MUSLIMS - PIONEERS OF SCIENCE AND CIVILIZATION
By M.H. Jamaldeen (Australia)

Man is by nature belligerent. His pugnacious instinct cannot be controlled by following the law of the jungle. His baser self always looks to overlordship and to subjugate the weaklings. He believes in the philosophy of might is right. He has an innate desire to rule over others and never to serve and surrender.

As a result of this attitude there is chaos and disorder in society. He becomes a nuisance to harmonious living because he tries to assert his overlordship He is prejudiced and selfish and self-centred, and he wants everything for himself and none for others.

Only Islam with its transcendental values and God-fear can free him from the shackles of human weaknesses and wickedness. Only it can make a multi-pronged attack and bludgeon all the base qualities of man into absolute submission. Islam is a constructive, edifying and civilizing force which embraces all fields of human activity ranging from psychological, moral and spiritual to social, political and material.

Islamic culture is a civilizing force. It transforms the brute human into a decent and law-abiding citizen. It leaches him manners and morals. It shows him the way of decent and peaceful living in the society. It shows him the way of peaceful co-existence and to respect the rights of others.

It is apt to quote here the famous remarks of George Bernard Shaw which runs thus: "It (Islam) is the only religion which appears to possess that assimilating capability to the changing phases of existence which can make itself appeal to every age..." "I believe that if a man like him ((The Prophet Muhammad - May Allah bless him and grant him pence) were to assume the dictatorship of" the modern world he would succeed in solving the problems in a way that would brine it the much-needed peace and happiness."

History bears ample testimony to how a crude and truculent society like the pre-Islamic Arabs given to numerous vices were quickly transformed into a society of great moral and spiritual force, It is a fact of history that they lived a life of debauchery and gross sexual licentiousness. There were internecine conflicts and acrimonious tribal wars ending in mutilation and massacre of human lives. There was gambling, drinking and prostitution. Women had no standing in society. They were treated as mere chattels and were much abused and misused. The wicked custom of burying alive their daughters was the most barbarous practice. Superstitions and myths abounded. Astrology and oracles played a vital role in their lives. Idolatry was rampant. Every conceivable crime and sin were committed. No material philosophy or ideology had the potentiality to engender a social revolution so as to morally and ethically elevate this decadent society. Only Islam had the great enervating and elevating power to transform this brutal and sub-human species into an awe-inspiring and world force dealing a coup de grace to all their dastardly acts and inhuman crimes.

The miraculous result was the emergence of a nation noted for its rare piety, wisdom, courage and morality unknown in the annals of mankind. Their zeal for religion and their sincerity to promote human weal and welfare wherever they went has been written in golden letters in the history of mankind. We are today Muslims because of the dedication and devotion of these savants of Islam who traversed vast expanses of land ignoring all trials and tribulations merely for the sake of spreading the beacon light of Islam to far-flung alien territories. It was their proselytising zeal that brought the message of this great and living faith to us and made us civilized human beings and gave us the invaluable Imaan which is the greatest of treasures on which depends salvation and bliss in the everlasting hereafter. Their contribution is incomparable and it is rightly said by the Ulama that they constitute the cream of Muslim society. Their rank and spiritual dignity are great and exalted and they form the best of mankind. Their period is known as "Quroon-e-Thalathah: (the three noble ages of goodness and virtue).

The teachings of the Holy Qur'an and the Prophetic example were the two gigantic inspiring forces that effected this mighty social and spiritual revolution. The light of faith was kindled and the path of righteousness was chartered out for them. The darkness of ignorance was dissipated and the light of knowledge held aloft heralding a new era of intellectual, moral and spiritual advancement. Their crude and uncouth ways and manners were replaced by enlightened, elegant and refined habits and morality. They reached the acme of culture and civilization that their period came to be know as the golden age of Islam.

The Muslim world basked uninhibited in this glory and sunshine of human achievement and success for over a thousand years. Material prosperity and spiritual progress marked their lives. Knowledge and culture flourished under them. The internationally renowned universities of Baghdad, Damascus, Isphahan and Spain enjoyed the patronage of their rulers and foreigners flocked to them for high learning. Science and arts flourished under them.

