This is my religious stance, which I had found served me very well indeed. It is kinda like a user guide, how to use religion or any personal belief system for your benefit. This is my small personal contribution to the world, to the confused modern world, yes. Enjoy, and think about it !
Islam, is a Religion of God, meaning to say Central to the concept of this Religion is the concept of God, or Allah if you like. The religion teaches that God is nearer to you than you are to yourself. The beginning stages of the Religion is described as " knowing Religion is knowing God". And so to know God, you have to Know Yourself First, and to do that will no doubt take you your entire lifetime !. The Christian say "Knowing Thyself is Key to Knowing God ".
There is then Spiritual Islam, of which my own experience has been with Sufism, but I know there are very many other versions of Spiritual Islam, labelled under different names. These schools contain a gem of spiritual knowledge very useful in life.
Islam is like a good book of life guide you can carry in your pocket and use at any time you need. The Koran is to be read metaphorically and only when you are in your sane mind i.e. ( not when you are angry or when you you have no emotional control ). This is important for what evil goes on in this world arising from Islam is the outcome of misinterpretation of the Koran. I sometimes think the Koran can only be understood by someone with a brain no less than Einstein, but I am sure almost all Muslims will disagree.
The Prophet of Islam, Muhammad, , the designer of Islam or the Author of the Koran if you like , knowing the consequences of taking the Koran literally ( which is why he is said to be a Prophet ! ), forbids the followers of Islam reading the Koran while not in the state of purity. But Muslim Scholars misinterpret this as meaning "wudu" or ablution. The ablution is a physical state of cleanliness, by washing. The mind is not all considered, much less the spirit. When we talk of purity, we talk of he mind , body and soul. But Muslims today take it as merely physical purity. And that is why they go to extremities on issues such as halal and haram. This serious misunderstanding by Muslim Scholars, and their misinterpretation and misunderstanding of this verse, had led to many the numerous chaos in both the Islamic as well as non-Islammic World. Muslim Scholars must bear the burden of the blame.
Koran 56:79
“None can grasp it (attain it’s blessing) except the pure (pure worshippers of God)” .
In plain simple English, none can benefit from the true meaning of the Koran except the pure at heart and mind, which is why the prophet of Islam asks ( or commands if you like ) that the Koran be read in a state of purity. And if we take that to mean a state of purity of mind, body and soul, there you have it, the right way to digest the Quran.
Otherwise, the Koran is merely a book. Though a masterpiece of Artwork or Poetry if you like, it is still just another book. And a very dangerous one !
The Koran defines itself as " a guidance for those conscious of Allah " .
This definition is taken from no less than the the Koran itself, the so called "Al-Baqarah" or Chapter 2 - The Cow.
Muslims take the Second Chapter as the Most Important Chapter of the Koran, why I don't know. It is the Chapter recited in major events and large gatherings such as death, festivals, natural disaster handling. And so this definition of the Koran is by Authority of the Koran itself. In simple terms, the Author defines his own book, and quite rightly so, much like the way I define this book as being for non-Muslim only, and that is by my own authority as the Author.
A good Muslim, is a good helpful human being who exhibits excellent manners and emotional control. What a Muslim does between him and God is personal ( prayers ), but when in society, a Muslim is a reliable person. A man of his word. ( not God's Words ! ). When a Muslim prays, God or Allah answers immediately ( God is fast ! Yes !) and here is the answer to all your prayers
From The Koran 13:11
Verily, God does not change men's condition unless they change their inner selves; So there we have it. If you want it done right, you have to go do it yourself ! If you want to know Islam, you have to go Study it yourself. Enjoy !