1 Spring 2008 Islamic Ideology Zahid Siddique Assalam-o-Alaikum to Spring 2008 Semester Your...

1 Spring 2008 Islamic Ideology Zahid Siddique

Assalam-o-Alaikum to Spring 2008 Semester

Your Teacher: Muhammad Zahid Siddique


Objectives, Focus and Pre-requisites

• This is a one-semester introductory level course for under-graduate students. The course has been explicitly developed for the students of FAST BBA students in order to give them an orientation of the valid way of understanding Islam

• The course is meant to:– explain Islamic conception of knowledge– outline defining features of Islamic sources of

knowledge– transmit the valid orthodox method of

understanding and interpreting Islam


Objectives, Focus and Pre-requisites

• Focus of this course is ‘Islamic Epistemology’– though a complete description about the ideology

of a civilization entails discussion about• Metaphysics: what reality is• Epistemology: knowledge and its sources• Morality: question of value—good and bad

• Theme will be to show that Islamic rules of jurisprudence are far more comprehensive than available in any other epistemological discourse

• Good understanding of this course presumes– Muslim– Intermediate level course on Islamic Studies


Course Outline

Tentative Topics (Total Lectures 45)

• Introduction to the Sources of Islamic Ideology– Islamic Conception of Reality– Nature of Islamic epistemology– Scheme of studying Islamic epistemology

• Ilm-ut-Tafseer– Introduction to Quran– Sources of Tafseer– Instruments ofTafseer

• Ilm-ul-Hadith– Basic Terminologies– Authority of Hadith– Overview of Principles to Understand Ahdith


Course Outline

Tentative Topics (Total Lectures 45)• Usool-ul-Fiqh

– Introduction to Usool-e-Fiqh– Sources of Deriving Ehkam (legal-value) – Linguistic Rules to Derive Ehkam – The Legal Value (Hukm-us-Shar’i)– Sunnah– Ijma, Qiyas and Ijtihad

• Embodiment of Islamic Ulooms– Ilm-ul-Kalam– Fiqh– Tasawwuf– Seerat-un-Nabi (SAAW) and History


Course Outline

Tentative Topics (Total Lectures 45)

• Contemporary Issues (will discuss any two or three current issues from the following ones, if time permits)– Islamic Political Theory– Criminal Law of Islam– Islamic Society and Gender-Segregation– Challenges of Islamic Economics– Jihad– A Study of the Struggle for Islamic Revival by

Islamic Movements


Assessment

• 80% attendance is compulsory [9 absences are allowed]

• Following marks distribution scheme will be applied– Two Mid-Terms = 30-35 Marks– Assignments + Quizzes = 15-20 Marks– Final Exam = 50 Marks

• 30-60 minutes text reading and following weakly lectures guarantees you good grades in this course– Concentrate on the theme of this course


Text readings and Related

• Photo-state of selected study material will be available at photo copy shop

• Off class contact– Room # 17, NU-FAST (city campus)– 439 09 41-5, Ext. 20 and

[email protected]• any time during office hours

– Avoid disturbing on mobile• allowed only in case of high emergency

9

Lectures 1-7: Introduction to Islamic Epistemology

Islamic conception of realityIslamic theory of knowledgeScheme of studying Islamic epistemology


Questions we must ask…but never do

• All civilizations (way of lives) are founded on the answer to the question ‘what is reality?’. This question entails answering following questions:– Who am I?

• i.e. my role and status in this world?– What is the nature of my life?

• i.e. objective and duration of my life– What is the nature of this universe and my

relation to it?• i.e. perpetual or mortal

– How can I know reality?• i.e. the source of knowledge

– What is good and what is bad?• i.e. revealed or rational


Islamic metaphysics

• Islam—the last and final message of God to human kind—gives definite answers to these questions– Who am I?

• Man is A’bd—the created one, the servant– What is the nature of my life?

• A test-case in order to worship my Lord—obeying his commandments by submitting my will to Him

– What is the nature of universe and my relation to it?• Created for a specific duration and I am here

as vicegerent, not its master– How can I know reality?

• Revelation known through Prophet– What is good and what is bad?

• Godly determined


Philosophy Vs Religion

Philosophers• Based on human faculties• Have conflicting views

• Agree on the speculative nature of their views

• Keep changing their positions

• Have ultimately abandoned their efforts due to poverty of human faculties

Prophets• Based on revelation• Cent percent agreement

on basic claims throughout

• Sure about the truth and validity of their message

• Never change their views for any reasons

• Highly upright and selfless in character and men of wisdom

• Two groups claim to make reply

• How would reason evaluate the two groups?– when reason itself can’t find exact answers!


