Basic Philosophy and Islamic Worldview

Hashi, Abdurezak A., PhD

Kulliyyah of Science, IIUM
Definition of
Worldview
 World + view
Etymologically: from German word: welt·an·schau·ung, from Welt world
+Anschauung= view or outlook, expressed in English as: Worldview

Conceptually;
a. a comprehensive conception of the world especially from a
specific standpoint.
b. The overall perspective from which one sees and interprets the
world.
c. A collection of beliefs about life and the universe held by an
individual or a group.
d. Worldview is system of beliefs and set of presuppositions about
the life and the universe.
e. Simply worldview is a conceptual scheme; it is the most ultimate
interpretations of reality in all its multifaceted aspects.
f. Fundamental cognitive orientation of an individual or society
encompassing natural philosophy, fundamental existential and
normative postulates or themes, values, emotions, and ethics.
g. worldview (vision of life) is a framework or set of fundamental
beliefs through which we view the world and our calling and
A worldview is a commitment, a fundamental orientation of
the heart, that can be expressed as a story or in a set of
presuppositions (assumptions which may be true, partially true
or entirely false), which we hold (consciously or
subconsciously, consistently or inconsistently), about the basic
constitution of reality, that provides the foundation on which
we live and move and have our being
 What worldview is not…
• Belief
• Worldview is different from belief, because belief is the
psychological state in which an individual holds a
proposition or premise to be true.
• However, worldview is wider than belief, because it
includes a number of beliefs and ideas through which the
universe and life are understood and interpreted.

• Perception
• Is recognition and interpretation of sensory stimuli based
chiefly on memory. The neurological processes by which
such recognition and interpretation are effected. Insight,
intuition, or knowledge gained by perceiving.
• Worldview is more wider then perception, because
perception is based chiefly on memory, while worldview
is based both on memory and heart.
 Characteristics of worldview
a. Capable to answer the basic cosmological
questions of relevance to the universe as whole,
not only to some certain parts of the life.
b. In most of the cases worldview provides a well
grounded, reliable and comprehensive
understanding of life, and not a provisional and
transient.
c. Provides certain theoretical foundations of
cosmological truths.
d. In some cases worldview is not a static thing, it
changes continually, with beliefs being added or
deleted in the force of experience.
e. Worldview is not a passive thing, you use it
continually, as tool to help make decisions and
take actions.
Contents of World + view
Question Philosophical Discipline

What is? Ontology (model of reality as a whole, meaning

and degrees of existence)

Where does it all come from? Explanation (model of the past, origin and
development of life)

Where are we going? Futurology (model of the future, the ends of

life)

What is good and what is evil? Axiology (theory of values; morality or what is
wrong and what is right.)

How should we act? Praxeology (theory of actions; moderation,

extremism, and etc.)

What is true and what is false? Epistemology (theory of knowledge; meaning

validity, divisions, authenticity of knowledge. )

Validity of ideas and concepts? Etiology (construction of worldviews)

Summary of the worldview questions, with their corresponding traditional philosophical discipline.
Worldview comprises mainly seven elements
a. An ontology, a descriptive mental model of the world.
b. An explanation of the world, interpretative account of the
world.
c. A futurology, answering the question where are we
heading?
d. Values, answers to ethical questions: What should we do?
e. A praxeology, or methodology, or theory of action
philosophy: answering the question of how should we
attain our goals?
f. An epistemology, or theory of knowledge, answering the
question of: what is truth and false?
g. An etiology, where a constructed worldview should
contain an account of its own “building blocks”, its origins
and construction.
Worldvie
w
 Types of Worldviews

