BELIEF
BELIEF
We need to know in which state the belief gene is activated in the brain. In Buddhist priests, a region in their brain is activated when all of their needs are met, their desires are fulfilled and they feel that their personality is integrated with the universe. What activates these three properties, meets all of the needs of man, fulfills all of his desires, and makes him feel secure as a part of a whole is the feeling of belief in an infinite power.
A region appears in the brain of a person who attains the feeling of slavery to God; a genetic activation related to establishing a connection with the concept of God occurs there. However, this is a gene of believing in a limitless power, not necessarily God. That is, there is a genetic program coded for belief in a limitless power in man.
A person who installs a program in a computer wants that program to be used. If the program is very useful for the user, this information file and program will be very important for that person. It means he will act in accordance with the purpose of the person who has installed that program.
In a computer, along with the programs that operate in cache memory, there are programs that operate silently in the background. If a person wants to solve a program, he will solve the ones operating both in cache memory and in the background; thus, he will solve the problem. When we consider the human brain as an information machine with more than ten billion cells and trillions of connections, it is possible to say that human brain resembles a computer. Those connections are kinds of program software.
Human brains and computers resemble each other a lot. The language of the program in the brain is a genetic language. The existence of genetic in this program shows that the power that programmed the brain attaches a special significance to it. This is the biology of belief. It evokes the concept God.
The thesis accepted as philosophy by atheism is that there is no God but people created God. Man believes in God because he has a need for believing in a limitless power and a feeling of taking refuge in a power with limitless wisdom and strength. This genetic code, which is present in man with the bond of causality, does not show itself directly due to special reasons.
There is a concept called endophenotype in genes; it means the change that the environment a person lives in makes in the expression of the gene. If the environment and man does not want the expression of that gene, the expression of it is suppressed. A disease like anorexia nervosa deadens the feeling of eating of a person who wants to lose weight very much; similarly, the people who do not believe in God eliminate this expression, which comes from their genes and prevent it from operating. These people sanctify money, power, the state or causes instead of God. For instance, the Pharaohs, who were sanctified in Egypt, were regarded as the representatives of God on earth and people obeyed all of their orders as if they were divine orders.
Egyptian Pharaohs, who used the feeling of being the representative of God on earth for authority and ruled people based on it, or administrations based on kings or queens disappeared but the holiness of laws and causes replaced them and became important. The state of sanctifying laws in Germany became apparent in the form of great loyalty to laws. Puritan ethics emerged since the understanding of especially Protestant ethics gave too much attention to laws. The thought that those who do not obey rules oppose something holy brought about distrust in them.
There is a biological and genetic tendency toward belief. In endophenotype approach, this gene changes its expression culturally. Phenotype is not transferred as genetic inheritance. When a person dies, it dies with him. If Mozart had not been raised by his family but by another family, he would not have been Mozart. Similarly, the existence of a talent can be visible but it develops when it finds the suitable environment. Therefore, we can say that genes are only a set of inclinations and abilities.
Genes are like seeds sown on the soil. A seed develops when you arrange the light and heat; it dies if necessary conditions are not provided; similarly, the tendency to believe in man develops or weakens based on the preference of him. Man himself determines the desire to use or not to use the genes that were installed in the file of mind. If man uses it, he develops it; and he gets the reward after the test given by the one that gave him the program.
The place of believing in man’s creation is like accepting the constitution. The Creator imposes a limit on those who do not accept His constitution and punishes those who upset the great balances in the universe. The intervention of God in history takes place like that.
The owner of the palace gives bounties to those who disobey Him and obey Him. His mercy, love and granting good things seem to be dominant in the places that He created; that He helps even those who do not recognize and disregard him proves it. It is important for a person to act justly and live in discipline for the life in the other world.
Belief in life in the other world and belief in the fact that a great Creator created the universe is an issue that the Creator attaches great importance. It is not suitable for the divine aim for a person in whose life good deeds and bad deeds will be accumulated to believe in the Creator but not to believe in the life after death.
If a person wants to specialize in mathematics, he has to know the multiplication table first. It is not possible to learn calculus without sufficient infrastructure because man has difficulty in explaining the new knowledge he learned without any basis. Regarding the universe and creation, a person has to believe in existence and eternity first.
After accepting the existence of the Creator and life after death, it becomes easier to explain the other issues regarding belief. However, if we do not accept these two basic thoughts in belief, it is not possible to defend our belief. Similarly, it will not be possible to explain belief in destiny and the feeling of justice to a person who does not believe in eternity.
Those who do not recognize the Creator are kept in the world by Him within certain boundaries. Waiting for some time for them so that they will notice their mistakes and compensate them, the Creator keeps them in this world. In addition, He gives them some opportunities to correct their mistakes as a necessity of His name ar-Rahman (the All-Merciful). That He does not exterminate those who rebel against Him is the clearest indication that He is the owner of mercy. We can liken it to parents who do not stop helping and showing compassion to their child though he makes many mistakes. This state originates from the feeling of protection and the fact the he has the potential of improving.
Those who make mistakes deliberately are not helped after a certain time. However, when those who make mistakes but have good intentions go toward precipice, the Creator may put a barrier in front of them and prevent them from falling into precipice. He gives them some opportunities through invisible assistance so that they will find their ways. He warns them through interventions.
The most important property of monotheistic religions is that they declare that the Creator has the control. It does not comply with the attributes of the Creator to rule everything but not to have the control. Those who burn a town in order to cook an egg like Nero will not get away with it. If such a person is not punished, it will not comply with the harmony in the universe. Another life, where the oppressed and the oppressors will be punished and rewarded will definitely exist.
To believe in the invisible is an expression of concretization. For instance, if you shed a red light on a child’s hand, he might not notice that it is a light but he might cry thinking that it got painted because it is difficult for the child to know the difference between the abstract and the concrete.
To believe in the invisible originates from not being able to see the background and not being able to reach the level of abstract thinking. Therefore, the need for religion in people increases based on their level of development. A person who proceeds in abstract thought actually shows his need for religion. However, a child whose IQ level is about fifty or an autistic child has no needs apart from his basic needs.
Abstract thinking emerges when man’s questions on existence become intense, when he tries to add meaning to himself and to life and when he asks questions related to time and future. Belief in the invisible shows man’s level of development.
