Religions connections Islam and Christianity

Religions Connections: New Thought & Islam is Sufism

There are connections between Islamic spirituality (especially Sufism, the mystical dimension of Islam) and New Thought teachings such as those of Emmet Fox, Neville Goddard, Ernest Holmes, and  Scovel Shinn.

At the same time, there are also important philosophical differences — mainly about the nature of God, creation, and human power.

Similarities between Islam (especially Sufism) and New Thought

1. God Is Near — Not Distant

The Qur’an repeatedly emphasizes that God is closer than your own heartbeat:

“We are nearer to him than his jugular vein.” (Qur’an 50:16)

This echoes the New Thought idea that the Divine is immanent — not a remote deity but a living presence within consciousness.

Both traditions teach that we live and move within divine mind or divine reality.

In Sufi Islam, this nearness of God is expressed in the idea of Tawhid — the unity of all being. There is no separation between Creator and creation; everything is a reflection of the Divine.

New Thought would say: “God is all there is.”

A Sufi would say: “La ilaha illa’Llah” — there is no reality but God.

2. Thought and Intention Shape Reality

In Islam, intention (niyyah) is central:

“Actions are judged by intentions.” (Hadith, Bukhari and Muslim)

The state of one’s heart determines the outcome of one’s actions.

New Thought teaches the same principle metaphysically: what you think and feel creates your experience.

Both affirm the creative power of there — though Islam frames it as aligning the human will with God’s will, while New Thought tends to speak of the mind itself as creative.

A Sufi mystic would say: when your heart is purified and united with God, your prayers and thoughts manifest, because you are no longer separate from divine will.

3. The Law of Love and Forgiveness

Islam calls God “Ar-Rahman, Ar-Rahim” — the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful — and urges believers to embody those qualities.

New Thought likewise teaches that love is the harmonizing power of the universe, and forgiveness releases the mind from bondage.

Both see resentment, hatred, and fear as blocks that cut one off from divine flow.

4. The Inner Journey and Transformation

In Sufism, the central spiritual struggle is jihad al-nafs — the inner battle against ego, pride, and negative thought.

This parallels the New Thought idea of mental purification — replacing fear with faith, error with truth.

A Sufi seeks “fana” (the annihilation of the lower self) so that only divine awareness remains — similar to how Emmet Fox or Neville Goddard teach transcending the ego to live in divine consciousness.

5. Faith as Creative Power

The Prophet Muhammad taught that “Supplication is the essence of worship” — meaning that prayer, when offered with full faith, is the most powerful act of the soul.

The Qur’an says:

“Call upon Me; I will respond to you.” (40:60)

New Thought rephrases this as the law of belief: what you ask in faith, believing you have received, will manifest.

Both traditions insist that faith is not hope — it is conviction.

Differences Between Islam and New Thought

1. The Nature of God

In Islam, God (Allah) is the one and only Creator, utterly unique and beyond all comparison.

Humans are not divine; they are servants (‘abd’) and representatives (khalifah) of God on earth.

New Thought, especially in some of its later expressions, tends to blur the distinction between God and the individual mind — teaching that “you are one with God,” sometimes even that “you are God in expression.”

This is the main point where Islam diverges:

In Islam, to claim divinity for oneself would verge on shirk — the sin of associating partners with God.

A Sufi might say that we reflect divine qualities, like mirrors reflecting light, but we are not the source of the light itself.

2. The Role of the Ego and Surrender

In New Thought, the individual mind is often viewed as the creative power — able to shape reality through affirmation, visualization, and thought.

In Islam, and especially Sufism, the focus is surrender (Islam) — letting go of self-will to align completely with divine will (mashallah — “as God wills”).

So where New Thought says, “I creates my reality through thought,”

Islam says, “God creates reality, and my peace comes through harmony with His will.”

3. The Purpose of Manifestation

New Thought often focuses on manifesting health, prosperity, and happiness as signs of spiritual growth.

Islam emphasizes contentment and gratitude (shukr) regardless of circumstances.

While Islam values well-being, it teaches that earthly blessings are tests — and that true success lies in spiritual balance and moral character, not material gain.

4. Revelation vs. Intuition

New Thought relies on inner inspiration and personal revelation — “the God within.”

Islam rests on the Qur’an as the final, objective revelation from God, not subject to personal alteration.

Human intuition is valued, but it must be guided by divine revelation and ethics.

Bringing the Two Together

A bridge between Islam and New Thought can be found in Sufi metaphysics, especially writers like:

Ibn Arabi, who spoke of the unity of being (wahdat al-wujud) — seeing the entire cosmos as God’s self-disclosure.

Rumi, who wrote:

“You are not a drop in the ocean. You are the entire ocean in a drop.”

(A mystical way of expressing divine immanence without denying transcendence.)

A New Thought student reading Rumi or Ibn Arabi would recognize the same tone of inner realization, love, and creative consciousness, though expressed within a deeply theistic worldview.

In Summary

Theme Islam / Sufism New Thought

Nature of God Transcendent, one, beyond all comparison Immanent, expressed through all

Human Role Servant and mirror of divine qualities Co-creator with divine mind

Creative Power Belongs to God; humans align with His will Operates through human thought and belief

Goal of Practice Surrender, peace, purification of heart Mastery of mind, manifestation, realization of unity

Inner Work Jihad al-nafs (self-purification) Mental and emotional reconditioning

Path Faith, prayer, remembrance (dhikr), service Affirmation, visualization, positive thinking

A Meeting Point

Ultimately, both paths seek union with the Divine and mastery of self.

New Thought emphasizes creative thought; Islam emphasizes surrendered consciousness.

But both lead toward peace, compassion, and the realization that God is closer than we think.

As Rumi wrote — in a line that both a Sufi and a New Thought mystic could love:

“What you seek is seeking you.”