The scholar prince Hakam II was credited with founding a library of 400,000 volumes; the Nizamiyah University at Baghdad also had an equal number of books; the library of Fatimid Caliphs of Cairo is said to have comprised 1.6 million books; the Dar-Al-Hikmat of Cairo had 40 chambers, each equipped with 18,000 books; the library at Tripoli is said to have consisted of a million books. But soon calamity overtook these libraries. In the sack of Baghdad by the ignorant Tartars libraries were ravaged and they clumped all the books into the river Tigris. Bigoted Crusaders destroyed three million books and the Spaniards who overran Andalusia burnt one million books in a single day in Granada. This wanton destruction of libraries shows the height of bigotry and intolerance of the rivals of Islam.

Joseph Hell in his "The Arab Civilization" States: "Two of the oldest Muslim astronomers - al-Farghani and al-Battani were the preceptors of Europe, and under the name of Alfrabganus and Albatenious enjoyed high and widespread renown. The numerous astronomical terms of Arab origin (e.g. Zenith, Azimuth, Nadir, etc.) testify to the indebtedness of the West to the Muslim astronomy of the Middle Ages."

Dr. Musatafa Sibai states" "It hardly needs mention that in various European languages, many Arabic words relating to the necessities of life are used almost in their original form. For example cotton, musgas, musk, lemon, zero are really Arabic words qutn, mashqi, limmun and sifar. And there are innumerable other words of that sort." (Some glittering Aspects of The Islamic Civilization).

When Muslim culture and science were on the ascendent, Europe was groping in the dark, professor Masudul Hassan, in his "History of Islam" writes: "During the Middle Ages the Muslims were the most advanced people in the world. While in Europe even the kings could not read and write, in the Muslim countries even the common man could read and write."

There was crass ignorance. They were guided by superstitions and myths. They did not know what civilized life was. Edward Gibbon made scathing remarks on the inhabitants of these dark ages of Europe. They were wallowing in filth and squalor and the historians have left a grim picture about them. Maulana Abul Hasan Ali Nadawi, wrote in his "Islam and the World," The cleanliness of the body was regarded as a pollution of the soul, and the saints who were most admired had become a hideous mass of filth. St. Athanasius related with enthusiasm how St. Anthony had never to extreme old age, been guilty of washing his feet. St. Abraham, who lived for fifty years after his conversion to Christianity, scrupulously avoided washing either his hands or feet from that date."

In contrast, Islam stresses the importance of purity and cleanliness. T.B. Irving remarks: "Cordoba was the first city of modern Europe to have street lighting and to see a revival of public baths, for the Islamic faith makes cleanliness not merely a pious wish but also a religious duty." (FALCON OF SPAIN).

The progress made in the fields of science, astronomy, agriculture, navigation, geography, chemistry, medicine, mathematics, etc; was a marvel of history. Muslims loomed large in the intellectual horizon. Prof. Masudul Hasan says: "Islam produced the greatest scientists, the greatest physicians, the greatest philosophers, the greatest geographers and the greatest historians of the Middle Ages." (History of Islam).

They were the great pioneers of modern science and civilization. They were tht leading lights in all fields of human activity. They made giant strides in secula learning. Their practical achievements are really stunning and staggering. Le us have a glimpse at the list of their outstanding inventions. They invented tin telescope (Abdul Hasan); pendulum (Ibn Yunus); photography (Al Hashim) Astrolobe (Muhammad Musa).

Besides, Professor Masudul Hasan gives an impressive catalogue of their crowning achievements in his book, "History of Islam" which the present writer has compiled succinctly for the convenience of the reader, he states: "the first watch was made by Qutbi" the Muslims were the first to use guns and gun powder; they were the first to manufacture soap; paper was first manufactured in Baghdad by Yusuf B. Omar; Ibn Fineas made glass from stone for the first time. He was also the first man in history to make a scientific attempt at flying: the Committee headed by Muhammad b Musa al Khawarzami produced the first map of the world in 830 C.E.; Abu Zaid al Balkhi produced the first Atlas of the Muslim world; Al Istakhri wrote the first book on human geography in the world; Al Mawardi was the first Muslim writer to present a legal exposition theory of government speculatively derived from theology; Al Asmai was the first Muslim authority on Zoology; Al Jagiz was the first scientist to note changes in bird's lives through migrations. He was also the first scientist to describe the method of obtaining ammonia from the animal offal by distillation; Al Razi was the first physician to write a book on paediatrics; Ishaq b Sulayman's book Peculiarities of Diet was the first physician to write about the capillary system, and the way in which a child is born; Ibn Sina (Avicenna) wrote the first descriptions of several drugs and diseases. Abu AH al Hasan (Al Hazen) wrote the first standard work on Ophthalmology ("Roger Bacon and all medieval Western writers on optics - notable the Pole Witelo or Vitellio - base their optical works largely on Alhazen's Opticae Thesaurus. His work also influenced Leonardo da Vinci and Johann Kepler" (Muslim Contribution to Scientific Progress, article by Prof. Zaiuddin Ahmad); Abul Wafa Basjani was the first to point out the generality of the sine theorem in relation to spheres and triangles; Al Hissar was the first mathematician to write the fraction with a horizontal line. Paper was first produced in Samarqand etc.