We see the story of the prophet Abraham (Ibrahim) as the first concrete example of the quest for God. When soothsayers said to Nimrod, “A boy from this generation will destroy your sultanate”, Abraham’s father raised Abraham in a cave. Abraham was away from concrete adorations of life when he reached the age of abstract thinking; this state caused him to question and kept him away from wrong learning about God. This made Abraham view life and the universe through different eyes and made him use his will for worshipping and need for belief. Abraham, who was in contact with a group of a few people, started to question. After questioning, he started to object, denied what people said, noticed that the sun, the moon, stars and anything regarded to be great by people in nature would not meet man’s needs; they all show how much he progressed in abstract thinking. The point Abraham reached shows the level humanity reached in abstract thinking. Humanity reached the level of finding the Creator through the mind.
Humanity reached that level before but they deviated very easily. Eras like the First Age and Stone Age are the periods of childhood for humanity. People living in that period were ordered to worship as much as Abraham was by God. However, the responsibility of a person starts when he is informed about it.
There is a messenger that explains the truth to the generations coming after him; it is up to the will of a person whether to obey this messenger and listen to what he says or not. People were given lessons by prophets and these lessons made humanity progress in abstract thinking.
It is very important to explain religion without eliminating the will of people. It is very important for man to find God by focusing on the topic in a way that is suitable for his personality. Allah wants His slaves to find Him by using their minds through their free will. It is a must to use free will in this way. This is actually a state which was imposed by the Creator in creation, in which He did not show Himself, explained only the truths and gave man the right of preference through his own free will. Allah will give him what he wants through His limitless power whether he prefers the wrong way or the right way.
In a verse in the chapter of al-Baqara in the Quran, the following is stated: “Allah is the Protector of those who have faith: from the depths of darkness, He will lead them forth into light.” The following is stated in verse thirty-five of the chapter of an-Nur, which explains belief as getting rid of the darkness and making people attaining the light of guidance: “Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth.”
When we pay attention to the word light, we will see that it can actually be regarded as the illumination of the universe. It is emphasized here that Allah has illuminated the earth and the heavens with an energy band that can be called “light” and that made man move away from the darkness by showing him the truths through guidance. For instance, light is necessary for a person who enters a forest at night, walks there and wants to find a way in order to proceed; that person can use his pocket lamp to find his way. However, he will see limited places when he proceeds with the pocket life and will have difficulty in noticing the dangers; he will proceed in fear and anxiety related to the future. However, when that person thinks that the forest has an owner and asks help from the owner, everywhere will start to be illuminated by the help sent by this power. Belief is like that. Otherwise, man will start to proceed through his own free will.
The thing called “the light of guidance” during man’s journey in the universe is like traffic lights. These lights tell man where to stop and where to proceed and where there are traps. It illuminates man’s way and becomes a comrade for him like a torch. When man does this, he receives his energy from the Creator.
Although control seems to be in man, man is not dominant over everything; that power can stop man whenever He wants. Man has the feeling of dominating nature and himself. This is related to his desire to be a small god of earth.
Everyone has the feeling of believing in something sacred; and through this feeling, man certainly sanctifies his ego, money, the state or something that he believes in. The sacred thing is something that man believes in and adheres to without questioning. For instance, a person who has the thought, “I never make mistakes” has sanctified his ego; if a person attributes rain to nature only, he has sanctified laws of nature. However, this will not be enough to explain everything. Sanctity that explains everything is possible only through the belief of oneness. This belief enables man to explain everything in the universe philosophically. The relationship between the Creator and man can be likened to the relationship between a source that shows man the way and an object. For man, slavery means achieving to establish a connection with the Creator. To believe means to confirm to be included in the system of the Creator of the universe. To be a slave means to maintain the flow of energy without breaking the connection with the power supply.
To believe in a single absolute power with infinite knowledge, wisdom and a power that can control everything comforts man and gives him the feeling of security. When a person does his best and then surrenders to the great power by feeling his weakness and helplessness, he will attain happiness because he trusts in that power. Man will not fear anything in the universe because he relies on the power of the universe by surrendering to that great power, trusting him after doing his best and asking from Him the knowledge and experience to do better. It is very important in order to get rid of groundless fear and to increase security.
The belief of oneness gives man well-being. The Quran is very important because it gives peace to a hopeless person. The divine books of the Creator state one main purpose. This main purpose expresses the benefit of belief related to psychological health. We can say that there is no reason why a person who has the belief of oneness should not be happy.
The Creator displays His characteristic of lordship in various religions. We can explain it with the following example: Think of a small child; he is hungry but cannot open the door of the fridge; he is waiting for someone to come and feed him by crying. Children think they can control their parents with those acts until their abstract thinking develops. With that primitive thought, the child thinks that when he cries, what he wants is realized and that he has the power and control. Parents who do whatever their children want due to their excessive love for their children think that they have the control but indeed the child virtually becomes the small king of the house. In this case, when the parents evaluate whether what the child wants is good for him, they will do what is right for the child not what he wants. This is education. To do whatever the child wants is not education.
When we consider limitless desires and motives of man, it is not right to say no to all of them. Some of the expectations of man are met by the Creator but others are not answered. The Creator educates man in this way. The dominant attribute of the Creator that we feel when He educates man through the language of events is ar-Rahman (the All-Merciful). Therefore, the most commonly mentioned name of God in the Quran except Allah is ar-Rahman, which is also mentioned at the beginning of every chapter. Allah protects humans with His mercy and educates them with His compassion. The divine equivalent of love and discipline are mercy and justice. The Creator protects His slaves through His mercy and draws limits for them with His justice. This is the equivalent of love and discipline in theology.
Man loves his ego very much, sanctifies it and believes in it. To believe that ego will solve everything makes man think that the divine attributes are also present in his own ego. This tendency in man leads to the state in which everybody produces solutions that will relieve them. That man tries to find a way out when he feels weak is an indication of it. People that worshipped the idols that they themselves made for hundreds of years are examples to this state. In this period, with the influence of modernism, people are taught to worship their own ego and self under the name of individualism along with nature and the holy spirit. It is possible to say that this property differed based on the development level of humanity in the past. For instance, during the time of Moses, the tendency of worshipping the concrete was very high; when the Pharaoh died, tons of gold was put into his grave. This state is an example of worshipping the power. When Moses was away from his tribe for forty days, people sanctified gold, which they attached the greatest importance in their life, because they felt lonely and needed to worship power. By combining gold with calf, which met their basic needs, they mentally concretized what was abstract and worshipped like that. The example of the golden calf in the Quran is very important in this sense.