• SCIENTIFIC WORLDVIEW

• PHILOSOPHICAL WORLDVIEW

• RELIGIOUS WORLDVIEW
 SCIENTIFIC WORLDVIEW
a. Science, is understood as, the observation, identification, description,
experimental investigation, and theoretical explanation of phenomena.
b. As a way of understanding the natural world, science is based on two
things: hypothesis and experiment. It discovers the causes and effect.
c. As such, science in its purest sense is not a worldview but a method of
systematically investigating and organizing aspects of natural universe
that we access through our senses. Simply, science is a way of
interpretation of natural universe and life.
d. However, scientism takes this one step further and claims that science
is the only way of knowing the reality of the universe and the meaning
of life.
e. The term scientism is used to describe the view that natural science
has authority over all other interpretations of life.
f. Scientism is the tendency or the belief that the investigative methods
of the physical sciences are applicable or justifiable in all fields of
inquiry. Scientism is the idea that natural science is the most
authoritative worldview or aspect of human education, and that it is
superior to all other interpretations of life.
 Scientism simply means….
a. An exaggerated trust in the efficacy of the methods of
natural science applied to all areas of investigation.
b. Refers to the belief that the methods of natural science, or
things recognized in natural science, form the only proper
elements in any inquiry. It contends for the elimination of
the psychological dimensions of experience.
c. Scientific Worldview is rooted in the scientism, which is
not the same as science itself.
• Existence according to this worldview:
a. Scientific Worldview starts with the statement that: “there is a real
external world “out there” containing rocks, atoms, cells, animals,
plants, etc., and that this material world is all there is”.
b. A popular statement of scientific worldview is: “The cosmos is all
there is, all there was, and all there ever will be.”
 Cont…
• The question of how the universe exited:
c. According to this worldview, the matter in the cosmos has evolved
over billions of years to form galaxies, suns, and planets, and—on our
planet—an incredible variety of complex biological organisms. You
(human beings) are one of these organisms.
d. In this understanding the universe is like an old book, the first and last
pages of which have been lost. Neither the beginning nor the end is
known.
• The nature of human consciousness and intellects
• All your experiences, feelings, thoughts, hopes, dreams, and your very
consciousness itself, are nothing but the activity of neurons in your
brain, including God.
• All such notions according to this worldview signify nothing real and
are no more than wishful superstitious fantasies of a brain that is
complex enough to recognize its own inevitable demise.
 Cont…
• Scientific worldview claims that:
a. Methods of natural science reveals a material world,
therefore, science is the only way of obtaining true
knowledge of reality.
b. According to this worldview any claim of having
knowledge must be done through scientific methods.
c. Whereas science is silent regarding the aspects of reality
beyond its scope, scientism claims that there is no reality
beyond its scope.
d. This statement, however, cannot itself be verified by the
methods of science.
 ADVANTAGES SHORTCOMINGS
 Science as a method of interpretation,  It is a human effort that attempts to understand
when used properly, helps us to the reality of given things; however, as man is
establish accurate accounts and real not perfect, man’s interpretation is also
figures of given things. imperfect.
 When used properly, science helps us to  The knowledge derived from science, is not
accumulate huge data and sometimes comprehensive partial; it helps us to
unlimited information about given understand some parts of the universe, not the
things of the universe and issues of life. shape or character of the whole universe.
 From theoretical perspective, science  Yet, there are instances in which scientific
forms an effective and useful tool to conclusions are marked by progress and
discover laws of nature; it acquaints instability, and thus un-enduring from
man with the special laws of being in theoretical standpoint. For science is in
physics, biology, chemistry, health, and transition, there are those who contested, and
etc. questioned whether science can serve as a
 Science helps man to understand the foundation of faith; because faith demands a
natural environment, thus it empowers firmer and un-transitional foundation, a
man’s ability to control and mange foundation characterized by eternity.
given aspects of life, such as expansion  Unlike instinct knowledge, most of which are
of information technology, tools of self evident, scientific knowledge is not self-
measurements, calculations, design, evident first principle, and in most of the cases
discovery, that are designed to help it needs extra effort to acquire it.
man’s decision making ability.
 Philosophical Worldview
Philosophy means:
• The root of the term philosophy come from the Greek Philosophia;
philo means “loving, love, or tending to”, and sophy means
intellectual “skill, wisdom or knowledge”.
• The combination of philo and sophie, that is “philosophy”, then
signify the love of wisdom or the lover of wisdom.
• Investigation of the nature, causes, or principles of reality, knowledge,
or values, based on logical reasoning rather than empirical methods.
• The critical analysis of fundamental assumptions or beliefs; unlike
science which basically a method of reading and interpretation,
philosophy is basically a “rational quest” that is set to investigate
given realities and concepts through and within the faculty of reason.
• Philosophy means the use of reason or intellect in understanding
things such as nature and existence.
 Themes and schools of philosophy
• Themes of philosophy
• Philosophy is a discipline, a field of study, that comprises
various themes and subjects such as (1) logic, (2)
metaphysics, (3) ethics and (4) epistemology.
• A set of ideas or beliefs relating to a particular field or
activity; in this sense philosophy means the rationale and
the vision of given institutes or given field of subject.
• Types and schools of philosophy: there are various types
and schools of philosophy, including Idealism philosophy,
empirical philosophy, pragmatism philosophy,
existentialism philosophy, ramantism philosophy.
 The philosophical worldview
• Therefore, philosophical worldview means: the viewpoint or the
human conception of the universe based on the logical
argumentations.
• It is a worldview, which relies on human rational mind and
rationalization and deals with variety of issues such as creation, life,
universe and divinity.
 Among many tools used by this worldview are logical reasoning,
deduction, induction and speculation.
• It is more comprehensive than scientific worldview as it deals with
issues of physical and metaphysical.
• It attempts to give meaning to creation and life but not the exactness
of scientific worldview but it instills in us a sense and meaning.
• In most of the cases, its results and findings are not precise and
measurable as science but philosophical queries open new ways for
man to think about the natural world and beyond.
Approaches of Philosophical and Scientism
Worldviews
• Materialism
• Positivism
• Modernism
• Post-modernism
• Secularism
 Materialism
a. Literally, Materialism is a combination of material and ism; material
is derived from the Latin root materie, i.e., mater, a subject of thought
or substance from which specific thing is made up. The suffix ism is
originally derived from the ancient Greek root of ismos, often
employed to speak about specific ideology or belief system.

b. Conceptually; materialism is the theory which says that: physical

matter is the only reality and that everything, including thought,
feeling, mind, and will, can be explained in terms of matter and
physical phenomena.

c. It is a system of thought that explains the nature of the world as

entirely dependent on matter, the fundamental and final reality beyond
which nothing need be sought.
d. Materialism is closely related to physicalism, a doctrine that makes an
ontological claim that states everything is “physical and nothing over
and above” the physical substance is real.
 Cont…
e. Materialism holds that reality is one, and it is made up of mater; hence
it denies the existence of any metaphysical realities, including God.
f. Materialism denies the existence of God, as well as the role of God in
the universe and the operation of the universe. It also denies the
existence of angles, spirits and souls.
g. According to materialism, the universe is ruled by natural causes and
laws, the interpretation of which can be done by means of science.
h. Historically, materialistic interpretations of the universe represents an old belief
system, the beginning of which is traced back to the ancient Greece, particularly in
the writings of sixth century BCE philosophers like Thales (d.585 BCE),
Anaximander (d.547 BCE), Anaximenes (d.528 BCE).
1. The theory was later renewed in the 17th century by English philosopher Thomas
Hobbes (d.1679 CE), who believed that the sphere of consciousness essentially
belongs to the corporeal world, or the senses.
j. Two of the modern developments of materialism are; dialectical materialism and
physicalism, a position formulated by some members of the Logical Positivist
movement. Closely related to materialism in origin are naturalism and sensualism
 Contents of this approach

k. Life involves only physical and chemical processes, not

some vital spirit.
l. The existence of life and the universe, says materialism, can
be explained by forces acting on matter and random
chance.
m. According to materialism, knowledge based on something
other than observation and reason is invalid.
n. So the universe has no metaphysical purpose or notion of
good and evil, other than the meaning and value that we
give it.
o. The problem of materialism is, It is a partial explanation of
the universe. Because it confines existence to the
materialistic aspects of life.
 SECULARISM
a. The term “secular” is from Latin word “saeculum” which conveys
dual meaning of time and location.
b. The “time” refers to “now” or “present” while location refers to the
“world” and “worldly”.
c. Saeculum, thus, means “this age” or the “present time” or the
“contemporary era”.
d. Secularism refers to the condition of the world or the particular time,
period or age.

