The Role of Muslims in the Formation and Development of Science (Part One)
The religion of Islam, sent by Allah Almighty to save and guide humanity, serves as a summary of all divine religions. It possesses valuable teachings in the realm of civilization and its facets, such as the formation and development of various sciences. This religion strongly encourages its believers and followers to be innovative in various scientific fields, promoting invention and creativity.
The history of Islam is replete with personalities who were active and innovative in diverse scientific domains, each contributing as a discoverer or developer of essential sciences needed by humanity. In fact, Islam’s perspective on human society and its evolution through science and knowledge is unique. No other religion emphasizes the pursuit of learning and the expansion of knowledge as profoundly as Islam.
Allah Almighty states in the Holy Qur’an: «قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِي الَّذِينَ يَعْلَمُونَ وَالَّذِينَ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ إِنَّمَا يَتَذَكَّرُ أُوْلُوا الْأَلْبَابِ» Translation: “Say, are those who know equal to those who do not know? Only the wise take advice.”
Additionally, Allah the Exalted speaks of the status of knowledgeable individuals and the degrees that will be conferred upon them:
«يَرْفَعِ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مِنكُمْ وَالَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْعِلْمَ دَرَجَاتٍ وَاللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرٌ» Translation: “Allah raises those of you who believe, and those who have knowledge, by degrees, and Allah knows what they do.”
In various places within the Holy Qur’an, Allah Almighty expresses disappointment that the audience of religious teachings often fails to engage in “reasoning,” “science,” and “thinking,” underscoring the significant importance of knowledge.
The noble Prophet of Islam, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, has emphasized the acquisition of knowledge in numerous hadiths. In one hadith, he states: “Whoever follows a path in which he seeks knowledge, Allah will make the path to Paradise easy for him.” In another hadith, he asserts: “Seeking knowledge is obligatory for every Muslim.”
These Islamic teachings inspired Muslims, led by the Holy Sahaba, to learn essential sciences. In subsequent centuries, Islamic caliphs ordered the translation of various sciences and teachings into Arabic to enable Muslims to study fields such as medical sciences, mathematics, chemistry, physics, history, and geography, thus acquiring expertise in each discipline and discovering new horizons within these fields.
As a result, Islamic civilization emerged as a new era that, grounded in its faith, embraced necessary sciences and implemented them in daily life.
Today, there is a pressing need to recognize the golden history of Muslims in the acquisition and expansion of sciences. The new and younger generation of Muslims must become aware of the intellectual and cultural invasion from the West in this respect.
Thus, we must examine and evaluate the efforts of Muslims and their role in the development and progress of science, presenting themselves and their society as leaders, benefactors, inventors, and innovators in many disciplines.
Dr. Ragheb Al-Sarjani writes: “The clear answer to the question regarding the backwardness of Muslims is that Muslims themselves have abandoned the tools of power and neglected the Qur’an and the Sunnah, along with the firm laws and eternal rulings contained therein. Furthermore, Muslims have been influenced by Westerners to such an extent that they seek strength and power within their civilization and view awakening as achievable only through Europe. Yet, they have failed to understand that irrespective of advances in one field, this civilization has faltered in others. It must be acknowledged that this civilization is man-made and contains both right and wrong; in contrast, Islam is Allah’s law, immutable and devoid of error.”
The false and misleading propaganda propagated by the West often overlooks that the first universities and scientific centers in today’s style were established by Muslims in their Islamic societies, particularly in Andalusia (modern Spain) and other regions under their rule. Numerous observatories and laboratories championed by Muslims contributed significantly to astronomical observation, physics, chemistry, mathematics, and other sciences, leading the era.
Europe must not forget that, at one time, scientific authority and centricity belonged to Muslims, with their youth and scholars visiting Islamic countries to study various scientific fields. As a result, until recent years, medical texts authored by Muslim scholars were taught in major European scientific institutions, serving as foundational sources for various sciences, especially medicine. These contributions played a crucial role in familiarizing European civilization with multiple fields of knowledge.
Western thinker and writer Gustave Le Bon highlights the role of Muslims in shaping civilization globally, particularly in Europe, stating: “Undoubtedly, the civilization of the Muslim Arabs introduced the savage nations of Europe to the realm of humanity, and the universities of the West owe their scientific accomplishments to the writings of Arabs. It was the Muslims who civilized Europe materially, intellectually, and morally, and history knows no other nation like the Islamic nation with such achievements.”
Considering this significance and the importance of understanding the role of Muslims in the formation and expansion of science, as well as Islamic civilization’s contribution to human civilization, we aim to examine and evaluate the contributions of Muslims to science in this article, providing insights for the student and the new generation of Muslims.
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