It is possible to see very clearly the example of struggling against the stimulus of believing in the concrete in the life of Moses. Although man is shown a lot of miracles, he forgets those miracles when he is alone and seeks a way out that will comfort him temporarily. This state took place differently in the period of Jesus. In a period when there was a very powerful Roman legal system, a quest for a new religion against this power emerged. With this need, Jesus set off in order to find people that will help him in the way of the Creator; he managed to make people listen to him by presenting love regarding belief and faith and healing people. In that period, humanity, which had not fully reached the level of abstract thinking yet, was sent divine help with some concrete messages. Water gushed forth from Hz. Muhammad’s finger and quenched the thirst of the army; he could not be killed despite some suicide attempts; he foresaw many things in return for the troubles he suffered; they are all evidence proving that he was a messenger sent for the universe. The first reaction of the people to the messengership of prophets was always to make fun of them. Because they broke the routine of people, all of the prophets were made fun of and ridiculed at first. They were helped by the Creator when they were in these difficult situations. When assistance from God arrived, those who made fun of them had to think. Most of the assistance was in the form of miracles that can be called visual help; when Jesus healed ill people and bald people, those who believed in the concrete underwent great changes. However, these properties of Jesus and other prophets were not permanent; they appeared when they were necessary; the Creator realized them in compliance with His own wishes rather than the messengers’ wishes. The divine power timed and planned His wishes Himself and He always had the control.
Most of the values and knowledge that made man real man came in the period of Hz. Muhammad; and they were not changed after that. After Hz. Muhammad, many false prophets arrived but none of them could establish a religion; this is one of the indicators of the prophethood of Hz. Muhammad. Hz. Muhammad managed to persuade people to give up bad habits fourteen hundred years ago. This state proves that he was a prophet. However, people’s esteeming miracles was replaced by seeking the Creator through the mind of the eye as humanity has developed and it has become easier to access knowledge today. Material miracles are not necessary for the people of this age. People can find the Creator by methods of reasoning. The miracle of today is to use science.
The events people face within the framework of destiny change based on their nature, culture and level of perception. The test of a person whose perception is high is not the same as the test of one with low perception. For instance, a philosopher is tested by his mistakes in the field of philosophy but the test of a construction worker might be related to how he meets his daily needs. There is no single truth for characters; similarly, the incidents that happen to people are not the same. However, the existence of the good and the bad shows the existence of a philosophical association. It becomes apparent which one man prefers between the good and the bad. For instance, the desire to do a favor to others and the stimulus to do evil to others are the same in all cultures. It is similarly valid for people living on the mountain, in the desert or in the city. If a person’s feeling to do a favor to others is dominant, if he tries hard to avoid harming people, if he adopts it as an abstract ideal and if others feel, “he will not harm me deliberately” for him when he makes a mistake, we can say that this person really does his best to be a good man.
Philosophical association that changes for every religion and culture can also change for individuals. Therefore, Allah has promised that He will not distress those who believe in Him and do good deeds. Although people degenerate it and change its shape, the Creator gave this concept to humans and left them free to realize it or not.
Allah is dominant over details but He did not enter into details. Thus, He paved the way for man by giving him the right to choose and initiative. In fact, He taught man the way of learning by living and developing himself like this. This proves that Allah does not force people as it can be seen in the following analogy: the parents who train their child allow their child to play outside in the cold weather when he insists because they want him to find out what cold weather is like; and the child returns by telling his parents that they were right. To present choices and to ask people to choose among them is not in compliance with the divine style. The divine style presents choices and helps man to practice them.
Though man has senses and material power of sanction, he asks for help from others related to the issues that he is not good at. Man is weak related to a microbe, illness or things that he cannot foresee about the future. It is very important for him to know this weakness. Weakness means to be too weak and helpless to do some things.
Along with weakness, man is also poor. The concept of poverty is involved with being unable to meet one’s needs. Weakness is being weak and helpless when one faces states like illness and poverty. Poverty means to be unable to meet one’s needs and to lack strength in the presence of psychological needs. The needs of a person are determined by himself and his level of maturity. A person’s weakness and poverty might not be directly proportional with needs. For instance, people who have everything but still work hard do it with the expectation of being appreciated. This hard work that a person does in order to satisfy his ego is a need that the person forms himself. For instance, when there was no electricity in the world, there was no need for electricity. However, when there was a supply, people thought they needed electricity and started to use it.
Needs change based on time and conditions. In the presence of a need, when a person cannot obtain it, he may feel that he is in poverty. However, even a person who lives in the poverty line today will be regarded as wealthy compared to a person living one hundred years ago. To determine needs is closely related with a person’s philosophy of life. Therefore, the concept of poverty is very important in servitude. Today, we see that man feels hopeless in the presence of acts of God. There were massive earthquakes in Los Angeles, USA and Kobe, Japan a few years ago. They were earthquakes that happened in the countries and cities that were regarded as technology giants. In these places, people who trusted technology very much saw that their roads were torn up.
There is a divine intervention regarding the issues that humanity knows his place about the things that it can or cannot do. This situation is not punishment but informing man about his limits. To inform man about the response for his act is done in order to inform him about his limits. Man can disrespect the one that gives him bounties because he does not know his limits even though he is weak and poor. The best way of servitude is not to transgress one’s limits. A person who sanctifies himself elevates himself as if he will be worshipped. This means that he does not know that he is a slave and that he has rendered his ego a small god.
Death is regarded as a warner in all doctrines. Death, which is named as advice, is evaluated in accordance with the meaning of this word. Advice means giving information to a person who does not know what to do when he is faced by some incidents regarding the issue that he needs help. For instance, spirit is some information. The information may be light, psychon, photon or a similar thing. Man needs information when he loses his direction. This information is important for him because it tells him where to go, where to stop and draws his limits. Among this knowledge and information, death is the one that renders man helpless because man is the only being that notices the existence of death.
There is a genetic tendency in man related to perceiving death. Although it has not been defined up to now, a gene that we know to be related to the concept of time makes man notice that he will face the reality called death. Man’s tendency to believe in eternity is important in his view on death. When viewed with plain Aristotle’s syllogism, man is a being that eats, drinks, grows up and dies. From this point of view, he is no different from the development of an apple tree. Man’s adventure of life affects his realities like all living beings. As man grows old, he starts to fear death. To say to a person who is eighty years old, “you will leave this world soon” means not to empathize with him because if that person believes in eternity, death is not something terrible for him.
