Page 9 - Pakistan Link - December 31, 2021

OPINION DECEMBER 31, 2021 – PAKISTAN LINK – P9
Reconstruction of a Technological Culture in Islam -1

n By Professor Nazeer Ahmed
Concord, CA ate in nature? Isn’t God the “doer” of all ac-
tions? Here again, the theologians took the
his article achieves two things: It rec- Mu’tazalites to task and opposed them.
onciles taqdeer with tadbir and it rec- There were other issues of disagreement
Tonciles al Ghazzali with Ibn Rushd. as well, namely, human free will (ikhtiar) and
This has seldom been attempted before. man’s responsibility for his actions. However,
The issues are deep. The discussion in- we will limit our discussion in this essay to
volves a confluence of philoso- only those issues that dealt with the phenom-
phy, theology, kalam, empirical enon of nature and man’s interaction with it.
science, quantum physics, sta- The position that the Qur’an was “cre-
tistics and history and at times ated” “in time” caused great commotion in the
becomes highly cerebral. We Muslim body politic. The resistance to this po-
have attempted to simplify the sition was led by the usuli ulema, spearheaded
concepts and document our by Imam Ahmed ibn Hanbal. The Mu’tazalites
observations for those who come after us. It were not tolerant of dissent. Imam Ahmed was
will also be available on www.historyofislam. publicly flogged for his opposition and was im-
com. prisoned. However, with each oppressive mea-
History can be a teacher or a tyrant. sure, the voices of protest grew louder. Faced
In 1095 CE, Imam Al Ghazzali, one of the with mounting public pressure, the later Ab-
most influential theologians in Islamic his- basid Caliphs relented. In 846 CE, the Caliph
tory, wrote in his treatise Tahaffuz al Fala- al Mutawakkil disavowed the Mu’tazalites and
safa (Repudiation of the Philosophers): “The banished them from his court. In turn, when
connection (iqtirân) between what is habitu- the anti-Mu’tazalites won the favor of the Ca-
ally believed to be a cause and what is habitu- liphs, they instituted a Mehna (inquisition)
ally believed to be an effect is not necessary ing at an alarming rate. The result is illiteracy, celain and papermaking and from Iran the art against the Mu’tazalites; many were punished
(darûrî), according to us…(Stanford Encyclo- ignorance, abject poverty, cultural bankruptcy, of constructing windmills. Baitul Hikmah was for their views and their books were burned.
pedia of Philosophy). social stagnation, technological marginaliza- a cosmopolitan academy. Among the scholars The triumph of the usuli ulema over the
Historians have long contended that this tion, political and military impotence. who worked there were Muslims, Christians, Mu’tazalites in 846 marks a benchmark in Is-
apparent refutation of cause and effect served How did this happen? How did a civiliza- Jews and Zoroastrians. The Muslims learned lamic history. Four significant aspects of the
as an effective force field blocking the advance- tion that led the world in science and technol- the sciences of other civilizations and made epic confrontation between philosophy and
ment of science and technology in the Islamic ogy for five hundred years fall so far behind? their own contributions inventing the fields of theology in Islam stand out. First, a critique
world. Al Ghazzali’s position was challenged In my writings, I have highlighted several fac- algebra, chemistry, perfecting the methods of of the speculative deductions of the philoso-
by Ibn Rushd (d 1198) who emphasized that tors that contributed to this decline: the Mon- empirical science and adding to the fields of phers did not come from within; it came from
cause and effect were the very basis of reason gol deluge (1219-1258), the Crusades (1096- medicine, surgery, astronomy, art, music, his- the usuli ulema. Second, when a critique
that held together the edifice of human knowl- 1250), the loss of Spain (1236-1492), the rise tory, geography, agriculture, engineering and did emerge from the ulema, the Mu’tazalites
edge. of tasawwuf with its emphasis on the esoteric philosophy. showed an inability to stomach the critique;
Islamic civilization chose al Ghazzali over (thirteenth century), the opposition to the Of all the sciences that the Muslims they increasingly turned the whip on the