"The Muslims established the first apothecary shop and they produced the first pharmacopoeia", (History of Arabs by professor Hitti).

The affluent students of Europe flocked at the feet of Muslim intellectuals and scholars not only to imbibe knowledge and learning but also to learn their culture and refined manners.

T.B. Irving writes: "Not only scholastics like Thomas Aquinas received instruction via Spanish sources (even if they those to refute what they learned) hut also thinkers like Peter Abelard, Duns Scotus, Roger Bacon, William Oakham and Benedict Spinoza would glean ideas that would reveal the first pulsations of the modern spirit. Likewise, Hespano-Arabic medicine and philosophy would pass through the French schools at Montpellier, Narbonne and Perpiganan, as well as directly by way of those scholars who did their graduate work in Cordoba and Teoedo. These transmitters were not all Frenchmen or Spaniards, but counted Germans, Jews, Scotts and Englishmen as well among them." (FALCON OF SPAIN)

A.M.A. Shushtery, also refers to the cosmopolitan crowd which flocked to Cordova which was a radiating centre of knowledge and erudition. He writes: "In the 10th century Cordova was the most beautiful city in Europe. The Mosque at Cordoba used to be illuminated with eight thousand lamps, consuming about twenty thousand pounds of oil. It was the centre of learning, trade and refinement. Us university was well known in Europe, where Muslims, Jews, and Christians studied." (OUTLINES OF ISLAMIC CULTURE).

The alien students in Muslim academics set the blaze for new era in human history. They were responsible for the flowering of the European renaissance But European history books attribute the advent of Renaissance to the restoration of Greek classics and also state that modern science owes a great deal to Greek science. But the views of European scholars themselves refute this argument. H. G. Wells remarked in his Outline of History: "The thought of the Greek was hampered by a want of knowledge that is almost inconceivable to us today. They had no knowledge of the past of mankind at all; they had no knowledge of geography beyond the range of the Mediterranean Basin and the frontiers of Persia. Their astronomical ideas were still in the state of rudimentary speculation. One has to remember their extraordinary poverty in the matter of experimental apparatus" (cited by Islam and the Origins of Modern Science by K Adbud Waheed.) Further, Professor A. N. Whitehead summarizes in his Science and the Modern World: "The Greeks were over-theoretical, for their science was an offshoot of philosophy. The Greek genius was philosophical.... The men of this group were primarily asking philosophical questions. But it was not science as we understand it" (ibid). According to Oswald Spengler, in his "Decline of the West." The Greeks, throughout his culture, preferred abstract thought to the study of concrete facts" (ibid). "The Byzantine period was particularly sterile in its contribution to knowledge... in the absence of learning, superstition held supreme sway." (Max Khan in Practice of Medicine, cited by Islam and the Origin of Modern Science). Singer in Science and Civilization "During the dark ages which extended over Europe from the fifth to tenth centuries (A.C.), the peoples of that continent were living in a highly savage state. They were "unclean in person, benighted in mind." Their moral codes were degraded am their theology debased" (ibid).

Thus Spain was the cradle of European renaissance and not Italy and all the non-Muslim scholars disseminated the newly acquired knowledge from the academic of Moorish Spain. A new wave of enthusiasm was shown towards the cultivation of the arts and the sciences. A shot in the arm was given to every intellectual activity. Arabic works were translated into Latin. The stimulus given for learning and scholarship produced such stupendous results that subsequently; they began to outshine their Muslim counterparts in many fields of knowledge. They surpassed their mentors so much that the impact of it is felt even in modern times. While they began to make giant strides in learning and knowledge, their benefactors lagged behind. They fell into a state of torpor and decadence a intellectual stagnation soon followed. Their minds became fossilized incapable of creative thinking and making any original contributions like the predecessors.