To think about the feeling of eternity, death and existence has an effect that develops abstract thinking. Those who have materialistic thought assume that forgetting death will make man happy and that otherwise he will be unhappy. Since thinking of death decrease happiness, they tried to keep people away from this thought. It is like giving some painkillers to a person who has a toothache instead of treating him seriously. On the other hand, to forget this reality when we see that death is a grim and inevitable reality means not to think about after death. However, the most distinct indication of the mind is to foresee and plan the future. If a sane person cannot make philosophical inferences regarding after death, it means he does not use his mind properly. From this point of view, it is very important to make interpretations about death.
It is very important for man to think about death without losing the feeling of hope. The materialistic view, which advises not to think of death so as not to lose this hope, overlooks the reality that man cannot forget death.
We have seen global tragedies and traumas more than individual tragedies recently. The number of the victims of traumas increased. For instance, the destruction of twin towers affected not only Americans but also the whole world and caused a trauma effect. This state expresses the direction toward “not thinking” brought along with the age of communication and escape from the weakness related to after death. It is more appropriate for man to think that the events have some causes that cannot be explained by him rather than including what is unexplained in the category of the bad or overlooking them. Otherwise, to overlook the things that we think we do not see means to use a wrong mechanism of defense.
Man has time perception and the desire to plan the future. Destiny is a state for man related to being able to establish a connection between his position and the path line.
Man’s experience that he accumulated by living in the past is on one side and his expectations related to the future is on the other side. However, man cannot see the future very easily. Man also has the feelings of curiosity and wonder, which are not present in the other living beings. Due to these two feelings, worries about the future occur. If we do not trust the captains of the ships we travel in, we will always question things; this questioning causes uneasiness. To believe in destiny means to believe in the captain of the ship in a sense. The existence of the universe is similar to this. To believe in the existence of a power that controls the earth and the sky related to living, the universe and existence in life enables “free” will to present easiness to man. To take refuge in the mercy of the Creator when one makes a mistake and to know that He is aware of all incidents when something bad happens relieves man. Here, the view of destiny together with surrendering gives man inner peace.
A person who believes in the captain of the universe can proceed in a good way in life. To believe in destiny does not mean to sit lazily and not to do anything. If man thinks that the ship of the universe knows where it is going and does not leave his berth, he cannot even meet his own needs and his respectability will decrease.
If man does not do what he is supposed to do, it means he does not fulfill his ethical responsibility. In the universe, there is a harmony that is similar to that of an orchestra. If man makes small mistakes in the universe, they may be tolerated but big mistakes are unforgivable.
Man’s belief in destiny does not eliminate his own free will. There is freedom for man within the boundaries drawn for his desires; and therefore, the real destiny is understood after it has been lived. What we try to understand is the written and foreseen destiny. A person who plays a game prepared by a computer program by saying whatever is present in my destiny will take place, he cannot play that game properly. However, if he does his best and then says whatever is present in my destiny will take place, he can win the game since he has tried hard. Otherwise, the result will be frustration.
The thought of paternalism, which is effective in fatalism, takes destiny to a point where making efforts is not necessary. The understanding of paternalism, which appears in the form of referring and which eliminates human will, does not comply with the will of the power that writes the program because man do not play his role here. Or when he trusts himself excessively and thinks that what he does is a result of his own efforts, things can take place differently from what he estimates because he cannot intervene in the changes made by the Creator. The limit between what he can control and what he cannot control is destiny. It is very important for man to know what he can do and what he cannot do within the boundaries of slavery.
Imagine two circles overlapping each other and an area formed where they overlap each other. This area is the area where spiritual existence and material existence unite. Here, the brain, our intermediary organ, steps in. This area, which enables passages between material life and life beyond matter, is the place where proceeding from material existence to the abstract starts. Man is a material being. There are also radiant beings. The energy which is faster than the speed of light is called spirit. Its equivalent in the Quran is light. This is energy superior to light energy. The divine book, which says Allah has a light that surrounds the earth and the sky, mentions that energy is superior to light and that He directs the universe with this energy. Scientific methodology is sufficient in order to find the Creator. To believe is possible scientifically. There is religious information that was analyzed through methods of reasoning and logical postulates and then was proved through positive science. After the data of positive science comes reasoning; after reasoning come intuitions, and after intuitions comes believing. These four phases find the truth through positive science and proceeds instead of finding the truth through transferred knowledge. To wait for miracles through supernatural events means not to know the attributes of Allah. We need people who will make inferences by using what is available without waiting for miracles.
Man needs to define the concepts that he believes in. The question, “By believing in what kind of a Creature does man meet his psychological needs and contribute to his happiness and satisfaction?” is a question to which an answer has to be found. Man’s belief in something sacred originates from here.
Man sometimes meets his need of basic belief in him by sanctifying and believing in himself. Some people believe in nature and some in spirit itself. However, it is necessary to know what kind serves man’s psychological nature, happiness and ego satisfaction.
The question whether the existence of the Creator is necessary for man brings about an ontological stand and man produces an imagination related to his own existence. When we look with these mental phenomena, religious life in the most general sense believes there is an invisible system in the universe.
There is an invisible system and intelligence in the universe; the state of living harmoniously with the system in the universe is called religion. When we accept that the mind that created the universe does not exist, it means we live inharmoniously with the system in the universe. This style of living independently is like proceeding with the torch on the road during the day without accepting the sun.
What determines man’s behaviors is the truths that a person accepts and believes in. Similarly, if man does not believe in the visible realities in life, he will suffer the consequences.
The person who first put forward the concept of believing in the invisible was Plato. The reason why the term “platonic love” is used is the fact that Plato was the first person who said it was necessary to believe in the abstract and who mentioned imaginations.
Kant is one of the philosophers who emphasized the importance of believing in abstract objects and who influenced the West the most from this point of view. According to Kant, to believe in issues like God, spirit or immortality is determinative in human behaviors. There are differences between people who have such beliefs and who do not in terms of their views on life, ethical beliefs and practicing them in life. If man believes in a system and an external power, he will feel responsible toward Him. If he is deprived of this belief, there will be no one he will account for.
In the history of philosophy, the reality of believing in the abstract was always discussed. Today, there seems to be a secret competition between science and religion. Here, the clash of visible and invisible realities is in question.
