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INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, 2010
VOL 18, NO 2, 183-210
A return to the Qur’Énic paradigm of
development and integrated knowledge:
The UlË al-AlbÉb model1
Mohd. Kamal Hassan*
1Revised keynote address delivered at the International Conference on the
Development of the Ummatic Vision organized by the Department of Sociology
and Anthropology at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM),
July 28, 2009.
*Mohd. Kamal Hassan is professor in the Department of UsËl al-DÊn and
Comparative Religion at IIUM. E-mail: mkhassan@iium.edu.my
Abstract: The paper highlights that the secular and modernistic paradigm of
development that lacks spiritual and ethical moorings is partly responsible
for the 2009 global economic and financial crisis. Muslim policy-makers,
intellectuals and scholars are duty-bound to promote the TawÍÊdic paradigm
of holistic development and holistic knowledge. Closely related to the
paradigm of development is the issue of the epistemology of autonomous
human reason which denies the importance and validity of Divine revelation
as a higher source of knowledge and wisdom. The Qur’Én projects the model of
the UlË al-AlbÉb, “people of sound reason” as intellectuals and scholars par
excellence who combine the understanding of the Book of Nature with the
Book of Revelation, and integrate human reason with Divine revelation. The
paper ends by suggesting that Muslim countries develop institutions of
learning or systems of education which integrates worldly knowledge with
religious knowledge in a harmonious and symbiotic manner.
Keywords: Qur’Énic paradigm, systemic, UlË al-AlbÉb, integrated, intellect
Abstrak: Makalah ini menekankan bahawa paradigma perkembangan moden
dan sekular yang kurang tambatan kerohanian dan etika sedikit sebanyak
bertanggung jawab atas krisis kewangan dan ekonomi 2009. Para penggubal
polisi, intelektual dan cendiakawan Islam mempunyai kewajipan untuk
mempromosikan paradigma TawÍÊd bagi pembangunan holistik dan
pengetahuan holistik. Berkaitan rapat dengan paradigma perkembangan ini
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184 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
adalah isu epistemologi akal manusia yang bebas yang menyangkal
kepentingan dan kesahihan wahyu illahi sebagai satu sumber pengetahuan
dan kebijaksanaan. Al-Qur’Én mengemukakan model UlË al-AlbÉb, “orang
yang sempurna akalnya” sebagai ilmuan dan cendiakawan yang tiada tolak
bandingnya yang menggabungkan pemahaman Kitab Alam dan Kitab Ilmu
Wahyu, dan mengintegrasikan penakulan manusia dengan Ilmu Wahyu.
Makalah ini diakhiri dengan cadangan supaya negara-negara Islam
membangunkan institusi pembelajaran atau sistem pembelajaran yang
menggabungkan ilmu duniawi dengan ilmu agama secara harmoni dan
simbiotik.
Kata kunci: Paradigma al-Qur’Én, sistematik, UlË al-AlbÉb, bersepadu, intelek
The disappointing collapse of the Copenhagen U.N. Summit on
Climate Change on December 18, 2009, much to the dismay of
environmentalist organizations and the poor countries of the world,
is yet another global symptom – in our humble observation – of the
larger crisis of the contemporary secular world order and a secular
humanistic civilization grounded in the ontology of materialism and
the epistemology of autonomous reason. This historic failure of the
Summit means that the poor and ‘scientifically-technologically less
developing countries’ (henceforth STLDCs) will continue to be the
most vulnerable to the future ravages of global warming as well as
the turbulent consequences of economic and financial globalization
constructed by the world capitalist system in the name of
‘development’, the ‘free market’ or ‘liberalization’. The chaotic
outcome of the Summit which “did not set legally binding targets to
reduce the emission of gases that scientists say are heating up the
world’s atmosphere to dangerous levels” (The Star, 2009, December
25) also indicates that the unjust political and economic systems
dominating the world today will continue to preserve their hegemonic
interests at the expense of the STLDCs.
Looking back several decades, the end of the Cold War and the
collapse of the Soviet Union in the 1980s witnessed the rise and
euphoria of a triumphant liberal capitalist world ideology. However,
the signs of the internal crisis of soulless and greedy capitalism could
already be seen in 2001 with the first Wall Street crash, followed in
the next decade by a wave of Wall Street scandals which destroyed
Enron Corp. and WorldCom. The soulless and immoral spirit of the
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 185
scheming financial wizards whose “breathing symbol of this
economic sordidness” was personified in Bernie Madoff, who is
now being punished with a 150-year jail sentence “for orchestrating
the biggest Ponzi scheme in the history of humanity” (Time, 2009,
December 7). With all the signs of broken dreams and collapsing
structures characterizing the last decade, it is no wonder that Time
magazine (2009, December 7) called it the “Decade from Hell.”
The writer who analysed the current US economic crisis gave the
following verdict:
Our economic narcissism was certainly the culprit in the
devastation wrought by financial markets, which have subjected
us to an increasingly frequent series of crashes, frauds and
recessions. To a great degree, this was brought about by a lethal
combination of irresponsible deregulation and accommodating
monetary policies ... Bankers and financial engineers had an
unsupervised free-market free-for-all just as the increased
complexity of financial products – e.g., derivatives – screamed
out for greater regulation… Enron, for instance, was a bastard
child of a deregulated utilities industry and a mind-bending
financial alchemy (Serwer, 2009).
Historic opportunity for alternative paradigms
The 2009 global economic and financial crisis, which has been
considered as the worst since the Great Depression of the 1930s,
appears to us – a Muslim analyst – as a major sign of the larger
systemic moral decadence of an unjust (ÐÉlim) contemporary
anthropocentric civilization: a civilization anchored in the European
Enlightenment period and constructed upon the dominant worldview
of secular humanism which has dethroned God and, instead, deified
autonomous human reason. This acute civilizational crisis, which
manifests the dismal failure of secular modernity and its reigning
paradigm of human knowledge devoid of transcendent meaning,
nevertheless, provides a historic opportunity for Muslim policy-
makers, scholars, academic institutions and Islamic NGOs to come
forward with more lasting solutions or, better still, with alternative
paradigms of knowledge, systems, perspectives, approaches and
ideas.
It should be pointed out that many conscientious Muslim
thinkers, intellectuals, reformists and renewalists have expressed their
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186 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
deep reservations and anxiety, during the period of Western
imperialism and colonialism, regarding the negative aspects of
secular or agnostic Western civilization and culture, and have argued
that Islamic intellectual and cultural values offered more wholesome
alternatives for modern man and society because they were
grounded in a worldview of the inherent harmony and
complementarity between Divine revelation and human reason.
