Chapter 2: The Religious And Humanistic Environmental Concerns
1. The Humanistic Nature Of Environmental Concerns
Environmental concerns, though related in some respects to natural and empirical sciences, are as far as their purposes are concerned-such purposes as the quality of human life, hygiene, and happiness-connected with humanistic disciplines.
Of primary importance in the humanistic disciplines is the topic of anthropology. Thus it is necessary that we should first dwell on some of the theories propounded by some intellectuals regarding the human being and then to compare them with the Qur’anic perspective.
The Human Being As Viewed By Western Intellectuals
One of the topics that have been a point of abundant discussion among Western intellectuals and that have more or less formed the focus of their philosophical speculations is the human being. In fact, a number of Western philosophies have been formulated in connection with this topic.
For analyzing the history of anthropology in the West, three stages should be distinguished: the pre-modern (or traditional) era, the modern era, and the post-modern era. Some contemporary Western intellectuals are convinced that the human being before the modern era lacked any sense of significance. With the inauguration of the modern era, however, the human being procured this significance, and in the course of postmodernity he will perfect it.
In the pre-modern era, philosophers defined the human being on the basis of his nature. They believed that human nature was immutable, that the earth was the center of the cosmos, and that the human being, on account of his noble status, occupied the cosmic center. The natural world had a specific order and the purpose in the creation of the human being was his harmony with the natural order.
The natural order followed a fixed course that humankind could not alter and, as such, were compelled to conform to it. Traditionalists saw the human being not as a drastically different entity but rather as a member of the natural order, which had conferred on him the pride of place that he enjoyed. As such, they likened the human being to a cryptic text that philosophy had to decipher.
In the modern era, however, this outlook changed. Numerous attempts were made to define the human being, four of which will be considered here
.One approach to defining the human being took a biological bent. According to this definition the human being is an animal and so is neither a vegetable nor a god; the former are inferior to humankind and the latter superior.
The second definition offered was psychological, according to which the human being was a conscious individual agent. The third definition was sociological and thus maintained that the individual human being was a member of the social order that included him. The fourth definition was based on a religious outlook, and according to this outlook the human being fit all of the above three definitions.
Philosophers in the post-modern era endeavored to elevate the status of the human being in nature, though they failed to achieve this through an ontological definition. In the last fifty years, starting from around the 1960s, Western philosophers have strived to perfect the definitions proffered by their predecessors.
These post-modern definitions tend to enlarge the individual aspect of the human being. According to these definitions, the human being determines his character through conflict with nature, the material world, and other people, while ethically he is characterized by greed, which is what compels him to enter into conflict with his environment.
Here is a summary of the description of the human being propounded by post-modern philosophy: The human being is a sacrilegious political animal and an opportunist characterized by greed, self-centeredness, disobedience, and rebelliousness.
In giving such a description, Western philosophers hoped it would provide a more dignified status for the human being. But on the contrary, and as confessed by a number of Western intellectuals, this description is ultimately leading the self-centered human being of the modern era to destruction in the post-modern era.
The Qur’anic Definition Of The Human Being
The noble human being may be interpreted correctly only by the Noble Qur’an. And just as the best method for interpreting the Qur’an (in addition to having recourse to sound reason and authenticated hadiths) is studying each verse in relation to other verses, so the best method for comprehending the human being is examining him within the context of his own being.
That is, to achieve a correct understanding of the human being, we must apply the products of sensory perception, imagination, and apprehension (wahm)
to the principles confirmed by the theoretic intellect, and, likewise, rein in the urge of the sexual instinct and anger in accordance with the dictates of the practical intellect and in this way set the divine human nature and reason as the judges for, respectively, human conduct and cognition.
It is only through this way that we may preserve the angelic aspect of environmental concerns. An interesting example for this relation between the angelic aspect of things and their mundane aspect is the Prophet’s instruction,
Verily your mouths are the ways through which the Qur’an passes, so clean them with the toothbrush.
In the Qur’anic definition of the human being, the predominant description of the human being as a rational animal-a definition that rests on such concepts as ‘vegetable’ and ‘animal’-is deemed insufficient. The Qur’an puts forth a different description, which constitutes the human being’s ultimate differentia, namely, the living and God-seeking creature.
The genus in this definition is living, which encompasses plants, animals, and the human being and as such is a broad equivalent for “rational animal.” God-seeking is the differentia, which denotes the natural inclination to seek God - an inclination nourished by an innate knowledge of Him-and the subsequent immersion in His divinity.
In this light, rationality, though an indispensable characteristic of the human being, does not constitute his ultimate differentia. An individual possessing ingenuity, industry, and sagacity but who exploits his talents for egoistic purposes is, from the Qur’anic viewpoint, a brute, a demon. Thus, the Qur’anic definition takes “rational animal” as the genus for the human being, specifying God-seeking as his differentia that sets him apart from other creatures.
But since the God-seeking inclination and the desire to embrace the true faith is embedded in human nature, the two qualities of God-seeking and living are so intertwined as to render them one, jointly manifest in the inherent love for divine beauty and magnificence a love which eschews defilement by attachment to anything else. Pure faith is irreconcilable with plurality and polytheism, and as a result, the slightest indication of and tendency toward other than God withers the soul and dampens the spirit.
Since true human life consists in seeking God, the rejection of His call to embrace His prophets impairs one’s God-seeking nature and, consequently, one’s quality of life. In light of this analysis, such verses as
قُلْ أَغَيْرَ اللَّهِ أَتَّخِذُ وَلِيًّا فَاطِرِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ
Say, ‘Shall I take for guardian [anyone] other than God, the originator of the heavens and the earth” (6:14).
وَإِلَيْهِ يُرْجَعُ الْأَمْرُ كُلُّهُ فَاعْبُدْهُ وَتَوَكَّلْ عَلَيْهِ
And to Him all matters are returned. So worship Him and trust in Him (11:123).
Which pertain to the God-seeking nature, apply by extension to life itself.
One may infer from the Noble Qur’an that the true human being is he who transcends the realms of the vegetable and animal life, transcends even rationality and actualizes his divine and eternal life by awakening his God seeking nature, ascending the levels of perfection till he reaches the status of divine viceroyalty, which is the ultimate manifestation of God’s Names and the station wherein one assimilates the divine traits.
All human beings are potentially living and God-seeking. Spiritual life and the angelic spirit of seeking God is implanted in human nature. But not all succeed in bringing this nature to fruition by traversing the path of perfection.
Many bury their God-seeking nature under the darkness of ignorance and sin, transforming their Godly nature into a profane form that is enthralled with wicked desires and satanic powers. The Qur’an considers such people bereft of life and outside the pale of the living:
لِيُنْذِرَ مَنْ كَانَ حَيًّا وَيَحِقَّ الْقَوْلُ عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ
So that anyone who is alive may be warned, and that the word may come due against the faithless. (36:70).
From the antithesis portrayed in this verse between “alive” and “faithless,” one may draw the conclusion that the living are the believers, that disbelievers are not alive and do not enjoy true life and as such are dead. Of course, life in this relation designates the life immersed in seeking God, the life that all human beings share being beside the point. (The various stages of life are hierarchically related. Thus one may possess human life in the popular sense but lack it in the Qur’anic sense, without this precluding in any way the application of human to ordinary human beings.)
Based on the foregoing explanation, human beings may be classified into the living and the dead. Disbelievers bury their human nature under layers of ignorance and superstition and are as such dead. They may be divided into two groups.
One group consists of those who are as frozen bodies, mute, stagnant, and unprolific, who have surrendered to abjection and disgrace and are content with merely securing their dead souls from harm.
These are disbelievers who live in peace with the community of Muslims. The second group is composed of putrid corpses whose stench poisons the world. These are the belligerent disbelievers whose purpose in life is to fight Islam.
But those who liberate themselves from the fatal darkness of unfaith are alive. The living, however, may also be categorized into various groups. Some are overtaken by sleep and are in a state of negligence concerning their faith and humanity; some though are awake.
Those awake could in turn be sick, and their sickness could be either temporary or chronic. Those who are alive, awake, and healthy may be perfect or imperfect and the perfect are of various degrees.
All the above groups are tentative humans, excepting the perfect and the ultimately perfect. These two form the firm foundation of human society. The prophets and their successors are the ultimately perfect while the truly observant scholars constitute the perfect. The former are firm by nature and the latter are firm by recourse to the former.
The perfect must continually gauge themselves vis-a-vis the ultimately perfect, those who are naturally perfect, so as to be capable of leading the tentative humans, who must in their turn refer to and follow the perfect, thus traversing step by step the path of human perfection.
Harmony With Nature As A Fruit Of The Internal Harmony Of The Human Faculties
If one orders the cognitive faculties with the leadership of the theoretic intellect and the conative faculties with that of the practical intellect, such that all the cognitive and conative faculties yield to the firm direction of human nature, true harmony among the internal faculties would ensue. It is in allusion to this arrangement of the internal faculties that we employ the plural pronoun when we address God in our individual prayers, saying,
إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ
You alone do we worship, and to You [alone] do we have recourse. (1:5).
This verse implies that our cognitive faculties surrender to the leadership of the theoretic intellect, our conative faculties to the leadership of the practical intellect, and they collectively surrender to the leadership of the lofty human soul, chiming in unison,
إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ
You alone do we worship, and to You [alone] do we have recourse. (1:5).
It is this key point that explains the occurrence of the plural noun in this verse.
Should the human being succeed in creating harmony among his internal faculties, he would utter in sincerity and in unison with all other creatures-which compliantly proclaimed,
قَالَتَا أَتَيْنَا طَائِعِينَ
[The earth and the heaven said,] “We come willingly” (41:11).
إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وَإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ
You alone do we worship, and to You [alone] do we have recourse. (1:5).
It is in this way that humankind can maintain an intimate and respectful relation to nature.
In reference to Mount Uhud, the Prophet once said,
This is one of the mountains that love us and that we love.
What this means is that mountains are the Prophet’s friends, and he in return is their friends. Mount Uhud was merely one example, and this phrase is not restricted to just that one mountain. It is in the light of this sort of understanding that environmental concerns may be resolved, for one with such an outlook would never pollute the sea, the desert, or the mountains.
The above phrase by the Prophet implies humankind can derive proper benefits from the mountains: we can use their soil and mines; they are not reluctant to yield such benefits to humankind. And the trees likewise offer their fruit for humankind to use.
The fruit on a tree has its [figurative] head turned toward the farmer while its “tail” attaches it to the tree; it is as though the tree were offering its fruit to the human being. The same holds true of the desert and the sea.
Should this harmony be realized between humankind and nature, there would be no pollution to defile the sea or the land; science would not be utilized to create the nuclear bomb; there would be no third world suffering under extreme poverty; there would be no overbearing capitalistic order, nor a corrupt socialistic one. All these discrepancies and disharmonies are caused by the egoism of the rulers, who have fettered the intellect and have misunderstood human nature:
How many an enslaved intellect is subservient to the ego as its master
.
If we identify ourselves correctly as God’s viceroys, we will interact in kindness with society and will view the mountains as our friends and will refrain from polluting the environment. One possessing such an understanding would not be an instance of this verse:
إِنَّ الْمُلُوكَ إِذَا دَخَلُوا قَرْيَةً أَفْسَدُوهَا وَجَعَلُوا أَعِزَّةَ أَهْلِهَا أَذِلَّةًۖ
وَكَذَٰلِكَ يَفْعَلُونَ
Indeed when kings enter a town, they devastate it and reduce the mightiest of its people to servility. (27:34).
