When Doubt Becomes Prayer: A. Helwa on Love, Longing, and Return
Spiritual seekers often ask: How do I know that I am loved by God? What do I do when I feel distant from the Divine? How are doubt, suffering, and longing part of the spiritual path?
In this deeply moving episode of Beyond Names: Spirituality for Anyone and Everyone, Dr. Habīb Boerger sits down with bestselling author A. Helwa (Secrets of Divine Love) for a conversation about Divine Love, spiritual awakening, surrender, remembrance, and the journey back to our true nature.
Drawing from Islamic spirituality and Sufi wisdom, A. Helwa shares her personal spiritual story—from experiencing the Kaaba as a child to discovering that love is not something we acquire, but something we remember. Together, Habīb and Helwa explore how spiritual doubt can become prayer, why suffering can open us to deeper wisdom, and how emptiness, neediness, and longing are sacred invitations back to God.
This episode offers profound encouragement for anyone who feels spiritually lost, disconnected, or uncertain. You do not need to have all the answers to walk the spiritual path. "I don't know" is itself a doorway to the Divine.
In this conversation, we explore:
Divine Love and unconditional belonging
Sufism and Islamic spirituality
Spiritual doubt, faith, and surrender
The practice of remembrance (dhikr)
Healing through spiritual longing and prayer
Finding God in suffering and uncertainty
The meaning of fitra (our innate spiritual nature)
Returning home to the heart
Love as the foundation of spiritual awakening
Why your brokenness may be sacred
The relationship between longing and belonging
How to trust the Divine when life feels difficult
Whether you call the Divine God, Allah, Spirit, Source, or simply Love, this conversation is an invitation to remember that you are already held, already beloved, and never separate from the One you seek.
Guest: A. Helwa, author of Secrets of Divine Love, From Darkness into Light, The Blessed Pomegranates, and the forthcoming Blue and the Lost Pearl.
If this conversation nourishes your heart, please like, subscribe, and share it with someone who may need the reminder that they are deeply loved.