Faith Without Warmth
In general, the form of religion found among most Muslims is limited and devoid of spirit; this interpretation terms it as “formal religiousness.” I agree with this critique, but the mindset produced by this interpretation is also not a truly Islamic one. Its achievement is simply replacing formal religiousness with a type of ideological religiousness. Yet, the true essence of connection with religion is heartfelt sincerity and humility—qualities that are missing both here and there.
This interpretation presents Islam as “a comprehensive revolutionary ideology that aims to replace all worldly ideologies with its own.” While this view is not entirely incorrect, this interpretation has turned it into Islam’s core essence. The result is that Islam becomes merely a type of ideological concept, subject to the same flaws we see in other ideologies. Revolutionary ideologies worldwide are, essentially, collections of words; they lack any psychological foundation. Thus, they are widely discussed on paper and often spoken of fervently but do not touch the human soul, do not integrate into human nature, and do not impact one’s inner being. Similarly, when Islam is reduced to an ideology competing with other ideologies, it also becomes just another “ideology”—something that fuels intellectual debates but does not awaken the inner self. It does not foster any psychological connection, nor does it introduce people to the reality of closeness to Allah, which is the greatest achievement any servant of God can attain in this world.
The harm of this interpretation does not stop here; it extends further, leading to a state where neither reality nor ideology remains. When the interpretation of something diverges from its true essence, it becomes nothing more than a collection of words, unable to take root in human nature. This is why those who adopt this interpretation of religion experience an initial burst of excitement in their lives, but it fails to inspire any profound action and eventually settles into the mind as a lifeless theory. Even if one remains religious afterward, this religiousness is no longer drawn from a deep intellectual source but results only from inherent cultural effects that happened to be present earlier and became a fallback once the intellectual connection was severed. This form of religiousness resembles a leaf that has detached from its root but remains entangled in the lower branches. Outwardly, it appears to be connected to the tree, but in reality, it has already separated and has no true existence.
Deviation from reality not only deprives a person of that reality but also of the very thing for which they abandoned it. In this universe, there is only one source from which everything emerges; once detached from it, nothing can truly exist.