But to fail to attain this understanding would lead to consequences mentioned in the following passage from ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib:
Take a look at whatever people you wish. Do you see but the poor grappling with impoverishment or the rich repaying God’s blessing with ingratitude?
The individual or society that succeeds in correctly understanding human nature benefits fully from the asset of life. One equipped with such an understanding progresses in life as a weathered tree whose efforts are not lost but are rather transformed into thick roots that keep it firm.
But one who lacks this understanding wastes life as a car worn down by overuse, which inevitably ends up useless. In other words, those who go astray in life move, but their motion is futile and gains them nothing, and they end their life futilely and burdened with regret. On the other hand, those who advance in life, following the instructions of the intellect and Islam (both of which are equally inspired by Revelation), profit from their lives.
Let me reiterate the above example. Imagine a tree and an automobile both twenty years of age. The tree has stored the product of its efforts underneath its trunk as its roots, which give it more strength and help it remain erect, enabling it to continue growing its trunk, branches, and leaves.
That is, the tree’s twenty years of toil have not gone to waste. But the automobile after twenty years is utterly dilapidated; it has spent its energy without gaining anything in return. The difference is, the automobile did not really move itself; it was rather moved by others, and since it has not itself moved, it has not gained. It is now only a worthless and cold mass of metal.
To advance like a tree is to store every effort in the form of roots, which enable us to remain firm and to grow further and to reach fruition. In this way, we preserve the fruit of our life’s effort with us. There are individuals who fit this characterization.
At eighty, if they are asked what they have earned, they will promptly reply that they have left behind scholarly works or have raised good children or have accomplished economic projects that benefit the society, and so in this way they are proud before their Lord and feel no shame for the life they have spent.
They have not engaged in usury, or usurped what belonged to others, or broken someone’s heart. They have secured for themselves enduring profits. But there are also those who really have nothing to say. Like the automobile, their only accomplishment in life is a frail body.
Thus, advancement in life and taking profitable advantage from the assets God has endowed us with depend on self-knowledge and self-improvement, which can be accomplished by shedding light on the tentative areas of life with an understanding of the firm principles embedded in human nature. Otherwise, one may spend eighty years only to end up feeling useless in this world and un prepared to enter the next.
One must die proud and with one’s gains in hand, for otherwise the angels of death will wrest the soul in violence:
فَكَيْفَ إِذَا تَوَفَّتْهُمُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ يَضْرِبُونَ وُجُوهَهُمْ وَأَدْبَارَهُمْ
But how will it be when the angels take them away while striking their faces and their backs? (47:27).
(The angels will be thrashing him but those present at his deathbed will only see him lying down normally, gradually growing cold. This is like a dream. One may experience good or bad dreams, but when one sees nightmares, usually others do not notice the frightful state one experiences.
Similarly, one on the verge of death may be receiving painful blows from the angels while those present at one’s deathbed will notice nothing. Of course, the difference is that the death pangs take place in real life and not in a dream.)
The Prophets’ Mission To Interpret The Microcosm And The Macrocosm And To Change Them For The Better
The greatest achievement of all prophets, and, specifically, of Prophet Muhammad, is their interpretation and modification of the microcosm and the macrocosm. The interpretation and modification of the macrocosm is a result of the interpretation and modification of the microcosm.
If the human being is interpreted correctly and, consequently, finds his central role, the world will be transformed. For, the world was created for the human being and the human being in turn for union with God. It is incorrect to consider the human being and the world on a par or the human being as created for the world.
The purpose in the creation of the world is to nurture the growth of the human being and prepare him for union with God, for he alone is capable of attaining to that divine court-
ثُمَّ دَنَا فَتَدَلَّىٰ
Then [Muhammad] drew nearer and nearer [to God’s throne] (53:8).
فَكَانَ قَابَ قَوْسَيْنِ أَوْ أَدْنَىٰ
Until he was within two bows’ length or even nearer. (53:9).
It is an exclusive honor of the human being to proclaim the first and the last words in the cosmos, for other creatures, which will all perish
and turn to darkness
, are incapable of uttering the first and last words.
In the order of creation, the human being enjoys pride of place and the world exists to serve him. The human being and the world both derive from the effusion of the divine light. The world advances and through the human being attains union with God. The Straight Path is that of the primordial human being, and it is in this path that every creature realizes its fundamental purpose.
The final goal of the prophets was to shed light on the true meaning of humanity and to change humankind to set them on the correct path of humanity and in so doing change the entire cosmos. As such, their function was not merely to strive to establish the ideal state on the basis of justice; this was only their mediate goal. (This mediate goal is thus expressed in the Qur’an:
لَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا رُسُلَنَا بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ
Certainly We sent Our prophets with manifest proofs, and We sent (57:25).
Their final goal was to illumine the society. The following verses ascertain this final goal:
كِتَابٌ أَنْزَلْنَاهُ إِلَيْكَ لِتُخْرِجَ النَّاسَ مِنَ الظُّلُمَاتِ إِلَى النُّورِ بِإِذْنِ رَبِّهِمْ إِلَىٰ صِرَاطِ الْعَزِيزِ الْحَمِيدِ
[This is] a Book We have sent down to you that you may bring humankind out from darkness into light, by the command of their Lord, to the path of the All-mighty, the All-laudable. (14:1).
What is intended by light in this relation is the light that enables one to perceive the truth even in the absence of all material light, to perceive the unseen truth even when one’s eyes are shut. (In this reference one may recall the account of Harithah ibn Malik, who said, “It is as though I am staring at my Lord’s throne.”10)
The ultimate goal of the prophets is to enlighten the human being so that he could gain knowledge of the past and the future-near and distant. It is this path that the Qur’an offers and encourages humankind to pursue. It is a way that has been traversed before, and we also can traverse it by first procuring perception (nazar) and then insight (basar) so as to witness the truths of the world.
Once the truths of the world are unveiled, one can clearly feel the poison and fire in sin and witness the burning of the sinful in hellfire:
كَلَّا لَوْ تَعْلَمُونَ عِلْمَ الْيَقِينِ
No indeed; were you to know with certain knowledge, (102:5).
لَتَرَوُنَّ الْجَحِيمَ
You would surely see hell; (102:6).
ثُمَّ لَتَرَوُنَّهَا عَيْنَ الْيَقِينِ
You would surely see it with the eye of certainty. (102:7).
The vision intended in this verse occurs in this world, not the Hereafter, for there even disbelievers will see:
رَبَّنَا أَبْصَرْنَا وَسَمِعْنَا فَارْجِعْنَا نَعْمَلْ صَالِحًا إِنَّا مُوقِنُونَ
Were you to see when the guilty hang their heads before their Lord [confessing], “Our Lord, we [now] see and hear.” (32:12).
Thus, the ultimate goal of God’s prophets is to enlighten humankind so that they could see the truths of the world.
Should this goal be realized, our dark world will be transformed, our environment cleansed, and the blind human being enlightened; the macrocosm will then be seen in its truth and our environment will change for the better.
This light of which we talk is the light of truth; it is luminous thus illuminates. Material light enables one to perceive material objects, whereas spiritual light enables one to comprehend spiritual truths. Just as the body is possessed of five senses, so the soul has five senses.
The prophets were entrusted with the mission to awaken humankind to their spiritual senses. And just as the bodily senses must be cured when they fail to function, so the spiritual senses must be healed when they fail to comprehend the spiritual truths. Thus the Qur’an talks of diseased hearts-
فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ مَرَضٌ فَزَادَهُمُ اللَّهُ مَرَضًا
There is a sickness in their hearts; then God increases their sickness (2:10).
-which it invites to be cured so as to attain soundness:
إِذْ جَاءَ رَبَّهُ بِقَلْبٍ سَلِيمٍ
When he came to his Lord with a sound heart (37:84).
إِلَّا مَنْ أَتَى اللَّهَ بِقَلْبٍ سَلِيمٍ
Except him who comes to God with a sound heart. (26:89).
Humankind desire that the world should proceed on its course such that they could derive the most benefit from it. But we must heed that the world with its four seasons (which are abundant in spiritual as well as material blessings:
وَجَعَلَ فِيهَا رَوَاسِيَ مِنْ فَوْقِهَا وَبَارَكَ فِيهَا وَقَدَّرَ فِيهَا أَقْوَاتَهَا فِي أَرْبَعَةِ أَيَّامٍ
[He] blessed it and ordained therein its various means of sustenance in four days (41:10).
maintains a direct connection with human conduct. If humankind conduct themselves appropriately, the cosmic order will work and change to their advantage:
وَلَوْ أَنَّ أَهْلَ الْقُرَىٰ آمَنُوا وَاتَّقَوْا لَفَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ بَرَكَاتٍ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ
If the people of the towns had believed and been Godwary, We would have opened to them blessings from the heaven and the earth. (7:96).
Should we believe in God and act accordingly, rain-laden clouds would accumulate and navigate to the areas in need of water, quenching the land, and thus God’s blessings would be abundantly available. But if humankind instead disbelieve and rebel against God, the clouds would drop their rain on the seas or on land unfit for cultivation or would rain in a time that would do more harm than good. This is due to the fact that the reins of the clouds, as everything else, are in the hands of God:
وَأَرْسَلْنَا الرِّيَاحَ لَوَاقِحَ فَأَنْزَلْنَا مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَأَسْقَيْنَاكُمُوهُ وَمَا أَنْتُمْ لَهُ بِخَازِنِينَ
And We send the fertilizing winds and send down water from the sky providing it for you to drink and you are not maintainers of its resources (15:22).
أَوَلَمْ يَرَوْا أَنَّا نَسُوقُ الْمَاءَ إِلَى الْأَرْضِ الْجُرُزِ فَنُخْرِجُ بِهِ زَرْعًا تَأْكُلُ مِنْهُ أَنْعَامُهُمْ وَأَنْفُسُهُمْۖ
أَفَلَا يُبْصِرُونَ
Do they not see that We carry water to the parched earth and with it We bring forth crops of which they eat, themselves and their cattle? Will they then not take heed? (32:27).
أَلَمْ تَرَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ يُزْجِي سَحَابًا ثُمَّ يُؤَلِّفُ بَيْنَهُ ثُمَّ يَجْعَلُهُ رُكَامًا فَتَرَى الْوَدْقَ يَخْرُجُ مِنْ خِلَالِهِ وَيُنَزِّلُ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مِنْ جِبَالٍ فِيهَا مِنْ بَرَدٍ فَيُصِيبُ بِهِ مَنْ يَشَاءُ وَيَصْرِفُهُ عَنْ مَنْ يَشَاءُۖ
يَكَادُ سَنَا بَرْقِهِ يَذْهَبُ بِالْأَبْصَارِ
Have you not regarded that God drives the clouds, then He collects them together, then He piles them up, whereat you see the rain issuing from its midst? And He sends down hail from the sky, out of the mountains that are in it. (24:43).
