Faith and the Importance of Explicit Knowledge

By Naseer Ahmed, New Age Islam 13 July 2022 It Is Therefore Our Duty As Muslims To Pursue The Sciences As A Sacred Religious Duty. This Will Benefit Us and Make Us Successful Both in This World and the Hereafter ----- While the scriptures are books of implicit knowledge sent down for the guidance of mankind by Allah, the prophets (pbut) also sought explicit knowledge to strengthen and sustain their faith and Allah granted their request. The following verses provide the evidence: Prophet Ibrahim (2:260) When Abraham said: “Show me, Lord, how You will raise the dead, “ He replied: “Have you no faith?” He said, “Yes, but just to reassure my heart.” Allah said, “Take four birds, draw them to you, and cut their bodies to pieces. Scatter them over the mountain-tops, then call them back. They will come swiftly to you. Know that Allah is Mighty, Wise.” (6:75) So also did We show Abraham the power and the laws of the heavens and the earth, that he might (with understanding) have certitude. To strengthen the faith of Prophet Ibrahim, Allah further showed him the laws of the heavens and the earth. Prophet Moses (7:143) When Moses came to the place appointed by Us, and his Lord addressed him, He said: "O my Lord! show (Thyself) to me, that I may look upon thee." Allah said: "By no means canst thou see Me (direct); But look upon the mount; if it abides in its place, then shalt thou see Me." When his Lord manifested His glory on the Mount, He made it as dust. And Moses fell down in a swoon. When he recovered his senses he said: "Glory be to Thee! to Thee I turn in repentance, and I am the first to believe." Allah spoke to Moses and strengthened him with numerous signs. Prophet Jesus He was also blessed with numerous signs of Allah Prophet Muhammad Prophet Muhammad made a miraculous journey of the heavens and was shown Allah’s signs in person. (17:1) Glory to (Allah) Who did take His servant for a Journey by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque, whose precincts We did bless,- in order that We might show him some of Our Signs: for He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all things). (17:60) Behold! We told thee that thy Lord doth encompass mankind round about: We granted the vision which We showed thee, but as a trial for men,- as also the Cursed Tree (mentioned) in the Qur´an: We put terror (and warning) into them, but it only increases their inordinate transgression! (53:7) While he was in the highest part of the horizon: (8) Then he approached and came closer, (9) And was at a distance of but two bow-lengths or (even) nearer; (10) So did (Allah) convey the inspiration to His Servant- (conveyed) what He (meant) to convey. (11) The (Prophet´s) (mind and) heart in no way falsified that which he saw. (12) Will ye then dispute with him concerning what he saw? (13) For indeed he saw him at a second descent, (14) Near the Lote tree beyond which none may pass: (15) Near it is the Garden of Abode. (16) Behold, the Lote tree was shrouded (in mystery unspeakable!) (17) (His) sight never swerved, nor did it go wrong! (18) For truly did he see, of the Signs of his Lord, the Greatest! What Lesson Do We Learn From The Stories? Allah showed Prophet Ibrahim of the laws of the heavens and the earth, so that “he might (with understanding) have certitude” and the same is available to us in the study and pursuit of the cosmic sciences. We can raise our level of certitude with understanding if only we read the relevant verses of the Quran and seek their fuller explanation in science. The heavens are referred to 381 times in the Quran and in their study is the greatest evidence of Allah’s powers. A believer who reads these verses and then looks for a fuller explanation in the cosmic sciences will have his faith strengthened to the level of the prophets. Do not deny yourself this great opportunity. Consider the verse: (67:3) He Who created the seven heavens in layers: No want of proportion wilt thou see in the Creation of (Allah) Most Gracious. So turn thy vision again: seest thou any flaw? (4) Again turn thy vision a second time: (thy) vision will come back to thee dull and discomfited, in a state worn out. Does the verse prevent us from looking at the heavens for any flaw or appreciating its perfection using a telescope? So why would we not see using the most powerful telescopes such as the Hubble telescope or the Hubble space telescope or the impressive range of the most advanced space telescopes that have been deployed to collect the data and powerful computers to process and analyse the data collected to form informed hypotheses and theories? Indeed, to appreciate what is meant by not finding a flaw or lack of proportion we have a duty to study as closely as possible using the best means. To describe the lack of flaw and proportion that science has discovered would take a book. The finely tuned cosmological and other physical constants, the role of dark energy and dark matter besides gravity in keeping the universe together, the process by which the heavier elements are formed in the “heavens” and the earth enriched in the right proportions to make life possible are some of the things that we have learnt from doing what the Quran is asking us to do. Religion has certainly greatly influenced the pursuit of science and many of the earliest scientists’ up to the early 20th century were religious scholars, monks and priests. The sheer number of verses on the “Samavat” or the Universe is telling us that the greatest proof of Allah’s greatness is to be found in the perfection, order and proportion in the creation of the Universe. (79:27) What! Are ye the more difficult to create or the heavens? (Allah) hath constructed it: (28) High hath He raised it, and He hath given it order and perfection Conclusion The Universe is indeed also Allah’s Book which provides a fuller explanation of the verses in the Quran about the material world. To understand these correctly, we need to have an accurate knowledge of the material world to which the verse relates. Accurate knowledge of the material world comes from the effort of specialised people whom we call scientists. It is therefore our duty as Muslims to pursue the sciences as a sacred religious duty. This will benefit us and make us successful both in this world and the Hereafter. Let us not allow the following verse to prove true in our case by turning a blind eye to science. (17:72) But those who were blind in this world, will be blind in the hereafter, and most astray from the Path. ----- A frequent contributor to NewAgeIslam.com, Naseer Ahmed is an Engineering graduate from IIT Kanpur and is an independent IT consultant after having served in both the Public and Private sector in responsible positions for over three decades. He has spent years studying Quran in-depth and made seminal contributions to its interpretation. URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/faith-explicit-knowledge-science-quran/d/127470 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism