CONFLICT OF IDEAS

The Quran says that when God settled Adam on Earth, He informed him beforehand that human beings would be enemies to each other (Quran, 2:36). This was, as it were, an announcement of God’s Creation Plan. The meaning of this is that when a creature like man would be settled on Earth, his being put here would be no ordinary matter. Here, situations of disagreement and controversy between people would arise, which, on some occasions, turning extreme, would go to the extent of enmity.

This reveals the development path that the Creator has designed for human beings. It is through the clash of ideas among individuals that the human mind awakens. Such interaction fosters creativity and leads to new discoveries. The collision of thoughts acts as a catalyst for awakening dormant abilities.

Seen from this aspect, freedom of expression is indispensable. This is because if people are not free to express their minds there will be no conflict of ideas, and when there is no clash of views, mental stagnation will set in. Consequently, man will be unable to arrive at new realities, at new truths.

For instance, in the early period of Islam, because of disagreements in recitation, people began reciting the Quran in different styles. This led to discussions and debates among the people about which recitation was right and which was not. People began to write down the Quran along with vowels to specify the pronunciations of various words and phrases mentioned in the Book of God. As a result of this, the art of writing progressed.

Then it happened that people began differing on the meaning of the Quran. This too set off a debate, which led to the emergence of experts of the Arabic language and to the compilation of Arabic dictionaries that did not exist before. Similarly, people began differing on diverse issues related to the Shariah. It was because of this that in the Islamic tradition, disciplines such as Tafsir (Quranic commentary), Hadith, Fiqh, Aqa‘id, and others developed in an organized form. Had these differences not emerged in the early Muslim period, there would not have been that intellectual awakening that these differences kindled, and nor would have the above-mentioned Islamic disciplines evolved.

This process did not stop there. By the time of the Abbasid Caliphate, Muslims had spread across the entire region of Asia and Africa, and even entered Europe. This led to a clash of ideas, as Muslims encountered the philosophies and thoughts of Egypt, Iran, Greece, and other regions. As a natural consequence, intellectual debates began among Muslims. This intellectual confrontation eventually culminated in the development of a powerful system of theology (Ilm al-Kalam). Much of this work took place during the reign of the Abbasid Caliph al-Ma’mun. Al-Ma’mun was very open-minded. He granted full freedom of expression to the scholars of his time, allowing them to engage in discussions and debates: “He gave complete freedom of speech to the scholars, debaters, and philosophers” (Al-A’lam by al-Zirikli, Vol. 4, p. 142).

But the flood did not stop there, too. Progressing further, this process of knowledge and research extended to other intellectual disciplines. Muslims now began to make great contributions in a range of fields, including philosophy, medicine, mathematics, naval sciences, astronomy, and geography. They acquired the position of leaders in all the then, prevalent secular disciplines.

Much of this progress was made possible because Muslims had come into contact with other people, who held other views. The exchange of views between the two helped produce this great intellectual advancement among Muslims. Later, the disciplines that Muslims had played such an important role in developing reached lands such as Italy, Spain, and France. As a result of this, new sciences emerged in Europe that finally culminated in the modern industrial revolution. The emergence of modern science and the industrial revolution in the West, are a direct result of the European contact with the Muslim awakening in the early Muslim period.

As long as they remained closed within the confines of their land, the Arabs could not produce any great intellectual feats. But when they came out of their land and came face to face with other peoples at the intellectual level, those very same Arabs made such progress that soon, they became leaders in various fields of thought and science. This miraculous event came about as a result of free intellectual exchange.

Intellectual critique or expression of intellectual disagreement is, actually, another name for intellectual exchange or exchange of views. In any society, the greater the intellectual freedom the more the intellectual exchange that will take place. And, during this intellectual exchange, critique and expression of intellectual disagreement and difference of opinion will also emerge. This must be accepted as inevitable, for it is a course established by nature—both for individuals as well as for communities as a whole.