The negative aspect {that is, God’s holding back His blessings) is expressed in the following verse:
ذَٰلِكَ بِأَنَّ اللَّهَ لَمْ يَكُ مُغَيِّرًا نِعْمَةً أَنْعَمَهَا عَلَىٰ قَوْمٍ حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا مَا بِأَنْفُسِهِمْ
God never changes a blessing that He has bestowed on a people unless they change what is in their own souls. (8:53).
The foregoing explanation points to, on the one hand, the interpretation of and change in the microcosm and, on the other hand, the consequent interpretation of and change in the macrocosm.
This means that the world was created to cultivate a harmonious life for the human being, and the human being, in turn, was created to become luminous. Thus if one wishes to understand the world correctly and to change it to establish an environment suitable for human habitation, one must first understand the human being and change him.
That materialist assumes that he is from the earth and to it he returns:
إِنْ هِيَ إِلَّا حَيَاتُنَا الدُّنْيَا نَمُوتُ وَنَحْيَا َ
There is nothing but the life of this world: we live and we die. (23:37).
The average monotheist believes that the human being is created from the earth but advances to divine proximity, a belief that finds expression in this verse:
مِنْهَا خَلَقْنَاكُمْ وَفِيهَا نُعِيدُكُمْ وَمِنْهَا نُخْرِجُكُمْ تَارَةً أُخْرَىٰ
From it did We create you, into it shall We return you, and from it shall We bring you forth a second time. (20:55).
The mystic, however, proclaims that humankind are from God and to Him they return:
إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ
Indeed we belong to God, and to Him do we indeed return. (2:156).
The latter realize, in addition to the earthly aspect of the human being, his angelic aspect, which derives from the Divine Breath; they bear in mind that
فَإِذَا سَوَّيْتُهُ وَنَفَخْتُ فِيهِ مِنْ رُوحِي
[God] breathed into [the human being] of [His] spirit. (15:29).
One with such an outlook recognizes the end as familiar when he meets it. He will say that he was once there, when his Lord asked him to bear witness-
أَلَسْتُ بِرَبِّكُمْ قَالُوا بَلَىٰۛ
شَهِدْنَا
Am I not your Lord ? - and indeed he did bear witness when he replied, yes (7:172).
If we open the ear of our hearts, following the example of David, we will discover that all creatures-the inanimate, the plants, the animals, along with the human beings, the jinn, and the angels-all praise in unison their Lord:
وَلَقَدْ آتَيْنَا دَاوُودَ مِنَّا فَضْلًاۖ
يَا جِبَالُ أَوِّبِي مَعَهُ وَالطَّيْرَۖ
وَأَلَنَّا لَهُ الْحَدِيدَ
Certainly We gave David a grace from Us: “O mountains and birds, chime in with him.” (34:10).
The Qur’an commends the men of God, those who cannot be distracted from God’s remembrance by worldly affairs:
رِجَالٌ لَا تُلْهِيهِمْ تِجَارَةٌ وَلَا بَيْعٌ عَنْ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ
Men whom neither trading nor bargaining distracts from the remembrance of God. (24:37).
It is such human beings who by contemplating the world of creation acknowledge:
His unity is praised not by the children of Adam alone;
[but also by] every nightingale singing on a branch.
The mission of God’s prophets was to proffer a correct interpretation of the microcosm and the macrocosm. They strove to enable humankind to hear all creatures as they praise God. Curing the blind and the deaf were not the real miracles of the prophets; the real miracle was removing the veil from the ears and eyes of people’s hearts. Many were nurtured in their school who could hear the praise of all creatures.
Thus humankind can, by adhering to the heavenly instructions of God’s prophets, liberate themselves from the hell of egotism, greed, and oppression and instead live in a community of light and friendship, transforming their environment by replacing their brute traits with human virtues.
2. The Religious Nature Of Environmental Concerns
The Divine Religion’s Concern For The Human Environment
In the teachings of the true divine religion (which in the course of history has been manifested in a variety of forms) knowing the principles of a wholesome environment, refraining from harming it, and endeavoring to secure its wellbeing are viewed as among the primary human rights as well as the primary human obligations, which must be observed so as to guarantee society’s happiness and soundness. For this reason, Islam forbids polluting nature and littering public places, and in the event that such pollution or littering occurs, it exhorts believers to try and remove it.
Imam Al-Sadiq once said,
Verily when God (exalted and elevated is He) bestows a blessing on His slave, He likes to see its results on him.” He was then asked, “How is that?” to which he replied, “He should clean his dress, and use fragrance, and tidy his home, and sweep his doorway.”
The abovementioned points are indicative of the reciprocal rights of the citizenry in a society. The Prophet said,
He who removes from the road on which Muslims pass that which vexes them, God will record for him the reward of reading four hundred verses of the Qur’an, for each letter ten rewards.
“Road” should not be understood to denote exclusively ground roads; it includes also waterways and airways. And the cause of vexation could be an obstacle or something detrimental to the health or wellbeing of the society, such as the stench of garbage, smoke from factories, sound pollution, or even heavy traffic; all these can be viewed as instances of the Prophet’s wise saying. Another point that one can infer from this saying is that observing environmental principles is as sacred as reading the book of God.
This inference in turn suggests the offensiveness of neglecting environmental principles. Should a government or a people deliberately harm the environment and pollute nature or remain silent in the face of the pollution caused by negligent industries, they will have to face God’s wrath. In this relation, the Prophet said,
Three persons are cursed owing to their misdeeds: one who defecates in the shade of houses
, one who bars [another from using his due] portion of water [and instead appropriates it for one’s own use]
, one who obstructs a road in use.
Religious authorities were not content with merely preaching environmental principles; they practiced them so as to establish a precedence that people and governments alike could follow. Thus when he came upon an obstacle on the road, Imam al-Sajjad would dismount and remove it so that it would not hinder others
.
In this relation there is also an interesting story from Jesus. Once he came upon a grave and saw that the dead buried in it was being tormented. It so happened that a year later he again came across that grave, but this time, to his surprise, the dead buried there was no longer being punished.
He inquired from God regarding what had ceased the punishment. God replied that the dead person’s son came of age; he repaired a road and provided shelter for an orphan. For the sake of the son, the father was pardoned
.
Three Aspects Of Environmental Concerns In Islam
Within the context of Islam, we may distinguish three aspects for environmental concerns:
1. the material aspect,
2. the material-spiritual aspect,
3. and the purely spiritual aspect.
1. To secure a wholesome environment, a society must possess three qualities. Imam Al-Sadiq is quoted as saying,
Life is not pleasant without three things: clean air, abundant fresh water, and fertile land
To enjoy a pleasant life these three elements are necessary; otherwise, for mere survival, they are not necessary. A society afflicted with famine, impoverishment, and disease may survive, but the people would definitely not enjoy a pleasant life; they endure as though neither dead nor alive.
2. The environmental issues connected with a combination of the material and the spiritual are also contingent on three elements. In another hadith, Imam Al-Sadiq is quoted as having said,
Three things are indispensable for the life of a people both in this world and in the Hereafter, without which they would be reduced to barbarity: a pious scholar of religion, a kind and authoritative ruler, a proficient and trustworthy physician.
Every society is in need of these three elements. First and foremost is the need for a religious scholar who, in addition to being capable of teaching religious doctrine and law, is well aware of the times and has a pure heart.
The next crucial element for a society is a kind ruler, whom people could obey so as to ensure the integrity, independence, unity, and security of their nation. And last, but not least, is the need for a proficient physician whom people could trust. That is, he should be well acquainted with his craft and honest in preserving the secrets people confide in him.
3. Human life or, to put it differently, the human being’s humanity consists in the soul, not the body. As such we must strive to establish an environment conducive to our spiritual growth, and this can be attained through the spiritual exercises ordained by Revelation.
To this end, one must cut back on the pleasures of the flesh and instead focus on spiritual improvement. The Master of the Faithful said, “Religion is but the exercise of the soul.”
On another account he said of himself, “Verily this soul of mine I strengthen it through God wariness.”
Those embarking on spiritual improvement through God wariness must endeavor to weaken their corporeal pleasures (even those sanctioned by canon) to a minimum. For this reason, some observant Muslims fast many days and there are even a small number who fast all year around, except for the days prohibited by Islamic law, and keep vigil every night, except for a short nap. The Qur’an thus describes this group:
كَانُوا قَلِيلًا مِنَ اللَّيْلِ مَا يَهْجَعُونَ
[The Godwary] would sleep [in this world] but a little during the night; (51:17).
وَبِالْأَسْحَارِ هُمْ يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ
For, at dawns they would be pleading for forgiveness. (51:18).
Addressing the Prophet God says,
وَمِنَ اللَّيْلِ فَتَهَجَّدْ بِهِ نَافِلَةً لَكَ عَسَىٰ أَنْ يَبْعَثَكَ رَبُّكَ مَقَامًا مَحْمُودًا
And keep vigil for a part of the night, as a supererogatory devotion for you that your Lord may raise you to a praiseworthy station. (17:79).
One may object that there is no need to abstain from the pleasures sanctioned by religion. But this mentality can only bring about an environment that simultaneously satisfies body and spirit. Otherwise, to nurture the soul further, one must reduce even the pleasures sanctioned by religion-shortening one’s sleep and decreasing one’s food-and persevere in the remembrance of God:
الَّذِينَ هُمْ عَلَىٰ صَلَاتِهِمْ دَائِمُونَ
Those who are persevering in their prayers. (70:23).
In an enlightening passage narrated from Imam ‘Ali, he says,
Keep your eyes awake at night, keep your stomachs thin, employ your feet (by way of worship], give from your wealth, take from your bodies, and [instead] give to your souls.
Though the body needs nourishment, sleep, and corporeal pleasures, nevertheless in order to nurture the soul, we must, without going to any extremes, reduce the body’s share and increase instead that of the soul.
Through recitation of the Qur’an, contemplation of the words of God, nocturnal worship, and offering help to God’s slaves, we may cultivate the soul. Such was the example of the Ahl al-Bayt, as testified by the following verse from Surah al-Insan:
وَيُطْعِمُونَ الطَّعَامَ عَلَىٰ حُبِّهِ
They give food [to the needy], for the love of Him. (76:8).
Qur’anic commentators report that the Master of the Faithful and Fatima, his wife, fasted three consecutive days as an offering for the cure of Hasan and Husayn. But every day when it was time for breaking the fast, a person in need would knock their door, asking for food-one day an indigent, one day an orphan, and one day a captive
.
Obviously their bodies were in need of food, and fulfilling the body’s primary needs is indeed a reasonable cause, and they did have food, food which was pure of any spiritual impurity. Yet they decided on giving their food to the needy, out of love for God.
They reduced their bodies’ share and instead gave it to their souls. (It is interesting to note that one of the three to whom they offered their food, the captive, wasn’t even Muslim, for we know that in Medina there could not have been any Muslim captives.)
In yet another hadith, the Master of the Faithful is thus quoted:
The noblest of dresses worn by the children of Adam is made of the saliva of a worm [silk], and the noblest of their drinks is of the excretions of the bee.
Though honey is pure and a source of healing
يَخْرُجُ مِنْ بُطُونِهَا شَرَابٌ مُخْتَلِفٌ أَلْوَانُهُ فِيهِ شِفَاءٌ لِلنَّاسِ
There issues from [the bee’s] belly a juice of diverse hues in which there is cure for the people (16:69).
