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بسم الله الرحمن الرحيمُ نحمده
ونصلى على
رسوله
الكريمُ TAUHIDIC
INTELLECTUALITY*
BY: MUHAMMAD
‘UTHMAN EL-MUHAMMADY (UEM)
What appears to the present writer as tauhidic
intellectuality is the development of intellectual paradigm and temper of an
individual believer in the Islamic tauhidic world-view, epistemology or
axiology, including the collectivity, and the pursuit of life-goals either
proximate or ultimate, individual or collective, family, societal or
civilizational, based on those perimeters. Certainly the development begins with
the individual and then the influence and the process radiate into the wider
circles and finally into the ummah. We may begin with the human
intellect for it is the center of the human substance that is addressed by the
Qur’anic revelation which constitutes the direct revelation as the
“al-wahyul-matluww” and then the other revelation which is non sonoral, the
“ghair al-mauluww” in the prophetic phenomenon. The human intellect is the
center-point which is to receive the ‘rays’ from revelation and prophecy, in
its process of intellection. In traditional discourse it is expressed that just
as the human eyes can see in full only in the illuminating light of the sun so
the human intellect can only see things in fullness in the illuminating light of
revelation and prophecy. We may refresh our memory with
Ghazalian discourse on the intellect. He reminds us that the intellect (al’aql)
can be seen in four dimensions of meanings. The first it can be seen as the
faculty in man which is the instinct, making him capable of theoretical and
axiomatic knowledge, setting him aside with this special faculty, in the animal
kingdom. The second is the intellect as the dawning of understanding in the
child which develops slowly as the rays of dawn, gradually, making him more
mature. Third, the intellect in man which makes him knowledgeable, with
experience and reflection, and excel in theoretical and practical knowledge,
with its branches. Fourth, the intellect in the mature man of wisdom, the
highest development of the intellect, making him understand things and beings,
end events, to the farthest reaches in time or space, until he understands
theses things into eternity, and hence he becomes mellowed with wisdom,
controlling his appetites and desires in such an effective manner. This is the
ultimate in intellectual development. We can see in this discourse the
idea of the highest intellect related to the development of the ethical or moral
and spiritual personality, and not separate from it. We can call this spiritual
or moral intelligence or whatever. The point is the integration between knowing,
being, and acting. This is related to the triad,
also in al-Ghazali: that knowledge first appears as understanding things as
ideas, in terms of definitions, characteristics, virtues, results, (say
‘charity’ or ‘compassion’) and so on; then there occurs the colouration
or the “sibghah” of the intellect and the soul with this knowledge; hence
there is an inner situation or “hal”; there is being – in-knowledge; then
there is the consequent acting according to that knowledge. This is knowing,
being, acting in knowledge and according to knowledge. In the Khaldunian discourse, we
can discern the terms of discerning intellect (‘al-‘aqlul-tamyizi’) making
man discern things, experiential intellect (‘al-‘aqlul-tajribi’) making
man learn knowledge and wisdom through experience-hence the adage that the man
who does not learn from tradition or parents he is schooled by time-; then there
is the theoretical intellect (‘al-‘aqlul-nazari’) making him skilled in
seeing theoretical matters in knowledge; there is the practical intellect
(‘al-‘aqlul-‘amali’) making him act in suitable manner in life. The
gathering of all forms of skills and intellectual activity of the highest order
in a civilization or society by reason of the availability of experts in all
fields intellectual, industrial, and the crafts, is termed by him as added
intellect (‘al-‘aqlul-mazid’). In his time people were talking
about the people of the East like the Egyptians being more intelligent from
birth, and the people of the Maghrib being born unintelligent or less
intelligent. His explanation is that the people of the East were skilled in all
manner of crafts and sciences because of the availability of added intellect in
their civilization. People can be trained to be skilled in all fields provided
there are experts and teachers with effective teaching skills. Ibn Khaldun also speaks of the
development of ‘malakah’ in students and men of learning. ‘Malakah’
sometimes translated as ‘habit’ or can be translated as skill means to him
the skill in a man of learning or expert in any field which has become so
ingrained in the person and so imbedded in his soul that he acts in his field as
a real expert, and his work is perfect. The present writer likes to put it in
this way: it is like swimming in water for fish and flying in the air for the
bird. And this malakah is used by ibn
Khaldun in all fields: physical, intellectual, spiritual, moral, mechanical,
linguistic and whatever. To him the ‘aqeedah of a man should be with ‘malakah’;
his tauhid should be with ‘malakah’; his prayer, fasting, and so on; his
virtues, his service, his morals, his administration; his thinking and writing.
