FROM THE EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
Dr Farida Khanam is an author, editor, translator, public speaker and former professor of Islamic Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. Among her books are ‘A Simple Guide to Sufism’ and ‘A Study of World’s Major Religions’. She has translated into English many books authored by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan. Currently the chairperson of CPS International, she is a regular contributor of articles to various publications. Dr Khanam has edited Maulana’s English translation of the Quran and has also translated his Urdu commentary of the Quran into English. She can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
ISLAMIC PERSPECTIVES
LIFE: According to Islam life is a creation of God. God desired to create life and there was life. Creation falls into four categories— inanimate matter, plants, animals, and human beings. No category has evolved from any other.
Islam states that all four have been produced as a separate creation. Similarly, of living things, there are a great number of species, right from amoeba to human beings. Again, none of these living species has been produced from any other through the process of evolution. Rather they have all been created separately. There is no doubt that there is some similarity in their physical system, but each has a permanent, separate existence. There is no concept of a missing link in Islam.
MAN:
The Prophet Muhammad said: “God created man in His own image.”
This does not mean that life in the form of man is a part of God. Islam
believes in dualism. As per the Islamic concept, God and human beings
are two separate entities. It simply means that man is endowed with
certain special qualities. We know that mountains cannot walk, but
humans can. The ocean cannot hear, but humans can. The moon
cannot see, but man can. No two trees can enter into a dialogue, but
two persons can. No planet can organize a seminar, but human beings
can. No stars can invent a machine, but life in the form of man can.
These are the unique qualities of the human being.
PURPOSE OF MAN'S CREATION:
According to a Hadith (saying of the Prophet Muhammad), God said:
“I was a hidden treasure. Then I wanted to be known and I created
human beings.” It is a fact that the capacity for conceptual thinking
is the special quality of human beings. So God created man for this
purpose. It is required that human beings discover God’s existence and
realize His presence. Once man realizes God, he is showered with divine
blessings. Then he offers thanks to his Sustainer. In Islam, thanksgiving
is the greatest form of worship.
THE RELIGION OF ISLAM & SCIENCE:
As far as the relationship between science and religion is concerned, it
could be referred to as a very well-established principle of Islam which
is known as al-Maruf (the good). It means that
anything proved to be good for humankind
would also be regarded as good in Islam.
It is required that human beings discover God’s existence and realize His presence. Once man realizes God, he is showered with divine blessings.
Here is a very relevant Hadith which throws light on this matter. The Prophet of Islam was born in Makkah, a desert city where he lived for fifty-three years. Then he migrated to Madinah which was built on fertile land, with soil especially suitable for date plantation. There were many date orchards in the city. As a matter of ancient custom, the Madinans used to pollinate the date plants artificially.
Prophet was not familiar with this custom. One day when he passed by some people who had climbed up to the top of date palms, he enquired as to what they were doing. He was told that they were pollinating the trees in order to fertilize them. The Prophet said, ‘I don’t think this will benefit them.’ When people learned of the Prophet’s comment, they stopped the practice of pollination. This led to a very low yield that year.
When the Prophet came to know of this, he said, “If they benefit from pollination, they should continue with this practice. It was only an opinion.” Then the Prophet told the date growers to adhere to their own methods, and said, “You know better about your worldly affairs” (Sahih Muslim). According to this teaching, worldly affairs like horticulture, agriculture, engineering, architecture, and irrigation and, of course, all the disciplines dealing with life sciences fall into the category of alMaruf. In terms of scientific research and experience, whatever proves to be good for humankind will also be regarded as good in Islam. So there is no possibility of contradiction between Islam and facts proved by any branch of science, including the biological sciences.
ORGAN DONATION:
Although the Quran and Hadith provide principles covering this area,
we do not find details of these basic injunctions. For instance, the
development that has taken place in the science of surgery has shown
that some parts of the human body can be transplanted in another
human body. If the eye of a dead person is taken out immediately after
his death, it can be transplanted in the eye socket of a blind person and
he may gain his sight.
Basic guidelines, not details, regarding these matters are given in the Quran and Hadith. Islam gives us a principle that applies to this subject as well. That is, “everything is lawful unless it is declared unlawful.” In the light of this Islamic principle, we can safely say that the donation of any organ is permissible in Islam, for the Shariah has not held it unlawful.
Then there is another principle in Islam known as sadaqa-jaria, i.e. the perpetuation of a charitable deed. The benefits of this kind of charity are long-lasting. The good effect of a transplanted eye will endure long after the donor’s death. Such acts, far from incurring God’s displeasure, will bring the donor divine rewards.
Dr. Farida Khanam
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.