However, such Islamic reformist and renewalist discourse was
arrogantly dismissed by the Western intellectual establishment as
‘apologetic,’ backward and anti-modern. With the exposure of the
failure of secular modernity to deliver the promises of rationalism,
positivism, humanism and scientism by Western post-modernist
thinkers themselves in the 1970s and 80s, the moral hazard of secular
democracy and globalizing capitalism reached threatening
proportions with grave global consequences. In their frantic search
for the panacea to the crisis of global depression, some Western
economists and financial experts are now willing to allow the Islamic
financial and banking system to play a more active role as one of
the possible ways of alleviating the current ailments as a result of
the highly speculative and exploitative free-market forces which
created a crisis of deviant economics and enthroned what many
analysts have described as the “religion” of “market idolatry” which
has, in fact, plunged the world into “The Age of Turbulence” (Alan
Greenspan, 2007).
Redefining development and actualizing the ummatic vision
Driven by a different civilizational vision and sets of underlying
assumptions about the true nature of mankind and knowledge, the
reformist Islamic intellectual discourse on education, economics,
politics, law, literature, architecture, psychology, sociology, science
and technology, which was begun by the iÎlÉÍ-tajdÊd Islamic
movements in the 1950s, paved the way for the construction of an
alternative paradigm of contemporary knowledge based upon the
values and norms from within the worldview of Islam. It is our duty
to remind contemporary Muslim social scientists and natural
scientists, including professionals and academics, that they carry
upon their shoulders a civilizational, humanistic and religious duty
to offer, among other things, an Islamic perspective of ‘development’
because the current conventional concept is part of the secular
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 187
Western paradigm of modernity and progress. The Muslim
reinterpretation would have to be based upon the worldview of
TawÍÊd – the uncompromising Islamic monotheism based upon the
absolute oneness of Allah as the Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,
Omnipresent Master of the universe and the Living Ruler of all
mankind, who has laid down the Divine Path for (a) the proper
growth and well-being of human beings as His servants (‘ibÉd al-
RaÍmÉn), vicegerents (khulafÉ’ fÊ al-arÌ), believers (al-mu’minËn),
and (b) the best form of social grouping, social solidarity and
transnational community with the attribute of “the best community
brought forth (by Allah (SWT) for mankind” (khayra ummatin
ukhrijat lil-NÉs (3:110) and the “justly balanced community to be a
witness to all people” (ummatan wasaÏan li-takËnË shuhadÉ’ ‘alÉ
al-nÉs) (2:143).
As the servants of the One True God, Allah (SWT), all human
beings are supposed to live in peace with one another, in accordance
with the revealed scheme of life of the Compassionate Creator and
Ruler; to worship Him alone, to obey Him and to be grateful to Him
for all the bounties He has provided for the mankind in the universe.
Rebellion against His will is surely the worst form of ingratitude
(kufr al-ni‘mah) on the part of human beings who are the best of
His creatures. As the vicegerents on Allah’s earth, all human beings
– the ancients as well as the moderns – are entrusted with the
responsibility of constructing life on earth or this-worldly existence
(al-ÍayÉt al-dunyÉ) and a theocentric civilization as Allah’s trustees
and trustworthy implementors of the Divinely-revealed code of life
(al-Sharʑah) which interacts harmoniously with the world of nature
and with fellow human beings of different ethnic, linguistic and
cultural backgrounds. Vicegerents are duty-bound to utilise all the
Allah-given bounties (ni‘mah, faÌl, rizq, barakah) in man and in
nature as Divine trusts (amÉnah), not as the absolute property of
the trustees, in order to attain goodness in earthly existence (Íasanah
fÊ al-dunyÉ) and as a means of achieving goodness and felicity in
the everlasting Hereafter (Íasanah fÊ al-Ékhirah). Vicegerents are
supposed to be God’s workers for the attainment of ultimate well-
being and success (al-falÉÍ) as opposed to ultimate loss and misery
(al-khusrÉn) but unfortunately many human beings are not aware
nor conscious that they – whether Muslims or non-Muslims – are
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188 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
divinely-appointed vicegerents. Many human beings of the modern
era forget or deny their roles as servants of Allah (SWT) and His
vicegerents on earth; consequently they behave as though they are
completely independent of their Master to develop communities,
societies, nations, paradigms, ideologies or theories, according to
their own whims and fancies. Hence, the emergence of secular or
materialistic notions of ‘development’, ‘progress’ and
‘modernisation’ to challenge the religious or spiritual perspectives
of true human development.
Although vicegerency is an automatic status conferred by Allah
(SWT) to all human beings by virtue of being human, the status and
identity as ‘one who submits to Allah (SWT)’ – al-muslim – and one
who truly has attained faith, al-mu’min, is not automatic. Human
beings can – and many do – choose not to submit or to have true
faith. Their choice of not submitting to the One True God or denial
(kufr) of the creed of TawÍÊd as conveyed by Allah’s Messengers
constitutes a grave violation of man’s purpose of existence which
incurs the displeasure or wrath (ghaÌab) of the Almighty Sovereign
of mankind (Rabb al-‘ÉlamÊn and Malik al-nÉs). Thus, their search
for ‘the good society’, ‘progress’, ‘development’, ‘happiness’ or
‘prosperity’ often ends in failure, self-destruction or collective misery.
At this juncture it may be appropriate to reflect on the meaning and
implications of the following translation of Qur’Énic verses.
And never have We sent a Prophet unto any community
without trying its people with severe misfortune and hardship,
so that they might humble themselves; then We changed the
evil for the good until they increased in number and in wealth,
and they said to themselves, “Our forefathers too were
afflicted with misfortune and hardship” whereupon We
seized upon them all of a sudden, without them being aware
of what was coming; Yet if the people of the town had
believed and had the taqwÉ (of Allah SWT), certainly We
indeed have opened for them blessings out of heaven and
earth, but they belied (the message from Allah SWT), and so
We took them to task (punish them) through what they had
been doing. Can, then, the people of any community ever
feel secure that Our punishment will not come upon them by
night while they are asleep? Why, can the people of any
community ever feel secure that Our punishment will not
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 189
come upon them in broad daylight, while they are engaged
in worldly play? Can they, then, ever feel secure from Allah’s
stratagem? But none will feel secure from Allah’s stratagem
except those people who are already lost. Has it then not
become obvious to those who have inherited the Earth from
the former generations that, if We so willed, We could smite
them too for their sins, and seal up their hearts so that they
cannot hear (the truth) (7:94-100).
