This project started 5 years ago. As a special interest group, we meet once a month, read a section of the Qur’an and a psychoanalytic paper, and discuss ideas that emerge from the readings.

July reading

Surat Al Ma’idah: 96 to 108

96.Lawful to you is game from the sea and its food as provision for you and the travelers,1 but forbidden to you is game from the land as long as you are in the state of iḥrām. And fear Allāh to whom you will be gathered. 

97.Allāh has made the Kaʿbah, the Sacred House, standing1 for the people and [has sanctified] the sacred months and the sacrificial animals and the garlands [by which they are identified]. That is so you may know that Allāh knows what is in the heavens and what is in the earth and that Allāh is Knowing of all things. 

98.Know that Allāh is severe in penalty and that Allāh is Forgiving and Merciful. 

99.Not upon the Messenger is [responsibility] except [for] notification. And Allāh knows whatever you reveal and whatever you conceal. 

100.Say, “Not equal are the evil and the good, although the abundance of evil might impress you.” So fear Allāh, O you of understanding, that you may be successful. 

101.O you who have believed, do not ask about things which, if they are shown to you, will distress you. But if you ask about them while the Qur’ān is being revealed, they will be shown to you. Allāh has pardoned it [i.e., that which is past]; and Allāh is Forgiving and Forbearing. 

102.A people asked such [questions] before you; then they became thereby disbelievers.1 

103.Allāh has not appointed [such innovations as] baḥīrah or sā’ibah or waṣīlah or ḥām.1 But those who disbelieve invent falsehood about Allāh, and most of them do not reason.

124

104.And when it is said to them, “Come to what Allāh has revealed and to the Messenger,” they say, “Sufficient for us is that upon which we found our fathers.” Even though their fathers knew nothing, nor were they guided? 

105.O you who have believed, upon you is [responsibility for] yourselves. Those who have gone astray will not harm you when you have been guided. To Allāh is your return all together; then He will inform you of what you used to do. 

106.O you who have believed, testimony [should be taken] among you when death approaches one of you at the time of bequest – [that of] two just men from among you or two others from outside if you are traveling through the land and the disaster of death should strike you. Detain them after the prayer and let them both swear by Allāh if you doubt [their testimony, saying], “We will not exchange it [i.e., our oath] for a price [i.e., worldly gain], even if he should be a near relative, and we will not withhold the testimony of [i.e., ordained by] Allāh. Indeed, we would then be of the sinful.” 

107.But if it is found that those two were guilty of sin [i.e., perjury], let two others stand in their place [who are] foremost [in claim] from those who have a lawful right. And let them swear by Allāh, “Our testimony is truer than their testimony, and we have not transgressed. Indeed, we would then be of the wrongdoers.”

108.That is more likely that they will give testimony according to its [true] objective, or [at least] they would fear that [other] oaths might be taken after their oaths. And fear Allāh and listen [i.e., obey Him]; and Allāh does not guide the defiantly disobedient people.

Paper: Christopher Bollas, ‘The destiny drive’, in Forces of destiny: psychoanalysis and human idiom (London: Free Association Books, 1989), p. 25.

The Destiny Drive outlines a proactive human urge to select environmental “objects” such as relationships and interests to articulate and actualize one’s unique personal idiom, or true self. Contrasting with passive fate, this concept views destiny as a creative, progressive drive toward self-actualization, where individuals transform inherited potential into lived reality.

Within a clinical context, Bollas suggests patients use the psychoanalytic setting to map out their internal world, interpreting demanding behaviours as a healthy, active effort to shape their psychological environment and achieve growth. This perspective shifts the focus from purely symptom reduction to the patient’s active, creative self-elaboration.

Bollas distinguishes between fate and destiny while outlining a dual-movement therapeutic framework consisting of deconstructive and elaborative processes. For Bollas, fate represents a passive, stagnant state where an individual’s personal idiom is surrendered to external forces, past trauma, or repetitive, defensive symptoms. Conversely, destiny is an active, progressive, and unconscious drive to seek out environmental objects to articulate and actualize one’s inherent potential. To facilitate the transition from fate to destiny, the psychoanalytic encounter utilizes a deconstructive process, which systematically breaks down the patient’s rigid defences, false narratives, and symptomatic structures. This dismantlement clears the path for the elaborative process, a creative and forward-looking phase wherein the patient actively utilizes the analyst and the therapeutic environment to experiment with, elaborate, and ultimately live out their true self.

Taking that into account, I turned to verses 97 to 108 of surat al Ma’idah. I was initially intrigued by the root word “ilm” meaning knowledge which appeared almost in every verse. 7 times over 13 verses. It raised in my mind many questions relating to the message in this section and how it relates to the themes of the analytic reading.