Ibn Rushd, while Europe chose Ibn Rushd printing press (fifteenth century), neglect of came in contact with, it was Greek rational protesters. Third, when the tables turned and
over al Ghazali. As a result, Europe moved naval technology (seventeenth century), loss thought that caught their fancy and they fell the theologians triumphed, they in turn con-
ahead in science and technology. The Islamic of international trade (eighteenth century), in love with its rigor and its precision. Aristo- ducted an inquisition against the Mu’tazalite
world, which at one time led the world in the colonization and dismantling of the traditional tle became their hero and reason their guide. and persecuted them. Fourth, in the aftermath
natural sciences, lost its advantage and became education systems (nineteenth century). Un- The Caliph al Mansur adopted and promoted of the confrontation, the orthodox vision of
subservient to Europe. derlying these factors was a distancing from Greek philosophy (the philosophy of the an- Islam came to occupy the center while phi-
In this essay, we examine the historical rational thought that grew out of the titanic cients as it was called) as court dogma. Muslim losophy was pushed to the periphery. Hence-
context of this epic debate and offer a recon- collision between the philosophers and the scholars set out to apply rational methods to forth, the philosophers would be compelled to
ciliation of the two positions. Our approach theologians in the eighth-ninth centuries. The physical phenomenon as well as social, cul- be reticent in their work and look over their
is based on guidance from the Qur’an. Such a dialectic between al Ghazzali and ibn Rushd tural and religious issues with excitement and shoulders for any broadside from the theolo-
reconciliation is essential for creating a scien- was the cutting edge of that debate. Unless the enthusiasm. These scholars were called the gians.
tific and technological culture in the Islamic Islamic civilization shakes off the hangover Mu’tazalites. Philosophy had lost its official patronage
world. from that debate, it cannot expect to work its It was the heyday for rational sciences in the courts of Baghdad but even as it had
Nothing less than the survival of Islamic way out of technological backwardness. in Islam. It was the age of Harun al Rashid lost, it forced theology to defend itself. A new
civilization in an increasingly technological This article takes a fresh look at that criti- and Mamum, of Shehrezad and the Arabian discipline emerged, combining theology with
world hinges on such a reconciliation. cal moment in history when philosophy col- Nights, of al Khwarizmi and al Kindi. The discursive philosophy with the dual purpose
The distinctive character of positivistic lided with theology. More than eight hundred Mu’tazalites amalgamated the rational meth- of safeguarding the theological fortress from
knowledge is that it opens up avenues for the years have elapsed since that great debate. Em- ods of the Greeks, the mathematics of the In- the onslaught of philosophy while at the same
human to attain his potential through an ex- pirical science, which was in its infancy in the dians and the technology of the Chinese, laid time making theology palatable and accessible
ercise of reason. It enhances material welfare eighth century is now a full-grown adult and the foundation for empirical sciences, invent- to the masses. This new discipline was called
through innovation, shields the human from it offers fresh perspectives on the issues that ed new disciplines and became torch bearers “kalam”. The practitioners of kalam were called
abject and debilitating poverty, protects life by divided the two camps. We apply the mod- for the advancement of human civilization. the “mutakallimun”.
enabling effective means of defense, provides ern understanding of classical mechanics and The application of classical Greek rational The triumph of theology over philosophy
a bulwark against disease through medical quantum physics and attempt to bridge the thought in an Islamic paradigm was not with- did not relieve the ulema of the burden of jus-
research and mitigates hunger and starvation gap between philosophy, religion and science out its challenge. Of particular concern were tifying their positions in a rational paradigm.
