Post by Admin on Aug 26, 2021 14:45:32 GMT
What Islam Offers to Modern Self-Help: An Islamic Paradigm of Psychology
productivemuslim.com/what-islam-offers-to-modern-self-help/
Islam offers not only a theological framework within which we can position ourselves in relation to God, but it also offers a holistic map for how to navigate the human experience on a path of development of the self, or soul. While we may understand and believe that the Qur’an and Sunnah provide all of the guidance we need in life, many do not realize just how much is contained within this deen. With all of the influence of global trends toward secularism and the predominantly secular societies we live in, it can be easy to be persuaded by the assumption of a binary between religion and science. The institution of academia has fought hard to convince the world that the social sciences are in fact sciences rather than philosophical paradigms rooted in epistemology. In turn, the Muslim ummah has collectively bought into this story and forgotten its rich tradition of ‘ilm an-nafs (knowledge of the soul).
When you read about personal and professional development from just about any perspective or approach, the concepts and ideas are rooted in psychology. Modern psychology and its offshoots of personal development and self-help trends offer a lot of pertinent ideas and resources that all people, including the Muslim community, need desperately as societies become increasingly globalized and disconnected from the ancient wisdom that was inherent in more traditional, local communities and holistic lifestyles. But what these strands of pop psychology also bring with them are foundational assumptions about human nature, some of which are not aligned with the values and principles of an Islamic paradigm, which are baked into the cake. Without realizing it and/or without being fully aware of the repercussions of such philosophical and paradigmatic differences we can open ourselves up to hidden, often unintentional misguidance that can lead to a spiritual crisis, or worse, distance from our inner connection to Allah subḥānahu wa ta'āla (glorified and exalted be He).
'There exists within the Islamic tradition an entire “science” of the soul or self which is completely aligned with and based upon the Qur’an and Sunnah and which offers practical solutions to everyday struggles faced by people in the modern world.' @rothmanabdallah
CLICK TO TWEET
While this could be seen as a dilemma of whether to benefit from the good that these personal development resources have to offer and balance the potential pitfalls that they may present the Muslim trying to walk the path of Islam, fortunately, such a dilemma is unnecessary. There exists within the Islamic tradition an entire “science” of the soul or self which is completely aligned with and based upon the Qur’an and Sunnah and which offers practical solutions to everyday struggles faced by people in the modern world. In fact, this science of the soul is so advanced and comprehensive that it stands to offer entirely new insights to the popular field of self-improvement that even non-Muslims can benefit from. This is the legacy of the turath al Islam (path of Islam) as exemplified by our Beloved Prophet, peace be upon him, and is the birthright and heritage of every Muslim. Unfortunately, this knowledge has been all but lost and forgotten in the collective consciousness of today’s ummah. In this article, we want to share a glimpse of this turath and its impact on modern life and self-help.
The inherent psychology within Islam
Our perspective of Islam can often be one dimensional, especially if we have not done our own deep exploration of the teachings within the context of traditional Islamic spiritual education (tarbiyyah). As many followers of a religion, whether accepting that of their parents’ beliefs and rituals or individually choosing to follow the path set out by religious teachings, there is a tendency to see religion as a set of prescriptions that one must follow in order to be in God’s good graces. Religion has become institutionalized to the point that we make edifices out of the religion as a thing in and of itself, rather than understanding it as a path of guidance to follow in order to grow developmentally as a human being. What this can amount to is a relationship to the religion that is more transactional than it is transformational. We do what we have understood we are supposed to do with a belief that certain behaviors and actions or inactions will result in us being in God’s good grace, without necessarily transforming the state of our being or doing any work from the inside out. However, the Qur’an is replete with messages of the need for personal transformation and accountability within our innermost selves, as it says:
“[…] Allah does not change a people until they change what is in themselves” (Qur’an 13: 11)
What does it mean to change what is in oneself, what does that amount to, and how does one do this? These are all questions that could be assumed to be confined within the domain of the field of psychology, and yet the answers are all detailed within the Islamic tradition. What we have come to know as the academic discipline of psychology, a word which literally means the study of the soul, was not traditionally conceptualized as such in Islamic teachings because the study of the soul is embedded within the content of the entire Qur’an and Sunnah. The knowledge of the soul and its development is spread throughout the many branches of knowledge within the Islamic tradition, as there was previously no distinction or separation between the following of the religion and the individual effort to work on oneself in the process of inner transformation. We have become disconnected from the inherently holistic worldview which Islam posits and have adopted a disaggregated way of thinking about life and ourselves to the point that it is now necessary to present the Islamic knowledge of the soul in a condensed form that lends parity to that of modern psychology. Thus while our predecessors may not have needed to use terms such as “psychology” to distinguish such endeavors from other parts of the deen, it now becomes imperative for us to understand and define “Islamic psychology”.
'What does it mean to change what is in oneself, what does that amount to, and how does one do this? These are all questions that could be assumed to be confined within the domain of the field of psychology, and yet the answers are all detailed within the Islamic tradition.' @rothmanabdallah
CLICK TO TWEET
An Islamic perspective of the self
Unlike popular conceptions within modern psychology and the dominant discourse of self-help and self-improvement which identifies the notion of the self as being centralized in the mind and in thought, an Islamic perspective of self includes multiple aspects of the whole being. Cartesian philosophy, which posits the notion of “I think therefore I am” has pervaded contemporary thought to the extent that most conceptions regarding the self within popular psychology are framed around the mind as the central location of human identity. We see this represented graphically in just about any poster or textbook that references psychology being accompanied by a picture of the brain, and by the name of the clinical field being termed “Mental Health”.