Rational justification for Prophetic reporting

• How come to deny their reporting, especially when:– they are so many in numbers, separated by the

time and space differences– all were highly regarded for their upright

character– their claim is not some ‘logical impossibility’

• Mere fact of ‘beyond the realm of my reason’ is not enough to deny their message– Non-existence can’t be derived from no-evidence

• impossible ( عقل خلاف ) and non-experienced (خلافare different (عادت

– reported facts don’t necessarily require ‘logical evidence’ in their support (e.g. historical events)

– only report can do the job when other sources are lacking (e.g. being at some unknown place)


On THE Prophet: Back to the ‘Past’

• World before 1400 years ago– Limited information and means of communication– Dearth of moral and social standards– Arab was even more deprived of knowledge-base

• Individuality and society dominated by shirk• No systematic state system—law of Jungle• Moral deprivation at utmost level

• Within them a child is born– deprived of paternal love and raring– brought up among those Arab– received no knowledge at all– never traveled beyond a short visit to Syria


A star in the darkness

• Despite all that, he has extra ordinary personality– totally abstains from Shirk and injustices– never tells a lie nor betrays trust—regarded

truthful and trustworthy– placed at high levels of modesty (حیا), طهارة and

morality– proves to be an upright successful businessman– after 40-years, detaches himself from his society

in pursuit of truth• On return to his nation, we observe a U-turn

– starts condemning Shirk, injustices and immorality– calls toward Tauheed, Akhirah and Ibadah


A man like a rock

• ‘His owns’ become his bitter enemies– put him into severe agonies– ultimately drove him out of the city– continued fighting against him even after then

• What was the bone of contention?– any monetary benefit?—NO– any power struggle?—No– any family revenge?—NO

• Then why he stood fast against all troubles?– Do you know of someone to bear up severe sort of

torture for no worldly benefits?• especially of the hand of his addressees?

– Have you ever seen such a bold liar or speculator?


A miraculous man

• More amazing is his message and its language– despite being an ordinary Arab, starts speaking

unmatchable Arabic– despite not being exposed to any knowledge,

turns out to be a great revolutionist, reformer, statesman, legislature, Journal and leader

• All was done not by deceit or force, but by heart-filling character and soul-inspiring nobleness– never betrayed or revenged even his bitter

enemies• Interestingly, despite all this magical success, never

behaved like kings– had plain and simple living as earlier– knotted himself with his fellow beings as earlier


A-historical and a-social revolutionist

• Even more amazing is his legacy for this world as ‘revolutionist’– converted all aspects of human life to his desired

form• other humanly movements could not go beyond

one or two aspects of life– in a single life time span—something whole human

history is unable to present• was himself philosopher, preacher, leader and

organizer, head of state and reformer!!!• Mesmerizing is the fact that he can’t be shown an out-

product of his society– ‘material dialectic’ might have raised a ‘nationalist

Arab reformer’—how come to explain his message?– history could not turn him old—looked beyond time– created his own ideology, resources and man-power


Breathtaking truth

• If all of this was out of his own genius, THEN– he was truly entitled to claim his divinity

• Never reserves even one-percent credit to himself– always humbles himself as ordinary man and

attributes all his success to His Almighty God


Islamic metaphysics as a basis of civilization

• Islamic metaphysics reflects itself at all levels of life– Individual: creates a highly responsible,

disciplined, self-annihilating individuality• regards himself subject and trustworthy, not

autonomous and master– Social: makes love and رحمى the very fabric of صله

relationships (e.g. Brotherhood of Medina)• helps strengthen family institution ( وبرادرى (خاندان• structures social stratification around تقوى

– institution of خانقاہ assumes dominant position

• strictly maintains gender-segregation to preserve and flourish family system



– State: introduces conceptions of امت and خلافت• strictly rejects racial and national basis of

state. A nation has many features. It:– is based on hatred– assumes centrality to determine good &

bad– lives for its own sake– pursues ‘accumulation of capital’ as sole

end– can’t transcend geographical limits– is always ‘imperialistic’ to subjugate others

• is based on the principle of brotherhood امتamong امت اجابت , and preaching and اصلاح of دعوت امت– barriers from امت دعوت against the spread of

is the basis of our conflict and fight with حقit



• Islamic state is خلافت (vicegerency of Prophet) where Shariah is the basis of formulating structure of legitimate obediences– strictly rejects democratic and secular

conceptions of state• More on the nature of Islamic society and state later

in this course


Islamic theory of knowledge

• Studying epistemology involves covering three areas1. Nature of knowledge: content and objective of

knowledge; knower-knowledge relation2. Sources of knowledge: ways of knowing, their

validity and limit3. Areas of knowledge: embodiment of

knowledge

Nature of knowledg

e

Ways of knowing

Areas of knowledge

Often discussing about science, people

debate in the outer frontier

Miss the point that real issue begins from

the heart of knowledge


Islamic theory of knowledge: Nature

• Concept and objective of knowledge is derived from concept of reality

• Content of Islamic epistemology is to know the Will of God

• Objective is to help mankind gain Ma’rifah (معرفه)—called worship (عبادت)—of their Lord by practicing Prophetic teachings– No other source to معرفه and salvation than

Prophetic revelation is acceptable• Objective of ‘submission of self’ is exactly opposite

to scientific orientation of ‘dominance of self’



• Scientific conception of knowledge is based upon Enlightenment beliefs of– freedom: right to determine good and bad (denial

of عبدیت)– Equality: equality of all conceptions of good

(denial of ھدایت)– Progress: objective of satisfying infinite wants

(denial of life-after death)• Such a conception of reality equates knowledge

with the dominance of human will over nature realized through scientific laws whereby human asserts his will over nature to satisfy his desires