The movement called rational mysticism, which combines science and religion, holds the view that there is a Creator that displays His grandeur outside and that after creation, He should not lose the control related to His grandeur. When it is considered that this Creator needs to be dominant over every point of the universe through His limitless power, it is concluded that rational mysticism is reasonable. The next stage after accepting the existence of the Creator is to go on thinking by acting upon the fact that His existence is “one”.
It is necessary to know the Creator, to believe in Him, to love Him and to worship Him for the universe to operate healthily. After believing in Him, an emotional communication starts in the connection established with him through love. After that, responsibilities come. When we look at the attributes of the Creator, we notice in the part that is related to the properties of the Creator and that is found through reasoning that it is obligatory that He has no partners and helpers and opposites for the maintenance of the order. He will inform His slaves about His existence in a way that He does not need anything but everything needs Him.
Those who cannot notice the attributes of Allah and those who believe in polytheistic religions move away from belief since they cannot notice these attributes fully. A person who does not move away from the benefits of believing in one Creator will not be able to find God if he cannot find more than what is transferred to him by the culture he was raised. Therefore, along with the need for guides that has been present for centuries, a person who reaches a mature level mentally today has been taken through science to a point more different from the miracles that were needed before. In today’s world, humanity can conclude that Allah exists by thinking since he has approximated Him very closely through the mind; he does not need supernatural powers so much. Humanity should find the answer to the question, ”Through what attributes may the Creator have created the universe?” It will be possible to understand what kind of belief in Allah we have through this way. The deep thoughts at this point and the awareness of man regarding the issue can ensure the formation of a healthy belief only after seeing the attributes of the Creator. To find Allah through the mind takes place like that. A person first believes; then, he adheres to what he believes in and finally attains happiness and satisfaction. A person can be healthy before he believes if there is a Creator that meets these needs. The Creator will also attain happiness and satisfaction if all of His needs and desires are met, He has all kinds of wealth, is faultless and perfect, He is not material, He knows the nature of everything, His knowledge covers everything, He uses His power proportionately and He is away from all kinds of incompleteness.
The reason why humans and the other living beings cannot fully comprehend the power of the Creator is the fact that He is great. Man can understand his Creator only to that extent with his existent senses and his property of reasoning. He is not seen due to the power of His existence. That He is not visible does not prove that He does not exist; on the contrary, it proves that He exists. Some wavelengths and frequencies exist but we cannot see them. We can notice them only through some devices though their existence is so clear. Similarly, man can notice the Creator through the mind and the heart.
The Creator must be such a force that he must be able to direct everything with His commands “be” and “stop”. He must be able to create out of nothing and He must be a Creator whose existence continues bot h at the beginning and in the end. The qualities of this power can approach man to peace when the identity of man unites with the identity of the Creator. To surrender to such a belief will meet man’s need for believing in and adhering to a sacred thing; it takes man to the highest point of satisfaction after adhering. Even the existence of such a power that makes man have this feeling shows us that the universe was created by a single Creator.
Although man has a high creation, the span of difference between what he wants and what he can do is big. Due to this big difference, it is considered that man has some other abstract needs. Only when these needs are met does man’s feeling of security forms fully. Fear is dominant in places where there is no security. Man needs a power he can rely on in order to be protected from fear. This shows that the Creator exists through the method of reasoning.
If man thinks about why the universe was created, he can understand the existence of the Creator; however, if he thinks about how it was created, the existence of the Creator becomes hidden. While thinking about why it was created, man can see His existence through the eye of the mind by saying, “there must be a Creator”. The Creator who produces the work of art tries his slave regarding to what extent he will find Him and how he will attain Him. Allah has codes of existence; when the slave asks about one of these codes, he will be shown another code; after solving it, he will be given yet another code; and finally he can find the Creator. The codes in the universe can be solved through the mind; after that, it is necessary to establish the connections among the codes. The existence is obvious for the one who thinks why it was created and hidden for the one who thinks how it was created. The realities of the Creator are limitless realities. Limitless realities cannot be perceived through limited glances. Eternity cannot be seen through limited glances. Then, we can postulate and make inferences only through methods of reasoning.
Although we do not see the personality of the Creator, it is possible to see His attributes and to observe His existence through His works. Similarly, the universe shows the attributes of the Creator not His personality.
Imagine that a tall skyscraper will be built. The architects and engineers of the building need some information before constructing the skyscraper. It is necessary to look over everything from engineering knowledge to economy and even meteorological information. Only through this information can the building be constructed in the correct place and ground. Along with these conditions, the person to construct the skyscraper needs to have material and spiritual power to build it; the money to find and buy all of the materials necessary for the skyscraper, manpower and mind power are also needed. At this point, knowledge, will and wisdom need to be united. The wisdom here is to construct the skyscraper in the correct place; the practicability and feasibility of the building shows that the person who constructs it has wisdom. Will is going to decide to build it and apply this decision freely and transform it into deed. The construction of a building in this way can finish in two years at the earliest. The construction of the building is possible through knowledge more than manpower.
In fact, the universe means knowledge. Especially after the emergence of digital technology, it has been stated that the universe and everything is knowledge and that it consists of data and programs. In existence, a lot of knowledge is recorded in the distant memory of man; similarly, there is a need for a power with a great memory in the universe. This power knows and controls the past and future of everything; it forms the existence of the universe and the connecting element of life like this. A worker cannot know as much as an engineer does. An engineer has more knowledge than a worker but he knows less than an executive member does. When we look at the universe, we see that those who deal with positive science are like engineers. Those who know why the universe is existent in compliance with the divine will are prophets and saints that are said to be the inheritors of prophets. It is necessary to maintain this balance between the existence of the universe and the existence of man. At this point, the phrase “feelings with no place” is used for abstract feelings. However, if something is abstract, it does not mean that it is not existent. Therefore, some realities that we cannot see are indeed the reality of the existence of the universe.
The living beings other than humans cannot perceive the concept of death. Human beings have slaughtered animals for centuries to meet their need for food but animals have not organized in order to struggle against humans because their genetic programs are coded like that. This shows that animals do not know the end of life.
