Introduction
Science
has been and has always been an integrated part of human affairs. It
directly or indirectly affect human affairs in many ways. Science allows
people all around the world to develop technological tools that can
change and transform the way they live. Science and technology have made
many impossible things become possible, many unworkable things become
workable, and many unpredictable things become predictable. More
importantly, science and technology have transformed the way people
learn, communicate, think, behave, and work. They allow people to
disclose the laws of the natural world or rules regarding the
relationship between facts or events in the natural world. Above all,
science and technology allow people to understand the mastermind behind
the wonderful design of the universe.
This paper aims to discuss
the ideas of a great Turkish Scolar, Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, regarding
the importance, the success, the failure, the characteristics, and the
future of science development in human affairs with particular reference
to Muslim countries. Discussion mainly refers to his masterpiece,
Risale-i Nur(The Treatise of Light) and focuses on his ideas on the approach and methods of science development in Muslim countries.
It
is believed in this article that exploring Nursi’s ideas on science
will allow contemporary Muslims to understand the connection between
science and civilization, the state of contemporary science and
technologyin the Muslim world, and what approaches, methods, and
stepsare required for making science development succesful in Muslim
countries. Nursi’s ideas on sciences will explain why we, Muslims, all
around the world, need to pay serious attention on the development of
sciences in our society.
Who is Nursi ?
Nursi
was born in 1877 in Eastern Turkey and died in 1960 in Urfa (Turkey) at
the age of eighty-three. He was a remarkable child endowed with a
prodigious memory. His basic education was a combination of traditional
religious education and science education. He completed his basic
education in a traditional madrasah education at the early age of
fourteen and then studied physical sciences, mathematics and philosophy.
Being exposed to two traditions of education inspired Nursi with ideas
to reform and reconstruct Islamic education system. In his very early
age, Nursi began to critisize the Madrasah education in Turkey as being
inadequate and propose a new model of curriculum for the Islamic
educational system. Nursi came up with a blue print for the
establishment of a university,
Medrestu’z Zehra (the Resplendent Madrasah) in the Eastern Provinces.
In 1917, Nursi arrived in Istanbul and met Sultan Abdul Hamid to ask some supports for establishing the university.
[1]
Subsequently, Nursi received some funding for the construction of the
university and in 1913 he was able to lay the foundations of the
university. Unfortunately, the university project was stopped due to the
complexity of social and political events in the beginning of World War
I.
[2]
What is Risale-i Nur?
A
combination of religious and science education also made Nursi became a
scholar with two faces of knowledge competency: traditional religious
sciences and modern sciences. This two faces of knowledge competency
allows Nursi to produce a unique and monumental masterpiece, the
Risale-i Nur (The Treatise of Light). It is said that
Risale-i Nur has been Nursi’s greatest work that he wrote in exile after his Divine Illumination. In the words of John Bowker (1997),
Risale-i Nur
is “an attempt to demonstrate the spiritual dimension of theQur’an an
age under the sway of scepticism and materialism”. For Muzaffar Iqbal
(2002, p. 2),
Risale-i Nuris “a
manevi tefsir, or
commentary which expounds the truths of the Qur’an.” “In the course of
his expressive prose which pulsates with energy”, Iqbal adds, “Nursi
substantiates Islamic faith on the basis of the certainties of modern
physical sciences and reads the cosmic verses of the Qur’an in the light
of modern science” (Muzaffar Iqbal 2002, p. 2). Over all,
Risale-i Nur
is a work that explain and expound the basic tenets of belief, the
truths of the Qur’an, to modern man. It provides clear and simple
scientific explanation of stories, comparisons, explanations, and
reasoned proofs that strengthen religious truths and belief (Nursi 1998,
pp. 9-10).
Although being based and focused on Muslim’s experiences in Turkey, ideas that Nursi explains in
Risale-i Nur
have been influential and widely discussed throughout the Muslim world.
The book has been translated into many languages and hundreds thousand
of its copies are displayed and read in thousands of houses, mosques,
and libraries all around the world. Undoubtedly,
Risale-i Nurhas
made Nursi become an influential religious scholar who strongly
advocate Qur’anic teachings against the forces of secularism. With his
strong and influential ideas, said John Baker (1997), Nursi has played a
prominent role in the Islamic revival in and outside Turkey. For Colin
Turner in Manchester University, England,
Risale-i Nur providesa comprehensive, objective, and inspirational explanation of Islamic perspective on the universe. In his words:
Finally, I would say this: After many years of searching and comparing, I can say that the
Risale-i Nur
is the only self-contained, comprehensive Islamic work that sees the
cosmos as it actually is, presents the reality of belief as it truly
is, interprets the Qur'an as our Prophet intended, diagnoses the real
and very dangerous diseases that afflict modern man, and offers a cure
(quoted in Syukran Vahide 1989).
