Medieval Sourcebook:
Ibn Rushd (Averroës),
1126-1198 CE:
Religion & Philosophy, c. 1190 CE
This
text is known in English as On the Harmony of Religions and Philosophy, in
Arabic Kitab fasl al-maqal,
with its appendix (Damina). Also appended is an
extract from Kitab al-kashf`an manahij
al-adilla.
Contents
Problem First: the Creation of the Universe
Problem Second: The Advent of the Prophets
Problem Third: Of Fate And Predestination
Problem Fourth: Divine Justice and Injustice
Problem Fifth: The Day of Judgment
We
maintain that the business of philosophy is nothing other than to look into
creation and to ponder over it in order to be guided to the Creator -- in other
words, to look into the meaning of existence. For the knowledge of creation
leads to the cognizance of the Creator, through the knowledge of the created.
The more perfect becomes the knowledge of creation, the more perfect becomes
the knowledge of the Creator. The Law encourages and exhorts us to observe
creation. Thus, it is clear that this is to be taken either as a religious
injunction or as something approved by the Law. But the Law urges us to observe
creation by means of reason and demands the knowledge thereof through reason.
This is evident from different verses of the Qur'an. For example, the Qur'an
says: "Wherefore take example from them, you who have eyes" [Qur'an
49.2]. That is a clear indication of the necessity of using the reasoning
faculty, or rather both reason and religion, in the interpretation of things.
Again it says: "Or do they not contemplate the kingdom of heaven and earth
and the things which God has created" [Qur'an 7.184]. This is in plain
exhortation to encourage the use of observation of creation. And remember that
one whom God especially distinguishes in this respect, Abraham, the prophet.
For He says: "And this did we show unto Abraham: the kingdom of heaven and
earth" [Qur'an 6.75]. Further, He says: "Do they not consider the
camels, how they are created; and the heaven, how it is raised" [Qur'an
88.17]. Or, still again: "And (who) meditate on the creation of heaven and
earth, saying, O Lord you have not created this in vain" [Qur'an 3.176].
There are many other verses on this subject: too numerous to be enumerated.
Now,
it being established that the Law makes the observation and consideration of
creation by reason obligatory -- and consideration is nothing but to make
explicit the implicit -- this can only be done through reason. Thus we must
look into creation with the reason. Moreover, it is obvious that the
observation which the Law approves and encourages must be of the most perfect
type, performed with the most perfect kind of reasoning. As the Law emphasizes
the knowledge of God and His creation by inference, it is incumbent on any who
wish to know God and His whole creation by inference, to learn the kinds of inference,
their conditions and that which distinguishes philosophy from dialectic and
exhortation from syllogism. This is impossible unless one possesses knowledge
beforehand of the various kinds of reasoning and learns to distinguish between
reasoning and what is not reasoning. This cannot be done except one knows its
different parts, that is, the different kinds of premises.
Hence,
for a believer in the Law and a follower of it, it is necessary to know these
things before he begins to look into creation, for they are like instruments
for observation. For, just as a student discovers by the study of the law, the
necessity of knowledge of legal reasoning with all its kinds and distinctions,
a student will find out by observing the creation the necessity of metaphysical
reasoning. Indeed, he has a greater claim on it than the jurist. For if a
jurist argues the necessity of legal reasoning from the saying of God:
"Wherefore take example from them O you who have
eyes" [Qur'an 59.2], a student of divinity has a better right to establish
the same from it on behalf of metaphysical reasoning.
One
cannot maintain that this kind of reasoning is an innovation in religion
because it did not exist in the early days of Islam. For legal reasoning and
its kinds are things which were invented also in later ages, and no one thinks
they are innovations. Such should also be our attitude towards philosophical
reasoning. There is another reason why it should be so, but this is not the
proper place to mention it. A large number of the followers of this religion
confirm philosophical reasoning, all except a small worthless minority, who
argue from religious ordinances. Now, as it is established that the Law makes
the consideration of philosophical reasoning and its kinds as necessary as
legal reasoning, if none of our predecessors has made an effort to enquire into
it, we should begin to do it, and so help them, until the knowledge is
complete. For if it is difficult or rather impossible for one person to
acquaint himself single-handed with all things which it is necessary to know in
legal matters, it is still more difficult in the case of philosophical
reasoning. And, if before us, somebody has enquired into it, we should derive
help from what he has said. It is quite immaterial whether that man is our
co-religionist or not; for the instrument by which purification is perfected is
not made uncertain in its usefulness by its being in the hands of one of our
own party, or of a foreigner, if it possesses the attributes of truth. By these
latter we mean those Ancients who investigated these things before the advent
of Islam.
