One of the reasons for the Muslims’ civilizational decline is the neglect of the experimental sciences
What
draws attention is the Muslims’ delay in the experimental or practical sciences
in recent centuries, compared to their strong focus on the traditional
religious sciences such as Qur’anic exegesis, Hadith, jurisprudence, and
theology.
In
the 13th and 14th Islamic centuries (the 18th and 19th centuries CE), we can
scarcely find a significant number of prominent scholars in these scientific
fields, nor noteworthy individuals recognized in their specialties. It is true
that intellectual stagnation affected all branches of knowledge, and that the
aforementioned religious sciences also suffered from rigidity and a lack of
ijtihad and renewal. However, the neglect of the experimental sciences was far
worse, and its consequences have been gravely damaging to the Muslim community
up to the present day.
For
example, in the year 1161 AH / 1748 CE, the Ottoman state sent a governor to
Egypt, Ahmad Pasha (1). He was a man of many virtues, and he engaged its
scholars in discussion. He found their knowledge abundant in language and
Sharia sciences. But when he questioned them about mathematics, they hesitated
and said, “We do not know these sciences.” He was astonished and remained
silent. He later mentioned this to Shaykh ʿAbdullāh al-Shabrawī, the Shaykh of
al-Azhar Mosque, who acknowledged that the scholars of al-Azhar had turned away
from such sciences. Eventually, the matter ended with recommending the father
of the historian ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Jabartī to converse with him on mathematical sciences,
for he was well-versed in them. The governor was delighted with him and praised
him, saying: “If I had gained nothing from Egypt except meeting this master, it
would have been enough for me.” And whenever the late Shaykh ʿAbdullāh al-Shabrawī met Jabartī’s
father, he would say to him, “May God conceal you as you concealed us before
this Pasha, for had you not been present, we would all have appeared to him as
donkeys.” (al-Jabartī’s History, 1/276–278).
In
the year 1305 AH / 1877 CE, a formal inquiry was sent to the Shaykh of al-Azhar,
Muhammad al-Inbābī, regarding the permissibility for Muslims to study
mathematical sciences, natural sciences, astronomy, and chemistry. The shaykh
replied that it is permissible to study mathematics, medicine, and natural
sciences, but that astronomy was not permissible as if Muslims had never been
acquainted with these sciences, nor been among their pioneers and leading
contributors.
This
shortcoming did not begin in the period mentioned; even in the flourishing eras
one can find, in the fields of jurisprudence and Hadith, many times the number
of those who excelled in astronomy, mathematics, medicine, or engineering.
Whoever reads the biographies of the scholars of the eighth or ninth century
AH, for example in the works of Ibn Ḥajar and al-Sakhāwī,
will find this conclusion firmly confirmed.
The Intellectual Roots of the Neglect of
Applied Sciences
This
issue has its roots among some of our great scholars, who viewed the natural
sciences as lower in rank and status than the religious sciences. Abū Ḥāmid
al-Ghazālī, for example, renowned as he was in knowledge and influence, describes mathematics as demonstrative disciplines that cannot be denied or disputed. He
considers them collective duties (farḍ kifāyah) that the
Muslim community as a whole must uphold and is sinful if it neglects them
(Fatihat al-ʿUlūm, p. 38). Yet he
also notes that many of those engaged in these fields are skeptics or atheists
despite their abundant knowledge and intelligence, which led to ordinary people
becoming enamored with them (The Deliverer from Error pp. 149–150,
148–149).
Al-Ghazali
also notes the importance of medicine for preserving the body, since
worshipping God is not possible without bodily health. Yet he considers
medicine to be of a lower rank than jurisprudence, saying, “God forbid that I
should equate the two in honor and rank” (Fatihat al-ʿUlūm, p. 45). He argues
that there is a vast difference between the medicine of hearts and souls—which leads to
eternal life—and the medicine that treats bodies, which are inevitably destined to
corruption and death (The Revival of the Religious Sciences, 1/4).
