HUMAN WELFARE AND
INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM
The Prophet established a clear distinction between matters of revelation and matters of empirical knowledge.
He affirmed that religious belief should not interfere with scientific investigation and worldly expertise.
Islam freed religion from scientiflc speculation and science from theological interference. If Muslims today were to rediscover this prophetic principle, many of their doubts would dissolve, and they would once again become active contributors to human welfare.
In Srinagar, many of my companions have initiated a series of activities dedicated to social welfare and public service. One such endeavour is the establishment of a blood bank, an initiative of profound humanitarian value, which I have been invited to inaugurate. I pray to God to grant success to these philanthropic ventures, to strengthen all those who are engaged in them, and to bless their noble efforts with sincerity, continuity, and lasting benefit for humanity.
While I was preparing to leave for Srinagar, I happened to meet a gentleman who enquired about the purpose of my journey. I informed him that a blood donation camp was being organized and that I had been requested to inaugurate it. This gentleman, however, held rather conservative views. He asked me whether it was lawful in Islam to give one’s own blood to another person. I chose not to respond to him directly at that moment, yet the question lingered in my mind long afterwards. I found myself deeply astonished at the degeneration of the present Muslim mindset. Many today appear preoccupied with questioning the permissibility or impermissibility of matters that were, in reality, settled centuries ago. Instead of addressing the real challenges facing humanity, they remain entangled in doubts that arise from a misunderstanding of religion itself.
It must be clearly borne in mind that Islam took a revolutionary step in the seventh century AD. During the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad, an event of extraordinary intellectual and civilizational significance took place—an event that changed the very course of human history. The question posed by that gentleman, and many similar doubts that trouble people today, are directly related to this incident from the life of the Prophet. Because we are largely unaware of its true meaning and implications, we find ourselves burdened with unnecessary confusion and hesitation in matters of social good.
This incident occurred after the Prophet’s migration from Makkah to Madinah. One day, while he was passing through the outskirts of the city, the Prophet noticed a group of men engaged in an activity atop the branches of date palm trees. They appeared deeply absorbed in their work. Makkah, the Prophet’s hometown, was a mountainous region, largely unsuitable for agriculture, and thus unfamiliar with such practices. Madinah, by contrast, was agriculturally fertile, and dates formed a central component of the local diet. Observing the people of Madinah engaged in what seemed to be a technical process, the Prophet enquired, “What are you doing?” They replied, “We are transferring pollen from the male part to the female part of the tree.” This practice is known in Arabic as ta’bir al-nakhl, and in modern terminology as pollination.
It is a well-established fact that just as animals reproduce through biological processes, plants too have mechanisms for generating new life. One such mechanism is pollination, in which the male and female components of a plant interact. Pollination refers to the transfer of pollen grains from the anther—the male part of the flower—to the stigma, the female part. This process leads to fertilization and ultimately results in the formation of fruit. In nature, pollination is often carried out by insects, birds, and the wind. However, human beings can also assist this process through manual pollination.
When the Prophet observed the people of Madinah performing this agricultural practice, he remarked, “If you did not do this, it might make no difference.” Taking this statement to be a directive, the local farmers abandoned the practice. As a result, the yield of dates declined drastically in the following season. When the Prophet later passed by them again and enquired about the reduced harvest, they explained that pollination was a practice they had followed for generations, and that abandoning it had harmed their produce.
Upon hearing this, the Prophet permitted them to resume their work and stated a principle of timeless importance: “You have better knowledge of your worldly affairs.” (Sahih Muslim)
This statement was neither an admission of ignorance nor merely an expression of humility. Rather, it was the proclamation of a profound and far-reaching truth. Through this single sentence, the Prophet established a clear distinction between matters of revelation and matters of empirical knowledge. He affirmed that religious belief should not interfere with scientific investigation and worldly expertise. For thousands of years prior to this, religion and science had remained entangled. As a result, any scientific discovery that appeared to contradict prevailing religious interpretations was often met with hostility and suppression.
History bears tragic witness to this confusion. In ancient Greece, the philosopher Socrates was condemned to death by the religious and political establishment for ideas deemed threatening to accepted beliefs.
Four centuries before Christ, Socrates was one of the greatest intellectual figures of his time, yet he was forced to drink poison on charges of impiety and corrupting the youth. From Socrates to later figures such as Bruno and Galileo, countless scholars pursued research in astronomy, botany, mathematics, and other disciplines, only to face persecution because their findings challenged entrenched dogma.
It is narrated that when the Romans conquered Greece, a renowned scientist and mathematician was found deeply engrossed in solving a mathematical problem. A Roman soldier, fearing that the scholar might arrive at conclusions contrary to Roman religious beliefs, killed him on the spot without trial. Such incidents illustrate how independent thinking—so essential for intellectual and scientific progress—was systematically repressed. In an atmosphere devoid of freedom, the sciences could not flourish.
Even when remarkable discoveries were made, they often failed to gain recognition due to religious rigidity. The concept of zero, for instance, was developed in India as early as the fifth century AD. This numeral system, which revolutionized mathematics by allowing numbers such as 10, 100, and 1000, remained confined until it reached the Abbasid world in the eighth century AD. Through translation, refinement, and further development, Muslim scholars transmitted this knowledge to Europe, paving the way for the modern scientific age.
For the first time in human history, the Prophet Muhammad articulated a principle that liberated scientific inquiry from theological constraint. His declaration—“You have better knowledge of your worldly affairs”—laid the foundation for intellectual freedom. Islam thus recognized two distinct domains: the domain of revelation and the domain of human investigation.
Messengers of God are sent to guide humanity concerning realities beyond sensory perception—realities of the unseen world and the life to come. They inform us about the Hereafter, accountability, and moral purpose, matters that cannot be accessed through experimentation or observation. The Quran repeatedly emphasises this unseen dimension (al-ghayb) as the proper subject of divine guidance (2:3). At the same time, it encourages reflection, observation, and the use of reason in worldly matters: “Ask the people of knowledge if you do not know” (16:43), and “He has subjected to you whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth.” (45:13)
Fields that can be explored through observation, experimentation, and research have been deliberately left to human beings. This is why Islam places such great emphasis on knowledge and learning, beginning with the very first revelation: “Read in the name of your Lord who created.” (96:1) Similarly, the preservation of human life is declared a supreme value: “Whoever saves a life, it is as if he has saved all of mankind.” (5:32) From this perspective, acts such as blood donation are not merely permissible; they are expressions of moral responsibility and compassion.
The tragedy of earlier civilizations lay in their inability to separate religion from science. Galileo’s theory that the earth revolved around the sun was rejected not because it lacked evidence, but because it appeared to threaten a theological assumption prevalent in medieval Christianity. To preserve the symbolic centrality of the earth as the birthplace of Jesus, scientific truth was denied, and Galileo was persecuted.
Islam, through the Prophet’s clear guidance, closed the door to such confusion. It freed religion from scientific speculation and science from theological interference. If Muslims today were to rediscover this prophetic principle, many of their doubts would dissolve, and they would once again become active contributors to human welfare. Initiatives such as blood donation, medical research, and social service would then be seen not as matters of suspicion, but as fulfilments of faith in action—faith that harmonizes belief with reason and worship with service to humanity.
