Shariah, Fiqh
and the Natural Sciences - Part 6
By Professor Nazeer
Ahmed
CA
Stem cell research is very much
in the news today. It is not just the Congress
in Washington, DC that is discussing it. Such
discussions are taking place in Cairo, Istanbul
and Lahore as well. Those who oppose it cite the
possible abuse of this science. In the hands of
godless secular man, so the argument goes, stem
cell research could become the devil’s workshop.
And who knows what it may beget?
Such objections may or may not be valid. But on
the other side of the fence, Muslims have not
offered an ethical foundation for science based
on the Shariah so that science and civilization
thrive inside the Shariah, not outside of it.
This is a failure of Islamic scholarship. Unable
to accommodate science within a body of religious
thought, many a mullah just condemns it and opposes
it out of ignorance.
Nature is a reflector of Divine signs. It is the
magnificent canvas on which Divine presence exhibits
its beauty and its grandeur. The natural revelation
is multifold, limitless, unceasing. (The Qur’an:
“Whatever is between the Heavens and the
earth asks of Him; at every moment of time, He
(obliges them and reveals His signs) in full grandeur,
55:29). The panorama of nature beckons man to
reflect and gain insights into Divine laws. It
is the package of Divine mercy. Were this mercy
to be withheld even for a fraction of a moment,
all existence will cease to be.
Yes, there is a Shariah of nature. Divine laws
govern all existence, from the movement of stars
to the motion of electrons. Nature obeys these
laws in total surrender (The Qur’an: The
stars and the trees bow down to Him in total surrender,
55: 6). It is only man, drunk as he is with his
own free will, who stands as an open adversary
to Divine laws and dares to disobey them. In the
process, he suffers and destroys himself. (Nay,
but man does transgress all bounds, in that he
looks upon himself as self-sufficient…Let
him beware! If he desists not, We will drag him
by the forelock, a lying, sinful forelock, 96:6-15).
The divestment of natural science from the Shariah
is a consequence of Islamic historical experience.
The Mu’tazalites made their appearance on
the canvas of Islamic history in the eighth century.
They were rationalists, much like the rationalists
of today. They applied rational techniques to
understand nature. But then they overextended
themselves. Without an appreciation of the limitations
of their techniques, they applied them to the
Qur’an and the Divine Essence. In their
view human reasons had a reach farther than that
of revelation. In the process, they fell flat
on their faces, were discredited and expelled
from the body politic of Islam.
What followed was a truer expression of Islam.
The empiricists emerged from the convulsions of
the Mu’tazalite period. They observed nature,
measured what they saw, came up with the empirical
scientific method, and created the edifice of
science and civilization in Islam which stood
the test of time from the ninth through the twelfth
centuries. It was during this period that we see
the appearance of mathematicians like Al Khwarizmi,
geographers like al Masudi, opticians like al
Kindi, physicians like al Razi, historians like
al Baruni and scientists like Ibn Sina. It was
this empirical scientific method that was transmitted
to Europe through Spain.
The evolution of science was interrupted with
the Mongol devastations and the Maghribi Crusades
(1219-1258 CE). The study of nature was dropped
from the curricula of Islamic schools. The study
of Shariah was narrowed to fiqh as it applied
to specific societies. Science and civilization
suffered.
A fresh effort must be made in modern times to
incorporate natural science within a framework
of the Shariah. The issue is one of constructing
a hierarchy of knowledge wherein the transcendence
of revelation is preserved, but wherein reason
and the free will of man are accorded honor and
respect. The Mu’tazalites were right in
claiming that man was the architect of his own
fortunes but they erred in asserting that human
reason has a larger reach than the Divine Word.
Humankind is not autonomous. The outcome of human
effort is a moment of Divine Grace. No person
can predict with certainty the outcome of his
action.
Man is first spirit. The physical is contained
in the spiritual, not the other way around. It
is the destiny of man to experience the physical
within its spiritual context. This requires an
understanding of the physical domain as much as
an experience of the spiritual domain. Humankind
must study and learn from nature so as to contemplate
Divine signs and realize Divine presence in their
own midst.
The classical Islamic civilization thrived, and
made contributions to science and civilization,
because it sought its inspiration not just from
the schools of jurisprudence, but also from the
Shariah of nature and the Shariah of human history.
