Meaning of Sharia:

(i)    The sharia is the law governing the Muslim community. It is based on the Quran and the Hadis, traditions of the Prophet including a record of his remembered words and deeds.

(ii)    Some mystics initiated movements based on a radical interpretation of sufi ideals. Many scorned the khanqah and took to mendicancy and observed celibacy. They ignored rituals and observed extreme forms of asceticism. Because of their deliberate defiance of the sharia they were often referred to as be-sharia, in contrast to the ba-sharia sufis who complied with it.

(iii)    A group of religious minded people called sufis turned to asceticism and mysticism in protest against the growing materialism of the caliphate as a religious and political institution. The sufis sought an interpretation of the Quran on the basis of their personal experience. The sufis traditions which were anti-sharia (or the law governing the Muslim community) are called be-sharia while the tradition of Sufi which are pro-sharia (are called ba-sharia).

Similarities : Both of Sufi traditions are critical of the dogmatic definitions and scholastic methods of interpretation of the Quran and sunna (traditions of the Prophet) adopted by theologians. Instead, they laid stress on seeking salvation.

In this way we can say that both the traditions of the sufis i.e. be-sharia and ba-sharia are same. They sought and interpret the Quran on the basis of personal experience.