T
Tajikistani
Guest
Aga Khani, Shia Imami Isma'eeli min al-Tajikistan
ISLAM AND SCIENCE part 1
For although there is not a single aspect of European growth in which
the decisive influence of Islamic culture is not traceable, nowhere is
it so clear and momentous as in the genesis of that power which
constitutes the permanent distinctive force of the Modern world and
the supreme source of its victory -- natural science and the
Scientific spirit. It is highly probable that but for the Arabs modern
European civilization would never have arisen at all; it is absolutely
certain that but for them, it would not have assumed that character
which has enabled it to evolve.
A common misconception which has a great hold on the minds of many,
including a fairly large majority of Muslims themselves, is that Islam
and Science are two mutually incompatible and inconsistent fields of
human activity. This misconception owes its origin in modern times to
the obvious backwardness in the field of scientific progress of the
countries which are known as Muslim countries and the hostile
fanaticism of a section of reactionaries among Muslims themselves. It
is also the direct result of a false concept regarding the purpose of
human existence on this earth, where "salvation" has come to be
synonymous with individual self-immolation, or in other words,
"suicide". My object is to explode the MYTH and to place before you
both internal and external EVIDENCE which will clearly establish the
fact that Islam lays equal, if not greater, emphasis on the conquest
of the forces of nature without, as on the control and discipline of
the forces within man.
This misconception appears to have gained a hold on the Muslim mind
from the time when religion was separated from every other sphere of
material activity of man and relegated to a system of inner experience
having no connection with the outside environment; when life's whole
purpose became introvertial, groping for a path leading unto a
"Hereafter" alone or the lure of the "otherworldliness". This was
exactly what static religions and philosophies had tried to do before
the advent of Islam in their passage through time, perverting
realities into hypocritical systems of myths and mysticism.
To be able to understand this state of mental stultification, we have
to go back and study the state of the world before Islam altered its
complexion. At the sixth century C.E., we find ourselves face to face
with a world divided into two mutually exclusive and internally
incompatible compartments. The two compartments were the world of
religion and the world of matter. Religion as a means of individual
salvation had come to teach that the world of matter was completely
illusory and stood as a curtain and a barrier between man and his
progress towards individual salvation. It has no reality and, for a
man to be religious, it was incumbent upon him to shun everything
material. The life of a hermit was the highest from of life and a
guaranteed passport to heaven. Even the world of thought and intellect
was enmeshed by the same snare. Socrates concentrated his intellectual
attention on the study of man in the abstract, that is, man in
relation to his internal thoughts or concepts born out of an
involution within himself. Plato -- his true disciple -- despised all
sense of perception and considered it the greatest sin. It is, in
fact, Plato who has made a fine art of this concept of MAYA or
Illusion which his disciples throughout the ages have managed to weave
into an ephemeral web, within which they have closeted
themselves. Plato can, with full justification, be called the father
of mysticism. This school continued to drag down humanity by keeping
them enmeshed within the cobwebs woven by their otherwise empty but in
this particular respect rather fecund, brains.
It was at this stage of world history that the sixth century of the
Christian Era witnessed the shining light of Islam emblazon this
otherwise dark world. Islam as revealed in the Holy Qur'an, smashed
the ideas which had enchained humanity for several centuries in the
contradictions woven by the ideas of "Illusion". It was the Holy
Qur'an which drove home the truth FOR THE FIRST TIME in the history of
organized human existence and intellect that the force of nature
"without" and the psyche "within" were two aspects of the same reality
and conclusive and constructive truths can only come before our eyes
by the analytical examination, interplay and integration of both these
aspects of existence. Says the Holy Qur'an:
"We shall show them our signs in the phenomenal and the spiritual
worlds until it will be manifested unto them that this is the
constructive truth"(41:53).
There must be a complete interweaving of these two aspects before
reality can be conceived and the conception can produce results. The
inner world of psychology must be brought to play upon and integrate
with the outer world of natural forces before mankind can develop and
evolve to the heights or the extents which will transcend the limits
of the concrete. So far as the inner or psychic world is concerned,
the Holy Qur'an tells us that no nation can change its outer world
until there is a change in their psychological world (8:53 and 13:11)
and at the same time, regarding the outer world, the Holy Qur'an warns
us that the nation which runs away from the outer world or the world
of nature does nothing else but embrace death (7:185-186).
These teachings of the Holy Qur'an which were given to this world
thirteen centuries and a half ago, when viewed in the light of the
suicidal philosophy which enmeshed the world then, clearly show us
that the beacon of Light was lit by the Holy Qur'an, which showed the
path to this otherwise groping world. The subsequent history of
scientific development has merely helped in confirming these truths
and bringing them out with emphatic intensity.
The story of the evolution and emergence of man as a self-conscious
being, capable not only of perceptions but also endowed with the
faculties of analysing and integrating them into complex concepts, is
given by the Holy Qur'an introducing him as the being who learnt to
distinguish these concepts by giving names capable of reflecting their
qualities. This is how the Holy Qur'an narrates the legend, the so
called legend, of the fall of Adam.