 According to Harvey Cox, a modern Christian theologian:

• Secularism is “the liberation of man from religious and metaphysical
tutelage, that is, turning his attention from the other worlds.”
• He defines secularization as “the deliverance of man away from
religious ideas and beliefs, understandings, forms or systems, and
from metaphysical control over his reason and his language.”
 Characteristics of Secularism
a. It encompasses the political, social and cultural aspects of life, but it
implies the disappearance of religious determination as the symbols
of integration and unity.
b. It simply ignores God and affirms that man does not need God. It
makes religion as an individual matter, a thing of the conscience, a
matter of private faith which has a little to do with man’s social,
economic and political life.
c. Secularism implies ideas and institutions of purely human origin and
its teachings are man-made, not derived from the divine sources. It is
concerned with worldly affairs, not religious and spiritual affairs.
 Basic ideas of this approach
Max Webber, a German sociologist, provides three essential components of
secularization:
1. Disenchantment of Nature
a. It implies the freeing of nature from its religious overtones. This involves the
expulsion of animistic spirits and gods and superstition from the natural world.
b. It implies separation of God from the nature so that man will no longer regard
nature as a divine entity. Therefore, man can act freely upon natural according to
his plans and needs, thus, creating development and historical change.
 Cont…
2. Desacralization of Politics
a. Desacralizing means giving the secular full autonomy without
reference to any ultimate foundation.
b. This denotes the abolition of sacral legitimating of political power and
authority, which is a prerequisite of political change, and also social
change and thus, allowing the mergence of historical process.
3. Deconsecration of Values
a. This implies that all cultural creations and values systems which
include religion and worldviews having ultimate significance as
transient (brief/temporary). The future is open to change and man is
free to create change and include himself in the evolutionary process.
b. Secularization implies a continuing and open-ended process in which
values and worldviews are continually revised according with
evolutionary change in history. Secularization is like a religion, which
projects a closed worldview and set of values in line with an ultimate
historical purpose. It is infant an ideology.
 Positivism
a. Literally: positive means: displaying certainty, or explicitly
expressed. admitting no doubts.
b. Conceptually;
1. A doctrine contending that sense perceptions are the only admissible
basis of human knowledge and precise thought. Or the application of
this doctrine in logic, epistemology, and ethics.
2. A philosophy asserting the primacy of observation in assessing the
truth of statements of fact and holding that metaphysical and
subjective arguments not based on observable data are meaningless.
3. Sometimes associated with empiricism, positivism maintains that
metaphysical questions are unanswerable and that the only knowledge
is scientific knowledge.
4. Though many other philosophers contributed to the development of
this philosophy, however many aspects of this philosophy is attributed
to Auguste Comte (d.1857).
 Cont…
 According to positivism the history of man’s intellectual
development could be divided into three stages:

a. The mythological stage, when events of the universe are explained in

terms of divine powers. Myths, supernatural powers and spiritual
existence were popular in this level.
b. The philosophical stage, were philosophical interpretations were the
means of understanding of the world, but gods played less important
role..
c. The stage of positivism, where events are explained in terms of
common laws deduced from observation and calculation without
having recourse to spirit, God or absolute power.
 Modernism
1. The word ‘modern’ is derived from Latin modo in the sense “just
now”. The word literally means: recent, contemporary, being at this
time and existing now.
2. Conceptually; it is the tendency of understanding life based on modern
thought, character, or practice, and sympathy with or conformity to
modern ideas, or standards.
3. Modernity and its pioneers claimed that this world is run by natural
laws, which are in every existence rather than Divine Power.
4. The term describes both a set of cultural tendencies and an array of
associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and
far-reaching changes to Western society in the late nineteenth and
early twentieth centuries.
5. Modernists explain themselves as a deliberate departure from tradition
and the use of innovative forms of expression that distinguish many
styles in the arts and literature of the 20th century.
 Cont…
6. The progress of science and the expansion of knowledge had enabled
man to observe, that which was beyond his observation in the past.
7. Modernity claimed that, physics, psychology and history proved
conclusively that all those events which man explained in terms of the
existence of a God or Gods, or some abstract ‘Power’ had entirely
different causes, but that man, steeped in ignorance, continued to
speak of them in terms of religious mystery.
8. Modernity calls for rationalization, secularization, individualism and
subjectivism (in values), linear progression, objectivism (in learning
nature), rational universalism and industrial society.
9. (1) God is nothing more than a projection of man on a cosmic screen. (2) The
concept of another world was nothing but: “a beautiful idealization of human wishes”.
(3) Divine inspiration and revelation were merely an “extraordinary expression of the
childhood repressions.
10. (1) Human rationality and scientific factual experience should replace religious
interpretations of the universe. (2) Knowledge that is factual is connected with
experience and observation (human mind).
 Postmodernism
a.The term “postmodernity” is used in a number of ways, however, it
laterally means “after modernity”, its basic assumption is a “failure of
modernity”.
b.It means the “postmodern thought” relating to art, architecture, or
literature that reacts against earlier modernist principles.
c.Postmodernist movement rejected modernism as a failure of evolution
of man. Most generally, “postmodernity” is the state or condition of
being postmodern particularly in reference in literature and culture.
d.In other words, postmodernism is the “cultural and intellectual
phenomenon”, especially since the 1920s’ new movements in the arts,
while postmodernity focuses on social and political outworkings in
society, especially since the 1960s’ new movements in societies, taking
place around the world.
 Principles of Postmodernism
1. No Truth
a. Postmodernism rejects all forms of truth claims as such that all
notions of Truth, Reason, Morality, God, Tradition and History are
meaningless and rejected.
b. Postmodernism rejects all worldviews may it be science, religion and
Marxism, as it claims these as artificial constructions that are totally
totalitarian by their very nature?
c. An American guru of postmodernism, Richard Rorty says, “nothing
has an intrinsic nature which may be expressed or represented and
everything is a product of time and change”.
d. Postmodernism accepts nothing as absolute and it rejoices in total
relativism.
2. No Reality
a. postmodernism is a denial of all types of reality. It also suggests that
there is no ultimate Realty behind things; we see largely what we
want to see, what our cultural and historic perceptions focus on.
b. Postmodernism also suggests that the distinction between image and
 Cont…
3. Imagination and Speculation
a. Reality has been drowning into the ocean of images; There is no possibility of
meaning as there is difficulty in establishing the imaginative and speculative with
the actual material.
b. It is like a video game being seduced by the allure of spectacle. We have all become
characters in the global game, zapping our way from here to there, fighting wars in
cyberspace, making love to digitized bits of information.
4. Meaningless and valueless
a. The world is without truth and reason; there is no knowledge about existence as there
is no possibility of knowing its meanings.
b. Everything has to be deconstructed. But once deconstruction reaches its natural
conclusion, we are left with a grand void: there is nothing that can remotely provide
us with meaning, with sense of direction, with a scale to distinguish between good
and evil.
5. Total Doubt
a. Postmodernism generates doubt about everything; doubt is the perpetual and
perennial condition of postmodernism.
b. It is best described by the motto of the cult television series The X-files: “Trust no
RELIGIOUS WORLDVIEW

