An Islamic scholar abandoned wealth after doubt left him unable to speak, then sought God as a beggar

A closer look

You haven't had a real existential crisis until you literally lose the ability to speak. Abu Hamid al-Ghazali was the most prestigious Islamic scholar of the 11th century until a catastrophic bout of impostor syndrome and spiritual doubt paralyzed him physically. He abandoned his wealth, wandered as a beggar, and realized that cold, hard logic was utterly useless for finding God. He concluded that true epistemic certainty only comes from "kashf"—a direct, intuitive illumination of the soul that bypasses the brain entirely.