"When thy Lord said to the angels, 'Verily I am about to place on
earth a successor (to the previous species, in power and interest)'
they said 'Wilt Thou place there one who will create dis-equilibrium
and shed blood while we remain constantly engaged in Thine
appreciation and glorification?'" (2:30).
God said: "Verily I know what ye know not. And He endowed Adam with
faculty of naming things" (2:31).
Incidentally, the necessity for endowing man with the faculty of
giving names to things arises out of the simple fact that no concept
can exist unless it can be expressed in terms of certain words, which
words in themselves stand for certain concepts. The two are
inseparable and must exist together. Out of simple words which stand
for simple concepts, more complex and comprehensive concepts take
shape, which in turn are dependent upon the faculty to give them names
for the purpose of being conveyed from one individual to another or
even for the purpose of retention in the memory. Dr. Burke in his
famous book, THE COSMIC CONSCIOUSNESS, says:
"The growth of the human intellect is the growth of the concepts,
i.e. the multiplication of the more simple and at the same time the
building up of these into others more and more complex; for every
concept there is a word and for every word there is a concept; neither
can exist apart from the other. No word can come into being except as
the expression of a concept, neither can a new concept be formed
without the formation (at the same time) of the new word which is its
expression."
Our scientists today have reached a stage where they have by their
constant empirical methods been forced to admit and recognise the
truths which were stated by the Holy Qur'an 13,600 years ago. The
fundamental fact that no conceptual knowledge can exist without the
ability to name these concepts was states with such clarity and
precision so many centuries ago.
In contradiction to the false concept of "Illusion" or Maya
(to be continued)
..................................................................
Saying of His Highness the Aga Khan:
".... The other point of importance is to present your history in a
logical form. This, up to now, has been the case and this is why I
have been particularly happy with the work that this Association has
done. But it is a point that you should keep in mind when you are
taking the type of advanced education that you must get for the
university degrees today, YOU MUST HAVE IN EVERY WALK OF LIFE A
LOGICAL CONCEPT. This does not mean to wipe away faith. But the real
principle of Islam is that faith is logical. Islam would have not been
what it is if it were not logical, and this is something you must keep
in mind. Today, all over Africa, the Africans are becoming Muslims and
the reason for this is that they can understand Islam. This is an
important thing and I do not wish this logic to be lost in any of our
work."
ISLAM AND SCIENCE part 1
For although there is not a single aspect of European growth in which
the decisive influence of Islamic culture is not traceable, nowhere is
it so clear and momentous as in the genesis of that power which
constitutes the permanent distinctive force of the Modern world and
the supreme source of its victory -- natural science and the
Scientific spirit. It is highly probable that but for the Arabs modern
European civilization would never have arisen at all; it is absolutely
certain that but for them, it would not have assumed that character
which has enabled it to evolve.
A common misconception which has a great hold on the minds of many,
including a fairly large majority of Muslims themselves, is that Islam
and Science are two mutually incompatible and inconsistent fields of
human activity. This misconception owes its origin in modern times to
the obvious backwardness in the field of scientific progress of the
countries which are known as Muslim countries and the hostile
fanaticism of a section of reactionaries among Muslims themselves. It
is also the direct result of a false concept regarding the purpose of
human existence on this earth, where "salvation" has come to be
synonymous with individual self-immolation, or in other words,
"suicide". My object is to explode the MYTH and to place before you
both internal and external EVIDENCE which will clearly establish the
fact that Islam lays equal, if not greater, emphasis on the conquest
of the forces of nature without, as on the control and discipline of
the forces within man.
This misconception appears to have gained a hold on the Muslim mind
from the time when religion was separated from every other sphere of
material activity of man and relegated to a system of inner experience
having no connection with the outside environment; when life's whole
purpose became introvertial, groping for a path leading unto a
"Hereafter" alone or the lure of the "otherworldliness". This was
exactly what static religions and philosophies had tried to do before
the advent of Islam in their passage through time, perverting
realities into hypocritical systems of myths and mysticism.
To be able to understand this state of mental stultification, we have
to go back and study the state of the world before Islam altered its
complexion. At the sixth century C.E., we find ourselves face to face
with a world divided into two mutually exclusive and internally
incompatible compartments. The two compartments were the world of
religion and the world of matter. Religion as a means of individual
salvation had come to teach that the world of matter was completely
illusory and stood as a curtain and a barrier between man and his
progress towards individual salvation. It has no reality and, for a
man to be religious, it was incumbent upon him to shun everything
material. The life of a hermit was the highest from of life and a
guaranteed passport to heaven. Even the world of thought and intellect
was enmeshed by the same snare. Socrates concentrated his intellectual
attention on the study of man in the abstract, that is, man in
relation to his internal thoughts or concepts born out of an
involution within himself. Plato -- his true disciple -- despised all
sense of perception and considered it the greatest sin. It is, in
fact, Plato who has made a fine art of this concept of MAYA or
Illusion which his disciples throughout the ages have managed to weave
into an ephemeral web, within which they have closeted
themselves. Plato can, with full justification, be called the father
of mysticism. This school continued to drag down humanity by keeping
them enmeshed within the cobwebs woven by their otherwise empty but in
this particular respect rather fecund, brains.