44
 Definition
1. Literally; English dictionaries mention few interrelated meanings of religion
including;
a. A pursuit or interest to which someone ascribes supreme importance. (b) It also
implies “respect for what is sacred”, or that which is “reverence of the gods”. (c) As
well as “obligation” or “the bond between man and the God.”
2. Conceptually;
a. Religion is generally used to describe “sacred law” or “sacred way of life” that is presumed
to bound man to the divine realms; a divine law that is set to guide man’s life, which man is
morally obliged to fulfil its teachings.
b. August of Hippo (d. 453), equates religion to inherent character to a law “written in man’s
heart”.
c. Modern Dutch theologian, Cornelis Petrus Tiele (d.1902) described man’s natural inclination
towards the divine power as a “universal psychological phenomena”
• Paul Johannes Tillich (d. 1965), describes this natural inclination towards the search for
human fulfilment in the divine order, as a “universal divine cantered-consciousness”.
• Muslim scholars commonly understand religion as “a divine law that enables people with
intelligence to attain goodness and happiness in this world and the next life with their own
desire”.
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 Religious Worldview
a. It is a world-view that relies on religious belief as a source of
knowledge and guidance; it’s teachings are based on religious
scripture.
b. It encompasses both the world of seen and unseen; it is more stable
than scientific and philosophical world-views as it has some
unchangeable values and systems of belief and ethics.
c. Religious worldviews include; Judaism, Christianity, Hinduism,
Buddhism, Jainism, Taoism, Sikhism and the Islamic worldview.
 Religious-worldview allows transcendental conceptions of the general order of
existence that are not present in. The conception of religious worldview includes
the following cognitive notions:
a. In general, there is a universal spirit, god, deity or divine entity.
b. This divinity has established an eternal moral order that, in part at least, can be
known to human beings.
c. People have the duty to follow such eternal moral dictates.
46
d. This human conduct has long-term (beyond individual death) significance.
 In the Islamic worldview, religion should have certain attributes;
a.it has to be close to basis nature of human being, which represent all
good qualities and attributes of humans.
b.it has to be a religion of consistency, which does not teachings that
discriminate countries, races and generations, past and present. It
should also be a religion that does not increase or decrees through time
and places, according to desires and whims of given generations.
c.religious teachings must be transmitted through and within clearly
evident proofs, not through ambiguous terms. Good faith and mere
spirituality should not the basis of believing in religious teachings.
d.religious teachings must be comprehensive and all encompassing, in
such a way that religion tackles all issues of life in all times, here and
hereafter, body and spiritual needs.
e.religion must include teachings that are set to preserve the life of the
people, honour and wealth, hence it must include teachings of social
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order, a governing system, based on which given societies are ruled.
 THE ISLAMIC WORLDVIEW
-DEFINITION and CHARACTERISTICS

48
 Definition
a. Islamic worldview is:
i. the conception of life that derived from the
authentic Divine Revelations (al-wahy al-
rabaniyi), and demonstrated by reason
ii. It is formed by the universal norms of thought,
justified by realities of life and guided by the
Divine Revelations.
b. Islamic worldview is:
“the vision of the reality and truth that appears before our
mind’s eyes that reveals what the existence is all about.”
(al-Attas, Prolegomena).
c. It is a “comprehensive conception of the universe and
man’s relation to it from the Islamic perspective, thereby
serving as a basis for one’s philosophy or outlook of life.”
49
(Kamal Hassan.)
50
51
52
53
54
 Tawhid
(the belief in the unity of God)

56
•One of the important questions is:
how the belief in one God as taught in tawhid is different
from other belief systems ?

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58
 The opponents of the tawhidic worldview
1. Shirk or polytheism.
o Shirk means the act of associating other gods, divinities or dieties besides
Almighty, Allah (s. w. t.). Muslim scholars often mention that shirk could be
committed in various ways, including;
a. polytheism in the level of Lordship
b. polytheism in the level worship/legislation
c. polytheism in the level of names and attributes