And silk is used to produce valuable clothing and rugs (of course according to Islamic law, the use of silk fabrics by men is forbidden), but ‘Ali warns us lest the products of these two insects should distract us from tending our souls.
The majority of people, of course, are reluctant to bear such restrictions. Rather they expend their utmost efforts to procure the maximum worldly delights possible. It is true that if the delights are lawful, such an effort is sanctioned by Islam, but such gratification is incapable of leading to the environment that is most productive for the growth of the soul (the third environment as elucidated above), the environment so cherished by the elite among the devout.
Though the latter do benefit from an environment that cultivates physical health alongside material wellbeing, yet what really appeals to them is the wellbeing of the spiritual environment, resulting from, among others, nocturnal worship. One cannot hope to achieve such an environment while exploiting extravagantly such material delights as honey and silk.
Environmental Conservation In The Light Of The Instructions Of God’s Prophets
Although today there is much talk in the West and the East on environmental conservation, yet it is important to note that whenever a positive point is mentioned, it invariably derives from the fountainhead of divine inspiration.
The philosophies of the West and the East fail to benefit from divine teachings and as such are akin to a disoriented person ignorant of his whereabouts. But a philosophy originating in Revelation and profiting from such heavenly books as the Qur’an, the Torah, or the Bible has a firm foundation.
And though before Abraham there were numerous prophets, but the surviving world religions trace back their roots, over 40 centuries, to him. Therefore, one can conclude that any positive statement regarding the environment rests on the teachings of the prophets from Abraham’s progeny.
A concept that originates in Revelation issues ultimately from the Sacred Essence of God. Any other idea that is not derived directly from Revelation is either a flawed and indirect inference from the teachings of divine prophets or is a mundane creation of the human mind, in which case it is only a fleeting notion. One instance of the latter was the irreligious communism of the East, which, due to its conflict with the divinely implanted human nature, is now lost and forgotten.
Whether Religious Sanctity Is Reconcilable With Mundane Affairs
An objector may claim that [religion’s commenting upon or] entering into the domain of mundane life diminishes religion’s sanctity, gradually leading to its vulgarization. To articulate this objection more fully, there are two problems confronting religion’s treatment of mundane concerns, which are as follows.
First, worldly affairs are essentially antithetical to the supernatural and the sacred. Generally speaking, any issue with an essential identity [of its own] is incapable of assuming an extraneous religious identity.
For, a single entity cannot have two essences. For instance, water has a certain molecular composition and as such cannot be labeled as religious or nonreligious. The same case holds true of such issues as justice, governance, science, and philosophy, in regard to which religion must assume a neutral stance.
Second. Not only are mundane affairs incapable of assuming a religious dimension, furthermore religion’s encroachment on the realm of nature can only diminish the value of religion and lead to its vulgarization.
That is, anything that enters the realm of nature becomes physical, and, in the same vein, anything that enters the social realm becomes human. In this light, on the plain of the physical and the human, there is no room for the supra-physical or the supra-human. So much so, that even the supernatural soul, on entering the realm of nature, dons the garb of the physical.
Conclusion: sacred religion must confine itself to the private realm of the individual and refrain from interfering with social, political, or mundane affairs. In a word, religion should keep away from that which concerns the socio-political affairs of humankind and in so doing protect its sanctity.
For this reason, religious scholars must avoid bothering with the mundane human problems, for, in addition to wasting their resources, they would be harming religion’s sanctity, which could in turn jeopardize religiosity in human society.
The Concept Of Sanctity
For a critique of the second reasoning, the following observations are in order. From a religious perspective, anything related to the divine is sacred. God proclaims the divine aspect as the most exquisite description for all things in the world:
صِبْغَةَ اللَّهِ وَمَنْ أَحْسَنُ مِنَ اللَّهِ صِبْغَةًۖ
وَنَحْنُ لَهُ عَابِدُونَ
The hue of God, and who possesses a more exquisite hue than God. (2:138).
Anything, regard less of which category of creatures it belongs to, tinged with the divine hue is sacred.
The way God has opened for human beings to acquire sanctity is conforming to His law, complying one’s conduct with the instructions of the Revelation. The greater this conformity is, the more manifest will the divine hue be. In this light, this conformity with God’s instructions can be extended to all spheres of life, conferring sanctity on all individual and social aspects of the human being.
A better understanding of the concept of sanctity requires that we should acquire a deeper grasp of religion. Religion invariably encourages humankind to observe the following two points. First, it warns the faithful to refrain from wicked deeds and to act righteously.
For this reason, Islam views only the righteous among the faithful-to the exclusion of the sinful believers and the nonbelievers-as entitled to receive the happy tidings of God’s blissful rewards:
إِنَّ هَٰذَا الْقُرْآنَ يَهْدِي لِلَّتِي هِيَ أَقْوَمُ وَيُبَشِّرُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ الَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ الصَّالِحَاتِ أَنَّ لَهُمْ أَجْرًا كَبِيرًا
And [the Qur’an] gives the good news to the faithful who do righteous deeds that there is a great reward for them. (17:9).
Second, religion exhorts the faithful to purify their intentions. God stipulates personal virtue as a prerequisite for the approval of a believer’s deeds, thus stressing the importance of heeding the spiritual aspect of a deed. This point is underscored, among others, in the following hadiths. Imam as-Sajjad said,
No deed [is acceptable] without [the appropriate] intention;
The Prophet stated,
The believer’s intention takes precedence over his action.
We may draw two conclusions from this point. 1. A misdeed incurs God’s punishment, even if the sinner is a believer. 2. A righteous deed in and of itself is insufficient to procure reward; rather, it is contingent on the personal virtue of the agent performing it. Thus, a disbeliever’s righteous deed fails to earn him divine reward.
In this light, Islam’s message for human kind is both to do good and to attain personal virtue. Human beings are duty-bound to strive exceedingly to realize both of these valuable objectives. The greater the extent to which one realizes these two objectives, the more profound will the manifestation of the divine hue in one’s conduct be and, as a result, the more sacred one will be.
Thus sanctity is directly related to how manifest the divine hue is in one’s beliefs, disposition, and actions-private and social alike. Divine hue in turn depends on one’s personal virtue and righteous conduct. If we comprehend this truth appropriately, we will recognize that a thing’s sanctification in no way requires that it should [somehow] transform in its essence [or quiddity].
Any aspect of life blessed with these two factors (personal virtue and righteous conduct) acquires sanctity. Sanctity is never an internal component of a thing’s essence, and therefore sanctification does not necessitate essential transformation, which is impossible.
The Scope Of Sanctity
Since anything possessed of divine hue is sacred, and divine hue is unattainable except through observing the instructions of Religion, we can satisfactorily conclude that anything that falls under the jurisdiction of religion is sacred, including the actions we perform with the guidance of Revelation to fulfill our natural needs.
It may at first seem paradoxical to view our purely natural actions as sacred. This prima facie paradox, however, is resolved once we correctly understand the Revelation’s point of view.
In a hadith, Imam Al-Sadiq is related as having said,
One who struggles for the sake of his family is like one struggling in the way of God
.
A hadith from Imam Al-Ridha’ reads,
He who pursues by the grace of God that with which he could maintain his family is greater in reward than he who struggles in the way of God, exalted and elevated is He.
Imam al-Baqir says,
He who pursues [the bounties of] this world to avoid being in need of others and to fulfill the needs of his family and to help his neighbor will meet God on the Day of Judgment while his face shines like the full moon.
These hadiths demonstrate that by identifying mundane activities (even such activities as are required by our nature, for instance, working for a living to maintain one’s family) with such sacred and religious deeds as struggling in the way of God, Islam intends to bestow sanctity on the former to such a degree that their performance would elevate one to the heights of human perfection and union with God.
Therefore, Islam does not restrict the scope of sanctity to the conventional instances of obedience to God, such as prayer, but rather broadens the scope such that every aspect of hu man life has the potential of becoming sacred.
This potential includes those aspects that are specifically mentioned in the religious texts (e.g., prayer, fast, and hajj) as well as those implied by rational deduction from religious principles, and these include, among others, earning a living to maintain one’s family.
In the latter category, ordinary and important affairs are similarly sacred. Such seemingly negligible activities as drinking water, eating, recreation, and going on a trip as well as such vital functions as governance and enacting laws for the maintenance of order in a society can all acquire sanctity, though the degree of sanctity obviously differs.
Another relevant observation that deserves mention here is that sanctity is not restricted to only the transmitted (naqli) components of religion but also encompasses the rational components. Rational demonstrations are viewed in Islam as equal to demonstrations premised on transmitted material [i.e. the sacred deposits and traditional texts].
Rational demonstration deriving from apodictic reasoning forms an important and indispensable part of religion. As such, one may employ rational reasoning along with transmitted reasoning (bearing in mind the two abovementioned factors-personal virtue and righteous conduct) to sanctify human life and affairs.
In summary we may reiterate that every aspect of human life is potentially sacred, for it is inevitably related to some aspect of religion whether rational or transmitted-and in this respect, the important and the mediocre, the natural and the discretionary activities are alike.
In this light, we must define sanctity to include not just those activities that are directly related to the Mosque or the Church but also the activities carried out in the mundane course of life.
Distribution of wealth, providing equal economic opportunity, offering medical services, maintaining domestic and international security, observing environmental principles, preventing the destruction of the social environment, etc.: all these are religious and sacred, should they be executed justly and reasonably-with precedence given to national interests over private interests-and in seeking God’s satisfaction and nearness to Him.
The Basis Of Sanctity
Islam or, generally, any truth that is of a religious and sacred nature has its roots in existential reality. This basis is such that it subsumes every aspect of religion-doctrine, morality, and law.
What this means is that underlying the instructions and precepts of religion are existential truths. Religious instructions are in fact the existential truths conveyed in the form of canon (i’tibar) of a certain religion, such that if religious instruction were to shed the garb of canon to reveal their inward reality, they would appear as existential truths.
Hence, religion is the canonical representation of the world of existence. In this light, one may view religion as an interpretation of the cosmos in its myriad forms. In other words, religion is not a mere congeries of contractual laws devoid of any existential substance. Every particle of Revelation is grounded on a firm ontic basis. In this relation, it would be helpful to consider the case of the “embodiment of deeds”.
The rewards that God promises to grant us in heaven-streams of honey and blissful wines-are not the products of plants and animals such as is the case in this world. It is rather our beliefs, disposition, and conduct that take the form of such rewards. In the Noble Qur’an, God says,
.. تُجْزَوْنَ مَا كُنْتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ
You will be requited with what you used to do. (52:16; 66:7; 37:39).
The verse doesn’t read “You will be requited for what you used to do” but “...with what you used to do.” As such, the requital is the deed itself; what we will encounter in the Hereafter is precisely what we do in this world. When a believer helps one in need, the spiritual reality of this deed-as specified by Revelation-takes a certain form in the Hereafter, and it is this form that constitutes one’s reward.
When one lies, the spiritual manifestation of the lie is one’s punishment in the Hereafter. This example serves to illustrate that religious instructions, though composed of a body of obligations and prohibitions in the form of canon, are nevertheless possessed of a reality that underlies their canonical expression.
An examination of the various stages of the existential order would help to clarify this concept. These stages in the order of the Arc of Ascent are (1) the world of matter, (2) the imaginary realm, (3) the realm of the detached intellects, and (4) ultimately union with God.