To meet material needs does not satisfy man; so, abstract needs form. The need for being appreciated and feeling of security for himself and for his offspring and the desire to improve the world and the situation he is in are among needs of man. However, something hampers man who wants to realize himself. Man who is weak against what hampers him can get rid of this negative feeling only through belief in immortality; and he can lessen his burden by taking refuge in the power that creates everything. This situation can be likened to a person who boards a ship with some heavy burden on his back and who does not leave his burden because he does not trust anybody. The passenger who does not put his burden on the ground because he does not trust anybody actually disrespects the captain. If such a passenger does not trust the captain, he needs to get off the ship. A passenger who thinks, “the cloud makes it rain; the air current forms the wind; the captain has no effect on the movement of the ship” does not notice his own weakness and poverty; he starts to act as if God does not exist. However, if man acts by being aware of the fact that God exists, it will be beneficial for him. The freedom of the person will be different based on the one of those two thoughts that he chooses for his acts. Therefore, the acts of a person determine his life.
It is necessary for man to determine, draw and perceive the power and boundaries of the Creator through his own power and boundaries. Man, who has reached distant points like going to the space, feels weak in the presence of a small earthquake or storm.
We can easily say that the thought “there is no need for a Creator” does not comply with the psychological nature of man because man has a need for believing in the sacred, and trusting or taking refuge in a Creator. When man trusts, he feels secure that the danger is over. A person who knows himself can determine his boundaries in a way to establish a connection with the Creator. To know the difference between demanding his wishes boorishly and properly will determine his relationship with the Creator. The state of being weak determines man’s need for belief; and the existence of these needs opens the doors to belief.
The psychological wounds in man can only be healed by the beliefs man has. The medication prescribed by positive science will be insufficient after a certain point. This forms a very important rule for the happiness and satisfaction of man real in its real sense.
Man tends to escape from the realities that give him agony. In the illness of panic disorder, the most important factor that leads man to anxiety is the fear of death. In the brain, there is a region called hypothalamus, which perceives this fear. It is also the region that is related to man’s feeling of control.
To face death is very important for the feeling of control. The attempts to eliminate the fear of death instead of explaining the reality of death to people will be harmful for both people and their environment. It is necessary to interpret the fear of death in compliance with the happiness of man instead of eliminating the neural connections located in that region.
The branch of science which is known as thanatology and which tries to understand the relationships of man with death searches what kind of a connection man should have with death. One of the feelings that man needs the most regarding death is the feeling of hope. A person who deals with the issue of death should find solutions that will not harm this feeling. Otherwise, it is very difficult to be successful and happy.
The most important formula that keeps hope going along with the reality of death is belief in eternity. The existence of another life after death enables man to interpret death without eliminating hope. This is the traditional method of solving the problem but this is the useful style of thinking. On the other hand, the materialistic view thinks that death is a painful and inevitable reality but it argues that it is necessary to overlook death in order to get rid of death; it rejects everything after death. Man can think like that to a certain extent only when all goes well and when he still has power. However, if he thinks of the future and questions his life through a philosophical viewpoint, he will prepare himself for it.
No matter how much man escapes death and fear of death, he will face many incidents that will remind him of death. In the past, fear of death was something that was experienced individually, but after the September 11 incident, the terror of death was started to be experienced globally. This traumatic effect would have affected only the people of that region one hundred years ago, but with the advancement in communication technology, it affects the whole world today. Those who are not involved with an incident are affected by all of the global disasters in the world. The death of celebrities makes people feel sad as if someone from their family died. When people think that someone they frequently see died, it affects them as if one of their relatives died; and a need to find a solution arises.
Man should question his own existence, the reality of death and all of the visible and invisible realities in the world. This questioning will contribute to man’s sagacity.
Man should know that he lives in the true way in order to be able to face death. Those who fear death the most are those who know that they will be accounted for the mistakes they made. A person who thinks life ends with death and says that he will not account for anything acts upon the view, “there is no other world”; when he is treated unjustly and when he cannot cope with others, he thinks, “Maybe, there is life after death.” He tries to move away from the agony of death by applying anesthesia on himself like that. For instance, Nietzsche questioned the existence of death and committed suicide because he could not find an answer to it. The power of belief to console man becomes apparent at this point. If man thinks he will disappear, it shows that he thinks the existence and life are meaningless. It is very easy for people to be hopeless and to surrender when they face difficulties if they do not receive strength from religion.
Man has certain reactions regarding death. The first reaction is, “I will not die.” Then, the question, “Why me?” follows; there is fury and denial in this question. After this protest, the person accepts that he will die but he starts the process of bargaining. This process becomes apparent with the following words, “Yes, it is me but…” After that, either the reality of death is accepted or depression occurs. If that person overcomes depression, acceptance takes place. If a person who thinks of the reality of death has a sound belief, he can move to that phase easily. Those who have weak beliefs pass to the fifth phase in a much more difficult way. Many of them can remain in the unsolved mourning syndrome because they cannot manage it.
An intelligent person sees not only the beauty that is present in the universe but also the being that creates this beauty. When an intelligent person goes to a city and watches the beauties there, he wants to know the person that has created those beauties and has built up the city. The owner of the city will entertain this person, who approaches the city with this viewpoint, and talk to him. Otherwise, he will not appreciate a person who leaves after eating and drinking.
Man needs psychological support to protect him from dangers. He might not see everything fully because he is weak and needy. When Abraham was asked how he became a friend of Allah, he said, “I preferred Allah’s wishes to my wishes and loved him more than anything else.”
People are born, grow up, live and die. It is an expected behavior to accept death as normal like birth. However, according to the researches done on the old people, man’s desire to live did not decrease but increased as he grew old. To give an eighty-year-old person the message that he should get ready for death will disturb him. Even if he says that he is getting ready for death, he has difficulty in doing it in his heart. Materialist approach argues that it is necessary not to talk to old people about death and to act as if death does not exist. However, the thought of death is something that is absolutely necessary in order to add meaning to life.
Old people face death more than others because they encounter illnesses more and they lose their relatives. This state makes them question life more. This state is what is defined as getting rid of heedlessness and remembering existence in religious literature.Therefore, the issue of death caused the need for religion and the need for adding meaning to death to proceed together.
A person who does not know that electricity shocks needs to touch it to understand that it shocks. A person who questions the existence and meaning of life makes an arrangement related to life after death and lives in accordance with it will not be afraid of thinking about death. However, when a person who does not think like that, overlooks death and says God is somewhere away from me encounters death, will think that he will meet God. Consequently, it can form a feeling of accounting.