through agricultural advancement. Indeed, so that the Islamic civilization can move for- the assumptions that the Greeks made about For instance, if cause and effect do not follow
it opens up a possibility (just a possibility) of ward with confidence on the road to a techno- the nature of time and the questions sur- one from the other as the philosophers main-
heaven on earth. logical renaissance. rounding cause and effect. These assumptions tained, how do actions and reactions follow
when applied to theological issues presented one another? Fifty years after the Mu’tazalites
Introduction The Historical Context profound and fundamental doctrinal chal- were discredited in Baghdad, a noted scholar al
We live in extraordinary times. These are In the seventh century, the Islamic do- lenges to Muslim scholars. Ash’ari rose to the challenge. He advanced the
times when humankind has conquered space mains expanded and stretched from the Indus The Greeks assumed that time was “eter- theory that “time” was not continuous, that it
and searches for life on other planets. Giant River in Pakistan to the Pyrenees mountains nal”. However, from an Islamic perspective, the consisted of a series of digital, discontinuous,
telescopes seek to unlock the very origin of the in France. This vast empire connected and acceptance of time as “eternal” would make “atomistic” increments. At each increment, the
known universe. Terms such as space travel, welded together Asia, Africa and Europe, fa- it co-extent with God who is “wahid”, “self- will of God intervened in accordance with His
the Theory of Relativity and the Big Bang have cilitating the movement of goods and ideas. subsisting” and “eternal”. This was unaccept- predetermined plan to make things happen.
entered into common discourse. Machine The early Muslims, impelled by injunctions able to the theologians. In addition, if time is Thus, the omnipotence of God was preserved.
learning and robotics drive the cutting edge from the Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Proph- eternal, then everything “other than God” was This explanation was easy to understand and it
of technology and seek to replace human rea- et were enthusiastic and keen learners. They “created” in time. Specifically, was the Qur’an found broad acceptance in the Islamic world.
soning with artificial intelligence. Nano-tech- learned from the East and West, from India “created” in time? The Mu’tazalites, who were Among those who accepted the Ash’arite cos-
nology unlocks the secrets of cellular biology and China, Greece and Persia, molded what staunch Muwahids fell into a trap on this issue. mology were some of the greatest thinkers in
and beckons us to a world of engineered DNA. they had learned in an Islamic crucible and They wanted to preserve the transcendence of Islamic history, including, the Seljuk Grand
Indeed, we are now headed into a post-human added their own stamp to the reservoir of hu- God. Everything, “other than God”, had to be Vizier Nizam ul Mulk (d 1092) and Imam al
world in which the very essence of being hu- man knowledge through new fields of learn- “created” “in time”. When they applied this Ghazzali (d 1111).
man is challenged. ing. The Abbasid Caliph al Mansur (d 775) in- logic to the Qur’an, they fell flat on their face.
While technology drives human civiliza- vited scholars from around the world to come They concluded that the Qur’an was “created” Al Ghazzali and the Geopolitical con-
tion, the Islamic world is bogged down with to the capital city of Baghdad and soon the city by God “in time”. Needless to say, this position text of his works
pointless disputes about beards, clothes and became a magnet for men of learning. Al Man- was unacceptable to the theologians. Resis- Al Ghazzali (1056 -1111 CE) appeared on
coverings. By every yardstick, be it primary sur established an academy called Baitul Hik- tance set in. the canvas of history when the Islamic world
education or the number of scientific papers mah (the House of Wisdom) where scholarly A second issue was cause and effect in na- was at the height of its political power but was
published in respectable journals, the Is- books from around the world were translated ture. The Mu’tazalites affirmed that cause and riven asunder by internal ideological conflicts.
lamic world lags behind the technologically into Arabic. From India came the astronomy effect were ubiquitous in nature. This position In the latter part of the tenth century, the Fati-
advanced world. What is more significant is of Aryabhatta, from Greece came the works of also had theological implications. If cause and mids stormed out of North Africa, capturing
that the gap between Muslim societies and the Aristotle, Plato and Hippocrates, from China effect followed one from the other mechanis- Egypt in 969 CE and extending their sway over
technologically advanced societies is increas- came the technology for manufacturing por- tically, then, how does the will of God oper- RECONSTRUCTION, P26
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