This order starts from the lowest stage and ends at the meta-perfect. The stages of the human being’s ascent toward God consist of these existential stages. The human being must put these stages behind, one after the other, so as to attain to infinity, which is union with God.
This hierarchy is such that the stages are existentially connected without any possibility of intermittence. Each higher level is the transcending reality of the lower level, just as each lower level is the diluted reality of the higher level. As such, these levels constitute a continuous existential path that allows of no gap. God thus asserts this truth:
هَلْ أَتَىٰ عَلَى الْإِنْسَانِ حِينٌ مِنَ الدَّهْرِ لَمْ يَكُنْ شَيْئًا مَذْكُورًا
Has there been for the human being a period of time when he was nothing worthy of mention? (76:1).
Of course, the answer is, yes. The human being was initially nothing (this refers to the starting point in the Arc of Ascent). Then God created him and made him a creature worthy of mention. Thereafter God taught the human being that he is on a rapid course toward his Lord:
يَا أَيُّهَا الْإِنْسَانُ إِنَّكَ كَادِحٌ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ كَدْحًا فَمُلَاقِيهِ
O human being, you are laboring toward your Lord laboriously, and you will encounter Him. (84:6).
A close analysis of the meaning of kadh (translated above as “laboring”) in this verse proves that union with God is attainable only by way of a continuous path free of any disruption. Were the boundary between the material realm and the imaginary realm closed?
Were the imaginary realm and the realm of detached intellectuality separated by a gap, were there no way to divine union from the realm of detached immateriality-if such were so, the word kadh would have been inappropriate. (I will not delve any further into this etymological discussion as it would cause us to digress needlessly.)
As explicated above, the cosmos contains a hierarchical order of existence, each level of which is existentially connected with the preceding and subsequent levels. To convey how these levels are connected, the Qur’an describes the higher levels as managing the affairs of the lower ones (mudabbirat amr), at the same time pointing out that all beings, regardless of their existential rank, humbly praise and obey God, their Creator.
This description reinforces the conception that the creatures of the loftier realms preside causally over the creatures of the lower realms and that, naturally, the creatures of the lower realms are effects caused by those of the higher realms. Thus the Qur’an illustrates the connection present in the hierarchy of existence.
It is this angelic matrix-firm and interconnected as it is-that permeates the entire cosmos. In this light, even the most insignificant of phenomena, which most people may overlook as fortuitous, rests on firm existential bases.
As such, religion and any other truth related to the divine must not be taken at face value, for beyond their exoteric dimension lie existential truths. In other words, all the moral and legal articles of faith, on the one hand, presuppose existential criteria and, on the other hand, lead to existential rewards or punishments.
Based on the foregoing explanation, the entrance of Revelation or, generally, any divine truth, while supported with such firm existential foundations, into the social realm cannot in anyway diminish its sanctity.
Furthermore, Revelation sanctifies the believers who embrace it. For this reason, mundane phenomena when associated with the divine acquire sanctity. Dirt, for instance, is ubiquitous and worthless. Yet when it comes into contact with Imam Husayn’s body, it is no longer mere dirt; it is now the turbah of Husayn and as such sacred and a source of healing. The same holds true of the blessed water of Zamzam.
This truth even applies to such seemingly brute activities as coitus. All marine and land animals mate in order to procreate. But when the act of mating is performed by a believing couple who have observed its ritual requirements, coitus is no longer a spasm of sensuality but a sacred tradition
and a cause for preserving one’s faith. The Prophet said,
He who marries has indeed secured half of his religion.
For the purpose of this intercourse is more than just satisfying carnal lust. It is thus that the coming together of the male and the female in this form acquires sanctity.
In these examples, the material components are mediocre, but through association with divine elements they transcend their material fade and thus acquire sanctity.
Another interesting example in this relation is the Ahl al-Bayt’s treatment of the poor seeking help from them. In Islam, a poor soul seeking one’s help is portrayed as God’s agent:
Indeed a poor soul is an agent from God. He who rejects the poor soul is as though he has rejected God, and he who gives to the poor soul is as though he has given to God.
For this reason, on encountering a poor person who sought their help, they would take his hand into theirs and after giving something to him would kiss his hand and place it on their head as a token of respect. While doing so they would quote this verse:
أَلَمْ يَعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ يَقْبَلُ التَّوْبَةَ عَنْ عِبَادِهِ وَيَأْخُذُ الصَّدَقَاتِ
Do they not know that it is God who accepts the repentance of His servants and receives the charities. (9:104) 33.
Thus they would kiss the poor person’s hands as though it were God’s hands receiving charity from them. In this instance, it was the identification of the hands of the poor with God’s hands that conferred sanctity. And for the same reason, after raising their hands in supplication to God, they would rub their faces with their hands as if their hands had touched God.
Popular Acknowledgement Of Sacred Truths
Without doubt, the acquaintance of laypeople with religious and divine truths is very valuable. It was in fact the purpose of God’s prophets to help people understand the truth of Revelation and to thus be guided to the Straight Path.
Many a faithful, prophets among them, sacrificed their lives for the sake of God and in the effort to inform people of God’s instructions and to help them discover the essence of Revelation. In the Qur’an, God counts people’s interest in and acceptance of Islam as an instance of divine succor, for which He orders the Prophet to praise and glorify Him:
إِذَا جَاءَ نَصْرُ اللَّهِ وَالْفَتْحُ
When God’s help comes along with victory, (110:1).
وَرَأَيْتَ النَّاسَ يَدْخُلُونَ فِي دِينِ اللَّهِ أَفْوَاجًا
And you see the people entering God’s religion in throngs, (110:2).
فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ وَاسْتَغْفِرْهُ إِنَّهُ كَانَ تَوَّابًا
Then celebrate the praise of your Lord, and plead to Him for forgiveness. Indeed He is most clement. (110:3).
In spite of the importance that Islam assigns to the guidance of humankind, it does not make the value of religious sanctities contingent on whether people endorse them or not. People’s acceptance of a truth’s sanctity does not reinforce it, just as their rejection does not diminish it.
This is because religious truths, as elucidated above, derive their sanctity from the inextinguishable source of existential reality. As such, they do not descend to the level of the mundane, should people cease to acknowledge their sanctity.
The false notion that sanctity is a quality bestowed by people is founded on the invalid premise that sanctity is a product of human imagination and superstition and as such religious sanctities are merely subjective.
But Islam refutes this notion, instead articulating the firm and ontic foundations of sanctity. Therefore, the value of sacred truths connected with Revelation is in no way influenced by whether people accept them or not.
Islam’s Treatment Of Environmental Concerns
In the pure religion decreed by God (which has throughout history been revealed in a variety of forms to numerous prophets) observing environmental principles and preventing any harm to the environment have been invariably introduced as primary human rights as well as fundamental human obligations.
Now, considering the religious nature of environmental concerns, it remains to be seen how religious instructions relate to the products of human intellectual achievements in the humanistic and scientific disciplines.
One of the duties of the Noble Prophet, in addition to conveying the verses of the Qur’an, was to explicate and interpret them. This duty was taken up by the Infallible Imams, who would strongly encourage their followers to pursue the study of religion in depth. Imam Al-Ridha’ said,
It is upon us to convey the general principles, and it is upon you to derive [conclusions therefrom]
.
This assertion is not restricted to the science of jurisprudence, usul, or the other religious disciplines. It applies to every field of knowledge, whether religious, empirical, abstract, or a combination of the latter two. In other words, it includes the humanistic and the scientific disciplines.
Another subtle point one may derive from the above hadith is that gaining proficiency in a field of knowledge is an obligation. The expression used in the hadith is not “for you” but “upon you,” which signifies obligation. (Of course, there are two possibilities in understanding obligation in this context.
It could refer to an obligation binding on every individual, or it could be an obligation on Muslims at large, meaning that some Muslims, but not all, must pursue knowledge to the highest levels.) Thus Muslims are to learn every advantageous field of knowledge, which includes the disciplines related to securing a wholesome environment.
To pursue knowledge concerning environmental issues, we must learn the general principles to then derive the particulars therefrom. But how is this to be done? To this end, it is necessary to make the sciences religious, and to achieve this, first the philosophy of science must be converted. The conversion of the philosophy of science, in turn, requires the conversion of metaphysics.
Metaphysics, the foundation of the human being’s worldview, is born free; at its genesis, it is free, neither Islamic nor non-Islamic; it is human prejudices occasioned by social life that fetter it. Thus, it is only after being systematically formulated that it is characterized as religious or secular. To stray from the Straight Path, to refute the Origin and the Resurrection, and to see the world as confined to the material:
وَقَالُوا مَا هِيَ إِلَّا حَيَاتُنَا الدُّنْيَا نَمُوتُ وَنَحْيَا وَمَا يُهْلِكُنَا إِلَّا الدَّهْرُ
They say, “There is nothing but the life of this world: we live and we die, and nothing but time destroys us” (45:24).
mark one’s philosophy as secular. But even the secularist is not secular from the start. Initially, he seeks to fathom reality and as such is not a secularist, but being muddled in a secular frame of mind compels one to embrace a secular philosophy.
A religious frame of mind, however, leads one to a religious philosophy of science and, as a result, one’s study of the environment also becomes religious, and this extends to include all the sciences. With such a perspective, one no longer views the world as merely nature but rather as God’s creation. And in this way, one succeeds in apprehending the relationship between the human being and nature satisfactorily.
God created nature for the sake of the human being and obliged him to protect it, while affirming the presence of a true interaction between human conduct and natural phenomena:
وَلَوْ أَنَّ أَهْلَ الْقُرَىٰ آمَنُوا وَاتَّقَوْا لَفَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ بَرَكَاتٍ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ
If the people of the towns had believed and been Godwary, We would have opened to them blessings. (7:96).
The human being is a part of the world of creation. Just as natural phenomena impact human conduct and thought, the opposite is also true: human conduct, belief, and thought influence the way natural phenomena unfold, for it is God who directs the entire cosmos. Imam Al-Sadiq said,
There is not a single drop of rain descending from the heaven but that an angel accompanies it, placing it where it had been predestined for.
This is confirmed by the Qur’an:
أَوَلَمْ يَرَوْا أَنَّا نَسُوقُ الْمَاءَ إِلَى الْأَرْضِ الْجُرُزِ
Do they not see that We carry water to the parched earth. (32:27).
The General Guidelines Of Islam For Pursuing The Sciences
Islam, though honoring the epistemic contributions of reason and sensory experience and considering them necessary in securing equitable peace and civilized culture, deems them insufficient for fully satisfying the theoretic and practical needs of humankind. Thus, it is necessary that we should consider the role of religion in delimiting the boundaries of the various disciplines.
To this end, we must first answer this question: Were the contributions of the divine prophets limited to expressing ritual duties, moral precepts, and law? Or did they also offer principles for pursuing scientific, cosmologic, political, military, economic, sociologic, and environmental concerns? In other words, does Revelation encompass all theoretic and practical principles on which human knowledge and virtue may be constructed?
To the above questions, we must answer in the positive. Revelation not only encourages humankind to pursue knowledge and seek scientific advancement, it also propounds the general guidelines for many of the sciences, including such practical disciplines as pertain to technological and military issues.