Prophets and the theologians that came after them became guides for humanity. Man is likely to make mistakes and to be deceived. This struggle of man who is defeated by mistakes due to sanctions coming sometimes from inside and sometimes from outside is an ontological struggle. Man who is directed by both the concept of devil, which reminds evil, and the concept of angel, which reminds goodness, makes his decision through his own free will eventually. Man who decides which way to follow will be able to reach the target he has determined if he obeys the guide and signs on the road. At this point, death has a serious role in man’s planning the future. Man who lives in this world like a guest cannot grab a property wholeheartedly because he knows that he will lose that property after a while. This concept is seen in the West and in England. In England all property belongs to the Kingdom and everything is leased for ninety-nine years. The same thing is in question in the creation of the universe, too. In this case, if man does not realize death, he will experience a painful life because death is a curtain. What is behind the curtain is not seen. Since this point cannot be understood through five senses, it will be seen through intuitions and the eye of the mind. The religion of Islam defines real life as “life in the hereafter”. If a person lives by being aware of it, it will be easy for him to face the reality of death.
Man learns the concepts related to symbolic thought in certain periods; similarly, his psychological development shows that he reached the age of accepting the Creator with his attributes. Adding meaning to death is located in this maturation. However, coincidental existence cannot explain it. They try to bring a lot of things together through calculation of probabilities but it is not possible to explain the meaning of the universe. What makes DNA man is not amino acids like nitrogen and protein in it but the meaning written there.
There exists the difference of body and spirit in man. What we call spirit is actually meaning. However, the meaning in the book does not occur on its own; similarly, it is not possible for this meaning to form on its own. Even if the Creator is not present in the universe with its own being, He is present with His properties and names. They are all present on matter as attributes. For instance, the cover, paper and volume of a book are its body and what is written in it is its spirit. When we consider a book without its meaning, we will show disrespect to its writer. Man’s DNA is also a book. In a DNA, there is encyclopedic knowledge that can be seventy meters long. This knowledge is present in both the simplest cell and the most developed cell. The universe has been programmed based on death. There are programmed cell deaths in DNA. The same thing is valid for the human brain, too. When it is due, death definitely takes place. Therefore, death is the most important reality in the universe. The power that created the universe placed death in life very clearly and sharply. Then, death must have a very different meaning.
To consider death as an end and termination can be valid for other beings because they have no consciousness. However, the existence of consciousness in man shows that there is a much bigger consciousness in the universe. The existence of small consciousnesses that recognize the past and the future in the universe serves as the existence of a great consciousness that knows the past and the future. The concept of God expresses high consciousness. This is what adds meaning to the universe; if this meaning were not present, there would be no meaning of the creation. The high technology in the universe activates the programs it has formed when it wants and has the authority to stop it when it wants. The determinative role of the reality of death at this stage is the fact that the Creator will make people think of returning to Him after death.
We often emphasized the similarities between the properties of man and the universe. While the universe is a macro model, man is a micro model. There are neutrons and protons in the middle of an atom and electrons around it; similarly, man is like a minimized universe and the universe is like a maximized man. There are a lot of similarities between them. It is enough to understand this to know that the rate of water in both the universe and man is the same.
Reward and punishment are universal concepts. The equality of a person who obeys rules and one who does not is the weakness of the system and shows that the system will not work. If things that seemed bad like cardiac diseases did not exist, man would not need to learn how the heart worked and he would lead a life only by eating and drinking. Therefore, to know that good and bad feelings would be rewarded and punished after death would cause man to work harder. The concepts of Paradise and Hell can therefore motivate people to do good deeds.
When we look at man’s psychological dynamics, we see that what makes him do good deeds is reward and what makes him avoid bad and wrong things is punishment. One of them reinforces positively and the other negatively. Animal tamers know very well that animals can be activated through the mechanism of reward and punishment. Mental conditioning is valid in animals and humans; so, there must be an equivalent of it in the universe. This equivalent is like asking questions about life after death before answering the question about the existence of God and examining complex topics before knowing simple realities; so, it can delay finding the real answers and therefore it is important. If man believes that the Creator exists, the probability to find true answers in the brain related to the issue of life after death will increase. Suppose that we have built a city and we transfer people to that city after they die. If there is an obstacle before you in this system, the administrator of the city will eliminate that obstacle in order to realize the transfer. This obstacle is the obstacle of death. To deny life after death means to disbelieve in God and to regard God, whom we say we believe in, as weak and limited. However, divine will means limitlessness. When we accept Him as limitless with His knowledge, power and any state and condition, life after death will be reasonable. The thesis argued by Freud to explain life after death is as follows: The child regards his father as God and his mother as the hereafter; it is normal for a child to regard his mother as a harbor until he is seven years old. However, as the child grows, neither the father can be his guide throughout his life nor his mother can carry him on her back. This situation shows that religion is closely connected with the level of maturity and development of man.
As man develops, he starts to question life and move toward the need for religion more. A person who does not ask what will happen after death might not need a concept like religion. Man does not have a structure that will be content with eating, drinking and reproducing; he is aware of many things due to his genes of making sense. Thus, as he develops mentally, he starts to question beyond today. Freud’s explanation will be valid if man stays at animal level. Where man, whose wishes, views and desire of making life meaningful are limitless but whose power is limited, will take refuge is an important question.
At first, Darwin did not believe in God but when he saw the evils in the world later, he formed a different meaning relating to belief by putting struggle, which is an exception in the universe, in the place of goodness and solidarity, which are essential. He thought, “Despite the existence of the good, bad deeds do not fit the perfect system in the universe”; and he became agnostic because he could not associate the existence of God with the bad deeds he encountered. He said the existence or non-existence of God cannot be known scientifically.
Materialism could not find the Creator because it could not solve the problem of evil it encountered in the universe. In recent periods, the researches done during the studies of emotional intelligence showed that there were good and bad forces in man. The probability of being without any faults is not in question for man because if the evil feelings in man are not educated, he has a nature that will tend to do evil deeds. The existence of stimuli and tendencies programmed in DNA makes it necessary for us to define the problem of evil correctly. The existence of the evil in the universe formed the struggle between the good and the bad, being a means of developing the good. The equivalent of this state in the brain is the mechanisms of reward and punishment.
It is not possible for man and other living beings who are directed by positive and negative reinforcements not to have a universal equivalent for them. Therefore, the concept of universality is a concept that comforts man and that has a curative value. For instance, people who suffer from serious diseases feel relieved when they see that other people catch the same disease.
