When I am bored, I paint. And my latest inspiration is in my 5 year old daughter's hazel eyes, and that's just today. Tomorrow it could be the burning filter in my ciggy, who knows.......Are these mini-gods?
I don't think so. I think inspiration comes from all sorts of things around us. And I think what Hassan is saying/believes in is; the same sort/type of inspirations that today's artists/writers/musicians/authors etc get from "nature", could have been the same type/sort of god/nature that was there to inspire the Qoran. (forgive me Hassan if I am simplifying your definition of 'inspiration'). The point is, Hassan is entitled to his beliefs. And to me how he broke it down is one heck of a narrative that Muslims could actually embrace. So IMO (simplistic as it is) Hassan could be the guy that Muslims need today to introduce the doubt of "I dont know who/what god was but I believe he was there".
Personally, I believe that “god” itself is (or, gods themselves are) a very human experience, a human emotion. Humans are, as much as we can tell, the only species capable of experiencing what we call god. This does not make it a separate,
real entity, nor does it make it fake. It is abstract. It is like love. Or lust. Or rage. If you have never experienced it before, it is easy to chuck it down to scientific explanations of biology and chemistry. When you have experienced it, though, as humans do, then it becomes real – even if only to you and in your own unique way.
I think that atheists often miss the mark when trying to persuade religious people that their god is not real. Like the Sikh guy who debated dawahman said, he doesn’t need for anyone to prove god to him because he has already experienced it.
Personally, I can certainly say that I experienced god. Many an evening in the rawdah in Madinah, I definitely found god there. But what was that? Did it exist anywhere outside my own mind? I honestly couldn’t tell you. But it was probably the same thing the Sikh guy experienced, and the same thing my Christian grandmother used to experience, and the same thing Bob Marley experienced when he said “We lift our heads and give Jah praises, yeah.”
To me, the most important thing, if you are inclined to believe in gods, is to also believe that they are on your side; I don’t believe a man can live sane believing in the potential that his god could be against him. Of course, this is also the most dangerous. Gods mirror the man. They are the sum of his hopes, his fears, his trusts, his focus, his aspirations, mixed in with all of the things he cannot fully understand and that lie beyond his limitations. You draw on that sense of awe to get you through your challenges. When used for good, gods can do amazing things. When used for the opposite, they can be appalling.
If we suppose that Muhammad were real, then certainly his god inspired him to achieve the remarkable feat that he did. As did St Paul’s god inspire him. As did Guru Nanak’s god inspire him.
In the Qur’an it speaks of
sibghat allah- the essence of God. A few days ago I commented on the so called Verse of Light that speaks of Gods light as ultimately being as brilliant star, but fueled by the oil of a humble, earthly tree that does not actually need to be lit in order to shine. I’m not a Muslim, but I do think it’s interesting to interpret that verse from a very human, agnostic perspective. Even if it is not actually lit, even if it is not actually real, what the essence of god can do to humans is abundantly apparent. Gods might be our greatest creation.
Topic: Yes I AM a Muslim!!