Of course, there is one point here that must be pointed out. Different topics are treated by Revelation to different extents. The rituals, for instance, are treated at length, their code of practice and, occasionally even, their secrets being elaborated or implied. (In Islam such elaboration occurs in the Qur’an and the Sunnah, which, in the Shia school, consists of the example and instructions of the Infallibles.)
In other cases, however, Revelation only offers the general principle, which serves as the basis for a scientific or philosophic concept, without expounding the details concerning its conditions and qualifications. An instance of the latter is the legal discussion regarding financial and social transactions in Islamic law.
Those familiar with Islamic law acknowledge that there are very few precepts in Islam’s religious texts dealing with legal issues as opposed to the rituals. Islamic law is distinguished for its difficulty, on the one hand, in having few religious precepts to draw on but, on the other hand, abundant rational principles, whose systematic composition and examination form a demanding task.
On the contrary, however, the difficulty in the study of Islamic rituals lies in the abundant transmitted material and the scarcity of rational principles relevant thereto, which renders the task of understanding the transmitted sources arduous and intellectually demanding. In spite of this major difference, however, both sets of discussions are religious in nature.
There are two elements, either of which may cause a topic to be characterized as religious. The first and the principal element is that the topic in question be originated by Revelation. This element forms the basis in large part of the rituals. The second element is the sanction that Revelation extends to an existing practice, which indicates its conformity with Islam’s value system. It is in this sense that many of the topics in Islam’s legal code can be described as religious.
It is important to point out that Islamic disciplines are not restricted to the very few studied in the Islamic seminaries. For, on the one hand, many of the Islamic disciplines are studied in other academic centers and, on the other, certain disciplines studied in the Islamic seminaries, such as Arabic literature, though serving as preliminaries for understanding religious texts, are not by nature Islamic.
Thus, if we are justified in classifying such disciplines as usul al-fiqh among the Islamic studies, the same status should be awarded to many scientific and humanistic disciplines.
Based on the above conclusion, we may make the following observation. A discipline’s Islamicness is proportionate to its epistemic justification. That is, if a discipline is based on definite grounds, it is undoubtedly Islamic. But if it is partially hypothetical, then it’s being Islamic is merely a possibility.
This is the same approach that we take in ranking the traditional Islamic disciplines. In the study of Islamic ritual, law, and ethics or of Qur’anic commentary and the Sunnah, the degree of a rule is dependent on its verifiability. For this reason, it would not harm Islam should a certain theory be proven wrong, for that would only demonstrate the error in attributing it to Islam.
The discipline of usul al-fiqh, with the vast proportions it has taken on, is deduced from a mere handful of Qur’anic verses and hadiths, while the religious texts contain numerous references to the various scientific and humanistic disciplines, from which we may obtain a great wealth of knowledge concerning the various subjects related to the world of creation.
Thus, in view of the success in formulating usul al-fiqh, Muslim scholarship can through examination of the Qur’anic verses and hadiths dealing with the heavens and the earth, water and air, and taking into account the efficient and teleological causal orders of the cosmos incorporate many of the so-called secular disciplines into the scope of the sacred sciences.
As an example, let us consider this verse:
وَاللَّهُ أَنْزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَأَحْيَا بِهِ الْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَآيَةً لِقَوْمٍ يَسْمَعُونَ
God sends down water from the sky with which He revives the earth after its death. There is indeed a sign in that for people who hearken. (16:65).
The following are among the topics one may infer from this verse: the natural process of rainfall, the earth’s revival, the fruition of trees, the preparation of nourishment for living creatures, and the blossoming beauty of nature. This verse goes beyond talk of the awakening of trees to mention the revival of the dead earth, a revival that is effected through the absorption of its nutrients by plants.
To carry out the same examination on the many verses and hadiths related to agriculture, aquaculture, meteorology, mineralogy, and the numerous related sub-disciplines would yield a great abundance of knowledge.
For carrying out such an examination on the verses of the Qur’an, one must observe the following guidelines.
1) Each related verse must be analyzed independently.
2) The meanings of the words of a given verse must be meticulously studied.
3) One must make sure that the meanings attributed to a verse conform to common sense and are not farfetched.
4) It is important that the whole meaning of the verse comply with the meanings of the constituent words.
5) The opinions of all Qur’anic commentators, old and recent alike, as far as they are accessible, should be studied.
6) Their views should be duly examined and, where possible, reconciled.
7) The other related verses should also be adduced.
8) The hadiths reported in the Shia corpus related to the interpretation of the Qur’anic verses should be consulted.
9) In this process, the definitive products of rational reasoning and empirical investigation must not be neglected, for they serve as external modifiers.
After carefully following these steps, one may then come to a certain conclusion as to the meaning of a verse. It is important that our endeavor, whether based on empirical investigation or rational reasoning, should yield such a conclusion as to assure our faith in God.
The Conclusiveness Of Systematic Rational Reasoning
Systematic rational reasoning is conclusive. When one comes to a conclusion, whether a believer or a nonbeliever, by way of valid ratiocination on a subject-be it biology, botany, pharmacology, zoology, geology, oceanography, or cosmology-one is religiously justified in holding that conclusion.
If a believer reaches a conclusion concerning the religious rituals in this way, he would be rewarded for complying with the conclusion or punished for defying it. If, however, a nonbeliever arrives at a reasoned conclusion, his burden of guilt would be alleviated on the Day of Judgment should he comply with the verdict of reason, whereas his noncompliance would exacerbate his punishment. For, nonbelievers, like believers, are bound by religious obligation.
Thus if a scientist’s studies lead him to the conclusion that he should design a certain dam, which would, in addition to preserving rainwater, improve social wellbeing, prevent natural disasters, better the environmental state, help in the development of agriculture and industry, and provide drinking water for people, he should do as his studies have directed him.
But should he fail to carry out his findings, he would incur divine punishment. He would not be justified in arguing that the Qur’an and the Sunnah do not specify the making of dams as obligatory, for he is guided by reason, and so his sin would be inexcusable.
This explanation makes clear that just as in the case of complying with the views of a religious expert, so to heed the professional view of an expert in any field involves two goods if the expert is correct (those are, one, abiding by what one assumes to be true and, two, doing what is right), but if the expert is incorrect, there would still be one good (abiding by what one assumes to be true).
On the other hand, to neglect an expert’s view, even if he should be wrong, would characterize one as rebellious against God, though not constituting a canonic sin. In this respect, whether the expert is a believer or not makes no difference.
What is important is knowledge. To know is an instance of divine activity, and knowledge is divine evidence. Just as knowledge forms logical evidence, so it is [tantamount to] religious evidence as well that one holds before God.
From a canonic point of view, certain trips may be defined as sinful and thus forbidden. One cause that may lead to the sinfulness of a trip is to set out knowing that that the caravan one travels in may be threatened by bandits.
This is an example that was true in pre-modern times. A relevant example today would be if an expert, based on his professional view, declared a flight dangerous. To defy his professional view and take that flight would constitute an instance of sinful trip, regardless of whether the expert is Muslim or not.
In this light, any theory that by the direction of reason becomes knowledge is religiously binding. But the important observation to make here is that sensory experience is not the sole means of attaining knowledge.
Thus the materialist is not justified in rejecting supplication to God for rain as supersttt1on. Many a truth is beyond the purview of empirical science. The empirical sciences are only entitled to make positive statements regarding phenomena. They cannot legitimately make negative statements.
Through empirical investigation one may conclude that a certain experiment proves a certain conclusion. One, however, would be wrong to claim that the way to bring about the conclusion in question is restricted to that employed in one’s experiment, for empirical investigation is incapable of exhaustively studying the ways that lead to a result.
This explanation should suffice to demonstrate that all sciences are Islamic. There are no non-Islamic sciences. Thus such questions as “What distinguishes Islamic physics from non-Islamic physics?” are fundamentally flawed. When one studies any part of the cosmos-whether it is the depths of the earth or the highest reaches of the firmament, whether it is the sea or the land-one is ultimately studying the book of God’s creation and His activity.
Moreover, all scientific ventures succeed by the aid of reason, which is God’s proof, and as such we study God’s activity through the medium of His proof. And taking into account the efficient and telic designs of the world, we are yet further guided as to the Islamic nature of all the sciences.
We take the sanctity of the Qur’an for granted, yet should we reject its Origin of Revelation, on the one hand, and its teleology (which points to the direction of Resurrection), on the other, we would reduce it to a mere Arabic text.
In such a scenario, one would be justified to claim, after studying its literary aspects that the Qur’an is neither Islamic nor non-Islamic, but such a claim would presuppose the rejection of the Origin and the End of the Qur’an and put it on a par with any other Arabic text.
In this respect, the book of existence (the cosmos) is akin to the book of Revelation (the Qur’an). The earth and the skies, the mountains and the plains, the plants and the animals-these are the pages of God’s book of existence. Whether the human being ascends to the heights of the firmament or descends to the depths of the seas, God’s decree is one and the same, for ultimately He is the One Origin:
وَهُوَ الَّذِي فِي السَّمَاءِ إِلَٰهٌ وَفِي الْأَرْضِ إِلَٰهٌ
It is He who is God in the sky, and God on the earth. (43:84).
Just as moving to the other planets would not alter the meaning of the Qur’an or canon, so regarding the Origin and the End of the cosmos, nothing is alterable.
Pure Reason As A Source For Canon
There is a reciprocal relationship between intellect and tradition
. Once this relationship is brought to light, it is futile to attempt to set them at odds. The religious texts of Islam express the importance of intellect in both its practical and theoretic functions:
اللَّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَ سَبْعَ سَمَاوَاتٍ وَمِنَ الْأَرْضِ مِثْلَهُنَّ يَتَنَزَّلُ الْأَمْرُ بَيْنَهُنَّ لِتَعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ قَدْ أَحَاطَ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عِلْمًا
It is God who has created seven heavens, and of the earth [a number] similar to them. The command gradually descends through them, that you may know that God has power over all things, and that God comprehends all things in knowledge. (65:12).
According to this verse, the purpose in the creation of the cosmos is so that the human being may acquire knowledge. As it is the theoretic intellect that enables thought and cognition, one may conclude that the fulfillment of the cosmic purpose rests on the intellect. Thus human beings can realize their purpose of creation only if they duly employ their capability of thought, thereby uncovering the truths of the world.
The Qur’an also underscores the function of the practical intellect. God says,
وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنْسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ
I did not create the jinn and the humans except that they may worship Me. (51:56).
This verse indicates that the purpose in the creation of the human being and the jinn is that they may worship God. Worship and obedience are consequent on a righteous and valid intention, which is a product of the practical intellect. Were the human being incapable of harboring righteous intentions within his soul by seeing beyond the material, worship and obedience would lack their proper meaning. As such, the cosmic purpose rests also on the practical intellect.
It should be pointed out that the duality of the theoretic and the practical intellects do not imply conflict. Each intellect has a positive entity functioning in its own jurisdiction, and two positive entities never come into conflict. That is, the affirmation of one does not lead to the negation of the other.
But religious texts go further than just commending the intellect. Islam also teaches the right direction that thought should take and the correct method by which it should detect valid intentions. As such Revelation does not leave the intellect to its own devices but rather shows it the right methods by which it can discover the truths of which it is ignorant.
