“Who founded the Sufi orders and are they heavenly revealed?"

Shaykh Muḥammad Siddiq al-Ghumarī ash-Shādhilī ق replied:

As for your question regarding the first one to establish a Ṣūfī order, you should know that in general, the spiritual order (ṭarīqah) is heavenly revealed among the things revealed in the Muḥammadan religion.

Undoubtedly, it represents the station of Iḥsān which is one of the three pillars of the religion that the Prophet  explained with his statement: “That was Jibril who came to you to teach you your religion“ — these three stations are: Imān , Islām and Iḥsān.

Imān is light and doctrine. Islām is obedience and worship. Ihsān is the station of Divine witnessing (mushāhadah) and vigilance (murāqabah): “that you worship Allāh as if you see Him, and if you do not see Him then you know that He sees you”

[Adapted from Realities of Sufism by Shaykh ‘Abdul Qādir ‘Īsā ash-Shādhilī ]