Turner adds that
Risale-i Nur will characterise the future of Islam. As Vahide quotes him:
A work such as the
Risale-i Nur,
which reflects the light of the Qur'an and illuminates the
cosmos, cannot be ignored. For only Islam stands between
modern man and catastrophe, and I believe that the future of Islam
depends on the
Risale-i Nur and on those who follow and are inspired by its teachings (Syukran Vahide 1989).
Muzaffar Iqbal (2002, p. 2) shares Turner’s view and observes the uniqueness of
Risale-i Nur. As he writes: “
Risale-i Nur is not a
tafsir
(commentary) on the Qur’an in the usual sense of the term; rather, it
attempts to establish links between the Qur’anic verses and the natural
world”
What makes
Risale-i Nur is unique is Nursi’s
ability to reconcile and integrate traditional and modern science within
a theistic perspective. He makes it clear that the Qur’an and modern
physical sciences had no dissonance; rather, relating the truth of the
Qur’an to modern men and women was even easier (Muzaffar Iqbal 2002, p.
2).With his theistic perspective, Nursi inserts Islamic worldview on the
matters related to the creation of the earth and other planets, the
pre-eternity of matter, the question of ether, the creation, nature, and
purpose of biological beings and in particular man, and the motion of
particles and matter.
Brief Historical Assessment
The
historical development of human civilization clearly shows a close
connection between science development and the quality of life in a
country. Science has been a major instrument for a country to develop
better quality of life and higher level of civilization. In his
monumental five-volume
History of Science, George Starton (1971, p. 141-146) divides histroy of science development into ages, each of which lasting half a century.
Starton
notes that the foundations of science was laid by scholars and
scientists of the Mesopotamian civilization (present-day Iraq). He
further notes that the second development in science came through the
Greeks, that started in 450-400 B.C., known as the age of Plato. This
was followed by the age of Aristotle, of Euclid, of Archimedes, and so
on (500-450 B.C.) . The third age of science development was the age of
the Chinese century of Hsiin Tsang and I Ching (600 A.D. to 700 A.D).
From 700 A.D. to 1100 A.D. (350 years) was the unbroken succession of
the ages of Jabir, Khawarizmi, Razi, Masudi, Wafa, Biruni, and Avicenna,
Ibn Al Haitham and Omar Khayam (Arabs, Turks, Afghans, and Persians)
men belonging to the culture of Islam. After 1100, the first Western
names appeared: Geard of Cremona, Roger Bacon, sharing honours with Ibn
Rushd, Musa bin Maimoun, Tusi, and Ibn Nafis, the man who anticipated
Harvey’s theory of circulation of blood.
After 1350 A.D.
developing countries, including the Muslim ones, lose out except for the
occasional flash of scientific work, like that at the court of Ulugh
Beg, the grandson of Timurlane, in Samarkand in 1437 A.D. or of Maharaja
Jai Sigh of Jaipur in 1720, who at the court of Muhammad Shah in Delhi
corrected the serious errors of the Western tables of eclipses of the
sun and the moon as much as sixt minutes of arc and published Zijj
Muhammd Shahi. After 1720, Michael the Scot turned full circle of
science to the West and then for more than three centuries, Western
culture, lifestyle and modes of thinking has gradually come to dominate
the world. Today, the West directly or indirectly influences and
characterises the world and the contribution of other cultures to the
mainstream of world life is relatively negligible. As a result, the
modern approach to science is largely represented by Western approach.
It
is, however, important to note in this historical assessment of science
development, that Muslims used to dominate and gave fundamental
contributions to science development. Two centuries after the Prophet
Muhammad, peace be upon him, Caliph Harun al-Rashid made the Islamic
world culturally very active in science development. During this era,
Islamic universities conducted many scientific studies and made many
scientific discoveries. Under Caliph Harun al-Rashid, George Starton
(1971, pp.146–66) notes, science development was to be credited to the
meteoric rise of Islam for nearly four hundred years (700 A.D. to 1100
A.D). He further notes that it was the period when Muslim scholars from
Spain to India led science development by exchanging the great body of
past knowledge, carrying forward new discoveries, and introducing new
ideas. Starton (1971, p. 166) concludes that the Islamic universities of
the Middle Ages were the very first institutions that brought science
into international level.
Islamic Vs Western Science
When
the Islamic world controled science development and producing the best
minds of the age (from 700 A.D. to 1100 A.D.), Muslim believers and
scientists were steeped in the religious spirit. They proved that
scientific knowledge was the twin of religious knowledge and it should
never have ceased to be so.
In a university in Cordova,
scientific enterprise was international in character and Muslim
scientists actively spread knowledge throughout Europe. For the
scientists, the goal of scientific affairs was not to exploit mankind,
but to reveal the truth of their reliigon, Islam. For them, science is a
common heritage of mankind that must not be dominated only by certain
groups or nations. As a result, Muslim society was inclusive and
tolerant. Al-Kindi wrote: “It is fitting then for us not to be ashamed
to acknowledge truth and to assimilate it from whatever source it comes
to us.” For him “who scales the truth there is nothing of higher value
than truth itself; it never cheapens or abases him who seeks.”