Now,
such is the case. All that is wanted in an enquiry into philosophical reasoning
has already been perfectly examined by the Ancients. All that is required of us
is that we should go back to their books and see what they have said in this
connection. If all that they say be true, we should accept it and if there be
something wrong, we should be warned by it. Thus, when we have finished this
kind of research we shall have acquired instruments by which we can observe the
universe, and consider its general character. For so long as one does not know
its general character one cannot know the created, and so long as he does not
know the created, he cannot know its nature.
All
things have been made and created. This is quite clear in itself, in the case
of animals and plants, as God has said "Verily the idols which you invoke,
beside God, can never create a single fly, though they may all assemble for
that purpose" [Qur'an 22.72]. We see an inorganic substance and then there
is life in it. So we know for certain that there is an inventor and bestower of
life, and He is God. Of the heavens we know by their movements, which never
become slackened, that they work for our benefit by divine solicitude, and are
subordinate to our welfare. Such an appointed and subordinate object is always
created for some purpose. The second principle is that for every created thing
there is a creator. So it is right to say from the two foregoing principles
that for every existent thing there is an inventor. There are many arguments,
according to the number of the created things, which can be advanced to prove
this premise. Thus, it is necessary for one who wants to know God as He ought
to be known to acquaint himself with the essence of things, so that he may get
information about the creation of all things. For who cannot understand the
real substance and purpose of a thing, cannot understand the minor meaning of
its creation. It is to this that God refers in the following verse "Or do
they not contemplate the heaven and the earth, and the things which God has
created?" [Qur'an 7.184]. And so a man who would follow the purpose of
philosophy in investigating the existence of things, that is, would try to know
the cause which led to its creation, and the purpose of it would know the
argument of kindness most perfectly. These two arguments are those adopted by
Law.
The
verses of the Qur'an leading to a knowledge of the existence of God are
dependent only on the two foregoing arguments. It will be quite clear to anyone
who will examine closely the verses, which occur in the Divine Book in this
connection. These, when investigated, will be found to be of three kinds:
either they are verses showing the "arguments of kindness," or those
mentioning the "arguments of creation, " or those which include both
the kinds of arguments. The following verses may be taken as illustrating the
argument of kindness. "Have we not made the earth for a bed, and the
mountains for stakes to find the same? And have we not created you of two
sexes; and appointed your sleep for rest; and made the night a garment to cover
you; and destined the day to the gaining of your livelihood and built over you
seven solid heavens; and placed therein a burning lamp? And do we not send down
from the clouds pressing forth rain, water pouring down in abundance, that we
may thereby produce corn, and herbs, and gardens planted thick with
trees?" [Qur'an 77.6-16] and, "Blessed be He Who has placed the twelve
signs in the heavens; has placed therein a lamp by day, and the moon which
shines by night" [Qur'an 25.62] and again, "Let man consider his
food" [Qur'an 80.24].
The
following verses refer to the argument of invention, "Let man consider,
therefore of what he is created. He is created of the seed poured forth,
issuing from the loins, and the breast bones" [Qur'an 86.6]; and, "Do
they not consider the camels, how they are created; the heaven, how it is
raised; the mountains, how they are fixed; the earth how it is extended"
[Qur'an 88.17]; and again "O man, a parable is propounded unto you;
wherefore hearken unto it. Verily the idols which they invoke, besides God, can
never create a single fly, though they may all assemble for the purpose"
[Qur'an 22.72]. Then we may point to the story of Abraham, referred to in the
following verse, "I direct my face unto Him Who has created heaven and
earth; I am orthodox, and not of the idolaters" [Qur'an 6.79]. There may
be quoted many verses referring to this argument. The verses comprising both
the arguments are also many, for instance, "O men, of Mecca, serve your
Lord, Who has created you, and those who have been before you: peradventure you
will fear Him; Who has spread the earth as a bed for you, and the heaven as a
covering, and has caused water to descend from heaven, and thereby produced
fruits for your sustenance. Set not up, therefore, any equals unto God, against
your own knowledge [Qur'an 2.19]. His words, "Who has created you, and
those who have been before you," lead us to the argument of creation;
while the words, "who has spread the earth" refer to the argument of
divine solicitude for man. Of this kind also are the following verses of the
Qur'an, "One sign of the resurrection unto them is the dead earth; We
quicken the same by rain, and produce therefrom various sorts of grain, of
which they eat" [Qur'an 36.32]; and, "Now in the creation of heaven
and earth, and the vicissitudes of night and day are signs unto those who are
endowed with understanding, who remember God standing, and sitting, and lying
on their sides; and meditate on the creation of heaven and earth, saying O
Lord, far be it from You, therefore deliver us from the torment of
hellfire" [Qur'an 3.188]. Many verses of this kind comprise both the kinds
of arguments.