Beautiful Greece fell; Mighty Rome fell, so also the Muslims evermore to rise. "Then the times changed," says Abul Hasan AH Nadawi, "and there dawned the epoch of Western ascendance. It brought with it a new altitude towards learning, which was the product of Europe's own cultural experiences and exigencies. The Muslim countries, too, on account of their intellectual sluggishness succumbed to the illusion that their salvation lay only in a slavish submission to the West and its educational system.

Ground was thus prepared for not merely intellectual adoration but also for actual imitation of the Western civilization by Muslim intelligentsia. Religious scepticism, self-conceit, discontent, and all other characteristics of the modern Western mode of living began steadily to replace the cultural ideals of the rising generations of the Muslims. The spiritual civilisation of Islam began systematically to be replaced by the material culture of Europe." (ISLAM AND THE WORLD)

Evil forces like atheism, Hedonism and modernism spread rapidly under the impact of the Western system of education. Indestructibility of matter, evolution of Man through Apes, Godlessness, dethroning of morals and ethics, deification of Nature were among the salient features of modern science education which are diametrically opposed to the noble and transcendental teachings of Islam. Such atheistic ideas are fast gaining ground among the ignorant and modernist Muslims despite the fact that they violently militate against the unchangeable laws of Shariah.

Muslim countries which came under foreign domination during the colonial era fell under the spell of the glittering and corrosive influence of the Western culture and education, throwing overboard all spiritual and cultural values of Islam. They became intensely subjected to alien propaganda and much exposed to their ways and life-styles. They forgot their glorious past. They became completely foreign to the astounding scientific achievements of their predecessors because modern text books deliberately avoided making any reference to them and an impression was created in the students' minds that the West was the pioneer in every field of human activity. Robert Briffault refutes this categorically: "discussions as to who was the originator of the experimental method like fostering of every Arab discovery or inventions on the first Europeans who happens to mention it. such as the invention of compass to a fabulous Falvio Goija of Amalfi, of lenses and gun-powder to Bacon or Schwartz are part of the colossal misrepresentation of the origin of European civilization. The experimental method of the Arabs was by Bacon's time widespread and cultivation throughout Europe" (The Making of Humanity cited by Islam and the Origins of Modern Science).

Further, the American scientist Draper, in his History of the Intellectual Development of Europe, is reported to have profoundly deplored the fact that "European literature had systematically endeavoured to make the West forget its scientific debt to the Muslims."

All these myths and fallacies could be explored if the students take to the diligent study of the history of Islam.

When Vasco da Gama, after his circumnavigation of the African continent in 1498 A.C. had reached Malindi on the east coast of Africa, it was an Arab pilot, Ahmed ibn Majid, who showed him the way to India (article, Muslim Contribution to Scientific Progress by Prof. Ziauddin Ahmad in MUSLIM CONTRIBUTIONS TO SCIENCE). "Ala al - Din Abul - Ala Ali ibn Hazm al-Qurashi of Damascus explains the theory of the circulation of blood in detail, 300 years ahead of Sir William Harvey, which fact is acknowledged by Professor Dr. J. Blatham of Manchester University".

"Ihn Khatima (1369 A.C.) stated that man is surrounded by minute bodies which enter the human system and cause disease. Dr Grunner, referring to those views, expressed the opinion that the Arabs were fully aware of the theory of germs."

"The Arab physicians first of all used the stomach tube to perform the gastric lavage in cases of poisoning. They fully knew the principles of opotherapy. This method of treatment has been ascribed to Dr. Brown Sequard who practised it only 50 years ago, whereas the Arabs were fully aware of it centuries before him." (article, Muslim Contribution to Medicine by Prof. H. Nayyar Wasti in MUSLIM CONTRIBUTION TO SCIENCE.

This short essay, it is felt would serve as an eye-opener for the ignorant students. It should inspire them to delve into Islamic history books dealing with the prodigious cultural and scientific achievements of the great servants of Islam who rode for over a millennium the realm of knowledge and wisdom like a Colossus.

"And Allah doth advance in guidance those who seek Guidance; And the things that endure, Good Deeds, Are best in the sight of thy Lord, as rewards. And best in respect of (their) eventual returns." Qur'an(S. XXX 76)