During
this period of Muslim domination, scholars in Christendom were mainly
occupied in translating from Arabic into Latin. Starton (1971, p. 166)
is certain that Islam paved the way for the European Renaissance, which
in turn led to science’s fourth great development in the modern world.
With
their science domination, the Western world are described as developed
countries that are controlling the resources and riches of the earth.
These countries began to introduce a materialistic worldview of science.
They use the geniuses such as Newton and Maxwell as the private
intellectual property or the cultural heritage of the West. They see the
developing countries as the objects of their economic and political
exploitation. They avoid any form of fair sharing, transfering
technology, and know-how to developing countries. The mentality of the
western nations, said Sayar (1992), “what is yours is ours and what is
ours is ours.”
It has been widely admitted by many
influential Western scientists that Western approach to science contains
some weaknesses and can lead the world to a catastrophe. Many of them
have been aware of the shorthcomings of their scientific approach and
their implications on the future of world civilization. This awareness
is stated by Einstein during the Cold War:
We,
scientists, believe that what we and our fellow-men do or fail to do
within the next few years will determine the fate of our
civilisation. And we consider it our task untiringly to explain this
truth, to help people realize all that is at stake, and to work,
not for appeasement, but for understanding and ultimate agreement
between peoples and nations of different views.
Like their
Muslim counterparts, some western scientists began to think the
improtant of religious values in science development, so that science
does not become an evil instrument for economic and political interests.
Carl Sagan (1990) said at the Moscow meeting of a global forum of
spiritual and political leaders: “Mindful of our common responsibility,
we scientists, many of us long engaged in combating the environmental
crisis, urgently appeal to the world religious community to [co-operate]
in words and deeds, and as boldly as required, to preserve the
environment of the earth.”
Science in Contemporary Muslim World
Although
used to dominate and contributed to science development for more than
350 years, contemporary Muslim countries are struggling to regain their
sciences. They are left behind in science development and application.
In the application of Information and Communication Technology (ICT),
for example, non of the best ten countries is a Muslim one.
Foreign Policy
journal (2006, p. 52) describes that among the best ten countries in
ICT application are (1) Singapore, (2) Ireland, (3) Switzerland, (4)
United States, (5) Netherlands, (6) Canada, (7) Denmark, (8) Sweden, (9)
Austria, and (10) Finland (
Foreign Policy 2006, p. 52).Based
on country data (1997), Muslim countries are among the technological
adopters and technologically excluded. Non of them are among
technological innovators like Japan, USA, and many European countries.
Why
did we [Muslims] lose control on science development? Many scientists
have tried to answer this question and came up with several answers.
Francis Ghiles, for example, writes:
What is wrong
with Muslim science? . . . At its peak about one thousand years
ago the Muslim world made a remarkable contribution to
science, notably mathematics and medicine. Baghdad in its heyday
and southern Spain built universities to which thousand
flocked: rulers surrounded themselves with scientists and artists
(
Nature, March 24, 1983).
It can be understood from
Ghiles’ words that one of the strengths of Muslim scientific tradition
was the integration of three groups: rulers, scientists, and artists in
science development. This is to say that one of the reason for the
collapse of science in Muslim countries was disintegration among the
three groups. Ghiles also explians that “a spirit of freedom allowed
Jews, Christians and Muslims to work side by side” (
Nature, March 24, 1983). To interpret him, lack of freedom has caused the failure of science development in Muslim countries.
Quoting
Ibnu Khaldun, Abdussalam (1994, pp. 8-9) suggests internal and external
factors that cause Muslims lose in sciences. Among internal factors are
lack of curiosity, no wishfulness, just apathy, and bordering on
hostility. Among external factors is colonialism, such as the invation
of Mongols. For Abdussalam (1994, p. 9), the first thing that Muslims
need to have to regain their reputation in science and technology is a
spiritual strength. As he writes: “We are all convinced today of the
need for acquiring science and technology and for recovering our lost
heritage. But before this happen, we must arouse the spiritual energies,
particularly of the younger generation, for science and technology.”
Nursi’s Response
Bediuzzaman
Said Nursi plays a unique and important role in inspiring science
development in Muslim countries. Being well grounded in traditional
Islamic sciences, Nursi was “aware of the apparent discrepancy between
traditional cosmology articulated by Muslim philosophers and Sufis, and
the Newtonian worldview, but instead of rejecting the mechanistic view
of the universe presented by Newtonian science, he tried to appropriate
it by appealing to the classical arguments fromdesign” (Iqbal 2002, p.