This
method is the right path by which God has invited men to a knowledge of His
existence, and informed them of it through the intelligence which He has
implanted in their nature. The followin verse refers
to this fixed and innate nature of man, "And when the Lord drew forth
their posterity from the loins of the sons of Adam, and took them witness
against themselves, Am I not your Lord? They answered, Yes, we do bear
witness" [Qur'an 7.171]. So it is incumbent for one who intends to obey
God, and follow the injunction of His Prophet, that he should adopt this
method, thus making himself one of those learned men who bear witness to the
divinity of God, with His own witness, and that of His angels, as He says,
"God has borne witness, that there is no God but He, and the angels, and
those who are endowed with wisdom profess the same; who execute righteousness;
there is no God but He; the Mighty, the Wise" [Qur'an 3.16]. Among the
arguments for both of themselves is the praise which God refers to in the
following verse, "Neither is there anything which does not celebrate his
praise; but you understand not their celebration thereof" [Qur'an 17.46].
It
is evident from the above arguments for the existence of God that they are
dependent upon two categories of reasoning. It is also clear that both of these
methods are meant for particular people; that is, the learned. Now as to the
method for the masses. The difference between the two lies only in details. The
masses cannot understand the two above-mentioned arguments but only what they
can grasp by their senses; while the learned men can go further and learn by
reasoning also, besides learning by sense. They have gone so far that a learned
man has said, that the benefits the learned men derive from the knowledge of
the members of human and animal body are a thousand and one. If this be so,
then this is the method which is taught both by Law and by Nature. It is the
method which was preached by the Prophet and the divine books. The learned men
do not mention these two lines of reasoning to the masses, not because of their
number, but because of a want of depth of learning on their part about the
knowledge of a single thing only. The example of the common people, considering
and pondering over the universe, is like a man who looks into a thing, the
manufacture of which he does not know. For all that such a man can know about
it is that it has been made, and that there must be a maker of it. But, on the
other hand, the learned look into the universe, just as a man knowing the art
would do; try to understand the real purpose of it. So it is quite clear that
their knowledge about the Maker, as the maker of the universe, would be far
better than that of the man who only knows it as made. The atheists, who deny
the Creator altogether, are like men who can see and feel the created things,
but would not acknowledge any Creator for them, but would attribute all to
chance alone, and that they come into being by themselves.
Now,
then, if this is the method adopted by the Law, it may be asked: What is the
way of proving the unity of God by means of the Law; that is, the knowledge of
the religious formula that "there is no god, but God. " The negation
contained in it is an addition to the affirmative, which the formula contains,
while the affirmative has already been proved. What is the purpose of this
negation? We would say that the method, adopted by the Law, of denying divinity
to all but God is according to the ordinance of God in the Qur'an. . .
If
you look a little intently it will become clear to you, that in spite of the
fact that the Law has not given illustration of those things for the common
people, beyond which their imagination cannot go, it has also informed the
learned men of the underlying meanings of those illustrations. So it is
necessary to bear in mind the limits which the Law has set about the
instruction of every class of men, and not to mix them together. For in this
manner the purpose of the Law is multiplied. Hence it is that the Prophet has said,
"We, the prophets, have been commanded to adapt ourselves to the
conditions of the people, and address them according to their
intelligence." He who tries to instruct all the people in the matter of
religion, in one and the same way, is like a man who wants to make them alike
in actions too, which is quite against apparent laws and reason.
From
the foregoing it must have become clear to you that the divine vision has an
esoteric meaning in which there is no doubt, if we take the words of the Qur'an
about God as they stand, that is, without proving or disproving the
anthropomorphic attribute of God. Now since the first part of the Law has been
made quite clear as to God's purity, and the quantity of the teaching fit for
the common people; it is time to begin the discussion about the actions of God,
after which our purpose in writing this treatise will be over.
In
this section we will take up five questions around which all others in this
connection revolve. In the first place a proof of the creation of the universe;
secondly, the advent of the prophets; thirdly, predestination and fate;
fourthly, Divine justice and injustice; and fifthly, the Day of Judgment.
Problem First: the Creation of the Universe
The
Law teaches that the universe was invented and created by God, and that it did
not come into being by chance or by itself. The method adopted by the Law for
proving this is not the one upon which the Asharites
have depended. For we have already shown that those methods are not specially
certain for the learned, nor common enough to satisfy all the classes of men.
The methods which are really serviceable are those which have a very few
premises, and the results of which fall very near to the commonly known ideas.
But in instructing the common people the Law does not favor statements composed
of long and complete reasoning, based upon different problems. So everyone who,
in teaching them, adopts a different course, and interprets the Law according
to it, has lost sight of its purpose and gone astray from the true path. And so
also, the Law in giving illustrations for its reasoning uses only those which
are present before us.
Whatever
has been thought necessary for the common people to know, has been explained to
them by the nearest available examples, as in the case of the day of Judgment.
But whatever was unnecessary for them to know, they have been told that it was
beyond their knowledge, as the words of God about the Soul [Qur'an 22.85]. Now
that we have established this, it is necessary that the method adopted by the
Law for teaching the creation of the universe to the common people be such as
would be acknowledged by all. It is also necessary that since there cannot be
found anything present to illustrate the creation of the universe the Law must
have used the examples of the creation of things in the visible world.
So
the method adopted by Law is that the universe was made by God. If we look
intently into the verse pertaining to this subject we shall see that the method
adopted is that of divine solicitude, which we know to be one of those which
prove the existence of God. When a man sees a thing made in a certain shape,
proportion and fashion, for a particular advantage is derived from it, and
purpose which is to be attained, so that it becomes clear to him, that had it
not been found in that shape, and proportion, then that advantage would have
been wanting in it, he comes to know for certain that there is a maker of that
thing, and that he had made it in that shape and proportion, for a set purpose.
For it is not possible that all those qualities serving that purpose be
collected in that thing by chance alone. For instance, if a man sees a stone on
the ground in a shape fit for sitting, and finds its proportions and fashion of
the same kind, then he would come to know that it was made by a maker, and that
he had made it and placed it there. But when he sees nothing in it which may
have made it fit for sitting then he becomes certain that its existence in the
place was by chance only, without its being fashioned by any maker.
Such
is also the case with the whole of the universe. For when a man sees the sun,
the moon, and all the stars, which are the cause of the four seasons; of days
and nights, of rain, water and winds, of the inhabitation of the parts of the
earth, of the existence of man, and of the being of all the animals and the
plants and of the earth being fit for the habitation of a man, and other
animals living in it; and the water fit for the animals living in it; and the
air fit for birds, and if there be anything amiss in this creation and edifice,
the whole world would come to confusion and disorder, then he would come to
know with certainty that it is not possible that this harmony in it for the
different members of the universe -- man, animals, and plants -- be found by
chance only.
He
will know that there is one who determined it, and so one who made it by
intention, and that is God, exalted and magnified may He be. He would know with
certainty that the universe is a created thing, for he would necessarily think
that it is not possible that in it should be found all this harmony, if it be
not made by someone, and had come into existence by chance alone. This kind of
argument, is quite definite and at the same time clear, and some have mentioned
it here. It is based upon two principles which are acknowledged by all. One of
them being, that the universe, with all its component parts, is found fit for
the existence of man and things; secondly, that which is found suitable in all
its parts, for a single purpose, leading to a single goal, is necessarily a
created thing. So those two principles lead us naturally to admit that the
universe is a created thing, and that there is a maker of it. Hence "the
argument of analogy" leads to two things at one and the same time, and
that is why it is the best argument for proving the existence of God. This kind
of reasoning is also found in the Qur'an in many verses in which the creation
of the universe is mentioned.
