Divine Creativity and Its Impact on Revitalizing Muslims' Creativity

Abstract

In the twenty-first century, several skills and competencies have been emphasized by various countries for socio-economic progress. Creative thinking skills are the core skills emphatically stressed. However, the recent intellectual discourses in academia among Muslims and non-Muslims scholars have captured the necessity of creativity in the twenty-first century in order to enhance human skills and competences in all facets of life. Despite the paramount importance of contemporary discourse on creativity, little attention is given to the creative power of God or divine creativity in revitalizing creativity or creative minds among contemporary Muslims. Therefore, the primary objective of this paper is to examine the divine creativity (al-Ibdā’ al-Ilāhī) in order to revive the sense of creativity among contemporary Muslims. Two creativities namely divine creativity and human creativity are identified in the paper. The paper argues that divine creativity is essential torchlight in awakening human creativity. The findings of the paper indicate that the western discourse on creativity has isolated God as the Originator of creative ideas. Likewise, the paper clarifies the misconceptions of Muslims about creativity in relation to the concept of Bid’ah. The findings further show that the creative power of God is manifested in the divine creativity (al-Ibdā’ al-Ilāhī) as reflected in the Qur’ān. It is therefore suggested that there are many perennial (dalīl naqlī) and philosophic (dalīlNaqlī) evidences to prove the creative power of God through which the Muslims could enhance their creative skills and competences. Effective teaching and learning of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Islamic education integrate and harmonize content with divine creativity for the recognition of the attributes of God as Al-Badī’, Al-Bāri, Al-Khāliq etc. as well as for the maximization of positive benefit of the bounties and endowments of God on human beings. Key Words: Creativity, God’s Creative Power, Divine Creativity, Universe & the Holy Qur’ān