================Our Recommendation================

A contemporary mystical Islamic philosopher offers clarification about common misconceptions of the Islamic concept of God.

Hulusi is an Islamic scholar whose writings mirror the mystical dimension of Islam known as Sufism, made well known in the U.S. through translations of the Sufi poet-theologian Rumi. But many who read the English translations of Rumi fail to realize the complexity of the system of spiritual thinking that Sufism represents. Hulusi explicates one of the most difficult concepts in mystical Islam--the notion that "Allah," commonly misunderstood in the West and even in parts of the Muslim world as "God," encompasses more than the word "God" can illuminate. Drawing upon his interpretations of the Quran, Islam's most sacred scripture, Hulusi claims that nowhere in Muhammad's transmission of the Quran is there the assertion that Allah is a god. Instead, Hulusi writes that Allah is "an infinite, unlimited, whole One, in which case...there is nothing in existence other than Him." The consequences of this assertion are that individual lives are fated by Allah, predestined to heaven or hell after physical death. The point of religion, writes the author, is to gain nondualistic awareness of Allah, which is realized through essential self-knowledge and the rejection of illusionary dualities in daily life. The author relies on short paragraphs to frame his beliefs and uses abstract language to describe consciousness, but the gist of these abstruse ideas is helpfully noted in bold throughout the book. One can only imagine the difficulty translator Atalay faced in converting the author's esoteric Turkish style into readable English. Yet it does read clearly as a kind of Sufi manifesto of faith. Get the Book NOW

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Wednesday, November 6, 2013

Modernism in Islam

What is Modernism and Where Did it Come From?


We can relate, ideologically, the modernist movement spreading these days to one sect in the past. This sect is called the Mu’tazila, which is dated back to the third Islamic century. Although those people accepted the Qur’an and Sunnah they made ta’wil (their own interpretation of the Qur’an) and said ‘aql (intelligence) takes precedence over naql (guidance of the Prophet). However, this school died out. The modernist movement did not evolve from them, but they are very similar to them. The modernist movement actually originated in Europe (Middle-Ages). At the time when the scientific method came about in Spain, it was seen that what the church was teaching was not true. This led to a slow revolt. The basic view of modernism (in all religions) is that: the religion should change according to the circumstances, and that it is not fixed. There is no such thing as absolute truth. The Jewish and Christian modernist response in Europe tried to explain how the religion was still relevant for the people. They made innovations to keep people interested in the religion (such as singing in church, introduced only in the 1900′s). They tried Continue reading “” »











Modernism in Islam
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