For
instance, "Have We not made the earth a bed, and the mountains for shelter
to fix the same? And have We not created you of two sexes; and appointed your
sleep for rest and made the night a garment to cover you, and destined the day
to a gaining of a livelihood; and built over you seven heavens, and placed
therein a burning lamp? And do We not send down from the clouds pressing forth
rain, water pouring down in abundance, that We may hereby produce corn and
herbs, and gardens planted thick with trees" [Qur'an 77.3ff]. If we ponder
over this verse it would be found that our attention has been called to the
suitability of the different parts of the universe for the existence of man. In
the very beginning we are informed of a fact well-known to all -- and that is
that the earth has been created in a way which has made it suitable for our
existence. Had it been unstable, or of any other shape, or in any other place,
or not of the present proportion, it would not have been possible to be here,
or at all created on it. All this is included in the words, "Have We not
made the earth a bed for you"? for in a bed are collected together all the
qualities of shape, tranquility, and peace, to which may be added those of
smoothness and softness.
So
how strange is this wonderful work and how excellent this blessedness, and how
wonderful this collection of all the qualities! This is so because in the
word mihad (bed) are brought
together all those qualities, which are found in the earth, rendering it
suitable for the existence of man. It is a thing which becomes clear to the
learned after much learning and a long time, "But God will appropriate His
mercy unto whom He pleases [Qur'an 2.99]. Then as to the divine words,
"And the mountains for stakes," -- they tell us of the advantage to
be found in the tranquility of the earth on account of the mountains. For had
the earth been created smaller than it is now, that is, without mountains, it
would have been quivered by the motion of other elements, the water and the
air, and would have been shaken and thus displaced. This would naturally have
been the cause of the destruction of the animal world. So when its tranquility
is in harmony with those living on it, it did not come into being by chance
alone, but was made by someone's intention, and determination. Certainly it was
made by One who intended it, and determined it, for the sake of those living on
it.
Then
He calls our attention to the suitability of the existence of night and day for
animals. He says "And made the night a garment to cover you; and destined
the day to a gaining of your livelihood. " He means to say that He has
made the night like a covering and clothing for all the things, from the heat
of the sun. For had there been no setting of the sun at night, all the things,
whose life has been made dependent upon the sun, would have perished -- that
is, the animals and the plants. As clothing protects the people from the heat
of the sun, in addition to its being a covering, so God likened the night to
it. This is one of the most beautiful of the metaphors. There is also another
advantage in the night for the animals: their sleep in it is very deep, after
the setting of the sun, which keeps faculties in motion, that is, wide awake.
So God has said, "And appointed your sleep for rest, " on account of
the darkness of the night. Then He says, "And built over you seven
heavens, and placed therein a burning lamp." Here by the word building He
means their creation, and their harmony with the created things, and their
arrangement and system. By strength He means that power of revolution and
motion which is never slackened, and never overtaken by fatigue; and they never
fall like other roofs and high edifices. To this refer the words of God,
"And made the heaven a roof well-supported" [Qur'an 21.33]. By all
this He shows their fitness in number, shape, fashion, and movement, for the
existence of those who live on the earth round it. Were one of the heavenly
bodies, not to speak of all, to stop for a moment all would be chaos on the
face of the earth. Some people think the blast of the last trumpet, which will
be the cause of the thunderbolt, will be nothing but a stop in the revolution
of the heavenly bodies.
Then
He tells us of the advantage of the sun for those living on the earth and says,
"And placed therein a burning lamp. " He calls it a lamp because in
reality it is all darkness, and light covers the darkness of the night, and if
there be no lamp, man can get no advantage out of his sense of sight at
nighttime; and in the same way if there were no sun the animals can have no benefit
of their sense of seeing. He calls our attention to this advantage of the suns
ignoring others because it is the noblest of all the advantages and the
most-apparent of all. Then He tells us of His kindness in sending down rain,
for the sake of the plants and the animals. The coming down of rain in an
appointed proportion, and at an appointed season, for the cultivated fields
cannot be by chance alone, but is the result of divine solicitude for us all.
So He says, "And do We not send down from the clouds pressing forth rain,
water pouring down in abundance that We may hereby produce corn and herbs, and
gardens planted thick with trees."
There
are many verses of the Qur'an on this subject. For instance, He says, "Do
you not see how God has created the seven heavens, one above another, and has
placed the moon therein for a light, and has appointed the sun for a taper? God
has also provided and caused you to bring forth wheat from the earth"
[Qur'an 71.14-16]. If we were to count all such verses and comment upon them
showing the kindness of the Creator for the created, it would take too many
volumes. We do not intend to do it in this book. If God should grant us life
and leisure we shall write a book to show the kindness of God to which He has
called our attention.