4). Nursi put a very strong emphasis on the importance of science and
technology in the life of human being. “For sure,” he said, “at the end
of time, mankind will pour into science and technology. It will obtain
all its power from science. Power and dominion will pass to the hand of
science” (Nursi 1977, p. 275).
For Nursi (1960, p. 57),
scientific approach is the most effective way to persuade the civilized
world. In the future, he explains, truth will take the place of force,
and proof the place of sophistry. In his words: “Through the endeavours
of science, what will prevail entirely in the present and totally in the
future, is truth instead of force, proof instead of sophistry, and
reason instead of nature”
(Nursi 1977, p. 32). Nursi adds that in the future,truth and justice will take the place of the gun and the sword. In his words:
Yes, just as in former times Islam’s progress was obtained through
weapons and the sword, by smashing the enemy’s bigotry, destroying
their obstinacy, and repulsing their aggression, in the future the
immaterial swords of true civilization and material progress
and truth and justice will defeat and rout the enemy in place of
weapons and the sword (Nursi 1960, p. 79).
Nursi warns his fellow
Muslims not to undervalue or neglect science if they are to regain their
superiority among world nations. “The limitation of science”, he
stresses, “can render these powers dangerous and destructive”(in
Choudary 2004, p. 54).Nursi also stresses that “science is a great tool,
but its limitations render it highly unsuitable for its use out of the
region of its scope” (in Choudary 2004, p. 54).Nursi believes that “the
success of scienceplaces tremendous powers in our hands” (quoted in
Choudary 2004, p. 54).For the success of science development in Muslim
society, Nursi suggests some ideas to be discussed below.
Refer to the Qur’an
For
Nursi, there are two major sources of Islamic sciences: the nature and
the Qur’an. In his view, developing sciences is part of a means to prove
the authenticity of the Qur’an. As he writes: "In the future,when the
intellect,science and technology prevail, of a certainty, that will be
the time the Qur'an will gain ascendancy, which relies on rational
proofs and invites the intellect to confirm its pronounce" (Sukran
Vahide 1978). Nursi’s understanding and interpretation of the Qur’an are
scientific and or connected to scientific endeavors. One of his
readers, Vahide (2003, p. 1), writes:
His
greatest achievement was to develop a way of expounding the teachings
of the Qur’an on ‘the truths of belief’ that incorporates the
traditional Islamic sciences and modern scientific knowledge, and that
while instilling those truths, effectively refutes the bases of
materialist philosophy.
For Nursi, Qur’an must be taken as
a spurce of science development. Vahide (2003) further writes: “From
his youth, Nursi’s overriding aim in life was to vindicate the Qur’an as
a source of true knowledge and progress, and he prepared himself
accordingly by acquiring wide learning in numerous branches of
knowledge” (p. 1). Nursi was so concerned with the importance of
scientific approach in his understanding and interpretation of the
Qur’an. For him, contemporary Muslims’ advances in science, technology,
and civilization will depend on their ability to exalt God’s Words.
Nursi
was very optimistic about the ability of his fellow Muslims to acquire
sciences. As he suggests: “For the Muslims it is a great adventure that
the West has acquired science and knowledge, and Islam can therefore
appeal to them more easily than at any time before” (Nursi, 1960, p.78).
Indeed, Nursi himself was an authentic example of a truely devout
Muslim whose love for science is in line with his love for Islamic
faith. For him, Muslims must stand on their own feet before they can
manage their science development. Nursi adds that “the Qur’anic themes
of the regularity and harmony of the natural order, when combined with
the predictability of Newtonian physics, disproved the triumph of the
secularists and positivists of the nineteenth century and provided a
solid rock on which to construct a new understanding of the message of
the Qur’an” (Iqbal 2002, p. 4).
According to Nursi, Qur’an is the
book of sciences.It points clearly to the true goal of the sciences and
branches of knowledge, which are truth and reality, as well as the
perfections, attainments, and happiness of this world and the next.It
indicates the importance of sciences in two ways:(1) In the form of the
miracles of the Prophetsand (2) in the form of certain historical
events.For Nursi, Qur’an urges man towards them.As he writes in
The Words:
“Most of the Qur’an’s verses are keys to a treasury of perfections and
guides to a store of knowledge” (Nursi 1998, p. 272).He further writes:
The verses of the Qur’an “indicate in allusive fashion the important of
man’s arts and sciences, and urge him towards them” (Nursi 1998, p.
273).
For scientists, Nursi suggests, nature must be seen as a
facric of scientific symbols that must be read, realized, and
understood. The Qur’an, he further stresses, must be positioned as the
counterpart of nature. In this way, Nursi believes, all sciences will
speak about the Power of the Almighty and Divine Unity, because they
provide a good understanding of His creation. Indeed, the Qur’an
encourages all Muslims to read and understand nature. Reading the Qur’an
will allow scientists to find hints and some basic concepts of
sciences. In this regard, Nursi’s view is shared by the well-known
writer, Maurice Bucaille,
[3] when he stated in his book,
The Bible, The Qur'an and Science[4]:
“The relationship between the Qur’an and science is a priori a
surprise, especially as it turns out to be one of harmony and not of
discord” (Bucaille, 1975, p.110).
