How did Sufism grow out of early Islamic asceticism?

Sufism emerged from early Islamic asceticism, known as zuhd (detachment), which developed as a spiritual reaction against the growing worldliness and luxury that followed the rapid expansion of the Muslim community during the Umayyad period.123

This movement was characterized by several key factors:

• Pious Reaction: Religious individuals sought to return to the simple, pious life of the Prophet Muhammad and his companions, denouncing the political disputes and material indulgence that accompanied the growth of the Islamic state.23
• Spiritual Practice: Early ascetics, sometimes called "those who always weep," focused on constant meditation on the Qur'an, night prayers, and self-denial.12
• Terminology: The term Sufi is derived from suf ("wool"), a reference to the coarse woolen garments worn by these early ascetics as a sign of their poverty and rejection of worldly vanity.23

While early zuhd focused on piety and fear of divine judgment, it provided the foundational environment from which later, more systematic mystical doctrines—centered on divine love and direct personal experience of God—eventually evolved.123