The
issue of ranking the sciences, deciding which holds the highest status and
noblest position occupied many of our scholars in past eras. Had they limited
themselves to clarifying the obligatory individual duties of knowledge that no
Muslim can be ignorant of in their religion and treated the remaining
collective duties as equal while highlighting those most needed by the
community, it would have been safer and more appropriate. However, the
proponents of each science tended to exalt their own field above others and
focused on extolling its virtues and merits, which led them astray and brought
misguidance upon the community.
How Did the Jurists Neglect the Major
Issues of the Ummah?
For
example, the excessive focus on the science of jurisprudence (fiqh) captured
the attention of many sharp minds. Since its fundamental issues had already
been established by earlier scholars, many of their successors became
preoccupied with scrutinizing minor details, hypothesizing unlikely scenarios,
and reiterating what previous authorities had said. They devoted themselves to
writing commentaries and marginal notes on these works, which often made them even
more obscure and in need of further explanation. They were content with the
prestige of knowledge rather than engaging in ijtihad to address new issues,
and some even called for closing the door of ijtihad in this field.
They
went so far as to hypothesize scenarios that never occurred while neglecting
ijtihad on matters that actually arose, thus deviating from the methodology of
the Companions, who disliked dwelling on what had not happened rather than on
what had. For instance, ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿUmar said, “Do not ask about what
never was, for I heard ʿUmar curse the one who asks about what never happened.” Similarly, Zayd ibn Thābit, when asked about a
matter, would ask, “Did this happen?” If the answer was
no, he would say, “Leave it until it does.”
As a
result, some areas of Islamic law became overly detailed, such as rules of purification
and prayer, while other areas of much greater practical need were neglected, such
as leadership, warfare, political affairs, and international relations.
Why Did the West Advance While the
Islamic World Lagged Behind?
While
the vibrant sciences of life, such as medicine, engineering, astronomy, and
natural sciences, were neglected, the nations of the West advanced by giving
close attention to these fields and by harnessing their political power and
economic resources to support them. They succeeded in breaking the constraints
of the Church, which had tried to block the flow of knowledge, and thus they
progressed while our peoples lagged behind. Commentaries, annotations, and the
exaltation of certain sciences, along with the neglect of others, were of no
benefit.
The
Muslim community paid a heavy price for its delay in these sciences, standing
powerless against those who coveted them and possessed both the knowledge and
overwhelming material power.
In
the last century, the balance has shifted or at least approached equilibrium as
many students of knowledge turned to the experimental sciences. Economic
incentives may have driven this trend, since practitioners of mathematics,
medicine, and engineering gained higher status and salaries compared to
specialists in literature, linguistics, and religious sciences. However, making
up for lost time and establishing a true scientific renaissance in the Islamic
world is no longer an individual matter that can be achieved by a few scholars
or students. It has become dependent on political will, which is burdened by
heavy constraints, and on financial resources, which must be allocated to
costly and rigorous scientific research, a condition not met in the Islamic
world, where resources are directed to other priorities deemed more important
by decision-makers, foremost among them political security and national defense
Scientific
progress has also become conditional on what Western nations, already advanced
in these fields, allow, and on their wary oversight of any independent
advancement achieved by the Islamic world.
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(1)
Nişancı Ahmed Pasha:
Nişancı Ahmed Pasha
served as the Ottoman Governor of Egypt from 1748 to 1751. Prior to his tenure
in Cairo, he had held the prestigious position of Grand Vizier (Chief Minister)
of the Ottoman Empire. His time in Egypt is often noted for his respect and
high regard for the local intellectual elite. A notable figure he encountered
was Sheikh Hasan al-Jabarti, the renowned astronomer and scholar, and the
father of the famous historian Abd al-Rahman al-Jabarti. The Pasha famously
cherished this meeting, reportedly saying that "If I gained nothing from
Egypt except meeting this Master, it would be enough for me.
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