The Vessel of Knowledge
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The Intellect…
That wondrous vessel! The instrument of retention and deduction.
And I deem—Allah knows best—that its limits and capacities are still not truly confined with certainty; rather, they are approximated by estimates and theories that aim and draw near.
The rational method…
Or, if you wish, call it the scientific method as well.
For the one endowed with sound knowledge perceives the nature of that method by which truths are reached, sciences are inferred, and knowledge is preserved.
Yet know, my friend…
That knowledge is a light which may blind its beholder!
—if he/she gazes upon it without knowledge;
And knowledge is a sea which may drown its rider!
—if he/she ventures into it without knowledge.
Does not one who looks directly at the sun’s radiance without suitable protection risk blindness?
Does not one who sets forth across the vast seas without suitable means risk drowning?
So it is with knowledge..
Thus, if we wish to speak of knowledge—rather, of intellect—in the realm of faith. Let us look to the story of the Father of the Prophets, our master Abraham (peace be upon him), in an ancient age when the essence of knowledge had nearly perished—knowledge of God and faith in Him—indeed, when the very essence of reason itself had all but vanished; when people carved idols of stone and then worshipped them!
Look with me, my friend, at the events of that rational, logical quest—one that intertwined diverse modes of thought with what we, in our modern history, call scientific inquiry.
The Cattle (6:74-79) - الأنعام
And ˹remember˺ when Abraham said to his father, Ȃzar, “Do you take idols as gods? It is clear to me that you and your people are entirely misguided.”
We also showed Abraham the wonders of the heavens and the earth, so he would be sure in faith.
When the night grew dark upon him, he saw a star and said, “This is my Lord!” But when it set, he said, “I do not love things that set.”
Then when he saw the moon rising, he said, “This one is my Lord!” But when it disappeared, he said, “If my Lord does not guide me, I will certainly be one of the misguided people.”
Then when he saw the sun shining, he said, “This must be my Lord—it is the greatest!” But again when it set, he declared, “O my people! I totally reject whatever you associate ˹with Allah in worship˺.
I have turned my face towards the One Who has originated the heavens and the earth—being upright—and I am not one of the polytheists.”
— Dr. Mustafa Khattab, The Clear Quran
And [mention, O Muḥammad], when Abraham said to his father Āzar, "Do you take idols as deities? Indeed, I see you and your people to be in manifest error."
And thus did We show Abraham the realm of the heavens and the earth that he would be among the certain [in faith].
So when the night covered him [with darkness], he saw a star. He said, "This is my lord." But when it set, he said, "I like not those that set [i.e., disappear]."
And when he saw the moon rising, he said, "This is my lord." But when it set, he said, "Unless my Lord guides me, I will surely be among the people gone astray."
And when he saw the sun rising, he said, "This is my lord; this is greater." But when it set, he said, "O my people, indeed I am free from what you associate with Allāh.
Indeed, I have turned my face [i.e., self] toward He who created the heavens and the earth, inclining toward truth, and I am not of those who associate others with Allāh."
— Saheeh International
The Prophet Abraham was astonished at the folly of his people—how could they worship stones crafted by human hands?
So he set forth, carrying -metaphorically- all of humanity with him on a rational journey in search of the true God, aided by what is available to every human being: intellect, logic, observation, and contemplation of this vast universe.
He first ruled out the idols, for the maker cannot be made, and the true Creator cannot be created. And we may affirm that this is a logical axiom—an axiom over which not even two goats would butt heads.
He then turned his gaze to the heavens and beheld wondrous celestial bodies—innumerable stars and planets in an awe-inspiring scene that overwhelms the mind, revealing the smallness and limitation of man before the expanses of the cosmos.
He saw among those bodies a particularly brilliant star—perhaps Venus in one of its phases—glittering in the stillness. So he may have said to himself, and to his people: “Perhaps this is the Lord of the universe!” For it indeed stood out from what surrounded it.
But when the moon rose and reached its fullness, everything around it darkened, and that glittering star lost all its brilliance in the presence of the moon’s radiance.
Yet, of course, after that there appeared something greater still, and more luminous than all of these…
Yes—the sun rose, and it illuminated the earth as far as sight could reach. But it soon set; darkness returned, and day and night alternated—as did the sun, the moon, and the phases of those celestial bodies.
Nothing among them was constant in its presence or appearance; each appeared for a time and disappeared for a time, and such a trait is utterly unbefitting of divinity. Thus, Abraham (peace be upon him) ruled out that any of these bodies could be gods.
For the true God must never vanish, nor change, nor assume multiple forms.
And so the sole rational and logical conclusion emerged:
The One true God is the One who created all those celestial bodies in the heavens and all the creatures upon the earth—including humankind.
He must, by necessity, be exalted above all things, overseeing and witnessing all from above.
He must, by necessity, encompass all things, such that nothing in this vast universe escapes His knowledge or His power.
And He must, by necessity, be ever-living, never dying; ever-present, never absent.
And certainly, He must hear and see, govern and dispose the affairs of this vast cosmos and all creatures within it.
Thus, the Lord of this universe must be utterly unique in His essence and attributes, resembling none of His creation—“There is nothing like unto Him.” (I have spoken elsewhere of the foremost divine attributes—Lordship and Divinity—in another discourse entitled: To be without a Lord.. To be without Refuge.)
Abraham (peace be upon him) comprehended all of this beyond doubt, so he turned with his supplication to Allah—the One True God. He turned his face toward Him, asking that He guide him unto Him. And Allah Almighty answered him, raised his rank, guided him to the sound innate disposition and the upright, pure religion; then made from his lineage some of the greatest of prophets and messengers (peace be upon them all), and immortalized his remembrance among the first and the last. And praise be to God, Lord of the worlds.
How magnificent, generous, and merciful is Allah's reward when a person seeks guidance with sincerity and asks Him to lead him to faith through the gate of sound Intellect and upright Religion.