We can even add: research and development should be with ‘malakah’. To go back to the development and
operation of tauhidic intellectuality: Tauhidic intellectuality begins
in Islam by the inculcation of tauhid or the Oneness of Allah, and the other
articles of faith; in the hereafter, the angelic world, the revealed books, the
Prophets, the Divine Pre-Measurement. This is to believe that all things come
from the cause of all causes, concentrating the spiritual attention on the First
cause, irrespective of the secondary causes or the intermediaries. It is the
conviction that all other causes come from Him. Everything is in His control;
when one has this faith, says al-Ghazali rd “his anger on others, hatred and
jealousy for them will vanish away, and His will remains supreme in his mind’.
This ideal can be attained only by those of perfect faith by His Grace. Others
can attain something nearer or less in relation to this ideal. However it is not
unattainable. To such a person the means or
intermediaries become as it were “like hand and pen”, he does not express
gratitude to the pen as he does it to the hand; certain faith is highest in
rank; then he understands that the sun, moon, the stars, the animals, plants and
the creatures are subject to His Order. The pen moves according to the Writer
Who moves it. A man of this faith will avoid disobedience-either relating to his
relationship with God or His creatures- just like a man avoids poison regardless
of its quantity. The more faith a person has the more cautious is his actions in
relation to his Creator and His creation. Such a person will feel strongly that
Allah watches over him in all circumstances, and he is careful in his thoughts
and deeds. This is the meaning behind the statement “Spiritual
excellence-which is the fruit of strong faith-is that you worship Allah (and you
live your life) as if you see Him and if you do not see Him He sees you”. Such
a person will observe propriety either when he is alone or he is among people in
the society. Apart from understanding tauhid
by learning the proper explanations according to the authentic intellectual
tradition of mainstream Islam, Muslim scholars speak of nurturing this faith by
performing spiritual duties like prayer and fasting and the others, reciting the
Qur’an, performing invocations, and good deeds. Apart from this the scholars
speak of contemplation: like contemplating on the Attributes of Allah so as to
mould our love and faith towards Him, contemplate on our good deeds so that we
will be motivated to perform them, and contemplate on our sins so that we will
be moved to reform ourselves. The Ihya’ of al-Ghazali rd is replete with these
matters. Concerning contemplation on the
creation of God, al-Ghazali rd has discussed this at length in the fourth volume
of the book. He invites us to reflect on the
world and its contents: Think of the world as your habitation and think of the
rivers, oceans, mountains, mines and other things, and then think of the regions
of the heavens (this is for the common man and also the geographer and the
astronomer-uem) …think of the region of the heavens. God has fixed the world,
so that it cannot move (in the ordinary daily observation of man-uem), and He
has placed mountains in it, so that it may not toss, He made some places so high
that nobody can move round them. Think of the earth. It remains dead. When rain
falls upon it, it becomes swollen and then grow therein plants, grass and
creepers with which animals of various kinds sustain their lives…(for the
common man and the agriculturalists-uem). Some plants give food, some give
strength, some save life, some destroy life, some give coolness, some irritate,
some uproot jaundice, some increase it. Some circulate blood, some bring sleep,
some give strength, some weaken it. So there is nothing which grows out of the
earth which does not bring benefits.It is beyond the power of men to comprehend
all the benefits. These are foods for reflection for the intelligent (for the
common man and also men of knowledge-uem)… About the mountains: He says: There are under the
mountains and underneath the ground wonderful signs of God. There are mines of
gold, silver, pearls, and emeralds therein. Some are mixed with other mineral
substances, such as gold, silver, iron, lead. Some are not mixed like emeralds
and rubies. Look then to the mines underneath the ground. Out of them salts,
sulphur, tar etc. are found. If there is not salt, the taste of food goes. God
therefore creates some kind of saltish earth which mixed with water and burnt by
sun-light produces pure salt Therefore God created everything
with some object or other. He has not created it out of sport. God says :I have
not created the heavens and the earth and what is therein out of mere sport. I
have created them with truth. Gods’ signs in the creatures: God created some animals which
fly, some with four feet, some creep on their bellies, some with four feet, some
with hundred feet. You will find in it insects. Their forms, nature and
constitution are also different, You will find in them wonderful signs which
show the craftsmanship of the Creator. If we describe the wonderful workings of
flies, ants, bees, and spiders, etc (for the lay man and those specializing in
study of insects-uem) each has got its particular characteristics, you will see
wonders in them. Look how they construct their habitations, how they collect
food, and how they love their mates, how they store up food. We could not have
done their works with all our might. Do you think that the spider does it of its
own accord and that it has got no teacher? Do all these things not prove that
the Creator is the Mighty, the Wise? Man is the most wonderful among
the animals. He does not express wonder after seeing himself. How Mighty is He
Who created man, the wonder of creations. Sings in Allah’s wonderful
creations: Land of the earth is surrounded
by vast expanse of water. The earth is an island in the vast expanse of water
which surrounds it. The Prophet said: As is the horse’s house in a vast field,
likewise is the earth in oceans. So a horse’s house has been compared with the
