiritual education curricula initially developed by virtuous, pious figures from this nation,” he said, adding that their teachings and guidance have, over the centuries, reached different communities in various countries and continents.

The monarch insisted that the holding of this gathering under his patronage reflects the special importance he attaches to these Sufi meetings, which “stand out as shining spiritual and civilisational landmarks in the long history of Morocco.”

The message stressed the “pressing need for the revival of those human ideals which call for the dissemination of the values of understanding, tolerance, compassion, solidarity and cooperation, as well as positive emulation in the pursuit of noble objectives.”