As for the true believers, they will always seek the guidance of
Allah (SWT) as revealed to the Messengers and culminating in the
final revelation to Prophet Muhammad (SAW) in understanding the
meaning of life and in constructing a holistic civilization which
ensures the proper ‘growth’ and ‘development’ of human personality,
culture, community, state and civilization. True believers perceive
their whole life as part and parcel of the larger meaning of ‘ibÉdah
(worship) and ‘ubËdiyyah (servitude) to Allah (SWT). Their
economic, political, cultural, social, intellectual and spiritual lives
and systems are therefore, constructed to be in accordance with the
worldview of TawÍÊd, a worldview which (a) integrates all worldly
acts or activities with the value of true faith (ÊmÉn), constant
mindfulness of the pleasure and displeasure of Allah (SWT) (taqwÉ)
and goodness or acts of beneficence (iÍsÉn); (b) makes the believers
in Islam deeply conscious of the inevitability of the Day of Judgment
and the final consequences in the Hereafter; and (c) defines the
believers in Islam as constituting a universal and Global Community
(ummah) committed to moral excellence, justice and the pursuit of
goodness in this world and goodness in the Hereafter as defined by
Allah (SWT). The ummah, based on the creed (‘aqÊdah) of TawÍÊd,
transcends all the geographical, cultural and nationalistic barriers
and stands for the fulfillment of the Divine commandment of
“enjoining the good and prohibiting the evil” (al-amr bi-al-ma‘rËf
wa-al-nahy ‘an al-munkar). It is, at the same time, the embodiment
of the spirit of raÍmatan lil-‘ÉlamÊn (mercy to all the worlds) which
holds out the promise of true inner peace, harmonious co-existence
with fellow human beings, justice and fairness for all creatures of
Allah (SWT) and upholding the dignity of all human beings
(karÉmah insÉniyyah), and mutual respect for the brotherhood of
all mankind without compromising the fundamental beliefs and
values. To the true believers who faithfully seek the Divine guidance
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190 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
in the Qur’Én and draw lessons from the normative Prophetic
tradition (Sunnah) of Islamic civilization, the proper way to attain
al-falÉÍ is to follow the holistic and integralist model of human
‘development’ which fulfils all the material and non-material needs
of human beings, families, communities, societies, states, nations,
and the eco-system. Based on a theocentric world view and the
Prophetic normative precedents, the Islamic believers’ conception
of ‘development’ as well as ‘the good society’ is necessarily different
from the secular, atheistic or liberal democratic conceptions of models
of development or ‘the good society’.
Islamic religious scholars since the time of al-GhazÉlÊ (d.1111)
until today have emphasized the fact that Allah’s Divine Way which
constitutes a Divinely constructed scheme of life for human beings
was aimed at fulfilling certain fundamental objectives which they
called the MaqâÎid al-SharÊ‘ah (objectives of the Divine Way). These
are the protection and preservation of TawÍÊd, religion, sound
intellect, life, legitimate property, lineage, human dignity and
legitimate rights. Later scholars such as Dr. YËsuf al-QaraÌÉwÊ (1996)
expanded the objectives to embrace a larger cluster of legitimate
and abiding human concerns endorsed by Islam. A holistic and
integrated human and sustainable development from the Islamic
perspective would have to include the above objectives, including
one of the fundamental missions of the Messengers of Allah (SWT),
namely, “the purification and advancement of the human self”
(tazkiyat al-nafs) through the application of the ethics of TawÍÊd
and the Prophetic education (ta‘lÊm, tarbiyah and tazkiyah) (91:9;
3:164; 62:2).
Unfortunately, many of the existing Muslim nation-states and
the ruling political elites, decision-makers and leadership of Muslim
countries do not portray the attributes of holistic excellence of the
universal ummah or the model of tazkiyah or taqwÉ-driven growth.
The overriding concerns of governments tend to be the preservation
and protection of vested, national or group interest, and sometimes
because of the need to curry favour with the powerful and rich
nations of the Western world. Their conception of ‘development’ is,
therefore, to a large extent adopted from the secular paradigm of
development as when they accept without reservation the Western
classification of countries and nations into ‘developed’,
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 191
‘developing,’ ‘less developed,’ ‘least developed’ and
‘underdeveloped,’ whereas the primary criteria implied in the above
classification are primarily economic, physical and technological –
in short, they represent predominantly materialistic and tangible
criteria which do not do justice to the holistic notion of human
spiritual purification and advancement, based upon the worldview
of unity of material and spiritual dimensions as well as the unity of
well-being in this world and well-being in the Hereafter.
Failures of the secular paradigm of development
Realizing the shortcomings and failures of the dominant secular
paradigms of development, either in economics, politics, culture or
education, Muslim scholars and intellectuals have come up with
alternative models of ‘development.’ The writings of Khurshid
Ahmad (1979; 1980), Aidit Ghazali (1990), Ataul Huq et al. (2006)
and Muhammad Syukri Salleh (2003) in Malaysia are some of the
examples of the attempt by contemporary Muslim scholars who
disagree with both the liberal capitalist as well as the socialist-Marxist
models of ‘development.’ The latest writing on the Islamic perspective
of development that we would strongly recommend is by
Muhammad Umer Chapra with the title The Islamic Vision of
Development in the Light of the MaqâÎid al-SharÊ‘ah (2008). Besides
the Muslim critiques, there are also useful critical analyses by some
Western dissenters of the conventional and mainstream viewpoints,
as contained in Gilbert Rist’s book, The History of Development
from Western Origins to Global Faith (1997). To him the “strength
of ‘development’ discourse comes from its power to seduce, in every
sense of the term: to charm, to please, to fascinate, to set dreaming,
but also to abuse, to turn away from the truth, to deceive” (1997,
p.1).
We are aware that the discourse on development has evolved
from the purely economic focus in the 1950s to what was called
‘human development’ (see UNDP, Human Development Report,
1991) in the 1970s, and later in the 1980s and 90s to ‘sustainable
development,’ culminating in the worldwide Millennium
Development Goals by which countries agreed that between 1990
and 2015, they would “halve income poverty and hunger; achieve
universal primary education; promote gender equality; reduce under-
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192 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
five mortality by two-thirds, cut maternal mortality by three-quarters;
combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis; ensure environmental
sustainability, and build a global partnership for development”
(UNDP, 1991). These goals are commendable in themselves but
they do not address the issues of moral development of human beings
or the moral decadence of modern politics, economics, culture, art,
media, ICT and global entertainment sub-cultures championed by
the powerful gambling, film, drug and liquor industries throughout
the world.
Going back to the book of Gilbert Rist, we wish to highlight his
critiques of the inadequacies of the definitions of ‘development’
which he considers as “an element of the religion of modernity”
and “a result of Western arrogance” (Rist, 1997, p.21). In his
judgment, ‘development’ is always presented as a solution, whereas
in actual fact it is “a problem (as well as creating problems)” (1997,
p.46). The United Nations Conference on Environment and
Development (UNCED) has come up with several declarations since
the Earth Summit in Rio Janeiro in 1992, the international conventions
on climate change, on biodiversity, on the forest and Agenda 21
(for the twenty-first century) which consists of 800 pages and is
considered as the “bible of sustainable development” (1997, pp.188-
190). He seriously doubts the successful implementation of those
grandiose plans and noble declarations because of the “deliberate
ambiguity” in their interpretations, and that the ultimate aim is still
that of the economic growth which benefits the North more than the
South (1997, pp.192-193).
Notwithstanding the misgivings and serious critique against the
Western development paradigm, there are those who honestly believe
the only way to survive in the near future is to create a ‘sustainable
society’ by making people really conscious of its necessity. They
believe that people need to have the right vision and implement
‘social learning’ as the major avenue to social change. One such
intellectual is Lester W. Milbrath of the State University of New
York, who wrote his Envisioning a Sustainable Society: Learning
Our Way Out (1989).
His well-argued and well-documented thesis is that the present
trajectory of secular modern society is not sustainable (1989, p.xi).
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 193
He says that modern society has learned too well how to dominate
and if it fails to “learn how to control our exuberance… [then] our
‘success’ will lead to our extinction.” (1989, p.3). He concludes
that “we have built a society, and economic system, that cannot
sustain its trajectory” (1989, p.4). He says further:
Devastation from climate change will be exacerbated by
other global biospheric effects: loss of the ozone layer, acid
rain, and poisonous red tides of algae, toxic pollution of
soils, water, and air, species extinction. Nature may have
many additional unpleasant surprises in store for us. When
these effects are combined with resource shortages, we may
well wonder how we can continue to support even the 5
billion people already living, much less the additional
billions that are destined to arrive (even if we strive
vigorously to limit population growth).
Today our power to dominate and injure nature is awesome.
We can move mountains, fly to the moon, obliterate cities,
slash down jungles, poison large water bodies, and create
new species. Our ability to control the power we have gained
is not well-developed. The industrial disasters at Bhopal
and Chernobyl signal that we can expect many more such
disasters. A nuclear war followed by a nuclear winter could
obliterate nearly all life from planet earth.
The people living 100 years ago could hardly have imagined
the changes that this brief span of time would bring. Nearly
everyone today expects the pace of change to accelerate. If
nanotechnologies, which I discuss in Chapter 12, were
developed, they would accelerate our thrust for power and
change 1,000 times. We are told that this is progress and that
is good. Labeling an activity as progress implies that we
know where we are going and that we can measure our speed
on getting there. Actually, we do not know where we are
going and we do not know where we wish to go. Progress is
a meaningless term without this knowledge. We also forget
to ask, “Can we sustain what we are building?” (1989, pp.4-
5).
Lester Milbarth also discusses what he considers as the
“Technological Imperialism of the Developed Countries,” “The
Imperialism of Large Technology-Based Systems” and “Structural
Wastefulness” (1989, pp.225-260) and offers examples of structures
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194 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
and technology that enhance sustainability. The reality according to
him is that we “humans live in one biosphere but our world is
fragmented” and the policies of the rich and powerful nations are
not geared to sincerely help the poor and technologically
underdeveloped societies and countries of the South (see also
Krugman, 2009, June 30; Nagara, 2009, July 12; Martin Khor, 2009,
March 16). Recently Jacques Diou, the Director of the Food and
Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the U.N., revealed that as a result
of the current global financial crisis, the number of the hungry people
in the world has reached a record 1.02 billion, an 11 percent increase
compared to the figure of 915 million in 2008 (Mingguan Malaysia,
2009, June 21).
In light of the world-threatening multiple but interrelated global
crises affecting all countries of the world, in particular the poor and
weak states as well as Muslim countries, it is imperative that the
alternative Qur’Énic paradigm of holistic and fully-integrated
development be studied, understood, disseminated and finally
implemented by Muslim leaders, first in Muslim countries and later
as a model to be shared or appreciated by other communities across
the globe. Closely related to the issue of the crisis of development
is the issue of the meaning and purpose of education. In this respect,
the globalization of capitalism and secular democracy has also led
to the growth of another ‘cancer’ of advanced capitalism, namely,
the commodification and commercialization of higher education.
In the process, many universities are being regarded by nationalist
leaders as ‘factories’ producing goods for the market and generators
of national wealth. The next section will discuss the implications of
that ‘cancer’ and the Qur’Énic model of the integrated intellectual
par excellence.
The Qur’Énic paradigm of united and integrated knowledge
This era of globalization has offered a materialistic rationale for the
commercialization of higher education, an issue that has engaged
the attention of several Western critics (Postman, 1995; Readings
1997). In this regard, we should be grateful to Harry Lewis, a
Harvard dean of 32 years, who decided to expose the other side of
Harvard in his book Excellence without a Soul: How a Great
University Forgot Education (Lewis, 2006). Since this phenomenon
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 195
of the corruption of higher education is not confined to the famous
universities in the West but has spread to Asian countries, it is only
proper and commendable that Muslim leaders and Muslim
educationists pay more urgent and serious attention to the Qur’Én’s
paradigms of true human development and of integrated knowledge.
As the Qur’Én is the primary source for Muslims to seek Divine
knowledge, which reveals absolute truths concerning the true nature
of man, the correct methodology of holistic human development,
as well as the epistemology and ethics of TawÍÊd, a sincere and
deep study of the Holy Book is more urgently needed today than
ever before, especially by the Muslim elites and policy-makers in
Muslim countries, Malaysia included. At a time when humanity as
a whole is witnessing not only the failures of modern education
(Chomsky, 2004) but what Immanuel Wallerstein, the eminent
American sociologist, describes as “The End of the World as We
Know it: Social Science for the Twenty-First Century” (Wallerstein,
1999) or “The End of Certainty” as described by the Nobel laureate
in chemistry in 1977, Ilya Prigogine (Wallerstein, 1999). Muslim
countries – beset with their own internal crises and chronic ailments
– cannot afford to continue on the path of modernization modeled
upon the secular paradigm of development or perpetuate the system
of national education in which religious education and worldly
education are still in the dualististic or dichotomistic mode.
Under these circumstances the development of the holistic
personality of “the possessors of sound intellect,” the ULÕ AL-ALBÓB
as the Qur’Én calls it, in Muslim institutions of higher learning should
receive urgent attention by Muslim intellectuals, scholars and
educationists who are sincerely striving to erect the human pillars
of an alternative development model and sustainable civilization –
a civilization based upon the servitude and gratitude of human beings
to their compassionate living Creator, the beneficient, omniscient
and omnipotent Master, the just and caring Ruler of the cosmos and
all that exists.
The production and growth of more Islamicised intellectuals,
scholars, scientists, professionals, political leaders and educated
classes who combine or unify scientific and worldly knowledge with
religious values, thinking and contemplation (fikr and tafakkur) with
spiritual remembrance (dhikr) of Allah (SWT), worldly means with
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196 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
otherworldly ends, reason with Divine revelation, professionalism
with taqwÉ (that deep ethical consciousness of the pleasure and
displeasure of Allah [SWT]), and are not afflicted with the diseases
of the spiritual heart which al-GhazÉlÊ called al-muhlikÉt (destructive
elements). These holistic and God-fearing human resources and
intellectual capital are the need of the hour to transform the ailing
Muslim nations and communities, and to help reconstruct the
contemporary human civilization that is mired in the moral crises of
secular modernity.
Since the First World Conference on Muslim Education held in
Makkah al-Mukarramah in 1977, the serious and sincere efforts of
Muslim leaders, scholars, intellectuals, Islamic movements and
organizations to actualize the Islamic vision of holistic and integrated
education have led to the establishment of many educational
institutions – from kindergartens to universities – which aspire to
realize the goals of Islamic education, i.e., to make the whole of
human life a service and worship (ÑibÉdah) and to attain well-being
in this world and well-being in the Hereafter. There are now several
private schools and colleges in Turkey (based on Bediuzzaman Said
Nursi’s model of integration) and elsewhere, in the Arab world,
Indonesia, Pakistan and in some Western countries, which are
inspired by the holistic vision of the UlË al-AlbÉb.
In Malaysia the school systems of ABIM (the Islamic Youth
Movement of Malaysia), the Dar al-Hikmah as well as of JIM (the
Malaysian Society of Islamic Reform) are among the foremost in
pursuing this vision, while a few religious schools and Islamic
educational institutions in Terengganu and Selangor are trying to
produce Muslim science-stream students who are at the same time
memorizers of the Qur‘Én. The latest institution to reorient its
educational objectives in line with the UlË al-AlbÉb vision is the
Mara Science College of Besut, based upon the three components
of its Ulul Albab Programme, namely, the Qur’Énic, the Encyclopedic
and the Ijtihadic components (Mingguan Malaysia, 2009, December
6). This holistic and integral vision of Islamic education is, of course,
the common vision of many Malaysian Muslim scientists, engineers,
doctors, professionals and academics in the Malaysian universities
– including the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM.)
and the new Islamic Science University of Malaysia (USIM.) – and
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 197
Islamic professional organizations, such as the Islamic Academy of
Science (ASASI). It is the vision which underlies the Islamic
paradigm shift from a secular and purely rationalistic epistemology
to the TawÍÊdic epistemology and ethics – a shift that is expressed in
the IIUM. through the university’s mission of Islamicisation and
integration of human knowledge (IIUM Memorandum and Articles
of Association, 3-5). We expect more educational institutions in the
Muslim world and in the West in the coming decades to shift from
the secular, dualistic models and adopt the integrated model of Islam
as the solution to the educational, intellectual and moral malaise of
the Muslim ummah. Since the Islamic model is based upon the
integration of reason and revelation, it is important to understand
the Islamic conception of the ‘people endowed with sound reason’
or ‘possessors of sound intellect’ according to the Qur’Énic
worldview.
In the next section, the meaning and implications of the Qur’Énic
term UlË al-AlbÉb is briefly explained, in order to better comprehend
the nature of the mind of God-fearing intellectuals, scholars and
professionals – as people who use their intellect in the proper way –
to bring about the necessary changes in contemporary society and
culture.
The definitions of UlË al-AlbÉb (henceforth UA)
Before going into the definitions of UA, it should be mentioned that
the term is used 16 times in the Qur’Én as a favourable metaphor of
the integrated mind and personality of the true believer, whose
intellect, knowledge and skills are utilized in accordance with
revealed Divine guidance and norms.
The word albÉb in Arabic is the plural of lubb which means ‘aql
(intellect or reason) or the purest and best part of any substance.
The expression “lubb al-rajul” (the purest part of a man) means
“the intellect that is set in his heart” (mÉ ju‘ila fÊ qalbihÊ min al-‘aql)
(Ibn ManÐËr, 1968, vol.1, p.729; al-ÙabarÊ, 2001, p.120). The ‘aql
is the quintessence of a human being (khulÉÎat al-insÉn), and when
it is cleansed of the influence of desire or passion (hawÉ), or negative
imagination, it becomes the most special part of the intellect, the
lubb (al-ZabÊdÊ, 1965, p.475; al-QurÏubÊ, 2006).
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198 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
The commentators of the Qur’Én are generally unanimous in
defining UA briefly as ‘possessors of intellect’ or ‘people of
intelligence’. Al-ÙabarÊ says in his commentary (p.470) that UA
means “the possessors of great minds” (aÎÍÉb al-‘uqËl al-kabÊrah).
Al-ZamakhsharÊ says that UA, among other things, means “those
who acted in accordance with the dictates of their intellects, then
they observed and reflected” (al-KashshÉf, n.d., p.494). Al-RÉzÊ
(1981) observes that the term UA is an expression of praise and
appreciation (al-madÍ wa-al-thanÉ’) which Allah (SWT) applies to
those who use their intellects in the best possible way. To him the
UA can be understood briefly as “the possessors of intellects” (ulË
al-‘uqËl), or to be more precise as “those who possess complete
and consummate intellects” (dhË al-‘uqËl al-kÉmilah) (pp.145, 155).
The expression, according to him, reflects great honour (al-sharaf
al-‘aÐÊm) and high esteem (al-martabah al-‘Éliyah) conferred upon
those who possess sound intellects.
An interesting and insightful interpretation is given by al-RÉzÊ
when he compares verse 164 of SËrat al-Baqarah which ends with
the expression “li-qawmin ya‘qilËn” (for people who use their
reason) with verse 190 of SËrat Ól ‘ImrÉn. Both verses contain a
similar message, although the former is more elaborate, in the sense
that the expression “people who use their reason” is also the
fundamental attribute of the UA mentioned in the latter. He explains
that the term UA is used in verse 190 of Ól ‘ImrÉn although the
theme is the same because the intellect has two aspects – an outward
(ÐÉhir) dimension and an inner dimension which is the lubb. He
opines that the human act of reasoning at the initial stage is ordinary
intellection (‘aqlan) while at a more perfect stage it becomes
profound intellection (lubban). However, his humility and
intellectual modesty make him say, with caution, “this is what comes
to my mind, while Allah knows better the secrets of His great,
munificent and wise Words” (fahÉdhÉ mÉ khaÏar bi-al-bÉl wallÉh
a‘lam bi-asrÉr kalÉmihi al-‘aÐÊm al-karÊm al-ÍakÊm, p.110).
Ibn KathÊr in his TafsÊr al-Qur’Én al-KarÊm explains the meaning
of albÉb as “pure and consummate intellects (al-‘uqËl al-tÉmmah
al-zakiyyah) which comprehend things and their realities in the
clearest way” (allatÊ tudriku al-ashyÉ’ bi-ÍaqÉihÉ ÑalÉ jaliyyÉtihÉ)
(Ibn KathÊr, 2000). He elaborates that “those who understand, reason,
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 199
and ponder over the meanings of things in their true nature are only
those who possess sound intellects and correct understandings (al-
‘uqËl al-salÊmah wa al-fuhËm al-mustaqÊmah).”
Al-AlËsÊ says in his TafsÊr RËÍ al-Ma‘ÉnÊ (1926) that UA are
“those who possess unadulterated intellects (al-‘uqËl al-khÉliÎah)
which are freed from any kinds of blemished sentiments or
imaginations”.
Al-ShawkÉnÊ (2003) defines UA as “those who have sound
intellects which are freed from defects of deficiency” (al-‘uqËl al-
ÎaÍÊÍah al-khÉliÎah ‘an shawÉ’ib al-naqÎ). In another paragraph
he defines albÉb as “intellects which are pure (or uncontaminated).”
Ibn ‘AshËr (1984) in his TafsÊr al-TaÍrÊr wa-al-TanwÊr uses the
expression “perfect minds” (al-‘uqËl al-kÉmilah).
Sayyid QuÏb in his FÊ ÚilÉl al-Qur’Én (1971) describes UA as
“those who possess sound comprehension” (ulË al-idrÉk al-ÎaÍÊÍ)
(vol. 2, p.188).
Hamka (1992), the well-known Indonesian scholar, translates
UA at various places in his Tafsir al-Azhar as:
a) “orang-orang yang mempunyai inti fikiran” (people who
possess insight)
b) “orang-orang yang mempunyai fikiran dalam”(people who
possess deep thought)
c) “orang-orang yang berfikir” (people who think)
d) “orang-orang yang berakal”(people who use their reason)
e) “orang-orang yang berfikiran dalam” (people who think
deeply)
Shaikh Abdullah Basmih (1983), the Malaysian translator of the
Qur’Én, Pimpinan al-Rahman gives more or less the same meanings
as Hamka:
a) “orang-orang yang menggunakan akal fikiran” (people who
use their mind)
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200 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
b) “orang-orang yang berfikiran” (people who think)
c) “orang-orang yang berakal fikiran” (people of reason)
d) “orang-orang yang berakal (yang dapat memikir dan
memahaminya) (people of reason who could think and
understand)
In English commentaries of the Qur’Én, UA is translated as “men of
understanding” by Abdullah Yusuf Ali (The Holy Qur’an, 1983),
Marmaduke Pickthall (Holy Qur’an, 1930), Sayyid Abul Ala
Mawdudi, (Towards Understanding the Quran, 2001) and
Muhammad Muhsin Khan (The Noble Qur’an), while Muhammad
Asad (The Message of the Qur’an, 1980) is the only one who
translates UA as “the ones endued with understanding”. In the
author’s opinion the translation of UA as ‘men of understanding’
may not be quite acceptable nowadays given the prevalent gender
preferences. Thus ‘people of understanding’ is more acceptable.
A brief summary of the characteristics of the fully integrated
minds of UA
From a study of the 16 verses in which the term UA is used in the
Qur’Én, it is possible to summarize the quality of the character and
the mind of the UA – the mind which manifests the Qur’anic paradigm
of the truly integrated knowledge and integrated intellectuals – as
follows:
1. In looking back at the life struggles of Prophets and
Messengers of Allah (SWT), the UA seek to draw moral and
spiritual lessons for them to internalize (12:111).
2. In dealing with verses of the Qur’Én which are regarded as
allegorical (mutashÉbihÉt) or open to several interpretations,
the UA’s attitude is one of unquestioning acceptance of the
Qur’Én as a whole as the words of Allah (SWT) and not
allowing their base desires, intellectual arrogance or satanic
impulses to influence them negatively with regard to any
injunctions of Allah (SWT). The true Islamic intellectuals
also adopt the attitude of the UA vis-a-vis the Qur’Én and
the Sunnah of the Prophet (SAW) (3:7, 2:269, 14:52).
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 201
3. The UA believe, know and are always cognizant of the fact
that whatever was taught or enjoined by the Prophet (SAW)
was the truth that came from Divine revelation (13:19, 38:29,
39:9).
4. In responding to advice, views or opinions coming from
external quarters, the UA weigh carefully and sincerely those
ideas or propositions; anything that comes from Allah (SWT)
or is in conformity with Allah’s injunctions or norms will be
chosen and followed by them (39:18).
5. The stories relating the sufferings of Allah’s Prophets (such
as Ayyub [AS] and others) will be given serious thought by
the UA in order to derive useful lessons and wisdom in facing
the tribulations of life in this world (38:43).
6. The history of the struggle between Moses (AS) and the
Pharaoh which ultimately resulted in the destruction of the
latter, because of his arrogance, over-confidence, selfishness,
injustices and denial of the sovereignty of Allah (SWT)
becomes a source of guidance (hudÉ) and reminder (dhikrÉ)
to the UA (40:54).
7. The UA keenly observe the natural life cycle of vegetation
beginning with the initial growth leading eventually to lifeless
rubble on earth, and understand this process of rise and fall
in the natural world as conveying deep lessons and wisdom
for them and for mankind as a whole (39:21).
8. The intellect that is pure and uncontaminated, as in the minds
of the UA, is ever in need of consciousness of taqwÉ to
Allah (SWT) – the deep consciousness of the presence and
sovereignty of Allah (SWT) such that the believer is always
mindful lest any of his/her actions, thoughts or behaviour
might incur His displeasure or wrath. It is this spirit of taqwÉ
that will lead the believers as well as UA to al-falÉÍ (real
success in this world and in the Hereafter). TaqwÉ then
becomes the necessary ingredient in the formation of the
mind of Islamic intellectuals, leaders, scholars, professionals
and the ordinary believers. It should be reiterated that in the
Islamic worldview, the principle of taqwÉ becomes the
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202 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
common spiritual core value in the proper development of
the life of the individual, family, institutions, community,
nation, and civilization (5:100, 10:65). Scholars, leaders,
intellectuals and professionals in this “Age of Turbulence”
(Greenspan, 2007), global crises and rampant corruption are,
in my humble opinion, in greater need of taqwÉ than ever
before.
9. The mind or intellect of the Islamicised intellectuals derive
their knowledge of the One True God and of His power,
wisdom, mercy and presence not from one source, i.e., the
written book of Allah (SWT) but from two sources, the other
being the unwritten and observable book of the cosmos and
the world of nature. In several places the Qur’Én urges the
“people who use their reason” to study and contemplate on
the multitude of Allah’s creation in nature, on the wonders
in nature and on their usefulness and indispensability for
the physical sustenance and well-being of human life, with
the condition that human beings show their gratitude and
acknowledge their dependency on the infinite grace and
blessings of the One Living Lord and Sustainer (Compare
2:164 and 3:190).
Educational implications of the integrated approach
Following from the above point 9, we shall now focus on the resultant
mindset and behaviour of the Islamic intellectuals who are exposed
to the wonders of Allah’s creation in the cosmos and the truths
revealed by Him in the Qur’Én. Dr. YËsuf al-QaraÌÉwÊ has studied
this issue in his book al-‘Aql wa-al-‘Ilm fÊ al-Qur’Én al-KarÊm
(Reason and Knowledge in the Noble Qur’an, 1996) in the chapter
on “IshÉdat al-Qur’Én bi-ulÊ al-albÉb wa-al-nuhÉ”. He refers several
times to the interpretation of al-BiqÉ‘Ê of UA as “al-‘uqËl al-ÎÉfiyah
wa-al-afhÉm al-nayyirah al-khÉliÎah” (the unadulterated intellects
and understandings which are illuminated and pure) (1996, p.23).
The UA, according to him, deserve to be given wisdom (Íikmah)
by Allah (SWT) because “they know where to put things in their
proper places and to give everything their rights” (1996, p.24). After
studying and analyzing all the meanings in the 16 verses in which
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 203
the term UA is mentioned, al-QaraÌÉwÊ arrives at the following
important conclusion:
Those verses show very clearly the intellectuality of this
Qur’Én and the intellectuality of its message (‘aqlÉniyyat
hÉdhÉ al-Qur’Én wa-‘aqlÉniyyat risÉlatih). Similarly the
meaning of ulË al-nuhÉ (20:53, 54, 128) is the same as UA
and it is used in the context of interaction with the world of
nature and drawing benefits from the natural resources of the
earth, water and domesticated animals (1996, pp.28-29).
The most frequently quoted verse which refers to the UA is the
following:
“Verily, in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in
the succession of night and day, there are indeed signs for
the ulË al-AlbÉb, who remember Allah when they stand, and
when they sit, and when they lie down to sleep, and thus
reflect on the creation of the heavens and the earth: ‘O our
Sustainer! You have not created all this without meaning
and purpose. Limitless are You in Your Glory! Keep us safe,
then from suffering in Hell! O our Sustainer! Whomsoever
You shall commit to the fire, verily will You have brought
him to disgrace, and such evildoers will have none to succor
them. O our Sustainer! Behold, we heard a voice calling us
unto faith, ‘Believe in your Sustainer! And so we believed.
O our Sustainer! Forgive us, then our sins, and efface our
bad deeds, and let us die the death of the truly virtuous! O
our Suatainer! Grant us that which You have promised us
through Your Messengers and disgrace us not on the Day of
Resurrection! Verily You never failed to fulfil Your promise!”
(3:191-194).
It is clear that the above verse of SËrat Ól ‘ImrÉn reflect the God-
centered and taqwÉ-rooted attributes of the UA. They show that the
uncontaminated mind or intellect a la UA integrates in a harmonious
way the attitude and habit of dhikrAllÉh (remembrance of Allah)
which is present in all situations and activities of the people of sound
reason. This includes the activity of deep thinking, research,
scientific investigation and empirical analysis of the secrets of nature
in the heavens and on earth. The attitude expressed in the four
verses – 191, 192, 193, 194 – testifies to the recognition of the
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204 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
existence of Divine purpose in the whole of this wondrous cosmos.
The deep study and analysis of the workings and intricacies of the
world of nature together with faith in the One Creator and Sustainer
lead the sincere and humble intellects to the awareness of the ultimate
End and the continuity of human life in the eternal abode of the
Hereafter, the knowledge of which is given by the Prophet (SAW)
to mankind and the believers. This implies that believing scientists
who are imbued with the spiritual-moral consciousness of taqwÉ
realize that if they were to misuse the knowledge of the workings of
nature which constitute great benefits for human beings, or if they
were negligent, ungrateful to the Creator, or strive with the blessings
they obtained from their mastery of natural resources to cause
injustice, suffering, oppression, imbalances and to dominate over
others in order to perpetuate their economic or political hegemony
over weaker or poorer people, they would surely meet the wrath of
their Master in the Hereafter, and that would be the height of
ignominy and shame (khizy) for these intellectual and intelligent
servants of Allah (SWT).
Al-QaraÌÉwÊ explains at great length that the Qur’Én wants
human beings to master a variety of knowledge, and that it is
erroneous to assume that the branch of knowledge that is lauded in
the Holy Book is only religious knowledge. The verses in 6:97,
30:22, 29:43, 35:27-28, 10:5, 27:50-52, 7:28 &32 and others point
to this assertion. Even the term ‘al-‘ulamÉ’’ which occurs in verse
35:7-28 does not imply only the scholars of religious knowledge.
Al-QaraÌÉwÊ asserts along with Sayyid QuÏb that the ‘scholars’ or
people of knowledge referred to in the verse are “not scholars of
religion and experts of Divine Law, although they possess great
virtues and important position”. The content and the context of the
verses point to those who study the signs (ÉyÉt) of Allah (SWT) as
contained in the natural phenomena. This requires the specialised
knowledge of geology, astronomy, mathematics, biology, chemistry,
earth sciences, life sciences, anthropology and others (1996, p.151).
This interpretation becomes all the more persuasive when the
above verses are compared with many other verses of the Qur’Én
which refer to various aspects of the natural phenomena, including
the human body, as representing the signs of the One True God.
The following verse which contains the same basic meaning as 3:
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 205
191 and may even be considered as an expanded version of the
verse should be cited here:
“Verily, in the creation of the heavens and of the earth, and
in the succession of night and day; and in the ships that
speed through the sea with what is useful to man; and in the
waters which Allah sends down from the sky, giving life
thereby to the earth after it had been lifeless, and causing all
manner of living creatures to multiply thereon; and in the
change of the winds, and the clouds that run their appointed
courses between sky and earth: in all these there are signs
indeed for people who use their reason (qawm ya‘qilËn)” (2:
164).
Verses of this nature have convinced several Muslim scholars since
the last century that the cosmos and nature constituted another ‘book’
of Allah (SWT) to be studied by human beings to derive useful
scientific and technological knowledge necessary for the servants
and vicegerents of God to play the active civilizational role on earth,
while at the same time being guided by the Book of Divine revelation
as represented by the Divine scriptures which culminated in the
Qur’Én. Thus the most desirable form of Muslim education is one
which combines the “readings of the two books” (al-jam‘ bayn al-
qirÉÒatayn): the “Open Book” of nature as Sayyid QuÏb calls it and
the “Book that is Read” namely, the Qur’Én. The mind of the UA,
being fully integrated and uncontaminated, is most capable of
integrating the knowledge acquired from the scientific study of the
natural phenomena with the knowledge, wisdom and norms acquired
through Divine revelation.
The Muslim scholar par excellence then is not to be evaluated
based purely on his or her field of specialization – religious or
worldly – but on the dominant attitude of his/her personality vis-a-
vis the Sustainer, i.e., on what the Qur’Én calls khashyat AllÉh (the
profound awe of God’s omnipotence). Thus, the term “al-‘ulamÉ’”
in verse 35:28 has been interpreted by Sayyid QuÏb as “scholars (or
experts) who know how to ‘read’ the natural phenomena deeply –
they are the ones who truly fear the wrath of Allah” (1971, vol.6,
p.698), because the complexities, intricacies and systematic order
in the cosmos “could not be comprehended except by those who
are truly knowledgeable of this Book” (lÉ yudrikuhÉ illÉ al-‘ulamÉ’
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206 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
bi-hÉdhÉ al-kitÉb). In interpreting verse 35: 28, al-QaraÌÉwÊ says it
quite confidently that “from what is clear in the context of the verse,
[the word] ‘al-‘ulamÉ’’ does not mean scholars of religious sciences
or scholars of Divine law, although they do possess important merit
and position” (1996, p.151). To al-QaraÌÉwÊ, the scholars of geology,
astronomy, biology, physics and the like are the people who are
capable of knowing deeply Allah’s secrets in the natural phenomena.
The Muslim scientists, physicists, astronomers, engineers,
architects, chemists and mathematicians of the glorious period of
Islamic civilization, from Baghdad to Spain in the West and to Central
Asia and India in the East were well-known for their scientific studies
and discoveries of the secrets of nature and the human body but
unlike the secular-minded scientists or social scientist of the modern
era, they were people who were staunch believers in the religion of
TawÍÊd. They integrated TawÍÊdic values and norms in their lives
and their intellectual works. Many of them could be considered the
embodiments of the intellectual model of UA lauded in the Qur’Én.
Today the new generation of Muslim scientists and intellectuals, in
both the natural sciences and social sciences, could also represent
the model of UA if they decide to pursue, develop, construct and
disseminate their scientific or intellectual products based on the
epistemology of TawÍÊd and the axiology of true believers, while
the Muslim religious scholars and intellectuals, on their part, could
appreciate more profoundly the Divine knowledge and wisdom
embedded in the cosmos, nature, society and the human body through
the disciplines of biology, anatomy, astronomy, physics,
mathematics, medicine, etc. Informed and illuminated by some
degree of familiarity – if not proper grounding – in modern scientific
knowledge, minus the biases of secularism, materialism or
naturalism, the Muslim religious teachers, scholars and leaders would
have a far more positive impact on moral and religious education of
the younger generation of Muslims as well as the educated classes.
To be able to harmoniously blend the understanding of the two
‘books’ of Allah requires, however, the holistic development of the
human personality which integrates the physical, rational, emotional,
spiritual and intuitive faculties of the human self in accordance with
the first principles of the unity of God, the unity of the human self
and the unity of knowledge (al-FÉrËqÊ, 1982).
THE ULÕ AL-ALBÓB MODEL/MOHD. KAMAL HASSAN 207
In the world today, Muslim communities have been and are being
exposed to at least four major systems of education:
1. The completely secular system as in many non-Muslim
countries, where only the natural sciences, the social sciences
and the humanities are taught, to the exclusion of religion.
2. The predominantly religious educational system where few
subjects of worldly knowledge are taught without any
reference to religion or metaphysical perspectives.
3. The predominantly worldly educational system where some
aspects of religious knowledge are taught but are also
isolated, marginalized or compartmentalized, as if religious
knowledge has no relevance to the knowledge of the world
of nature, society or culture.
4. The system which offers both the religious and the worldly
sciences but these merely coexist; there is no real
interpenetration between the two spheres of knowledge.
Religious knowledge is therefore not enriched by or made
relevant to worldly knowledge, or reformed to be kept abreast
with contemporary changes, while the worldly knowledge
is not constructed in accordance with the world view of
TawÍÊfd. The dominant paradigm of knowledge is still the
secular and the conventional.
The fourth system comes closest to the fully integrated model of
education – the fifth system – in which the two streams are brought
into meaningful and dynamic interaction with one another to enrich
and complement each other and produce at the end of the educational
process: (a) the religiously-informed and God-fearing natural
scientist, engineers, doctors and social scientists on the one hand,
and (b) the scientifically-informed religious knowledge specialists
who understand the contemporary realities and changes, and know
how those changes impinge on moral, ethical, theological and
spiritual values and norms. This system will be able to produce the
so-called ‘intellectual-ulama’ and the ‘ulama’-intellectual’ as they
say in Indonesia. With all the serious moral and environmental crises
threatening the sustainability of contemporary civilization, we believe
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208 INTELLECTUAL DISCOURSE, VOL 18, NO 2, 2010
that the Muslim community urgently needs experts in natural and
applied sciences or technology and social scientists who are people
of deep faith, of high moral integrity and taqwÉ, as well as experts
in religious disciplines who are also knowledgeable in some
branches or aspects of scientific knowledge. Further studies and
research into the contemporary significance and applicability of the
UA model of integrated knowledge and education are required to
enhance the collective transnational efforts among Muslims to
produce more institutions, groups and individuals imbued with the
world view, mindset, attitudes and habits of the ulË al-AlbÉb as the
best model of educational and intellectual excellence.
References
Ahmad, K. (Ed.) (1979). The Muslim world and the new economic order.
London: Islamic Council of Europe.
Ahmad, K. (Ed.) (1980). Studies in Islamic economics. Leicester: The Islamic
Foundation.
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