So René Guénon is worth reading because he explains, indirectly of course, why Bitcoin and Nostr only make full sense inside a larger revolt against modernity. The "reign of quantity" is a world where whatever cannot be measured, priced, optimized, converted into data is treated as unreal, and fiat money and algorithmic social media are basically perfect expressions of that worldview. Indeed, Bitcoin restores limits to money, while Nostr removes some of the centralized choke points over digital communication and identity/memory. But neither automatically restores actual tradition, and anyone treating protocols as a complete worldview has simply built another modern idol.
But, what we need to do, I think, is attempt to extend Guénon into the realm of "digital power," (need a better phrase here) as surveillance platforms, AI, Riba powered finance, behavioral algorithms, etc., now shape what people see and desire.
The way I see it, the real task is to place Bitcoin and Nostr beneath an Islamic telos, using them to support some sort of inner reform, independent sovereign communities, and resilient institutions capable of resisting both riba and digital capture. InshaAllah, together they can help create space for a more vicegerent and spiritually serious Muslim life.
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