The Qur'an and reason

The first verses of the Qur’an ( Alaq 96: 1-5 ) are an exhortation to use reason and to seek knowledge:

1 “ Proclaim (or read) in the name of thy Lord and Cherisher who created-
2 Created man out of a ( mere) clot of congealed blood:
3 Proclaim! And thy Lord is Most Bountiful, -
4 He Who taught (the use of ) the Pen
5 Taught man that which he knew not ”

Yet, for the most part of the past fifteen centuries, Muslims have used the very same text of the Qur’an to drift away from the realm of reason. The Arab Bedouin historical and cultural setting of the Qur’an gives an insight as to why Muslims lagged behind in sciences requiring the use of reason.

On one level, the Qur’an was revealed in a language that corresponded with the cognitive level of the Arabs at the time. The world-view of the Arab Bedouins of the 7th century AD was restricted to tribal life. They were not interested in the origin of the cosmos and believed that the world was dominated by invisible spirits. They also believed in the futility of guarding against blind fate.

On another level, the Qur’an used imagery that was familiar to the first community of believers. Pre-Islamic poems by the hanifs, which lacked in any abstraction, made reference to the throne, the fire, hell and paradise: all terms that were later used in the Qur’an.

In the early days of Islam, an effort was made to reconcile reason and revelation by emphasising the metaphorical meaning of the revelations. The inner meaning of the verses of the Qur’an, they asserted, could only be attained by reason. In an effort to rationalise the cosmos, the Muslim philosophers attempted to go beyond the “sacred ” language of the Qur’an.

The Arabic language of the middle ages, which was inspired by Hellenistic philosophy, was richer in content, thus, more conducive to abstraction. The philosophers’ efforts to reconcile revelation and reason were defeated by the conservative camp which espouses the view that the Qur’an is revealed in a ‘sacred’ unparalleled language which should be interpreted literally.

Heresy accusations were levied against the philosophers for attempting to go beyond the language of the Qur’an. To date, Muslims adhere to a literal interpretation of the Qur’an and remain limited by the world-view of 7th century Arab Bedouins. It is no wonder that the first commandment of the Qur’an, encouraging the use of reason, is all but forgotten.