Rest in Link
productivemuslim.com/what-islam-offers-to-modern-self-help/
Islam offers not only a theological framework within which we can position ourselves in relation to God, but it also offers a holistic map for how to navigate the human experience on a path of development of the self, or soul. While we may understand and believe that the Qur’an and Sunnah provide all of the guidance we need in life, many do not realize just how much is contained within this deen. With all of the influence of global trends toward secularism and the predominantly secular societies we live in, it can be easy to be persuaded by the assumption of a binary between religion and science. The institution of academia has fought hard to convince the world that the social sciences are in fact sciences rather than philosophical paradigms rooted in epistemology. In turn, the Muslim ummah has collectively bought into this story and forgotten its rich tradition of ‘ilm an-nafs (knowledge of the soul).
When you read about personal and professional development from just about any perspective or approach, the concepts and ideas are rooted in psychology. Modern psychology and its offshoots of personal development and self-help trends offer a lot of pertinent ideas and resources that all people, including the Muslim community, need desperately as societies become increasingly globalized and disconnected from the ancient wisdom that was inherent in more traditional, local communities and holistic lifestyles. But what these strands of pop psychology also bring with them are foundational assumptions about human nature, some of which are not aligned with the values and principles of an Islamic paradigm, which are baked into the cake. Without realizing it and/or without being fully aware of the repercussions of such philosophical and paradigmatic differences we can open ourselves up to hidden, often unintentional misguidance that can lead to a spiritual crisis, or worse, distance from our inner connection to Allah subḥānahu wa ta'āla (glorified and exalted be He).
'There exists within the Islamic tradition an entire “science” of the soul or self which is completely aligned with and based upon the Qur’an and Sunnah and which offers practical solutions to everyday struggles faced by people in the modern world.' @rothmanabdallah
CLICK TO TWEET
While this could be seen as a dilemma of whether to benefit from the good that these personal development resources have to offer and balance the potential pitfalls that they may present the Muslim trying to walk the path of Islam, fortunately, such a dilemma is unnecessary. There exists within the Islamic tradition an entire “science” of the soul or self which is completely aligned with and based upon the Qur’an and Sunnah and which offers practical solutions to everyday struggles faced by people in the modern world. In fact, this science of the soul is so advanced and comprehensive that it stands to offer entirely new insights to the popular field of self-improvement that even non-Muslims can benefit from. This is the legacy of the turath al Islam (path of Islam) as exemplified by our Beloved Prophet, peace be upon him, and is the birthright and heritage of every Muslim. Unfortunately, this knowledge has been all but lost and forgotten in the collective consciousness of today’s ummah. In this article, we want to share a glimpse of this turath and its impact on modern life and self-help.
The inherent psychology within Islam
Our perspective of Islam can often be one dimensional, especially if we have not done our own deep exploration of the teachings within the context of traditional Islamic spiritual education (tarbiyyah). As many followers of a religion, whether accepting that of their parents’ beliefs and rituals or individually choosing to follow the path set out by religious teachings, there is a tendency to see religion as a set of prescriptions that one must follow in order to be in God’s good graces. Religion has become institutionalized to the point that we make edifices out of the religion as a thing in and of itself, rather than understanding it as a path of guidance to follow in order to grow developmentally as a human being. What this can amount to is a relationship to the religion that is more transactional than it is transformational. We do what we have understood we are supposed to do with a belief that certain behaviors and actions or inactions will result in us being in God’s good grace, without necessarily transforming the state of our being or doing any work from the inside out. However, the Qur’an is replete with messages of the need for personal transformation and accountability within our innermost selves, as it says:
“[…] Allah does not change a people until they change what is in themselves” (Qur’an 13: 11)
What does it mean to change what is in oneself, what does that amount to, and how does one do this? These are all questions that could be assumed to be confined within the domain of the field of psychology, and yet the answers are all detailed within the Islamic tradition. What we have come to know as the academic discipline of psychology, a word which literally means the study of the soul, was not traditionally conceptualized as such in Islamic teachings because the study of the soul is embedded within the content of the entire Qur’an and Sunnah. The knowledge of the soul and its development is spread throughout the many branches of knowledge within the Islamic tradition, as there was previously no distinction or separation between the following of the religion and the individual effort to work on oneself in the process of inner transformation. We have become disconnected from the inherently holistic worldview which Islam posits and have adopted a disaggregated way of thinking about life and ourselves to the point that it is now necessary to present the Islamic knowledge of the soul in a condensed form that lends parity to that of modern psychology. Thus while our predecessors may not have needed to use terms such as “psychology” to distinguish such endeavors from other parts of the deen, it now becomes imperative for us to understand and define “Islamic psychology”.
'What does it mean to change what is in oneself, what does that amount to, and how does one do this? These are all questions that could be assumed to be confined within the domain of the field of psychology, and yet the answers are all detailed within the Islamic tradition.' @rothmanabdallah
CLICK TO TWEET
An Islamic perspective of the self
Unlike popular conceptions within modern psychology and the dominant discourse of self-help and self-improvement which identifies the notion of the self as being centralized in the mind and in thought, an Islamic perspective of self includes multiple aspects of the whole being. Cartesian philosophy, which posits the notion of “I think therefore I am” has pervaded contemporary thought to the extent that most conceptions regarding the self within popular psychology are framed around the mind as the central location of human identity. We see this represented graphically in just about any poster or textbook that references psychology being accompanied by a picture of the brain, and by the name of the clinical field being termed “Mental Health”.
Rest in Link