Remain Hopefull
Nursi
was aware of the progress of scince in the Western world and its
possible impacts on Muslims’ attitude toward science development. As he
evaluate the situation: “Why should the world be the world of progress
for everyone, and the world of decline only for us[Muslims]?”
(Nursi1960, p. 71). For
Nursi, the first thing that Muslims need to do to regain their
reputation in scince is never being carried away by despairand
opposedespair and hopelessness. In his words: “And you are making a
grievous error if you suppose in despair and hopelessness that the world
is the world of progress for everyone and the Europeans, but the world
of decline only for the unhappy people of Islam” (Nursi 1960, p. 80).
Nursi invites his fellow Muslims to be realistic about the situation. To
quote his words:
Consider this: time does
not run in a straight line so that its beginning and end
draw apart from one another. Rather, it moves in a circle, like the
motion of the earth. Sometimes it displays the seasons of
spring and summer as progress. And sometimes the seasons of
storms and winter as decline. Just as every winter is followed by spring
and every night by morning, mankind, also, shall have a
morning and a spring, God willing. You may expect from Divine
Mercy to see true civilization within universal peace
brought about through the sun of the truth of Islam(
Nursi1960, p. 80).
Clearly,
Nursi wants Muslims to be realistic and objective about their past and
pay more attention on their future. Muslims must accept that being up
and down in many aspects of worldly live, including in science
development, is a normal experience of the circle of live. What seems to
be more important in Nursi’s view is for Muslim nations to look at the
future. Nursi (1960, p. 80)believes that Islam is the true civilization
of the futurewhich will being peace and happiness to mankind.
Be Original, Be Islamic
Nursi
was well aware of the dominant of scholastic thoughts in modern
scientific approach. In order to achieve scientific recovery, he urges
Muslims not to be preoccupied or being “fallen into the swamp of scholastic thought” (Nursi 1960, p. 523). At the same time, Nursi further urges, Muslims need to
develop their own approach and characteristics. As
he reflects his personal experience: “They suppose me to be a medrese
professor sunk in the bog of scholastic thought, but I was occupied with
all the modern sciences and the philosophy and learning of the present
age”
(Nursi 1960, p. 523).
Nursi was also well aware of
the
exploitation of science and technology and its progress for ideological
purposes in materialist philosophy. In his observation, the materialist
have made the progress of science and technology as the tool
of its own ideology of materialism and irreligion or the denial of
creator and belief in the pre-eternity of matter.In the face of the
pragmatic and materialist currents of thought, Nursi suggests a
method in conformity with the understanding of the
present century. For him, science must be used as a meansto look to God
Almighty. Nursi suggests: “Continue make your sciences and your
progress steps by which to ascend to those heavens” (Nursi 1998, p.
270).He further suggests: “Then you may rise to my dominical Names,
which are the realities and sources of your sciences and attainments,
and you may look to your Sustainer with your hearts through the
telescope of the Names” (
The Words, p. 270).
In the light
of his awareness, Nursi suggests that sciences in Muslim counties must
be based on an Islamic worldview of the relationship between science and
Islamic teachings. For him, Islam is the father of all the sciences. It
is “the lord and guide of knowledge, and the chief and father of all
the true sciences” (Nursi 1977, p. 18).Thus, there is no boundaries
between Islam and science. “History”, Nursi notes, “testifies that
whenever the people of Islam have adhered to their religion, they have
progressed relatively to former times. And whenever they have become
slack in their adherence, they have declined (Nursi 1977
, p. 451).
Nursi’s
idea on the Islamic characteristics of scienctific affairs is obvious
when he explains that the aim of Islamic science as a whole is “to show
the unity and interrelatedness of all that exists, so that, in
contemplating the unity of the cosmos man may be led to the Divine
principle, of which that unity is the image” (Quoted in Ozervarh 2003,
p. 329).He further explains that the ultimate goal of science
development is not “to set up a theoretical system, but to reinforce the
faith and beliefs of his people” (Quoted in Ozervarh 2003, p. 329). The
ultimate goal of Islamic science, Nursi stresses, is to relate the
corporeal world to its basic spiritual principles through knowledge, in
order to achieve spiritual perfection (Quoted in Ozervarh 2003, p. 329).
