What is the ruling on the malicious and infidel thoughts and images concerning God and religion that come to a person's mind, and are they a whispering from the self or from Satan, and should one merely ignore them, or seek forgiveness for them, or both?

One should completely turn away from these thoughts and not succumb to Satan's whispers regarding them. Seeking forgiveness (Istighfar) is not obligatory in this case, because a person is not sinful for what merely crosses their mind, as long as they do not speak of it or act upon it. However, Istighfar is something a Muslim should always abound in. As stated in the Hadith: "Whoever wishes for his scroll [of deeds] to delight him, let him increase therein his Istighfar."