The Quran is a book for both heart and mind. In nearness to it, a woman or a man who possesses a spark of faith knows the path to follow, knows her or his own inadequacies. No sheik is needed, no wise man, no confidant. Ultimately, the heart knows. This was what the Prophet answered when he was asked about moral feelings. In the light of the Book, he said, “Inquire of your heart.” And should our intelligence stray into the complexities of the different levels of reading, from applied ethics to the rules of practice, we must never forget to clothe ourselves in the intellectual modesty that alone can reveal the secrets of the Text. For “it is not the eyes that are blind, but the hearts within the breasts.” Such a heart, humble and alert, is the faithful friend of the Quran.

Tariq Ramadan (via seinedoll)

I don’t think this will be well-received by those that think that life without blindly following a scholar is a life of impiety and sin, not to mention a healthy dose of bid’ah. Let’s continue to strive to make Islam unreachable for the average person and ensure that we have hierarchies and elite circles that are accessible only to title holders, and the masses shall only have access to these sacred resources if they present themselves with cap in hand whilst grovelling for scraps of knowledge that the ‘learned’ ones deem them capable of understanding.

Na’udhubillah min dhaalik.