Rely on Reason and Proof
For
Nursi, Islam relies on reason and proof, no matter of Islam is contrary
to reason. Therefore, it is possible to prove and explain all its
matters rationally. For him, the dismissal of the reason, rejection of
proof, and blind imitation of the clergy will lead Muslims into
misguidance. In his view, sciences must be developed by taking the
highway of the blending of the reason and the Qur’an. In this way, Nursi
believes, sciences will ease and plenty in the world and happiness in
the next(Argunduz 1993, p. 88).He stresses that sciences cannot be
developed by leaving the reason in the second place, in accordance with
the principles of Qur’an that are corrupted, such as bigotry,
misguidance, lawful oppression, and injustice.For him, attaching no
importance to reason and proof, and blind imitation of the clergy is a
great error (see Nursi 1977, 34).
Nursi further stresses that the only way for Muslims to be the champion of science is to rely on reason and proof. In his words:
What
continually makes Islam manifest and makes it develop in relation to
the advancement of thought is its being founded on reality, relying on
proof, being in agreement with reason, established on reality, and being
in conformity with the principles of wisdom, which are bound to one
another from pre-eternity to post-eternity(Nursi 1977, p. 35).
Nursi
adds that reason and proofs alllow Muslims to seek renewal, be inclined
towards renewal, and be able to achieve sciences in conformity with the
Qur’an. As he explains in the following paragraph of his writing
We Muslims, who are students of the Qur'an, follow proof. We approach
the truths of belief through reason, thought, and our hearts. We do not
abandon proof for blind imitation of the clergy like some followers
of other religions. Thus, in the future when reason,
science, and technology prevail, the Qur'an will surely then rule,
which relies on reasoned proofs and makes the reason confirm
its pronouncements
(Nursi 1960, p. 77).
Place Science on Divine Names
According to Nursi, all sciences must be placed on divinename. For him,
all
attainments and perfections, all learning, all progress, and all
sciences, have an elevated reality which is concealed under numerous
veils and has various manifestations and different spheres, the sciences
and arts attainments find their perfection and become reality. They are
not some incomplete and deficient shadow (The Words, p. 270).
“Being
based on God’s name,” Nursi suggests, “sciences may contain true
wisdom” (Nursi 1998, p. 271).“Otherwise,” he srgues, “they are either
transformed into superstition, or become nonsense, or open up the way to
misguidance like Naturalist philosophy” (Nursi 1998, p. 271).Nursi
further argues that science development in Muslim society must be based
on Divine Unity. All scientific achievements need to reveal the unity of
nature and provide patterns that allow people to contemplate the Divine
Unity.
Nursi urges his fellow Muslims to ask scientific
guidance andinspirations from God. “If man relies on Almighty God, and
asks it of him with the tongue of his innate capacity, … and … conforms
to His laws of wisdom in the universe”, Nursi explains, “the world may
become like a town for him” (Nursi 1998, p. 265).He quotes the Qur’an:
“it is He Who has made the earth manageable for you, so traverse its
tracts and enjoy of the sustenance which He t unto Him is the
Resurrection” (Qur’an, 67: 15).For Nursi, “this world is the abode of
wisdom, and Almighty God carries out His works under the veil of causes”
(Nursi 1998, p. 269).Nursi also urges Muslims to integrate scientific
endeavorwith the worshiping of God. “On condition you do not neglect
your duties of worship,” said Nursi, “strive to transform the face of
the earth into a garden every part of which you may see, and the sounds
of every corner of which you may hear” (Nursi 1998, p. 265).
Explore Prophets’ Miracles
Nursi
believes that the miracles of the Prophetsare the sources of scientific
guidance and inspirations.In his observation, “most craftsmen have a
prophet as the patron of their craft” (Nursi 1998, p. 262).For him,
Prophets’ miracles are “the final limit of man’s science and industry”
(Nursi 1998, p. 162).The miracles indicate four scientific guidances:
(1) a wonder of human art or craft, (2) spiritual base as well as index
of sciences and branches of knowledge, (3) encouragement to achieve
similar things and to imitate them, (4) spiritual and moral as well as
material attainments, (5) the urgency of scientific attainments.For
Nursi, Prophets’ miracles encourage, motivate, guide, and direct
scientific endeavors.
There are nine Prophets’
miracles that that Nursi notes to be the object of scientific
exploration for Muslim scientists. The miracles include:
- The miracle of Adam (PUH) inspires science for names (Qur’an, 2: 31), (2).
- The miracle of Noah (PUH) inspires science for the creation of ship (sailors).
- The miracle of Joseph (PUH) inspires science for the clock (watch makers).
- The miracle of Idris (PUH) inspires science for tailors.
- The
miracle of Solomon (PUH) inspires science for air transportation
(Qur’an, 34: 12) and subjugating evipirits (Qur’an, 21: 82)..
- The miracle of Moses (PUH) inspires science for clean water exploration (Qur’an, 2: 60).[5]
- The miracle of Jesus (PUH) inspires science for (medicine) healing spiritual ills and physical sicknesses (Qur’an, 3: 49).
- The
miracle of David (PUH) inspires science for irontechnology (Qur’an, 34:
10) and science for decision making (Qur’an, 38: 20). [6]
- The miracle of Muhammad (PUH) inspires science for rhetoric and linguistic.