It was at this stage of world history that the sixth century of the
Christian Era witnessed the shining light of Islam emblazon this
otherwise dark world. Islam as revealed in the Holy Qur'an, smashed
the ideas which had enchained humanity for several centuries in the
contradictions woven by the ideas of "Illusion". It was the Holy
Qur'an which drove home the truth FOR THE FIRST TIME in the history of
organized human existence and intellect that the force of nature
"without" and the psyche "within" were two aspects of the same reality
and conclusive and constructive truths can only come before our eyes
by the analytical examination, interplay and integration of both these
aspects of existence. Says the Holy Qur'an:
"We shall show them our signs in the phenomenal and the spiritual
worlds until it will be manifested unto them that this is the
constructive truth"(41:53).
There must be a complete interweaving of these two aspects before
reality can be conceived and the conception can produce results. The
inner world of psychology must be brought to play upon and integrate
with the outer world of natural forces before mankind can develop and
evolve to the heights or the extents which will transcend the limits
of the concrete. So far as the inner or psychic world is concerned,
the Holy Qur'an tells us that no nation can change its outer world
until there is a change in their psychological world (8:53 and 13:11)
and at the same time, regarding the outer world, the Holy Qur'an warns
us that the nation which runs away from the outer world or the world
of nature does nothing else but embrace death (7:185-186).
These teachings of the Holy Qur'an which were given to this world
thirteen centuries and a half ago, when viewed in the light of the
suicidal philosophy which enmeshed the world then, clearly show us
that the beacon of Light was lit by the Holy Qur'an, which showed the
path to this otherwise groping world. The subsequent history of
scientific development has merely helped in confirming these truths
and bringing them out with emphatic intensity.
The story of the evolution and emergence of man as a self-conscious
being, capable not only of perceptions but also endowed with the
faculties of analysing and integrating them into complex concepts, is
given by the Holy Qur'an introducing him as the being who learnt to
distinguish these concepts by giving names capable of reflecting their
qualities. This is how the Holy Qur'an narrates the legend, the so
called legend, of the fall of Adam.
"When thy Lord said to the angels, 'Verily I am about to place on
earth a successor (to the previous species, in power and interest)'
they said 'Wilt Thou place there one who will create dis-equilibrium
and shed blood while we remain constantly engaged in Thine
appreciation and glorification?'" (2:30).
God said: "Verily I know what ye know not. And He endowed Adam with
faculty of naming things" (2:31).
Incidentally, the necessity for endowing man with the faculty of
giving names to things arises out of the simple fact that no concept
can exist unless it can be expressed in terms of certain words, which
words in themselves stand for certain concepts. The two are
inseparable and must exist together. Out of simple words which stand
for simple concepts, more complex and comprehensive concepts take
shape, which in turn are dependent upon the faculty to give them names
for the purpose of being conveyed from one individual to another or
even for the purpose of retention in the memory. Dr. Burke in his
famous book, THE COSMIC CONSCIOUSNESS, says:
"The growth of the human intellect is the growth of the concepts,
i.e. the multiplication of the more simple and at the same time the
building up of these into others more and more complex; for every
concept there is a word and for every word there is a concept; neither
can exist apart from the other. No word can come into being except as
the expression of a concept, neither can a new concept be formed
without the formation (at the same time) of the new word which is its
expression."
Our scientists today have reached a stage where they have by their
constant empirical methods been forced to admit and recognise the
truths which were stated by the Holy Qur'an 13,600 years ago. The
fundamental fact that no conceptual knowledge can exist without the
ability to name these concepts was states with such clarity and
precision so many centuries ago.
In contradiction to the false concept of "Illusion" or Maya
(to be continued)
..................................................................
Saying of His Highness the Aga Khan:
".... The other point of importance is to present your history in a
logical form. This, up to now, has been the case and this is why I
have been particularly happy with the work that this Association has
done. But it is a point that you should keep in mind when you are
taking the type of advanced education that you must get for the
university degrees today, YOU MUST HAVE IN EVERY WALK OF LIFE A
LOGICAL CONCEPT. This does not mean to wipe away faith. But the real
principle of Islam is that faith is logical. Islam would have not been
what it is if it were not logical, and this is something you must keep
in mind. Today, all over Africa, the Africans are becoming Muslims and
the reason for this is that they can understand Islam. This is an
important thing and I do not wish this logic to be lost in any of our
work."