While societal balance and societal stability
were achieved through an application of fiqh,
a natural balance with nature was achieved through
an understanding and application of the Shariah
of nature (the “laws of nature”),
and historical lessons were applied to keep a
just balance in the matrix of human affairs. This
balance was lost with the passage of time until
Shariah was marginalized into a set of rules for
marriage, inheritance, rituals and monetary transactions.
What then is the Shariah of nature? What Divine
commandments govern natural science? In the answers
to these questions lie the foundation of science
within the framework of the Shariah. Human civilization
cannot achieve its full potential without an understanding,
appreciation and mastery of the laws of nature.
Here, we summarize the broad outlines of Shariah
as it envelops and develops the sciences of nature
in the hope that these basics will be picked up
and built upon in the future so that Muslim children
will not shun natural science but will study it
with the awe and wonder that characterizes young,
nascent minds.
Principle 1. There are Divine signs in nature,
and signs within the soul of man, so that man
may know the Truth.
“We shall show them our Signs on the horizon
and within their souls until it is manifest unto
them that it is the Truth”… (Qur’an,
41:53).
Principle 2: Man is a knower. He has been taught
the names and nature of all things.
“And he taught Adam the names (and attributes)
(of all things)….” Qur’an (2:
31)
Principle 3. Man is not self-sufficient.
His knowledge is a gift so that through it he
may know and serve his Creator.
“Nay! But man does transgress
all bounds, in that he looks upon himself as self-sufficient”…
Qur’an (96: 6-7)
Principle 4. Man and nature are
not antagonists. They are bound together through
creation. Man and nature are reflections each
of the other.
“The sun and the moon (rotate)
as prescribed. The stars and trees submit (as
ordered). And (I have established) justice in
all creation, so that you may not yourself violate
justice”… Qur’an (55:5).
Principle 5. Man learns through
observation, reason, intuition and infusion.
“Have we not bestowed upon thee a pair of
eyes and a tongue?”… Qur’an
(90:8-9)
“Here indeed are Signs for a people who
reflect and ponder”… Qur’an
(2:164)
Principle 6. Man is endowed with speech (and intelligence)
with which he integrates what he has learned through
his senses, reason, intuition and infusion.
“God most Gracious, (bestowed) knowledge
(of) the Qur’an, Created humankind, endowed
it with the faculty of bayan (speech and intelligence).”…
Qur’an (55: 1-4)
Principle 7. The Shariah of
nature prescribes the laws of nature. Mankind
is commanded to study nature, to understand its
laws and contemplate the perfection of God’s
creation.
“…Turn thy vision again (towards God’s
creation). Do you see any flaw in it? Again, turn
thy vision a second time. Your vision will come
back to you, tired, worn out and discomfited”
… Qur’an (67: 3-4).
“… Travel through the earth and see
how He did originate creation, so will Allah produce
a later creation”… Qur’an (29:
20).
Based on this summary outline, we can surmise
how the world of Islam drifted away from the natural
sciences. The Qur’an prescribes a just balance
between history, natural science and spirituality.
In my previous writings, I have termed it the
H-N-S tripod. In the classical period of Islamic
science (800-1258 CE), this balance was preserved.
The syllabus of the era required a study of mathematics,
astronomy, philosophy, chemistry, physics, medicine,
grammar, fiqh and tasawwuf. The product of these
studies was the Al Hakim, a person of wisdom,
imbued with the knowledge of the Qur’an,
the Sunnah of the Prophet, human spirituality,
mathematics, astronomy, physics, medicine and
the historical sciences.
After the destruction of the Mongols (1219-1258
CE), there was an overemphasis on the spiritual
sciences. Then, in the seventeenth century (1600
CE onwards), spirituality gave way to an overemphasis
on jurisprudence and the sciences of fiqh. Gone
was the balance between natural science, history
and spirituality.
As the Muslims lost their initiative in global
affairs to the West (1757-1812 CE), even the sciences
of fiqh shrank in their scope, and what was a
complete code for human affairs shriveled into
“personal law” largely confined to
monetary transactions, inheritance, marriage and
divorce.
In the modern global context, when humankind dares
to experiment with its own genetic makeup, it
is essential to reestablish that sublime balance
between history, natural science and spirituality,
and emphasis all three disciplines in our studies,
so that among the children of tomorrow, there
may be more men and women of wisdom, the al-Hakims,
like al Kindi, Al Khwarizmi, Ibn Sina and Ibn
Khaldun. (To be continued)
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