According
to Nursi, it is Muslims’ failure to explore scientific ideas in the
miracles of the Prophets that have caused the backwardness of their
sciences. He was certain that if Muslims are to understand and explore
the Prophet’s miracles well, they can overtake the Europeans in science
development. In his words:
O partriotic brothers of
this land!...God willing, through a miracle of the Prophet,
from the hundred-year distance we have remained backward in
progress we shall mount with our actions the train of the Constitution,
which is accordance with the Shari'a, and shall mount with
our minds the Buraq (the Prophet’s mount) of Islamic Consultation,
and perfecting our means and crossing in a brief time this fearsome
vast desert, shall compete neck and neck with the civilized
nations. For they mounted ox-carts and set off; we shall
straight away mount vehicles like trains and balloons, and shall
overtake them (Nursi 1978, p. 59).
Science as a Subset of Religion
In
the long search to answer the relationship between science and
religion, a great scientist like Einstein has expressed his
understanding in a simple sentence: “Science without religion is lame,
religion without science is blind.” In Nursi’s view, science and human
knowledge in general is legitimate, noble, and acceptable to Islamic
teachings if it is subordinated to Divine Wisdom.For him, Muslims must
look at science as a subset of religion. Religion is a majestic river,
and the science is a tributary to the river(Nursi 1998, p. 262).In
science, Nursi explains, no exact results exist, only the probabilities
for the results are attainable. Science, he further explains, does not
provide all the answers, only certain answers can be provided for
practically an infinite number of enquiries(Nursi 1998
,p.
262).This view is shared by Maurice Bucaile (1975, p. vii) when he
claims that “in Islam, science and religion have always been "twin
sisters." Iqbal (2002, p. 2) also shares Nursi’s view when he notes that
Risale-i Nur shows that “there is no contradiction between religion and science.”
To
interpret Nursi, science will not become a blessing for mankind before
it is guided by religion. So, a fundamental challenge for Muslim
scientists is to reconciliate a conflict between religious faith and
scientific investigations. Before such a conflict is reconciliated,
scientiists will cause fearful and threatening barbarization in the name
of science or religion for human well-being. Nursi seems to suggests
that religion should be given a very esteemed position in science
development so that human thoughts and actionsare morally acceptable.
Be Specialized
For
the last two decades, academic programs in higher education
institutions have become more and more specialized. The programs become
so diverse. A faculty can provide dozens of departments, each department
provides dosens of programs, and each study program may provide dozens
of concentrations. When it comes to paper or thesis writings students or
experts of a particular concentration of a study program may introduce
many different focuses that reflect their special or individual
interests. The development of this academic specialization is in line
with Nursi’s idea for science development in Muslim countries, that
specializing in science is a necessity for a scientis. As he suggests,
“One individual cannot be proficient and a specialist in many
sciences…to attempt all is to abandon all” (Nursi 1977, p. 24).Indeed,
experts of modern management suggest the importance of being focused and
specialized in all areas of work when they say: “If you want to get
all, you will loose all.”
Be Culturally Bond
For
Nursi, being exposed to modern sciences is a must for every Muslim.
However, being exposed to modern science does not mean that a Muslim is
pulled away from his culture. In his view, science development in Muslim
countries will be successful and beneficial if it is culturally bond.
In this regard, Nursi explicitly admires Japanese people and urges his
fellow Muslims to follow them. As he writes: “In acquiring civilization
we have to follow the Japanese, for together with taking from Europe the
virtues of civilization, they preserved their national customs, which
are the means by which every people is perpetuated” (Nursi 1978, p. 62).
In Nursi’s observation, Japanese people have been able to develop
superiority in science within their own cultural framework. They are not
only adopting sciences from other countries, but also adapting them to
their cultural values. As he further writes: “The Japanese are
takingscience and technology without leaving national customs and
practices” (Nursi 1978, p. 262).Clearly, in the light of science
development, Nursi wants his fellow Muslims to take the Japanese as
examples in progress.
Develop Good Civilization
Nursi emphasizes that science development requires good cultural bases. As he writes:
You
should understand that what I mean are the good things that are
civilization’s virtues and its benefits for mankind. Not its iniquities
and evils that idiots have imagined to be its virtues and imitating them
have devastated our possessions. And even giving religion as a bribe
they have not gained the world (Nursi 1960, 1979).
For Nursi, good civilization will allow science to develop and vice and evils civilization will be harmful to science.