2. Kufr (denial or disbeleif)

o Kufr basically means covering and hiding an already existing
realities or denial. It is the denial of God’s existence. The
Qur’an distinguished various kinds of disbelief and infidelity;
a. kufr al-inkar (denial); it is the condition of neither recognizing
the existence of God (lack of shahadah) nor acknowledging
Allah (s. w. t.) through ibadah.
b. kufr al-juhud (refutation); it is the condition of recognizing His
existence but without acknowledging Him by means of
‘Ibadah.
c. kufr an-nifaq (hypocrite); it is the condition of outwardly
recognizing His existence and acknowledging Him through 59
‘Ibadah, but not recognizing him in heart and thus remaining
 Revelation and
Prophethood
(al-wahy wa alnubuwwah)
 Revelation and Prophethood
• Revelation represents the Divine Will, that is directly
communicated to humanity, through selected members
of humanity; this divine will consists the divine guidance
that is set guide man towards what ought to be.
• In the Islamic worldview, Prophetood is not confined to
the Muslims only; indeed according to Islamic
perspective, Prophethood is a universal phenomena, a
blessing granted to all mankind; Allah send a Prophet to
every nation.
• Prophets were sent to their respective nations; some of
these Prophets received Scriptures (kutub) and some
others received holy texts (suhuf). Some of these holy
texts were are mentioned in the Qur’an, such as the
Torah, Zabur, Injil, and the Qur’an, while holy texts
(suhuf), were given to some Prophets, like Prophet
Abraham (a. s.).
 Cont…
• Though revelation is given to every society,
however, books of the non Muslims might have
been dissipated, lost, tempered with or confused
what has been revealed; thus in the eyes of Islam,
the Qur’an serves as the final revelation of God,
that is preserved with its original revelation and
language.
• The essence of the message given to all Prophets
was the same through the ages; the bottom line or
common among messengers of God is the ‘belief in
one God’ (‘ibudul- Allah wala tushriku bihi shay’an);
• Forms of devotion and rituals varied from one
community to another (likuli ummatin ja’alna
mansakan); laws (shari‘ah) and way of life (manhaj
 Cont…
• Revelation is act of mercy, necessary for certain
knowledge of the divine will; thus it is being given
to all nations; to have prophethood is within the
possibility. It is God who, out of His Mercy selects
an agent from human individuals, to convey his
guidance to mankind.

• Prophethood is achieved as a result of selection of

God (ikhtiyar ilahi), not by acquisition or by effort
(iktisab). It is Allah who selects prophets to convey
his teachings to the rest of humanity. He knows
best who is fit to receive His message; Prophethood
is received by means of divine selection (ikhtiyar
illahi), thus not through human effort and endeavor
whatsoever might be (6:124, and 22:75).
 Cont…
• Prophets are perfected and purified individuals, who
are conferred or elected by God; they are embodied
with high moral ideals and thus they serve as
perfected models of life for the rest of human fellows.
• This is to say that, Prophets are selected from among
human beings, thus they are not semi-gods, nor the
children of God or angels (41:6). Their job is to convey
the message. In Islam, Prophets have no power to
redeem the original mistakes of man. (3:128).
• Prophets are infallible (ma’sumin) and they are gifted
persons with profound moral insight with exceptional
powers of expression; infallibility includes the
character of being truth teller (sidq), trustworthiness
(amanah), non-concealment (tabligh) and intelligence
(fadhinah).
 Cont…
• There is a need for universal and absolute source of
values, particularly those issues which are related
to ethics and morality, good and bad, etc., ethical
relativism leads to monopoly and domination.
• There is a need for common standards of human
intellectual thinking and rationalization, based on
which logical arguments are finally evaluated and
validated.
• There are certain aspects of human life in which
man needs to have exemplary model to follow, and
this is achievable through Prophethood. These
areas include, religious practices like how to
worship God, and best ways of relating our self to
other human fellows as well as to the entire
universe.
 Islamic conception of natural order (universe)
• In Islam, natural order is understood through five
principles namely;
• Profanity,
• Createdness,
• Orderliness,
• Purposiveness,
• Subservience.
 Profanity
• Profanity of nature means, nature is not sacred and it is not evil, rather
it is profane.
• On one hand, nature in itself is not God (not sacred) and not the
ultimate reality.
• On the other hand, unlike Theravada Buddhism which sees nature as
eternal but evil as it causes the precipitation of desire (tanha), the
tendency to change, suffering constitute its essence, in Islam nature is
not evil.
• In Islam, nature is ephemeral (non eternal) in itself, it is good; but
with reference to what man makes of it, or how he conducts himself
toward it. It man who will either make it good or evil.
 Cont…
• Islam rejects those naturalistic religions who hold nature to
be numinous, that is, mysterious (hiddenness) and terrifying
(overwhelming power).
• Islam those religious conceptions who condemned nature as
evil and demonic, and it rejects also, those conceptions treat
nature with praise and divine terms.
• Nature in Islam is an inexorable (continuing) process of
generation and decay, clockwork that works according to
original purpose and design.
 Createdness
• Nature in Islam is a creature of God, created ex nihilo, by
the sheer command of God for it to be.
• Allah caused the nature to exist and brought it into being,
and thus, nothing in nature can resemble God as Creator as
“There is nothing like Him” (ash-Shura:11).
• Islam does not confuse the creature of God with the Creator,
the Qur’an teaches that, it is a terrible mistake to associate
Him with His creatures because God alone is the Creator.
 Orderliness
• God has created everything in nature perfect (al-A‘la: 2).
• Islam holds nature to be an orderly realm; an event occurs
as result of its cause; in turn, its occurrence is the cause of
another event (al-Talaq: 3)
• The causal efficacy of each aspect is measured; and thus
nature is thus a complete and integral system of causes and
effects without flaw, without gap, perfectly patterned by its
Creator. (al-Mulk: 3-4).
• This perfection in nature will remain as long as it exists; for
God’s creation will always be the same. The reason is that
the patterns of God are immutable (fixed).
 Purposiveness
• Each of the objects that constitute nature has been
assigned to a purpose, which it must, and will,
fulfill, (al-Furqan:2).
• The purposiveness of the creations relate also to the
orderliness in nature, all within Allah’s knowledge
and providence, (al-Anbiya’: 16).
• Such purpose is built into the object as its nature and it
moves with inexorable (continuing) necessity.
• These purposes may be obvious and well known or hidden
and almost unknowable. But they are certainly there,
“qadaran maqdura”, specific and precise ‘purpose’, (al-
Ahzab:38).
 Subservience
• Subservience mean, the nature and its functions are is
subordinate to the Will and the Authority of Allah.
• It also means that the nature is useful as a means or an
instrument which serves to promote an end.
• The order of nature is subject to man, who can bring to it
changes as he wills. Nature has been created malleable,
capable of receiving man’s intervention into its processes.
• All aspects of nature with its sun, moon, the earth, and the
oceans, etc., are subservient to man, in order for him to
explore and to utilize for pleasure and comfort or for
contemplation.
 Man in the Qur’an
(the Identity of man)
 Man in the Qur’an
• Man is the creation of al-Mighty God, who created
him from dry dust or clay.
• Man in the Qur’an, consists two interrelated
elements; namely, body and spirit. Combination of
these two is known as human beings.
• Man is trustee and holds responsibility of being
Vicegerent (khalif). This makes man’s life to be
purposive because according to the Islamic concept
of human life, man’s life has certain teleological
goals, which requires man to remain constantly
conscious and cognizant to achieve such goals.
 Cont….
• It is noble because, God has empowered man with
qualities of intellect, knowledge, freewill and
guidance, which raises man into a unique position
above other creatures of God. In this understanding
man is honoured with special talents and faculties.