earth. Think of the ocean. There are some water animals therein which are like
islands. If you burn something with fire thereon, you will find the island
moving. Then you understand that it is not an island but a water animal. Signs in the air and things
therein: The organs which can touch cannot
touch the air when it flows. The eyes cannot see it; the horizon of air is just
like an ocean. The birds fly therein just as fish in water. Everything in the
air vibrates just as the waves of the sea. If something filled up with air is
drowned in water, it will not drown. On the contrary, if something filled up
with water is thrown up in the air, it will come down to the earth. Then look to
the gravity weight and strength of the air. Take a piece of iron, it will not
float, neither above water, nor in air, but it will go down the water. So air
does not go down the water inspite of its light weight. God keeps the boat above
water as the boats are full of air. Then look to the things in the air-clouds,
rain, thunder, lightning, snow, ice. God says: The clouds that are
well-controlled between heaven and earth .The clouds bear vast expanse of water
and they are driven and scattered to distant lands to deliver the benefits of
water and rain. Heavens and the stars: Heavens and its stars, sun and moon: Look at the sun which
revolves round its axis for one year. Each rises each day and sets in. Had it
not risen and set in, there would not have been night and day and time could not
have been ascertained. It would be all day or all night. Owing to the revolving
of the sun, there appear summer, winter, spring and autumn. When the sun
declines to one side from its axis, then comes the winter season. When it
remains in the meridian, there appears summer season. There is not a star the
creation of which has no purpose. The astrologers are unanimous that the sun is
greater than 160 times of the size of the earth. Then think of the stars. The
smallest star is greater than eight times of the earth. The greatest star is
more than 120 times of the earth. The greater the distance of the star the
smaller it appears to us…Think of the horizon how great it is in which
contains the sun, moon and stars…. Look at the abode of the earth how He
created it and sustains it. As an ant living in a corner of a palace, does not
keep information about the grandeur of the palace, and its attendants and
majesty of its owner, so also we live as an ant in the corner of this vast earth
and do not keep information about the mighty Creator and His Attributes. Now you
cannot conceive the wonderful creations of God and His Power and Prowess,
because you have been given a very little wisdom with which you cannot grasp
everything as you gave been given a little power of sight and hearing. God says:
You have been given but very little knowledge. (Al Qur’an - 17:85). These are
the foods for reflection and ponder. You must think of God’s wonderful
creation and not of His Being. The more you think of His creation the more you
will learn His Glory, Prowess and Power. The above quotations from the
book of reflection in the Ihya’ gives as an aspect of the portrayal of the
tauhidic intellectuality in relation to thinking about the world of nature in
the cosmic order. In the present times, Harun Yahya
is writing extensively about this tauhidic intellectuality in a popular,
convincing and attractive manner. This is apart from what some reputable
scientists are doing in the Muslim world like Prof Zaghlul Najjar and S.H.Nasr
and others. Of course the seminal work of the late Ismail al-Faruqi in
Islamization of knowledge has got to be acknowledged. Concerning the degrees of tauhid
al-Ghazali explains as follows: First tauhid means to believe
with certitude that there is no diety but Allah, He is the One, there is no
partner for Him; to believe in His Power, and His Kindness. Tauhid is a vast
ocean and has no limit. He says: The first stage is like
the outer shell of the coconut; the second is like the inner cover of the
coconut; the third like the kernel of the coconut; the fourth like the oil of
the kernel. The first stage is the recitation
of the statement: ‘There is no deity apart from Allah’. The second is the
stage of those drawn near the Divine Presence confirmation with the heart. The
third is like the kernel, which sees the faith and truth with the inner light or
by way of spiritual unveiling. The fourth is like the oil in the kernel. He sees
nothing but God. This is fana fit-tauhid or losing oneself in tauhid. Such a
person may forget even himself in that state. Concerning the state of tauhid analogous to this Dr al-Buti
says: What is the meaning of the
expression "oneness of perception"?
When I interact with causes with full respect to Allah's ways, His orders, and
His Law, knowing that the sustenance that comes to me is from Allah; the
felicity that enters my home is from Allah Almighty; my food is readied for me
by Allah - I mean even the smallest details; the wealth with which I have been
graced, comes from Allah; the illness that has been put in my being or that of a
relative of mine comes from Allah Almighty; the cure that followed it is from
Allah Almighty; my success in my studies is by Allah Almighty's grant; the
results which I have attained after obtaining my degrees and so forth, are from
Allah Almighty's grant - when the efficacy of causes melts away in my sight and
I no longer see, behind them, other than the Causator Who is Allah Almighty: at
that time, when you look right, you do not see except Allah's Attributes, and
when you look left, you do not see other than Allah's Attributes. As much as you
evolve in the world of causes, you do not see, through them, other than the
Causator, Who is Allah. At that time you have become raised to what the
spiritual masters have called oneness of perception. And this oneness of
perception is what Allah's Messenger
May Allah make us strong in
tauhid. Amin. The spiritual experience of the
spiritual leaders of the East is considered analogous to the experience of the
quantum physicists with their experience in their domain; and they seem to meet.