The Main themes that came up for me can be summarised in six questions. Firstly, what is the psychological symbolism and function of having a Qiblah and its relation to Divine knowledge (verse 96), what is the difference between divine knowledge and human knowledge. (Verses 97 to 108), how do we understand the difference between fate and destiny in an Islamic sense and the practical examples of their applications in the verses. (verses 104-105), how do the deconstructive and elaborative processes apply within a faith system? (104-105), and finally, what does it mean to have a dynamic faith, nothing static or inherited.

What is striking about verse 97 in this section is that it starts with the mention of Ka’bah and other rituals and ends with “that is so you know that Allah knows what is in the heavens and what is in the earth and that Allah is knowing of all things”

This verse comes after a listing of what is lawful and what is not. The ka’bah, which is the Qiblah for Muslims, serves here as a spiritual and psychological holding environment in that it contains the psychological chaos. It doesn’t matter where you are, whether in a crowded airport or a stressful workplace or a quiet room. The act of turning towards a single unchanging point mentally, mutes the surrounding chaos. If you hold the image of pilgrims in mind, they are people who came with nothing, but a piece of white cloth. This forms a vivid visualisation and a sharp psychological boundary between the believer and the noise of the world and its fast pace. It also puts him in touch with the reality of his vulnerability.

Moreover, the knowledge that there is a “reliable object” accessible at all times helps ease the stress of daily life. It is like the infant who realises that the caregiver is reliable and learns to relax and develop a cohesive sense of self. Thus the Ka’bah as a constant also serves as a psychological immune system builder and a psychological anchor. It facilitates an environment where the destiny drive can manifest itself as a person is allowed to be vulnerable and made to feel contained.

This leads to a deeper questioning of the difference between man’s knowledge and divine knowledge. Previous verses have given examples of man’s attempt to legislate (verse 103) and how it does not serve any purpose or make sense, while God’s laws have a deep positive impact on the physical and spiritual life of a believer.

Looking at the current state of affairs of the Muslim world, it is striking how these verses and meanings take a liberatory direction. The Qur’an as a whole and this surah in particular emphasise that the good spread made available to the Muslim leads to a liberatory psychology. If we take into account the verse that says not to follow inherited faith, while it is important to note that the critique of the forefathers is strictly epistemological, not generational: “Even though their fathers knew nothing and were not guided?” If the ancestors were guided, aligning with them is considered the pinnacle of spiritual and psychological triumph, as Prophet Joseph stated: “And I have followed the religion of my fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”, we can ask how does this fit in today’s context.

The verses  points towards a methodology of belief that liberates the individual from a fated life and offers the catalyst towards a destined existence. It asks us to seek true faith and be aware of cultural neurosis. If copying or automatization (Solms, 2017) of behaviour is a psychological default, it runs the risk of transforming the lived dynamic nature of Islam to an ancestral relic. Believers then remain trapped in a fated cycle letting the dead ego of previous generations dictate their current psychic boundaries.

The Authentic Believer subject seems to be the project of the Qur’an. A project constantly in the making. When things get jammed, it is because of a confusion of understanding and a regression into fated states rather than operating withi the destiny drive.

It reminds me of a hadith narrated by Abu Hurairah that  says,“Indeed, Allah will send for this nation at the turn of every hundred years someone who will renew for them their religion”. Before those opposing many practices get too excited, it is important to explain that this does not mean changing forms of worship. The maxims that help understand this are, “The default state in matters of worship is prohibition (you cannot change how God has told you to worship him, ex shahadah, prayers, fasting, zakah etc) while the default state in customs is permissibility (as long as they do not transgress rulings). Another wording of the maxim is, the default state in matters of worship is divine restrictions (relying strictly on textual revelation) while the default state in transactions is validity.”

The verses are an example of deconstruction and elaboration, unbinding fated structures of false self-compliance and unfolding the true self.

While Christopher Bollas’ psychoanalytic framework and the Islamic theological paradigm share striking structural parallels in their movement from passivity to active realization, they fundamentally diverge on the origin of truth and the nature of the self. For Bollas, the “true self” or “idiom” is an entirely secular, subjective, and highly individualized internal potential that an individual proactively actualizes through selected environmental objects. Conversely, the Islamic paradigm views the core of the human being not as an idiosyncratic blank slate, but as the fitrah, an innate, universal spiritual disposition naturally aligned toward monotheism (Tawhid) and divine submission, meaning that self-actualization is less about cultivating a unique ego-identity and more about uncovering and aligning the soul with this divine imprint. 

As I come to the end of my reflections, I find myself faced with more compelling questions: If the destiny drive is fuelled by a desire to actualize a highly personal idiom, how does a believer reconcile their unique individual desires with the universal requirements of the fitrah? Does the structural containment of Islamic law restrict the creative self-elaboration Bollas describes, or does it actually provide the ultimate safe environment necessary for the true self to unfold without regressing into cultural neurosis? Furthermore, if true liberation in Islam requires submitting to an external Divine Reality rather than manipulating objects to serve the ego, can the psychoanalytic process truly map a believer’s internal world without accounting for the transcendental axis of faith?