What
Nursi means by good civilization is when in a society the truth
takesthe place of force and proof the place of sophistry. As he
explains: “Through the endeavors of science,what will prevail entirely
in the present and totally in the future, is truth instead of force,
proof instead of sophistry, and reason instead of nature” (Nursi 1977,
p. 32).In Nursi’s view, good civilization is a civilization that is free
from bigotry, obstinacy, and aggression. As he further explains: “Yes,
“just in former times Islam’s progress was obtained through weapons and
the sword, by smashing the enemy’s bigotry, destroying their obstinacy,
and repulsing their aggression” (Nursi 1960, p. 79). “In the future,”
Nursi believes, “the immaterial swords of true civilization and material
progress and truth and justice will defeat and rout the enemy in place
of weapons and the sword” (Nursi 1960, p. 79).
Concluding Remarks
Nursi
introduces Islamic particular world view of modern science by
introducing new approach and method appropriate to the level of
understanding of the present centuryand to the need of Muslim
countries.His approach is unique, combining theistic and rationalistic
styles. Due to its uniqueness, Nursi’s approach needs to be understood
within the context of its social, political, and historicalsetting.Like
many other Muslim reformers of the nineteenth century, Nursi’s ideas
seem to be inspired by a need to reform Muslims’ perspective on science
development in the light of the threat of bigotry, secularization, and
westernization at local, national, and international level. His
discussion of science development seems to have been characterized by
his educational, religious, political, and social experiences in Turkey
before, during, and after the first World War.
Throughout his
ideas on science development in Muslim countries, Nursi reminds Muslim
scientists to be very clear about the approach of their scientific
affairs. For him, the approach must be at variance in many respects with
those of their counterparts in Western countries. Nursi suggests that
Islamic approach of science development will enrich and strengthen
scientists’ faith, not to weaken it. For him, the secret of progress in
science development in Muslim countries is not to lie only in political
will and financial strength, but also in the level of self-sacrifice
among Muslims, that is their sincerity to hold the society’s interests
above personal interests.
In other words, the progress of science
development in Muslim countries depends on the commitment of Muslim
scientists to expend all their efforts and energy for their countries.
This unselfish manner is considered by Nursi as the fine characteristics
that made Muslims reached the superiority of science development for
nearly four centuries in the middle age. In his view, it is this fine
characteristics of Muslims that have been taken over by the Europeans,
so that they can undergo scientific revolution and rule world science.
In the same way, it is the dismissal of this fine characteristics and
the spread of immorality that made Muslims lose their control over
science and being excluded in the development of modern science.
Above
all, Nursi’s ideas suggest Muslim scholars and reformers to preach the
full message of the Qur’an, that Muslims must not neglect science. They
must reoccupy the intellectual mainstream and regain their ideological,
social and political superiority by being well acquired with sciences.
For this purposes, Muslim rulers, scientists, and artists need to
integrate their vision. Besides, Muslims need to raise their spirit of
freedom.
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[1]During
his long life, Nursi saw the last days of the Ottoman Empire, its
collapse after the First World War and the emergence of modern Turkish
Republic. He also witnessed the twenty-five years of Republican Peoples’
Party’s harsh and authoritarian rule and ten years of “Democratic” rule
during which conditions became a little easier for Bediuzzam (Muzaffar
Iqbal 2002, p. 1).
[2]The
end of World War I and that of the Ottoman Empire culminated the first
phase of Bediuzzam’s life, the period of the “Old Said”, as he would
later call it. During the War, he had led the militia forces on the
Caucasian Front against the invading Russians for which he was later
awarded a War Medal. He was taken prisoner in March 1916 and was held in
Russia for two years. In early 1918, he escaped from the prison and
made his way back to Istanbul via Warsaw, Berlin and Vienna (Muzaffar
Iqbal 2002, p. 1).
[3]Maurice Bucaillewas born on
July 19,
1920-1998in Pont-L'Eveque, France. He is son of Maurice and Marie (James) Bucailleand was a
French
medical doctor, member of the French Society of Egyptology, and author.
Bucaille practiced medicine from 1945-82 and was a specialist in
gastroenterology.In 1973, Bucaille was appointed family physician to
King Faisal of
Saudi Arabia. Other of his patients at the time included members of the family of President
Anwar Sadat of
Egypt. In 1976, while still in the service of the king, he published his book,
The Bible, The Qur'an and Science which argued that the
Qur'an contains no statements
contradicting established scientific fact. In 1991, another book by Bucaille,
Mummies of the Pharaos: Modern Medical Investigations, was published in English.
[4]In
this book, Bucaille aims to prove the Qur'an is in agreement with
scientific facts, while the Bible is not. According to Bucaille (p.
120), Qur,anic descriptions of natural phenomena make it compatible with
modern science. Bucaille concludes that the Qur'an is the reliable word
of God.
[5]The
miracle of Prophet Moses predicts the development of modern drilling
techniques to dig out such indispensable substances of modern industry
as oil, mineral water, and natural gas (Muzaffar Iqbal 2002, p. 5).
[6]When
the iron had been “softened for David”, it becomes a sign of the future
significance of iron and steel for modern industry (Muzaffar Iqbal
2002, p. 5).