The Source of Creation

"It is Allah Who begins (the process of) creation; then repeats it; then to Him you will be returned." (Quran 30:11) 

Every aspect of life, whether simple or complex, seems to arise from a single source and eventually returns to it. Each moment—whether filled with joy or hardship—appears to be linked by an unseen thread, guiding everything back to its origin. Life flows like a manifold, endlessly expanding and contracting, always drawing us toward that deeper connection that binds it all together.

In Sufi thought, this single source is often understood as originating from Nur Muhammad—the Light of Muhammad. This divine light, said to be the first of all creation, holds within it the essence of all that exists. From it, everything unfolds, emerging as expressions of God’s attributes—mercy, love, wisdom, and more. Nur Muhammad is the sacred channel through which God's essence flows into creation, giving life, form, and purpose to everything. This light isn't just cosmic but deeply personal, as it reflects God's intimacy with all of creation, including each of us. We carry traces of this light within, and through it, we glimpse the divine that connects all beings and all experiences.

When I think about falling in love, it feels like we’re actually falling in love with something divine—a reflection of God’s essence. The way someone makes us feel, the love they stir in us, isn’t just about them as a person. It’s deeper than that. It’s like we’re falling in love with a part of God’s reflection in them, a glimpse of that Nur—the part that embodies love itself. That’s why love feels so profound. It’s more than human—it’s sacred, a reminder of the divine essence from which everything originates.

Most of us are taught to think of God as an external being, something "out there," watching over us. But the truth that has started to settle in me is that God isn’t just "out there"—He’s also within us. Nur Muhammad symbolizes this inner presence, a mirror within that reflects God’s qualities. I don’t mean that we’re God, but that we carry His reflection within us, like looking into a mirror. We can see Him, but we aren’t Him. The mirror is just a reflection, after all, and yet, what we see is divine. This realization makes me feel closer to the source of creation.

When we really look for this source—inside and outside—we start to see that everything, whether good or bad, comes from Him, reflecting both the divine attributes and the choices we make with our own free will. This can be hard to accept sometimes, especially in difficult moments, but even those are part of the greater plan. They shape us, push us, and eventually bring us back to the source. Nur Muhammad serves as the unifying force that reminds us of our connection to God, even in times of pain and separation. Every experience, whether joy or hardship, becomes part of a sacred journey back to our origin.

The more I’ve turned inward, the more I’ve realized that the divine qualities I admire—such as compassion, love, peace, kindness, humility, patience, forgiveness, and joy—are all already within me. These are called divine because they reflect our true nature, the essence of oneness, harmony, and interconnectedness with the divine or the universe. They arise when we align with our highest self, recognizing that God is not separate but within and around us. On the other hand, qualities like anger, jealousy, hatred, pride, greed, resentment, fear, and selfishness—better understood as "ego-driven"—emerge when we lose sight of this connection and fall into the illusion of separation. These ego-driven qualities stem from fear, insecurity, and the false belief that we are isolated from the source of love and unity. In reality, these negative emotions are distortions, arising from the fragmentation of our awareness, whereas the divine qualities are the natural state when we return to our inner truth, the light within us.

Writing this has brought me to a deeper realization: everything, no matter how far it seems to stray, always returns to the same source. Life is a continuous cycle of unfolding and returning. The divine qualities we hold within us are part of that source, waiting for us to recognize them. Even when we get caught up in ego-driven emotions like anger or fear, it’s simply part of the journey, a temporary diversion from the truth of who we are. These moments of separation are not failures but necessary steps in our growth. They remind us to seek that oneness again, to return to the divine qualities that have always been within us.

Just like the manifold, life begins as one, branches out into many different experiences, and yet, in the end, it is all still connected, still part of the same source. Every path we take, every emotion we feel, whether divine or ego-driven, leads us back to that truth. There is no true separation—only the illusion of it. And once we see through that illusion, we realize that everything, both the light and the shadow, is part of the same whole. It is all part of the source, always bringing us back to where we began, more aware, more connected, and more in tune with the divine essence within us.