This is expressed by Frithof Chapra in his classic work “The Tao of
Physics”. He states: “The basic oneness of the universe is not only central
characteristic of the mystical experience, but is also one of the most important
revelations of modern physics”. (p.142). So the tauhidic intellectuality of
the non-scientist can merge with that of the scientist. Imam al-Ghazali mentions 6
spiritual and intellectual stages in the way of developing this tauhidic
personality and intellectuality, apart from studies, devotions, remembrance, and
reflection. These are the stages of: 1.
Placing conditions on oneself in the way of actions and
struggling to realize them. (Musharatah). 2.
The stage of guarding oneself while acting and examining
one’s desires. (Muraqabah). 3.
The stage of taking stock of one’s actions and thoughts (Muhasabah). 4.
The stage of punishing oneself in cases of omissions or
commissions. (Mu’aqabah). 5.
The stage of striving in might and main to be on the right
path (Mujahadah). 6.
The stage of rebuking oneself in cases of mistakes, errors
or sluggishness in actions (Mu’atabah). May Allah make us successful in
bringing about positive changes in our personality and environment. Amin. Then of course we can say
something about being a tauhidic personality, with tauhidic intellectuality,
thinking and acting; then we can extend it to our work, our engagements, and
relationship with others. Then we can speak of our society and institutions
reflecting this tauhidic world-view, knowledge, and values; we can even speak of
our cultural, and civilizational paradigms as tauhidic. Iqbal, may Allah has
mercy on him, has expressed this in this way: In Islam the spiritual and the
temporal are not two distinct domains, and the nature of an act, however secular
in its import, is determined by the attitude of mind with which the agent does
it. It is the invisible mental background of the act which ultimately determines
its character. An act is temporal or profane if it is done in a spirit of
detachment from the infinite complexity of life behind it; it is spiritual if it
is inspired by that complexity. In Islam it is the same reality which appears as
Church looked at from one point of view and State from another. It is not true
to say that Church and State are two sides or facets of the same thing. Islam is
a single unanalysable reality which is one or the other as your point of view
varies. The point is extremely far-reaching and a full elucidation of it will
involve us in a highly philosophical discussion. Suffice it to say that this
ancient mistake arose out of the bifurcation of the unity of man into two
distinct and separate realities which somehow have a point of contact, but which
are in essence opposed to each other. The truth, however, is that matter is
spirit in space-time reference. The unity called man is body when you look at it
as acting in regard to what we call the external world; it is mind or soul when
you look at it as acting in regard to the ultimate aim and ideal of such acting.
The essence of Tauhid, as a working idea, is equality, solidarity, and freedom.
The state, from the Islamic standpoint, is an endeavour to transform these ideal
principles into space-time forces, an aspiration to realize them in a definite
human organization. It is in this sense alone that the state in Islam is a
theocracy, not in the sense that it is headed by a representative of God on
earth who can always screen his despotic will behind his supposed infallibility.
The critics of Islam have lost sight of this important consideration. The
Ultimate Reality, according to the Qur’an, is spiritual, and its life consists
in its temporal activity. The spirit finds its opportunities in the natural, the
material, the secular. All that is secular is, therefore, sacred in the roots of
its being. The greatest service that modern thought has rendered to Islam, and
as a matter of fact to all religion, consists in its criticism of what we call
material or natural - a criticism which discloses that the merely material has
no substance until we discover it rooted in the spiritual. There is no such
thing as a profane world. All this immensity of matter constitutes a scope for
the self-realization of spirit. All is holy ground. As the Prophet so
beautifully puts it: ‘The whole of this earth is a mosque’. (“The
Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam”, in http://www.allamaiqbal.com/works/prose/english/reconstruction/index.html). This is in keeping with the
prayer of the believer facing his Lord in his secret whisperings: “Truly my
prayer, my acts of sacrifice, my life and my death are for the Lord of the
worlds. That is what is being commanded of me. And I am one of those who submit
my will to Allah together with other Muslims”. Wallahu a’lam. *note – This paper was presented in the Education Seminar organized by International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM) at the Crown Princess Hotel, Kuala Lumpur, 17th September 2003. |
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Dikemaskini pada : 24-Jan-04 08:34 PM
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TRADITIONAL
ISLAM
expressed by the word
ihsan [which he defined to mean]: