According to a tradition, the Prophet of Islam once remarked:
“The remedy for ignorance is asking questions.” If the ignorant man does not inquire, his ignorance will stay with him. But if he has a questioning mind, some knowledgeable person will answer him, and he will no longer remain ignorant. There is a common belief about Islam that it teaches its adherents to be close-minded. In fact, Islam teaches the spirit of enquiry and asks its adherents to remove their ignorance by seeking answers to questions.
There is a saying in Arabic to the same effect: To know that you do not know is half knowledge itself. If an ignorant person is not aware of his ignorance, he will continue to remain in the same state. But when he becomes aware of his ignorance, he sets about seeking knowledge. He will try to turn his ignorance into knowledge. In this way his awareness of his ignorance will become the stepping-stone leading towards knowledge.
In ancient times, phenomena of nature were considered to be manifestations of God. The sight of the manifestations of nature, therefore, aroused in man the spirit of worship. It was only when these natural phenomena were divested of their divinity that the spirit of inquiry could be aroused in man. As a result, many of the mysteries of nature now lie unraveled.
If the ignorant man does not inquire, his ignorance will stay with him. But if he has a questioning mind, some knowledgeable person will answer him, and he will no longer remain ignorant.
An inquisitive mind is a sine qua non for the acquisition of knowledge. Only those who are possessed of this quality will achieve great success in intellectual and academic fields. Those devoid of this spirit will remain static, and will fail to climb to the top of the ladder of success.
It is this spirit which is the foundation of all scientific progress. Knowledge is of two distinct kinds: that which we have been blessed with in the Quran and the Hadith, and that which we acquire as a result of our own research and endeavour. The first kind acquaints us with our Lord, and makes plain the issues to be faced in the everlasting world, which awaits us after death. More important, it shows us how, in the course of our present life, we may prepare ourselves to meet those issues. The second kind of knowledge provides solutions to the social and economic problems, which we encounter in everyday life.
It is imperative that we should seek both forms of knowledge, but we should never lose sight of the fact that they vary considerably in their application. The knowledge of the Quran and the Hadith is essential for us to know the purpose of our life, understand our connection with God and God's creation plan for us and discover other aspects of spirituality.
The acquisition of knowledge of other sciences is a matter of worldly necessity. On the other hand, without knowledge of religion, the course of life to be adopted in this world for earning an everlasting reward in the Hereafter will constantly elude us.
The secular sciences guide us in our worldly matters, giving us instruction in the agricultural, industrial and civic practicalities of life. On the other hand, the Quran and Hadith set our feet on the path to eternal development. Clearly, it is just as important for Muslims as it is for anyone else to study various branches of knowledge, but they must distinguish between ultimate objectives and adventitious necessity. We must not only study the Quran and the Hadith, but must be keenly aware that the real reasons for studying them are very different from those which prompt us to seek worldly knowledge: we must constantly bear in mind also that religious knowledge is a moral priority.
It was only when natural phenomena were divested of their divinity that the spirit of enquiry could be aroused in man. As a result, many of the mysteries of nature now lie unraveled.
The emphasis of Islam on learning and teaching was not confined to the Quran or the teachings of the Prophet. The Quran, in fact, has given a new outlook, a new perspective or paradigm as coined by Thomas Kuhn (The Structure of Scientific Revolution, 1955). According to this Quranic paradigm, man’s most important activity being intellectual contemplation or reflection, he is not supposed to blindly follow any idea or notion just because it was attributed to his ancestors or some other authority. He has to ponder on it critically and realistically. That is why we find that the Quran is replete with hundreds of inspirational and motivational verses that invite man to reflect on the wonderful creations of God.
For example: In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, there are signs for people with intelligence, those who remember God standing, sitting, and lying on their sides, and reflect on the creation of the heavens and the earth, (saying) Our Lord! You have not created all this in vain (without purpose), Glory be to You. (3:190-91, 7:176, 10:24, 13:3, 16:11).
This, we can say, was the intellectual seed, which is called in academic circles, the spirit of enquiry. It is this spirit of enquiry, which has played the greatest role in bringing about the age of science. It is the zeal to discover which has led man to knowledge.
According to Toynbee and other world historians, this spirit of enquiry was the first and foremost prerequisite for the inauguration of the scientific era and the elimination of a superstitious outlook on nature and life.
The Quran has specific verses calling man towards shunning superstition and encouraging him to think. The Prophet himself had dealt with dayto-day problems of life in accordance with this realistic approach taught by the Quran. Consequently the same realistic approach became an integral part of the frame of mind of his Companions. They all became curious, inquisitive and realistic in all matters of life.
It is the spirit of enquiry, which has played the greatest role in bringing about the age of science. It is the zeal to discover which has led man to knowledge.
For example, once the Prophet passed by an oasis where he found some farmers who were date planters at work. When he asked what they were doing, he was told that they were pollinating the clusters of dates in order to produce a better yield. The Prophet expressed his disapproval of this process. Knowing this, the farmers immediately stopped it. But later on the Prophet was told that due to lack of proper pollination the yield had been very low as compared to the previous years. On hearing this, the Prophet replied. “You know your worldly matters better.” (Sahih al-Bukhari). In other words, experiment and observation should be the final criteria in such worldly matters.
From the above example one can understand that Islam does not teach close-mindedness but rather desires one to be open-minded, so that one understands the importance of each branch of knowledge and strives to gain such knowledge instead of living in ignorance.