• In this verse, man existed as a result of a divine-

plan, and delegated to civilize the earth. In this
understanding, man is associated with a vital
mission of making the entire universe a habitable
place.
 Cont…
• As such, human life neither existed through
accidental arrangement of nature nor through
random occurrences of natural phenomena. The
Qur’an teaches that Allah (s.w.t) empowered man
with mental strength, skill and intelligence, so that
man can appreciate and improve life (ta’mir).

• Responsibility is an essential element in the

theological understanding of the relationship
between man and God in Islam, for every human
individual is responsible for his deeds.
 Conclusion
• While the Qur’anic term khalif signifies
commissioned for a duty and responsibility, the
concept ta’mir means constant improvement of life.

• Within the conceptual frameworks of khalif

(vicegerence) and ta’mir (improvement), human life
is elevated into a level of steward and guardian
(musakhar).
Eschatology
Or
HEREAFTER
 Definition
• Eschatology is made of two words; eschatos which means
“last” and “logy” which means “the study of”. It is part of
theological science concerned with ‘the four last things’,
such as death, Divine judgment, heaven and hell.
• Eschatology is a part of theology, physic, and futurology
concerned with what are believed to be the final events of
history of the world, or the Destiny ultimate destiny of
humanity. This concept is commonly referred to as the end
of the world or end time.
• Sometimes is called beliefs “end of the world”, or the
knowledge about the “end of the age”, “end of life as we
know it” or “end of time” with the end of a certain period of
time, the end of life as it is now, and the beginning of a new
period of time.
 Cont…
• Some Buddhists hold the belief in cycles and
reborn in which the life span of human beings
changes according to human nature; however, if
man manages to resist his or her greedy and
selfish desires, then eventually man ends up in
nirvana.

• Hinduism scatology is associated to Karma

Samara, soul transmigration, and reborn and
individual.

• Christian eschatology is concerned with death,

an intermediate state, Heaven, Hell, the Second
Coming of Jesus, and the resurrection of the
 Cont…
• With regards to eschatology or to where
human beings will be after their death, there
are basically two main understandings across
the religions: Life in Hereafter and re-living in
the cycle of re-births:
A. Those religions that believe in the Hereafter say
that there will be another world after this earthly
one called “Hereafter”. In the Hereafter, there
would be two realms; one is Paradise where
everything beautiful ad pleasant will be there, while
the other is Hell where everything horrible and
unpleasant will be there.
• Some religions give vivid and detailed descriptions
of these realms while some others, however, give
only symbolic descriptions about these.
 Cont…
• Those people who observed and complied
with teachings of the religion and had done
meritorious deeds while alive on earth will
reside in Paradise, but those who were bad
and did evil deeds while alive on earth will
find themselves in Hell.

B. There are those religions that do not belief in

the Hereafter but believe in the Doctrine of
Re-births. For these religions a person is
reborn over and over again, in various forms
and species, dependent upon the person’s
character and deeds in the current life, their
 Cont…
• These Cycles of Rebirths continue on and on until
the person acquires enough merits to be liberated
from this Cycle. However, there are those
religions that do not belief in the regressive
rebirth but only in progressive rebirth. This means
that if the person has not achieved enough merits
to be promoted to a better rebirth, the person
stays at the same position in the next rebirth.
• Among these religions, some say that liberation is
either to be united with god or the Universal Soul
or to live with the gods and be like one of them.
However, there are also religions that believe that
liberation from the cycles of rebirths is to be
reborn permanently in a state of fulfillment and
complete bliss.
 The Names of Hereafter in the
Qur’an
• Yom al-Akhirah (hereafter)
• Hereafter means after this- in sequence or in time,
and basically denotes some future time or future
state.
• Yom al-Qiyamah (the day of standing-up)
• Yom al-Mi’ad (the day of the final fate)
• Yom al-Hashr (the day of resurrection)
• Yom al-Jam’i (the day of assembly)
• Yom al-Din (the day of judgement)
• Yom al-Ba‘ath (the day of raise-up)
 Understanding Hereafter
• In the Islamic theology, resurrection of man is rationally
possible (mumkin).
• This is to say that, yamul qiyamah is part of what Muslim
theologians call mumkinat aqliyyah (logical possibility).
• This logic is driven from the reality of life, which is
possible.
• There was a time that we are not in existence, now we exist,
then the time comes where we are not in existence,
therefore, it is logically possible that one day we might re-
exist again.
• This logical possibility is confirmed by the revelation which
made it reality by asserting it as real and true.
• Thus, yamul Qiyammah is logically possible, and real in
revelations.
 The belief in Hereafter in the Qur’an

• Many of the people whom the Prophet

addressed had mocked and laughed at the
Prophet when he told them about life hereafter.
“What! when we die, and become dust and bones, shall we (then) be
raised up (again). And also our fathers of old?" (37:16-17).