To think that good deeds and bad deeds will be rewarded and punished will lessen man’s motive of taking revenge and the traumas regarding the issue. If belief in the hereafter does not exist fully, people will always fight and argue. The thought that the divine will call people who do wrong to account prevents man from committing crime. That is why religious people generally obey established systems. A person who has no feeling of being accounted can commit all kinds of crime whether visible or invisible. It is therefore difficult to direct a person who thinks he can do anything as long as he is not caught. It is possible for people who place the concepts of Paradise and Hell or reward and punishment in their life to become a good part of the whole in the universe.
What disturbs a person most is a pleasure that is temporary. Even those who have enjoyed the best pleasure feel sad when they are over. The existence of only this world does not satisfy the need for reward in man. The expectations, desires and wishers in the nature of man are not sufficient to satisfy him. If man thinks that he will be rewarded or punished for what he does, what he does will be meaningful. For instance, if a child makes plans about the future when he studies, he can put up with difficulties. There will definitely be a reward for it in the universe.
There exists the principle of reciprocity in the universe. The thesis called Hegelian dialectics mentions the combination of opposing forces through the concepts of antithesis and synthesis; in fact, this dialectic of Hegel’s forms evidence for the existence of the hereafter. When we evaluate it through this viewpoint, we see that there exists and there must exist the good together with the bad. Similarly, the harmony of the opposing forces like the beginning and the end, existence and non-existence make the divine will visible in the universe; if there is oppression, there will be justice in return for it. The rates and degrees of these opposing forces form a certain harmony. This harmony, the existence of matter and spirit, attracts our attention from this world to another life and becomes evidence for the existence of Paradise and Hell and the hereafter.
When we examine the holy texts, we see that there is a ordering of the belief. First, belief in God, then, belief in prophets, after that, belief in the hereafter are arrayed; with the concept of justice, they form the four bases. These four basic elements enable man to become harmonious with the system in the universe. Man, who feels comfortable because he is attuned to the orchestra, becomes unhappy because he does not come to the grounds with the universe and does not abide by the system of creation. Man, who does not perceive the meaning dimension of the system in the universe like that, will be deprived of the interaction and cybernetics in the universe. The ships that do not move with the fingers of the person who steers on the way you proceed start to move with the action of the paddlewheels. The state of everything complementing one another in the universe shows that the interaction between matter and spirit enable us to mention the concept of psycho-cybernetics among humans.
There are conscious and unconscious beings in the system of the universe. Unconscious beings do what they are supposed to do as their duty, but conscious beings question things. Human brain has a capacity of perception much more than the abilities it has; and he can establish connections between the past and the future. The fact that man’s power is limited but his mental power is infinite shows that he needs a guide. Prophets are the greatest guides at this stage.
When we examine the emergence of prophets, we see that the need of the community is closely connected with the existence of the prophet. Moses was a prophet that answered the need in his period. Sociologists explain this state as follows: the formation of a demand in the community brings about sociological pressure, which, in turn, lead to sociological outcomes. This state is also valid for art. Therefore it is said that necessity is the mother of knowledge.
Prophets are like the pole star for people. If man trusts his own mind and tries to proceed with the help of a torch without prophets, he is likely to make mistakes.
The existence of prophets affects human psychology in a positive way and increases man’s basic feeling of trust. The fact that prophets say man will not be eliminated through belief in the hereafter eradicates the uncertainty related to the future, which is one of the most frightening states for man. The need for eradicating uncertainty is a psychological need for man. Animals take refuge in a cage and soothe their fear in case of any uncertainty. However, man faces the state of not being able to tolerate uncertainty. Therefore, the thought of the hereafter is very important for the eradication of the uncertainty in man. If the Creator, who created man and the universe, has sent a messenger, it means there is uncertainty in the universe; then, man will see what kind of a stage will take place as a result of the good deeds and bad deeds and he will feel relieved by seeing that uncertainty will be eradicated. People who have worries about the future undergo a crisis or begin different quests in order to forget what has happened; they try to eradicate uncertainty with the thought that different quests will be beneficial to them. Even man who has not attained true knowledge can feel the need for worshipping in order to eradicate uncertainty. Even only this state is important because it shows the existence of God.
No living being except man has the feeling of worshipping because this feeling is the mental shelter of man against weakness, insufficiency and uncertainty. Consequently, man will feel secure, console himself and eradicate uncertainty. As uncertainty increases, fear also increases; as certainty exists, fear decreases.
Sincerity has been evaluated as a scientific category recently and researches regarding the issue are published in scientific magazines. When a person has strong feelings about something, it can form similar feelings in the person facing him. When man wants something with a strong feeling, the knowledge entering the brain about it becomes permanent there. Therefore, important feelings in man cause that issue to be permanent for him. Thus, the existence of sincerity means the harmony of the key and the lock in the universe.
Disharmony with the concordance in the universe can also be defined as insincerity. If what a person thinks, says and does is not coherent, he contradicts with the universe. Man needs to focus mentally and concentrate emotionally on the same area if he wants to think effectively and efficiently regarding an issue. When man cannot concentrate on an issue, this knowledge becomes for him like a source that illuminate only a few meters. However, when thought and feeling concentrate on the same point, they can affect a longer range. Sincerity is like this for man. In a sense, it is like the difference between the laser light and the normal light. Photons coming from a normal source of light scatter irregularly and illuminate one or two meters. However, if this light is directed through a special tube and sent to the same direction, it can reach one kilometer. Similarly, sincerity forms a synergy in the universe; when thought and feeling combine, they have the power of affecting the other party. Therefore, sincerity is a social feeling like mercy or empathy. To become sincere relaxes a person in the first place. When we say sincerity, we mean the honesty of people but sincerity actually means to be harmonious with the energy in the universe.
In a place where there is no sincerity, man follows his own harmony, not the harmony in nature. A person whose thoughts and feelings move toward different directions move crookedly; in a sense, he wastes himself. Therefore, it is necessary to have sincerity as a target.
One of the most important conditions for the emergence of sincerity is honesty. Telling lies prevents man’s sincerity. Trying to establish human relations by concealing lies will tire man’s mind. Sincerity increases the trust of the other person. Therefore, it is natural for sincere people to have a high power of persuasion without being aware of it. Therefore, all heavenly religions have elevated sincerity.
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