I understand how one might come to the conclusion that Islam dictates a separation between God and creation based on the assertion of the scholars of religious establishments, but by going to the source of information, the Quran itself, we will find that God is not only above the heavens in Arsh, but wherever we turn, there He is, for He is "Al-Muheet", the "All-Encompassing". "And to Allah belongs the east and the west - wherever you turn there is the Wadju Allahee [Face of Allah]. Indeed Allah is All-Encompassing, All-Knowing. Quran 2:115 "Indeed, We created man, and We know what his nafs [soul] whispers to him. And We are nearer to him than his jugular vein." Quran 50:16 Allah is encompassing all of creation, within and without, to the east and west, above and throughout the seven heavens, nearer to us than our own jugular vein. It was His breath in the nostril of Adam which gave him life. Our soul is a mystery, and He is the mystery within that mystery. This mystery is beyond comprehension of the intellect, hence why submission and faith are necessary, because we can submit though faith without fully understanding His glory. It is not necessary that we understand God - that will never happen unless He wills it. What is necessary is that we trust Gods word, and we submit to Him by trying to live righteous lives to the best of our ability in service to His Name, in gratitude for the life and rizq (provision) we are given. The mystery of the Lord is incomprehensible, as it is put by the Sufi master Attar, "… the door of this Majesty that cannot be described, whose essence is incomprehensible - that Being who is beyond human reason and knowledge." Conference of the Birds, 129 The Sufis are all about submitting to God with every breath, always remembering Gods presence, seeing God in all things and glorifying Him for His awesome creations, having patience with others, shedding attachments to feel the presence of love speaking to the inner heart, and so on. This is all about actualizing, about putting the teachings into practice. Mainstream religions are more concerned with ideologies than actualizing, and this is why the mystic branch of each religion all splits away from the mainstream - because the majority of people, I.e. the mainstream, prefers to take religion as a sport team they confess through words alone rather than seeing it as a way of life to be intermingled with every moment. They see heaven as a far off prize while the rivers of the Garden runs beneath their very feet if only they have the eyes to see. “And leave those who take their religion as amusement and diversion and whom the worldly life has deluded. But remind with the Qur'an, lest a soul be given up to destruction for what it earned; it will have other than Allah no protector and no intercessor …” Quran 6:70 It is my understanding that the mystic branch of each mainstream religion is the branch that remains true to the original teachings, because they all have the same teachings and those teachings accord with all of the scriptures of the respective religions. I believe this is the sect referred to by our prophet Muhammad peace be with him when he says in the Hadith, “This Ummah (nation) will split into seventy-three sects, all of them will be in Hellfire except one.” At the end of the day, only Allah knows, I am nothing before Him and only seek the truth, I pray He guides me and us all to what is best. I think as long as we sincerely turn to Him, the most loving one, we will find the truth we seek inshallah.