• Many of them expressed their astonishment

when they were informed the life-after. It seem
to them that something impossible which could
not understood in anyway.
“And he makes comparisons for Us, and forgets his own (origin and)
Creation: He says, "Who can give life to (dry) bones and decomposed
ones (at that)?” (36:78).
 The belief in Hereafter in the Qur’an
• The Qur’anic reply was that there was no
reason for such astonishment and mockery
because resurrection is not only logically but
physically possible for the following reasons.
A.if it is God who created man in the first place, why should it
be impossible for God to recreate him when he dies?
Resurrection should be easier than original creation. (30:27
and 36:78)
B.If you think about it carefully, you will come to see that the
bringing of life to the dead is a common natural
phenomenon. To believe in resurrection of man, a thinking
person does not need to see a person coming to life again. It
is enough to see other dead bodies coming to life. (41:39)
 Why is resurrection desirable?
• Given the injustice that is taking place in here now, having
a place in which justice is established is desirable.

• God created men and made them responsible for their

actions; some behaved well but others did not. If there is
no future life in which the virtuous are rewarded and the
vicious are punished, there would be no justice and the
creation of men in that way and the sending of Prophets to
them would be to no purpose at all.

• But this kind of behaviour is not expected of a man

known to be rational and just, let alone the Perfect Creator.
 The role of the belief in Y.Q in our Life
• Because success in hereafter depends on the success
in here-now, thus encourages us to strive hard to be
successful on earth. (17:72)

• Since every action and deed is recorded and shown

in hereafter, the belief in hereafter, encourages the
person to act justly and be fair. (45:29)

• The belief in hereafter makes our life aim-full and

thus balances our life in here-now. (23:115)
GLOBALIZATION:
DEFINITION,
ADVANTAGES
AND
DISADVANTAGES
 Globalization defined
o A process of integration and democratization of the world’s
culture, economy, and infrastructure through transnational
investment, rapid production of communication and information
technologies, and the impacts of free-market forces on local,
regional and national economies
o A global village and the expansion of global linkage, which
established a global consciousness for the consolidation of world
society
o A historical process and the result of human innovation, which
breaks down geographical and geopolitical boundaries in order
to make the world into a single global village
o A borderless world and transparent in order to have
interconnection between society’s cultures, institutions and
individuals worldwide (Ulrich Beck, 2000)
 Globalization defined
• A process by which capital, goods, services and labor cross
national borders and acquire a transnational character, ideas,
values and tastes across boundaries which help to reshape local
political institutions, social relationships and cultural patterns
• The transfer of taste means shoes, drinks, and dress and
behaviors, the transfer of values means cartoons, comics, films,
languages, videos, and musicals and toys, and the transfer of
ideas means secularism, postmodernism, and materialism into
the mind of people (Muzaffar)
• The roots of the current globalization process are based on the
western colonial domination and imperial mentality; major
centers of economic, technological, political and cultural power
are under the control of the West, the pattern and the pace are
directed and determined by them
 Advantages of
Globalization
 Help reduce poverty by creating jobs and improving
incomes.
 Information technology have helped disseminate
knowledge in many fields of study and disciplines.
 Communication is cheaper and easier. Costs of
telephone calls as well as travel have fallen.
 Communities although heterogeneous, can be more
cooperative now that are more means of understanding
each other.
 Possible for humanity to have compassion for each
other when calamities – natural or man-made – affect
others.
 Issues such as human rights and public accountability
are brought to the fore.
97
 DISADVANTAGES OF
GLOBALIZATION
 Environmental degradation due to unrestrained logging activities of
transnational corporations whose sole aim is to multiply profits.
 Economic disparities have been created. There are stark regional
disparities in poverty.
 Basic necessities in life are set aside in favor of profits. Many
countries in the South have been occupied with facilitating foreign
investment in industries that are lucrative to foreign markets and
forsaking the most fundamental needs of the people.
 Globalization aids the removal of national controls over cross-border
financial flows. Dramatic outflows of capital from one country to
another have caused havoc in some currencies, particularly in
Southeast Asia.
 Advances in technology aggravated by the outflow of capital to low
cost production sites in the South has caused growing unemployment
98

in the North, which is an affront to human dignity.

 DISADVANTAGES OF GLOBALIZATION
 Globalization has popularized the consumer culture.
Consumerism has given birth to materialism where people are
more interested in what they have rather than the essential
aspects of humanity.
 Global consumerism is now forming a homogeneous global
culture where indigenous cultures of the South are being
replaced by Western cultures.
 The global entertainment industry is propagating a superficial
American pop culture, which titillates the senses and impairs the
spirit.
 Formal education systems are emphasizing technical and
managerial skills responding to market demands and leaving
aside traditional academic subjects. This means that education is
nothing more than acquiring specific skills and techniques and
99
less emphasis on moral education.
 CHALLENGES OF GLOBALIZATION
 Environmental crisis
 The global order
 Post-modernism
 The secularization of life
 The crisis of science and technology
 Penetration of non-islamic values
 The image of islam
 The attitudes to other civilization
 Internal challenges
 Violation of human rights
 Feminism
 LIBERALISM:
DEFINITION AND CHALLENGES
LIBERALISM DEFINED
 Liberalism defined
• ‘Liberalism’ a political philosophy based on belief in
progress, the essential goodness of the human race, and the
autonomy of the individual and standing for the protection
of political and civil liberties;
• Liberalism means:
• The primacy of individual freedom and choice to
believe in and to do according to his will.
• Religious law should be brought into open fully dressed in
reason and argument towards exercising Islamic teachings
in all aspects of human life
 Development
• In 1904 a reformist Abdul Aziz al-Tasaalabi wrote a book on
“Liberal spirit in the Quran” in Tunisia and Morocco, translated
into Arabic “Ruhut Taharrur fil Quran”
• Issues: revitalizing women’s role, tolerance, rejecting
fanaticism, reinterpretation of jihad verses etc. It also
includes freedom of thinking, faith, and action
• Hassan Hanafi (Egypt, born 1935) wrote:
• “There is no one interpretation of a text, but there are many
interpretations given the difference in understanding between
various interpreters. An interpretation of a text is essentially
pluralistic. The text is only a vehicle for human interests and
even passions.
 Development

