Uncertainty: Randomness or Ignorance?

I'm really interested in learning more about your journey. I'm fascinated by how people come to the realization of God's existence on their own, if you're comfortable sharing. In my view, whether one approaches this realization from the inside-out or outside-in, reaching the same conclusion is what matters. However, I believe the inside-out approach is more challenging. It can only lead you to a binary understanding of God's existence or absence. Beyond that, we need such a deity to reveal more about Himself, His desires for us, and our purpose in life. Without such guidance, we'd be left speculating about these profound questions, with grave consequences on our life and life after, if any.

@hanysm@gmail.com It's a long and short story in all fairness. My views are surprisingly like someone else's but came to the conclusion separately. The man was called Carl jung. Very similar beliefs and so weird we came to it separately in different generations. Found his work a week after I came to my epiphany or whatever you'd want to call it. Would love to have met him and sat down for a conversation.

@Wolfram It seems that you've concentrated on your background in physics and psychology, particularly the connections with Jung, which I find quite intriguing. Actually, I'm curious about your recent journey of discovering (or perhaps believing in) God, especially in relation to your father's near-death experience.

@hanysm@gmail.com I dunno how to explain it properly. Words don't seem to do it justice. I undid the false beliefs that I had of myself and my identity, I started thinking clearer than I've ever done. I started seeing stuff that didn't make sense and followed that rabbit whole and BAM out of nowhere everything made sense for a moment. The next 2 days were difficult as I was in some sort of shock and was trying to find a new way to live with whatever happened. Words really don't do the feeling justice. My dad said he felt the same thing when he saw the light on the other side. He understood words without anyone speaking "do you want to come yet?" and felt a hand reach out to him but didn't see one. He said the feeling was like nothing he's felt before or since. He turned the offer down because he said he had more to learn. I find it strange I had the same feeling without needing to die and come back 😅 I also think we were made for a reason a lot of people ignore. We are in this life together and we are all connected. If I hurt someone, I hurt myself. If I love someone, I love myself. God is everything I believe

@Wolfram It's fascinating how similar our journeys are. I was born into Islam, and my faith was more a matter of birth than understanding. In my early years, I knew very little about my religion, often reciting words without grasping their true meaning. I would pray mainly when I needed something, like passing a test. When I moved to the United States in my early 20s, I encountered an atheist who had once been Muslim. He challenged my beliefs, and due to my lack of knowledge, I found myself unable to defend or justify my faith. This experience prompted me to embark on a journey of exploration, much like you did. I began to question and deconstruct my beliefs, contemplating what qualities and attributes a true God should possess. My exploration led me through atheism, agnosticism, Christianity, Judaism, Taoism, Hinduism, and other philosophies. In each case, I found inconsistencies or aspects that didn't resonate with me. Eventually, I returned to the Quran and Islam. Suddenly, everything clicked into place. The teachings aligned with my thoughts and often expanded upon them. It provided answers to questions about identity, purpose, and existence—questions that I believe are central to any religion. Thank you for sharing your story, my friend. May Allah (God in Arabic) guide us both on His straight path.

@hanysm@gmail.com I love stories like this. I've only prayed a handful of times in my life and every time those prayers were answered within 48hours which is weird. I didn't even know what I was praying to but did it anyway. With my belief, I feel like prayer and manifestation are the same thing. If God is everything, when you ask for something of the universe , you also ask something of yourself. It's something I'm looking into as it fascinates me. Never liked asking for anything. I do however understand in Islam that prayer was different from what I previously thought as I had a few Muslim students who were kind enough to educate me on that. I also remember one of my students (heavily Christian) said he wanted to pray for me after he shared how he found jesus. It was very moving and almost made me cry. Someone praying for you for no other reason than wanting the best for you is quite an emotional thing. You know what's really funny? In my fantasy series I'm trying to write I'm having to come up with a religion and I was studying all religions and philosophies to try come up with something new as I didn't want to use an existing religion and upset people. It's surprising how many religions and philosophies all point in one direction like a set of sign posts. Even language and numbers pointed the same way for me. So I have a question about the last thing you said about Allah's straight path. What is that exactly in Islamic terms? That Christian student who prayed for me said some about me finding the path too.