Let us now direct our attention to another important aspect of the relation between intellect and tradition. The epistemic value of the intellect is so great that it is considered on a par with tradition as a source for canon. This assessment of the intellect is based on the following four factors:
1) The essence of canon is divine decree;
2) Divine decree in turn derives from God’s will;
3) The only legitimate sources for revealing God’s will are those recognized by canon;
4) The sources recognized by canon are two: intellect and tradition.
The conclusion that the above premises lead to is that intellect, like tradition, is a valid source for fathoming divine decree and, consequently, God’s will. This analysis renders the intellect comparable to tradition.
This line of reasoning also clarifies the absence of any sort of discrepancy between the intellect and tradition. The content of a rational reasoning as well as that of a traditional reasoning constitutes an article of faith.
To consider this consistency between intellect and tradition would clarify the error in drawing a line between ideology and methodology. Some have wrongly contended that religious ideology is propounded by God, while methodology falls within the jurisdiction of the intellect.
The error in drawing this line lies in the fact that regardless of whether a proposition is derived from tradition or the intellect, it is in either case a religious proposition, for canon confirms the intellect alongside of tradition. In other words, just as tradition is a source for canon, pure reason is likewise a source.
Whatever the content of a rational reasoning may be, it is of the same value as that derived from tradition. Thus the social and political concepts produced by apodictic reasoning are part of Islam’s social and political systems, just as is the case in regard to the social and political concepts deduced from tradition.
There are a few points here that need be stressed. First, the intellect contrasts with tradition rather than religion. To classify concepts as either rational or religious is incorrect; a correct division would be between reason and tradition. Second, the legitimacy of rational reasoning is contingent on certain conditions, just as the legitimacy of tradition is thus contingent.
Third, one should not equate the intellect with such invalid methods of inference as analogy (qiyas). Rational reasoning informs legitimate deduction, while inference based on analogy is invalid. Fourth, the invalidity of inference based on analogy is not merely a matter of religious belief, for it is a matter that logic too affirms.
Making The Curricula Of Higher Learning Religious By Incorporating The Teachings Of Islam
For rendering the curricula of higher learning religious, the texts must be Islamicized. That is, the Origin and End of things must be taken into account. “God’s creation” should supersede “nature.” Currently, God has been supplanted by nature. Instead of speaking of a phenomenon as part of God’s creation with an origin, from which it comes forth, and an end, toward which it progresses, it is said that nature requires such and such. When creation is the theme, God as the Creator figures in, and this is in turn followed by a sense of responsibility, while talk of nature implies no such responsibility.
Can the human being be accountable to nature? How is nature relevant to the afterlife? How vast is nature’s sphere? Who created nature in the first place? If one talks of nature as an omniscient and omnipotent being that manages the world, one is in effect talking of God with a different name. If, however, nature is employed in another sense, then it is merely a delusive concept.
Should nature be replaced by God in higher education, the university disciplines would be as sacred as those pursued in Islamic seminaries. In the seminaries, it is God’s word that constitutes the subject matter, while in the university it is His actions that are studied. This change of perspective vis-a-vis the world elevates the human being and infuses him with an angelic character. Such a change of mind would enable one to see things as deriving from God.
When one sees things in this light, one may then grasp both the natural and the supernatural ways in which God works. The normal way corresponds to God’s general command, which informs the universal system of causality and which is manifest in the ordinary phenomena of nature. The supernatural ways are the miraculous divine workings, such as the navigation of Noah’s Ark and the event of water gushing out of the furnace
.
The Islamic Nature Of Nuclear Technology
As mentioned above, all sciences are Islamic, for there is no nonIslamic knowledge. The question that this may raise concerns the use of such harmful sciences as wizardry, in the traditional context, and the knowledge of manufacturing nuclear and chemical weapons, which threaten society and the environment. To address this question, it need be reiterated that science consists in discovering the relationships among phenomena, which are God’s actions.
Thus, it is by no means objectionable to uncover the secrets within the atom. What is forbidden is to make inappropriate use of weapons of mass destruction. Otherwise, to develop such weapons for deterrent purposes is in some cases even necessary.
In the traditional context, for instance, though the learning of wizardry was deemed forbidden, it was sanctioned to employ it in order to counter those who exploited it with the intention of making false claims to prophethood.
The Inclusive Treatment Of The Human Being And The World In The Qur’an And The Sunnah
The inclusive scope of Islamic knowledge confirms that the phrase “It is upon us to convey the general principles, and it is upon you to derive [therefrom]”pertains not only to the traditional Islamic disciplines studied in the seminaries but rather includes all sciences. The religious texts’ treatment of topics concerning the world and the human being is no less than their treatment of canon.
Thus, just as Islamic scholars employ rational methods to derive certain key principles to apply to the study of canon, so the same rational methods should be used in the way of understanding the verses and hadiths that address the issues of the human being and the world to derive solutions to questions concerning cosmology, ethics, history, technology, and ecology.
But when we say that sciences are Islamic, this should not give rise to the expectation that the detailed formulas of a given science should be furnished by religious texts. Should Revelation provide detailed formulas, there would be no room for scientific progress. Islam establishes the principles.
From these principles the experts can arrive at a variety of conclusions. It is the faithful experts that should guarantee the intellectual progress of human society. Scientists are in effect the empirical interpreters of the Qur’an, should they conform science to Islam’s value system.
The Role Of Revelation In Complementing And Perfecting Reason
Reason and Revelation are complementary. Though apodictic reason is a sufficient means for grasping the general principles, divine Revelation as a more perfect form of knowledge is necessary to fathom the truths of the cosmos fully.
Thus, that which reason comprehends, Revelation confirms, and that which reason cannot reach, Revelation sheds light on. By unearthing the knowledge dormant in the human soul, Revelation actualizes our potential knowledge and brings to light those truths of which we only have a vague perception.
In this way, Revelation compensates for reason’s deficiency. In a speech, the Master of the Faithful explains the role of God’s prophet’s vis-a-vis human understanding:
God raised prophets among them...that they [i.e., prophets] should unearth for them [i.e., humankind] the intellect’s deposits and show them the proportioned signs.
Thus the intellect blossoms in the light of divine Revelation, and, drawing nourishment from its celestial teachings becomes luminous.
Revelation’s Emphasis On The Relation Of Phenomena To The Origin
Revelation is the word of the Supreme Being who comprehends fully the entire world of existence. From Him issues an infinite and encompassing unity that is the cosmos. As such the cosmos is a single, genuine system. Thus when God speaks of a phenomenon, he does so in such a way as would aptly reflect His connection with the cosmos and emphasize its continuous attachment to the Origin.
The Qur’an, when describing a phenomenon, tends to illustrate clearly its relation to the Origin and so does not bother with such pedantic descriptions as concern the material and formal causes, or the genus and the differentia. It transcends such material confines, disregarding the mundane and material evolution of phenomena.
Neglecting The Efficient And Teleological Causal Orders In The Scientific And Humanistic Disciplines
Some of the scientific and humanistic disciplines take on the task of tracing the evolutionary trajectory of phenomena, starting from the past and going into the future. In so doing, they merely content themselves with the linear development of a phenomenon.
In other words, they consider only the internal causal system of phenomena, neglecting their efficient and teleological orders. For instance, when explaining the stages of a mineral’s development in the earth’s crust, they treat of the various stages of its development but fail to examine the question of its creator, the Ultimate Origin of things, which is necessary in its existence, free of any need and which fulfills the needs of all creatures.
Likewise, there is no treatment of the teleological system in phenomena. Scientists neglect the question of purpose in the development of phenomena: that a phenomenon’s purpose is an external destination toward which it advances; that this is the case concerning all phenomena, but as regards the Necessary Existent, the purpose is one with its essence without any external objective; that the essence of the Necessary Existent is the ultimate purpose toward which all creatures strive.
Thus the sciences conduct their studies while evading the question of the Origin and the End. That is, they deprive phenomena of the status of creatureness and as such disfigure their identity. And in thus depriving phenomena of their divine identity, the sciences commit sacrilege.
The Ramification Of Neglecting The Efficient And Teleological Causal Orders: A Defective Understanding Of The Secrets Of The World
To examine the internal causal order of things in isolation of the efficient and teleological causal orders produces a defective description of the world. This defective description lacks many of the valuable benefits of truly knowing the secrets of the world, resulting in innumerable sins, clear examples of which abound in the modern world, which boasts of reason without Revelation and science without intellection.
Divine Revelation, however, describes phenomena as symbols that signify the Origin. While touching on the internal causal order in things, the Qur’an also takes into account the efficient and teleological causal orders. In so doing, it perfects the linear [horizontal) description by combining it with a vertical description.
Revelation presents the efficient and teleological causal orders as two strong wings that could attach to the internal causal order, thus enabling the sciences (and certain humanistic disciplines) to fly free of the confines of stagnancy to achieve vigor and progress. With this new perspective, the human being will find the illimitable vista of divine cosmology before him.
قَالَ رَبُّنَا الَّذِي أَعْطَىٰ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ خَلْقَهُ ثُمَّ هَدَىٰ
Our Lord is He who gave everything its creation and then guided it. (20:50).
This short verse concisely introduces all three orders. “Our Lord” is the origin of all things; “who gave everything its creation” is indicative of the internal equipment with which God has endowed every creature; and “then guided it” is a reference to the teleological order, the final end toward which God directs all creatures.
This treatment of all three systems is evident throughout the Noble Qur’an. By juxtaposing the internal order with the efficient and teleological orders, God elevates science to the status of intellection, knowledge to the status of insight, and thought to that of spiritual unveiling.
In this way, the findings of the theoretic intellect are put to action by the aid of the practical intellect, and thus subjective concepts are transformed to objective reality. Through this transformation, the expert is converted to the devout, the theorist to the practicing, and in this way pure reason [and true intellection] is invigorated and matured.
Let us now take a look at a few instances of how science may come to fruition by the light of Revelation.
The Internal, Efficient, And Teleological Orders In The Heavens
Regarding the creation of the heavens and their steadiness without any perceptible pillars, the creation of the stars and their arrangement, and the course of the sun and the moon, the Qur’an asserts:
اللَّهُ الَّذِي رَفَعَ السَّمَاوَاتِ بِغَيْرِ عَمَدٍ تَرَوْنَهَا ثُمَّ اسْتَوَىٰ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ وَسَخَّرَ الشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ كُلٌّ يَجْرِي لِأَجَلٍ مُسَمًّى يُدَبِّرُ الْأَمْرَ يُفَصِّلُ الْآيَاتِ لَعَلَّكُمْ بِلِقَاءِ رَبِّكُمْ تُوقِنُونَ
God is He Who raised the heavens without any pillars that you see, and He is firm in power and He made the sun and the moon subservient (to you); each one pursues its course to an appointed time; He regulates the affair, making clear the signs that you may be certain of meeting your Lord. (13:2).
This verse, while mentioning the internal order of the heavens and the stars, treats also of their efficient and teleological orders by speaking of divine unity and the return of all things to Him.
The Three Orders In The Earth
Concerning the expansion of the earth, the raising of the mountains, which function like plugs in steadying the earth, and how the trees produce myriad fruit from the same material present in the soil and the same water, the Qur’an states,
وَهُوَ الَّذِي مَدَّ الْأَرْضَ وَجَعَلَ فِيهَا رَوَاسِيَ وَأَنْهَارًا وَمِنْ كُلِّ الثَّمَرَاتِ جَعَلَ فِيهَا زَوْجَيْنِ اثْنَيْنِۖ
يُغْشِي اللَّيْلَ النَّهَارَ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَآيَاتٍ لِقَوْمٍ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ
And He it is Who spread the earth and made in it firm mountains and rivers, and of all fruits He has made in it two kinds; He makes the night cover the day; most surely there are signs in this for a people who reflect. (13:3).
