The Quran gives great importance to the intellect, relying on it in matters of belief and obligations, and praising it in many places. This is a distinction not found in the scriptures of other religions, where one might notice a tendency to undervalue or caution against the intellect, considering it a door to doubt and denial.

The significance of the intellect is evident from the fact that its root word “ʿa.q.l” appears in the Quran approximately 50 times, accompanied by meanings of praise, exaltation, and the necessity of using it, while frequently uses words that carry the meaning of intellect or are close to it.

When the Quran refers to the intellect, it does not use it in a nominal form but in a verbal form to affirm that the intellect is not an essence or material in itself, as philosophers believe. This was understood by Ibn Taymiyyah in his “Majmoo' al-Fatawa” when he said: “The term 'intellect' in the language of Muslims is not the same as the term 'intellect' in the language of these Greeks, for the intellect in the language of Muslims is a source of reasoning, as in the Quran: 'And they will say, 'If only we had been listening or reasoning, we would not be among the companions of the Blaze' (Al-Mulk: 10) The intellect in Islam refers to the innate faculty given by Allah to humans to reason with, while for them, the intellect is an independent entity like the rational being, which does not correspond to the language of the messengers and the Quran.”

Some contemporary scholars, like Arkoun, assume that the absence of the nominal form indicates that the Quran does not recognize the concept of intellect in its modern philosophical sense. Zaki Al-Milad attributes this preference for the verbal form to two factors:

First: The Quran is a book of action and behavior, not a book of opinion and theory. Its logic is the logic of action, not opinion, and it always calls for action, addressing individuals, groups, societies, and even nations, saying, “And say, 'Do [as you will], for Allah will see your deeds, and [so, will] His Messenger and the believers.'” (At-Tawbah: 105)

Second: The verbal form in the Quranic discourse indicates movement as opposed to stillness, meaning that the intellect should always be in a state of constant movement, not stillness.

Additionally, the Quran uses the root “ʿa.q.l” with different meanings to encompass the various functions of the human intellect in its diverse tasks and characteristics, deliberately differentiating between these functions and characteristics in different contexts and situations. These functions include:

• The ethical function: In its general sense, the intellect is a faculty responsible for moral restraint or preventing forbidden and reprehensible acts, derived from “ʿaql,” meaning restraint and prohibition. Al-Jahiz says: “The intellect is called so because it restrains the tongue and bridles it from going excessively in the way of ignorance, error, or harm, just as a camel is restrained.”
• The cognitive function: A primary function of the intellect that contemplates what it perceives, reflects on its aspects, extracts its inner secrets, and builds upon it conclusions and judgments, avoiding falling into dangers. As Al-Ghazali says: “Intellect is not striving oneself to resolve a matter once involved in it, but intellect is to avoid putting oneself in a situation that requires resolution.”
• The inferential function: One of the highest functions of the intellect, which thinks and deduces opinions after thinking, contemplating the potential outcomes of human actions. The Quran expresses this with various words of similar meaning such as reflection, sight, contemplation, consideration, and other mental faculties, as in the ayah: “Say, 'Observe what is in the heavens and the earth.' But of no avail will be signs or warners to a people who do not believe.” (Yunus: 101)

The intellect cannot perform these and other functions without the critical faculty that allows it to distinguish between good and evil and issue rational judgments. Although the concept of criticism or its derivatives is not explicitly mentioned in the Quran, it calls for it clearly: “O you who have believed, if there comes to you a disobedient one with information, investigate, lest you harm a people out of ignorance and become, over what you have done, regretful.” (Al-Hujurat: 6)

Several Quranic terms imply the meaning of criticism, including advice, which involves calling for righteousness and forbidding corruption of any kind. When comparing advice and criticism, they share meaning and purpose, as advice involves exposing flaws and errors, similar to criticism. Islamic scholars practiced scientific criticism extensively, among them Ibn Rajab Al-Hanbali, who stated: “Refuting weak articles and reports and clarifying the truth with valid religious evidence is not disliked by sincere scholars; rather, it is something they commend, even if it exposes their mistakes.”

Another term is “enjoining good and forbidding evil,” which correlates with criticism in that enjoining good distinguishes and highlights what is good and virtuous from other condemnable concepts and behaviors, which is the essence of criticism.

Another term is “nullification,” a Quranic term referring to negative criticism that leads to destruction, unlike positive criticism aimed at rectification, as in Allah’s saying: “And do not be like she who untwisted her spun thread after it was strong.” (An-Nahl: 92)

Criticism in Quranic usage comes in two forms: self-criticism, meaning self-accountability and examining one's words and actions, as in: “And I swear by the reproaching soul [to the certainty of resurrection].” (Al-Qiyamah: 2), and collective criticism, where members of society critique their faulty thoughts and behaviors. An example is the story of the owners of the garden who wanted to deviate from their father's way of giving the poor their share of the garden's produce. When punishment befell them, they returned to their senses: “They said, 'Exalted is our Lord! Indeed, we were wrongdoers.' Then they approached one another, blaming each other.” (Al-Qalam: 29-30), where mutual blame signifies criticism among themselves, their first act after the punishment.

From the above, it is understood that the Quran calls for the use of the intellect, establishing religious and legal matters upon it, and there is nothing in it that invites disdain or disregard for its judgments.

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