• Hassan Hanafi (cont’d)

• ... The conflict of interpretation is essentially a socio-political
conflict, not a theoretical one. Theory indeed is only an
epistemological cover-up. Each interpretation expresses the
socio-political commitment of the interpreter."
• Abdullahi An-Na`im (Sudan, born 1946) said:
• "there is no such thing as the only possible or valid
understanding of the Qur'an, or conception of Islam, since each
is informed by the individual and collective orientation of
Muslims...."
 Challenges
• Liberal Muslims object to the implementation of the Shari’ah on
several grounds:
– Against theocracy
– For democracy
– Rights of women
– Right of non-Muslims
– Freedom of thought
• They call for the re-interpretation of the Shari’ah; they argue that the
revelation is divine, but interpretation is human and fallible and
inevitably plural. Emphasize on reason and condemn Taqlid

106
 Challenges
• Liberal Islam opposes the idea of theocracy – a system of government
comprised of priests, in which laws of the state are believed to be the
laws of God. Liberal Islamists, like Ali Abd al-Raziq and Khalaf Allah
argue that the silence of sharia regarding the form of government has
left it for human construction, so it depends on their choice
• Liberal Islamists re-examine the tradition and statements of
Prophet(pbuh) and find them less hostile to women’s right that is
conceived for long generation after generation. They try to reform the
traditional society to extirpate the gap between the fallen historical
reality and the desired model of Islam
• Hassan Hanafi (Egypt), Amina Wadud-Muhsin (United States),
Abdullahi An-Na`im (Sudan) are the examples of Liberal Muslims
• Liberal Islam has been denounced by many Muslims, the proponents
of ‘Liberal Islam’ has been referred to as ‘Secularists’ and
‘Apostates’.
 EXTREMISM:
DEFINITION, DEVELOPMENT, MANIFESTATIONS,
CAUSES AND REMEDIES
 Extremism defined
• In Arabic, Ghulu means “excessiveness” and tashdid
“bigotry”
‫َأ‬ ‫َأ‬
‫• ُقْل َيا ْهَل اْلِكَتاِب َال َتْغُلوْا ِفي ِديِنُكْم َغْيَر اْلَح ِّق َوَال َتَّتِبُعوْا ْهَواء َقْوٍم َقْد‬
‫َضُّلوْا ِمن َقْبُل‬
‫ْا‬ ‫ُّل‬ ‫َك‬ ‫ْا‬ ‫ُّل‬ ‫َأ‬
‫ي‬
‫َّس ِب ِل‬ ‫ال‬ ‫اء‬‫َس َو‬ ‫ن‬ ‫َع‬ ‫و‬ ‫ا‬
‫ًر َوَض‬‫ي‬‫ِث‬ ‫و‬ ‫• َو َض‬
Say: "O followers of the Gospel! Do not overstep the bounds
[of truth] in your religious beliefs; and do not follow the
errant views of people who have gone astray aforetime, and
have led many [others] astray, and are still straying from
the right path.(Q. 5:77)
• In hadith,
• “Beware of excessiveness in religion before you have
perished as a result of excessiveness” 109
 Extremism defined

• Extremism means:
• being situated at the farthest possible point from the
center going to great or exaggerated lengths exceeding
the ordinary, usual, or expected limit Figuratively, a
similar remoteness in religion, politics and ethnicity
• Excessiveness as a strategic threat against the security,
stability and well-being
• Excessiveness as a psychological disturbance such as the
difficulty of coping with depression or mental disorder
 Development
• Extremism as an old phenomena found in all religions such as
Judaism, Christianity and Islam
• Religious extremism:
• In the early period, there were many sects with different thoughts and
beliefs such as Al-Khawaarij, Mu`tazilah, and Al-Murji’ah and so
on
• Misconception of Al-Khawaarij
• A person who commits a major sin will remain in the
Hellfire forever
• People against them are disbelievers and heaping curses
upon the companions of the prophet and Ansar
• Not to believe in the torment of the tomb [‘adhab al-qabr],
nor in the Basin [Hawd], nor in the right of intercession
[shafa'ah] 111
 • Misconception of Al-Murji’ah

• Actions are deferred from Iman (Al-Irjaa’), & are not part of it
• Iman is simply the complying of the heart. Thus the sinner is a
believer with complete Iman, even if he does what he does from
the disobedient acts or he abandons what he abandons from the
obedient acts.
• If someone that abandons one of the commandments of the
Religion is a disbeliever, then that would be due to the absence
of the complying in his heart not due to his abandonment of that
deed

112
 Manifestations of
Extremism

1. Bigotry and intolerance

2. Commitment to excessiveness and forcing others to do so
3. Obsolete religious excessiveness and overburdening toward
others
4. Harshness in the treatment of people and crudeness in calling
people to Islam
5. Suspicion: “O believers! Avoid suspicion as much as for
suspicion in some cases is sin” (Q. 49:12)

113
 Causes of Extremism

1. Lack of knowledge of the Shari`ah

2. Lack of insight into reality and history as well as Allah’s Sunan
3. Laxity or indifference to Islamic values and corruption
4. Fanned by political oppression practiced by rulers or regimes
5. Hatred and aggression factors
Causes of
extremism
 Remedies for extremism
1. Acknowledging and confirming its genuine commitment by
practical adherence to Islamic principles in the conduct of public
affairs
2. Showing a greater understanding by scholars/older people towards
our youth and having frequent and open discussions with them
3. Taking seriously effective steps to increase the young people’s in-
depth understanding of how to interpret the Quran and hadith in
order to achieve a true insight into the Shari‘ah
4. Increasing knowledge and in-corporeting values in practices
5. Sympathetic understanding of abilities, limitations and
circumstances of others
6. Having a dialogue with extremists to know the real causes

116
 Search for ISLAMOPHOBIA & PLURALISM,
LIBERALISM & HUMAN RIGHTS MOVEMENT.