• This conception leads to evolutionary theory of truth or knowledge b/c of inability of human faculties to find it– Uncertainty: truth and reality is uncertain– Falsifiability: knowledge is what that can be

proved wrong– Doubt: always disbelieve and look for counter

examples– Progress: truth is unfolding itself to us as we

have more experience– Relativity: your truth may be different from mine– Research: be creative to bring new ideas– Evolution: explain existing phenomenon by

evolutionary-interpretation



• Each conception of knowledge gives birth to a concption of morality

• Scientific conception of knowledge:– Justifies the moral status of being without God

• separates religious-morality and authority from the meaning of knowledge

• reduces religious knowledge to private affairs by forcing it out of social expressions– trivializes religious conception of reality

– Justifies the rationality of accumulation and competition (greed and envy)• subordinates knowledge to the discipline of

‘buying and selling’ by subjecting it to accumulation—end in itself



• The standard ethical-values resulting by the dominance of this knowledge are: – Self-interest—sense of exchange based

relationships• makes society a ‘market’ or ‘civil society’

– Greed (desire for more and more accumulation) and envy (competition for worldly riches)

– Devotion for worldly life—desire for longer and longer life ( امل (طول

– Multiplication of wants—utility hunting attitude– Trivialization of I’badah in individual, social and

states spheres of life– Wastage of time in useless & non-sense activities



• Religious knowledge on the other hand: – does not support the rationality of ‘maximization

of dominance over nature ( الارض في ’(تصرف• justifies the morality of ‘submission’ (اطاعت), not

of ‘self-expression’– opposite to, e.g., Maslow’s conception of

self– gives a definite, absolute and universal

conception of reality– is narrative in essence which does not only

include• what to know (know-how), but also• how to speak and how to listen

– combines law, morality and beauty into a single, inseparable entity


Islamic theory of knowledge: Sources

• Source of Islamic knowledge is revelation preserved in– Primary sources

• The Quran• The Sunnah of the Prophet (SAAW)

– interpreted in Secondary sources• Ijma (consensus among experts) • Qiyas (reasoning by analogy)

• Some other, but controversial, secondary sources are

• مرسلہ ،عرف استحصان،مصالح (social convention), teachings of earlier Ummah etc

• Takes reason as instrument to understand revelation, and not as source of truth itself– establishes the priority of Naql over A’ql



– Arguments based on ‘reason’ and ‘report’ can presume four cases of conflict:• Both are certain—an impossibility to take

place • Both are probable—Report will be prioritized• Former is probable and letter is certain—letter

is prioritized• Former is certain and letter is probable—

former prioritized while letter adjusted using appropriate interpretation (تاویل)

– The final authority of our fundamental beliefs is based upon Naql—on the authority of Prophet• discussed earlier• religion is based upon the centrality of

Prophet



• Validity of injunctions ( derived from Islamic (احكامsources depends upon the application of specific-methodology—not following that method disqualifies any effort on the part of researchers– so b/c Islam is an epistemology, not merely an

attitude– this is the most ignored feature in modernist

discourses• Limit: Forms of derived احكام, and not merely their

objectives, transcend time and space—i.e. are universal– can’t be restricted to any specific person, time or

space without having valid argument from valid sources of Shariah, and not merely out of reason, intuition or passion

• These issues are explored later in this course


Islamic theory of knowledge: Areas

• Islamic epistemology has assumed the form of three major areas to regulate three dimensions of our lives:– Kalam deals with beliefs—at the level of mind– Fiqh deals with actions and relations rendered

by individuals—at the level of body– Tasawwuf deals with morality—at the level of قلب

• Other important areas are– Life History of Prophet (SAAW) and history

• Ulema have derived the above classification from the following saying:


Islamic theory of knowledge: Areas


How to study Islamic Epistemology?

• The broader approaches of studying Shariah have already been discussed in IB as per following heads– Orthodox: Islam from its own vintage point– Revisionist: Islamization of west– Modernist: Westernization of Islam

• Refresh it from your IB lecture slides– This course is based upon Orthodox approach to

Shariah as that is the only valid method for it



• Revisionism and Modernism are attitudes developed in response to the dominance of west and has taken dozens of forms right from Sir Syed Ahmed Khan to date

• Do have some common features– prioritize reason over Naql– encourage individual learning of Quran– marginalize authority of Hadith to some degrees– break out of Ijma– seek state-protection for propagation of their

views– don’t set high practical-example by following

Shariah at higher levels of عزیمت



• From Orthodox approach, all areas of knowledge can be described into five categories1. Fundamental disciplines

• Quran, Hadith2. Instrumental disciplines

• Arabic, Fiqh, Usool, etc.3. Supporting disciplines

• Medical, industry4. Neutral disciplines

• Mathematics5. Destructive disciplines

• Magic, social sciences


• Following articles are available at photo state shop– Rational foundations of Tauheed (توحيد), Prophet

hood of Muhammad (SAAW) and Life after Death– Islam and Jahilya– Capitalist Epistemology: an introduction

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