@Wolfram Thank you for opening up and allowing me into your story. From your description of what you perceive as God, it seems to align with pantheism. It's also interesting to note that a Muslim philosopher named Ibn Arabi and his followers, back in 1165, expressed similar ideas. I have studied this viewpoint, which focuses more on the nature of God rather than His existence. However, I didn't agree with it because it contradicts one of the principles I established in my search for the "right" path. Logically, I inferred that God, as the Greatest Entity in the universe, shouldn't need anything; otherwise, He is not truly a God. Pantheism suggests that God relies on the universe to exist or manifest, which makes no sense to me. Another principle I hold is that God cannot have components or parts, as this would imply dependence on those parts. A true God should not depend on anything to be the Greatest of all I suppose your pantheistic faith explains your last question about the path; you see God as both the path and the destination. In contrast, I view God as a separate, independent Deity from His creation. Thus, my understanding of the path to Him involves navigating this life to reach His company in the afterlife. If you’d like me to delve deeper into this topic, please let me know—I don’t want to be tedious. Finally, I have a favor to ask: Pray once more and ask God to show you His path—not just what you think—and let’s see when He will start to reveal it.

@hanysm@gmail.com It's quite close to pantheism but slightly different. Something I'd like to look into though for resources on writing my books. I'll pray tonight and see what happens. Thank you

@hanysm@gmail.com I did it. I've had signs all day saying I'm already on it, just need to walk it. 😂 Very much, what you want? You already know what to do kind of day 😅

@Wolfram Good, you have now an excuse if you were wrong, and others were right, to tell God, I asked for guidance and you didn't guide me. Get what I was doing?

@hanysm@gmail.com Reading that is hurting my head. Is there any way you can reword it?

@Wolfram Haha, sorry! I was typing and talking at the same time. Here's what I mean: The God I believe in is logical and fair, as He describes Himself. He also promises that if we ask for guidance, He will provide it. Since I care about you, I wanted to give you a way to present your case before God. You can say, "I asked for guidance as You instructed, and You sent me a message through this person on the NOCD forum, and I did ask." This might help you receive His forgiveness and mercy. Does that make sense?

@hanysm@gmail.com Kind of. What's forgiveness and mercy have to do with it though?

Belief is a probabilistic or stochastic state that resides between fact and fiction. While facts are truths verified by sensory evidence, fiction represents illusions lacking any evidence, whether sensory or intellectual. Faith, however, is a state validated by at least intellectual evidence and rational. Therefore, the concept of "blind faith" is not acknowledged here, as faith inherently involves some form of intellectual validation.

@hanysm@gmail.com I'll agree to disagree. I know people desperate for answers that they'll push their personal responsibilities onto someone else. Then if something goes wrong it's their fault. I've seen many do this with religion and other things. Also with religious ocd, people almost try to appease God out of fear of losing God's love or fear of punishment. If they change their relationship with fear, the relationship with God would change for the better. Fear, and denial causes ocd. I also believe all sins or issues come from one belief (denial/ ignorance). I accept your views but I have also seen different in people I know.

@Wolfram I just don't want you to assume I didn't see, study, live with other viewers and prospective s when it comes to faith... My convictions are not by birth, rather the result of many many years roaming different camps about belief in God, including the no God, I don't know about God and I don't care about God... At the end all respect to you as always.

You have the opportunity to study religious texts like the Quran, which is regarded by Muslims as the message of God. You can choose to follow its teachings and adhere to divine commands, but opting for a personal path may be perceived as a form of arrogance. Consider this analogy: in a classroom, there is a bright student who genuinely wants to succeed. He asks the teacher for instructions on an assignment, but unfortunately, his request goes unnoticed. When the student fails to follow the guidelines, the teacher may feel justified in being upset. However, given that the student made an effort to seek help, it would be reasonable for the teacher to show understanding and offer forgiveness. As to the Quran verse translation, the "choice" here is not a very accurate translation. The word is "willed or intended". And it speaks about the person, not Allah's choice or will.

@hanysm@gmail.com That makes sense. I was considering buying a copy of the quran earlier today. I have a few religious books to go through. When you mention a personal path and arrogance what do you mean by that?

@Wolfram No need to buy the Quran. Here is a free link to "The Translation". https://m.clearquran.com/ What I mean by personal path is, the human mind has limited capacity. I see its role as pointing to the existence of God. Beyond that, the person needs guidance from such God as to His nature and what He wants from us. If you choose to ignore such revelation, then you follow your personal path. Why is it arrogance, because you put your ego and thought your intellect can guide you more than the word of The One who Created you.