وَفِي الْأَرْضِ قِطَعٌ مُتَجَاوِرَاتٌ وَجَنَّاتٌ مِنْ أَعْنَابٍ وَزَرْعٌ وَنَخِيلٌ صِنْوَانٌ وَغَيْرُ صِنْوَانٍ يُسْقَىٰ بِمَاءٍ وَاحِدٍ وَنُفَضِّلُ بَعْضَهَا عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ فِي الْأُكُلِ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَآيَاتٍ لِقَوْمٍ يَعْقِلُونَ
And in the earth there are tracts side by side and gardens of grapes and corn and palm trees having one root and (others) having distinct roots-- they are watered with one water, and We make some of them excel others in fruit; most surely there are signs in this for a people who understand. (13:4).
أَإِذَا كُنَّا تُرَابًا أَإِنَّا لَفِي خَلْقٍ جَدِيدٍ أُولَٰئِكَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بِرَبِّهِمْ وَأُولَٰئِكَ الْأَغْلَالُ فِي أَعْنَاقِهِمْۖ
وَأُولَٰئِكَ أَصْحَابُ النَّارِ هُمْ فِيهَا خَالِدُونَ
And if you would wonder, then wondrous is their saying: What! When we are dust, shall we then certainly be in a new creation? (13:5).
These two verses touch on the internal order in earthly blessings. But in addition, the verses allude to the efficient and teleological orders of things, that is, to their Origin and End. The two verses, however, treat the efficient order differently. In verse 3, unity leads to plurality: God creates the earth and expands it and implants therein mountains and puts streams into motion. In verse 4, it is the opposite.
In the latter verse, unity results from plurality. That is, the diverse plants and fruits, which are nourished by the same soil and water, compel one to acknowledge the One God. This is followed by the mention of Resurrection and revival following death.
But the important point to be heeded in such verses is that creatureness is an integral part of the essence of the earth and all phenomena. It is impossible to understand something without taking into account an integral part of its essence, and thus to comprehend phenomena one must know God, whose activity is invariably purposeful.
The Three Orders In Livestock
In explaining the produce of cattle, husbandry, exploiting livestock, and the beauty in the journey of herds to and from the grazing land, the Qur’an says,
وَالْأَنْعَامَ خَلَقَهَا لَكُمْ فِيهَا دِفْءٌ وَمَنَافِعُ وَمِنْهَا تَأْكُلُونَ
And He created the cattle for you; you have in them warm clothing and (many) advantages, and of them do you eat. (16:5).
وَلَكُمْ فِيهَا جَمَالٌ حِينَ تُرِيحُونَ وَحِينَ تَسْرَحُونَ
And there is beauty in them for you when you drive them back (to home), and when you send them forth (to pasture). (16:6).
وَتَحْمِلُ أَثْقَالَكُمْ إِلَىٰ بَلَدٍ لَمْ تَكُونُوا بَالِغِيهِ إِلَّا بِشِقِّ الْأَنْفُسِ إِنَّ رَبَّكُمْ لَرَءُوفٌ رَحِيمٌ
And they carry your heavy loads to regions which you could not reach but with distress of the souls; most surely your Lord is Compassionate, Merciful. (16:7).
وَالْخَيْلَ وَالْبِغَالَ وَالْحَمِيرَ لِتَرْكَبُوهَا وَزِينَةً وَيَخْلُقُ مَا لَا تَعْلَمُونَ
And (He made) horses and mules and asses that you might ride upon them and as an ornament; and He creates what you do not know. (16:8).
In these verses, in addition to the internal order at work in the breeding and raising of livestock, allusion is made to the efficient order-divine agency. A few verses later, the teleological order is also mentioned:
فَالَّذِينَ لَا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْآخِرَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ مُنْكِرَةٌ وَهُمْ مُسْتَكْبِرُونَ
Those who do not believe in the Hereafter, their hearts are amiss, and they are arrogant. (16:22).
Thus, when studying phenomena, we must take into account the efficient and teleological orders.
The Three Orders In The Formation Of Clouds And Rain
The formation of clouds; the falling of rain and hail, the distribution of water, the brilliance of lightening, the succession of day and night, the creation of animals-these are the themes expressed in the following verses:
أَلَمْ تَرَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ يُزْجِي سَحَابًا ثُمَّ يُؤَلِّفُ بَيْنَهُ ثُمَّ يَجْعَلُهُ رُكَامًا فَتَرَى الْوَدْقَ يَخْرُجُ مِنْ خِلَالِهِ وَيُنَزِّلُ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مِنْ جِبَالٍ فِيهَا مِنْ بَرَدٍ فَيُصِيبُ بِهِ مَنْ يَشَاءُ وَيَصْرِفُهُ عَنْ مَنْ يَشَاءُ يَكَادُ سَنَا بَرْقِهِ يَذْهَبُ بِالْأَبْصَارِ
Do you not see that God drives along the clouds, then gathers them together, then piles them up, so that you see the rain coming forth from their midst? And He sends down of the clouds that are (like) mountains wherein is hail, afflicting therewith whom He pleases and turning it away from whom He pleases; the flash of His lightning almost takes away the sight. (24:43).
يُقَلِّبُ اللَّهُ اللَّيْلَ وَالنَّهَارَ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَعِبْرَةً لِأُولِي الْأَبْصَارِ
God turns over the night and the day; most surely there is a lesson in this for those who have sight. (24:44).
وَاللَّهُ خَلَقَ كُلَّ دَابَّةٍ مِنْ مَاءٍ فَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ يَمْشِي عَلَىٰ بَطْنِهِ وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ يَمْشِي عَلَىٰ رِجْلَيْنِ وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ يَمْشِي عَلَىٰ أَرْبَعٍ يَخْلُقُ اللَّهُ مَا يَشَاءُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ
And God has created from water every living creature: so of them is that which walks upon its belly, and of them is that which walks upon two feet, and of them is that which walks upon four; God creates what He pleases; surely God has power over all things. (24:45).
لَقَدْ أَنْزَلْنَا آيَاتٍ مُبَيِّنَاتٍ وَاللَّهُ يَهْدِي مَنْ يَشَاءُ إِلَىٰ صِرَاطٍ مُسْتَقِيمٍ
Certainly We have revealed clear communications, and God guides whom He pleases to the right way. (24:46).
These verses talk of God as the efficient cause of the clouds. By describing these natural phenomena as God’s signs and referring to the Straight Path that leads to the End, it reminds us of the teleological order.
Thus, the verses go further than speaking of the internal order in atmospheric phenomena and point to the efficient cause of all things, which is the head of the hierarchy of causality, as well as to their teleological order, which consists of the sequence of purposes that are realized in the course of the Straight Path leading to the ultimate purpose of creation.
An Illustration Of The Flourishing Of Science Through The Guidance Of Revelation
At this point, it seems in order that we should illustrate how science can flourish when guided by Revelation.
1. Thought in the human being leads to power. But left to his own devices, the human being is incapable of distinguishing the legitimate purposes for which he may employ that power. This is where Revelation comes to the aid of reason. Revelation clarifies the legitimate purposes for power. As a general rule, the Qur’an asserts,
مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ أَشِدَّاءُ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ رُحَمَاءُ بَيْنَهُمْ تَرَاهُمْ رُكَّعًا سُجَّدًا يَبْتَغُونَ فَضْلًا مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانًا
Muhammad is the prophet of God and those who are with him are firm against the faithless and merciful amongst themselves (48:29).
This is a general guideline for how Muslims should use their material and spiritual resources.
2. After conferring on David the miraculous power to forge hard metal in the palm of his hands, God taught him that he should use this power in the way of preparing weapons for defense rather than destruction:
وَلَقَدْ آتَيْنَا دَاوُودَ مِنَّا فَضْلًا يَا جِبَالُ أَوِّبِي مَعَهُ وَالطَّيْرَ وَأَلَنَّا لَهُ الْحَدِيدَ
And certainly We gave to David (Dawood) excellence from Us: O mountains! Sing praises with him, and the birds; and We made the iron pliant to him, (34:10).
أَنِ اعْمَلْ سَابِغَاتٍ وَقَدِّرْ فِي السَّرْدِ وَاعْمَلُوا صَالِحًا إِنِّي بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرٌ
Saying: Make ample (coats of mail), and assign a time to the making of coats of mail and do good; surely I am Seeing what you do. (34:11).
The important point in these verses is that from the most destructive implements, the most productive defensive weapons should be built; the most aggressive resources should be utilized to produce the most effective defenses. The Qur’an describes iron as a source of both might and humanitarian benefits:
وَأَنْزَلْنَا الْحَدِيدَ فِيهِ بَأْسٌ شَدِيدٌ وَمَنَافِعُ لِلنَّاسِ
And We sent down iron, in which there is great might and benefits for humankind. (57:25).
As is evident, the verse underscores the humanitarian benefits that can be derived from iron, to the exclusion of the destructive and lethal uses.
3. When war breaks out, arms trade flourishes. Secular powers, who exploit technology for their fleeting worldly benefits, seize war as an opportunity to increase their arms exports, providing weaponry to both sides of a conflict.
The Qur’an, however, condemns such opportunism and asserts that when two non-Muslim forces engage in war, Muslims are forbidden from selling destructive weaponry to them, though the Islamic government is allowed to provide the conflicting forces with means of defense.
Muhammad, son of Qays, once asked Imam Al-Sadiq whether or not Muslims were allowed to sell weapons to two non-Muslim groups engaged in war. The Imam replied, “Sell them what protects them: armors, shoes, and the like.”
Thus Islam prohibits people from exploiting the opportunity of war to foment death and destruction through arms trade or to take the side of a certain race or group to cultivate oppression. In the event of war, the noble-spirited, who are unaffected by greed, strive to prevent bloodshed and destruction. As such, they feel obliged to sell only means of defense, and that to both sides of the conflict.
4. In his letter to Malik Al-Ashtar, the Master of the Faithful expounded the model for a just and Godly state. In it, he explains how the ruler should enforce his authority within the bounds of justice. He writes,
Be not unto them as the beast of prey, lying in ambush to feed on them, for indeed they are of two sorts-either your brothers in faith or your peers in creation.
In this political manifesto, which reflects divine Revelation, we witness the perfection of political science, as one of the humanistic disciplines originating in the practical intellect. Imam ‘All restricts the function of politics within the bounds of justice, as a sacred boundary whose transgression even in dealing with non-Muslims is unpardonable. It is in this way that Revelation elevates political science and the other humanistic disciplines.
It is important that we realize the capacity of the Islamic Cultural Revolution in elevating the humanistic disciplines as well as the sciences to the heights of perfection, bearing in mind the themes discussed above. To this end, it is necessary that we should, along with formulating the internal order of a field of knowledge, articulate its efficient and teleological orders, which entrench faith in divine Revelation, so that science would mature into intellection and professional expertise would embrace faith.
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Author: Ayatullah Jawadi Amuli