It
should be known that this kind of argument is just contrary to that which the Asharites think leads to the knowledge of God. They think
that the creation does not lead us to the knowledge of God through any of His
goodness, but through possibility, that is, the possibility which is found in
all things, which we can understand to be of his shape or of quite a contrary
one. But if this possibility be found alike in both the cases, then there is no
wisdom in the creation of the universe, and there is found no harmony between
man and the parts of it. For, as they think, if it is possible for the things
to have any other form than they have now, then there can exist no harmony
between man and other existent things by the creation of which God has obliged
man and commanded him to be thankful to Him. This opinion, by which the
creation of man, as a part of the universe, is just as possible, for instance,
as his creation in the void, is like the opinion of those who say that man
exists but he could have been created in quite a different shape, and yet could
perform actions like a man. According to them it is also possible that he may
have formed the part of another universe quite different from the existing one.
In that case the blessing of the universe can have no obligation for man, for
they are not necessary for his purpose. Hence man is quite careless of them and
they of him. So their existence is no blessing to him. This is all against the
nature of man.
On
the whole, a man who denies the existence of the effects arranged according to
the causes in the question of arts, or whose wisdom cannot understand it, then
he has no knowledge of the art of its Maker. So also a man who denies the
existence of an order of effects in accordance with causes in this universe,
denies the existence of the Creator altogether. Their saying that God is above
these causes, and that they cannot have any bearing on the effects by His
command, is very far from the true nature of philosophy, nay, it is a destroyer
of it. For if it is possible to have the same effects with other than the
prescribed causes just in the same degree as by them, then where is the
greatness in producing the effects from the known Causes? It is so because the
effects from the causes have one of the following three reasons. Either the
existence of the causes will be in place of the effects by compulsion, as a
man's taking his food; or their being more perfect, that is, the effect
becoming better and more perfect through them, as a man's having two eyes, or they
may have neither a better nor a more compulsive effect. In this case the
existence of the effect and the cause would be by chance, without any intention
at all; and, hence, there would be no greatness found in it.
For
instance, if the shape of a human hand, the number of the fingers, and their
length be neither necessary nor adding any perfection in its work in seizing
things of different kind, then the actions of the hand from this shape, and
number of parts, would be by chance alone. If it be so, then it makes no
difference whether a man is given a hand or a hoof, or something else, like the
different animals, for their particular actions. On the whole, if we ignore the
causes and their effects, then there remains nothing to refute the arguments of
those who believe in the creation of the universe by chance alone, that is,
those who say that there is no Creator at all, and that which has come into
being in this universe is the result of material causes. For taking one of the
two alternatives it is not more possible that it may have happened by chance,
than done by an independent Actor. So when the Asharites
say that the existence of one or more possibilities shows that there is a
particular Maker of these things, they can answer and say that the existence of
things by one of these possibilities was by chance alone, for intention works
as one of the causes, and that which happens without any means or cause is by
chance. We see that many things come into being in this way. For example, the
elements mix together by chance, and then by this unintentional mixing there is
produced a new thing. They mix again, and this quite unintentionally produces
quite a new thing. In this way every kind of creation may be said to have come
into existence by chance.
We
say that it is necessary that there be found order and arrangement, the more
perfect and finished than what can be imagined. This mixing together of
elements is limited and prearranged, and things produced by them are sure to
happen, and no disorder has ever happened in them. But all this could not
happen by chance alone, for that which happens in this way by chance is of the
least value. It is to this that God refers, "It is the work of the Lord,
who has rightly disposed all things" [Qur'an 27.90]. I would like to know
what completeness can be found in things made by chance, for such things are by
no means better than their opposites. To this God refers in the following
words, "You cannot see in the Creation of the most Merciful any unfitness
or disproportion. Lift your eyes again to heaven, and look whether you see any
flaw" [Qur'an 67.3]. But what defect can be greater than that all the
things can be found with any other quality than they really possess. For the
non-existent quality may be better than the existing one. In this way, if one
thinks that were the Eastern movement to become Western and vice-versa, there
would be no difference in the universe then he has destroyed philosophy
altogether. He is like a man who thinks that were the right side of the animals
to become left, and vice-versa, there would be no difference at all, for one of
the two alternatives is there. For as it is possible to say that it is made
according to one alternative by an independent Maker, so it is possible to
assert that it was all made by chance alone. For we see so many things coming
into being by themselves.
It
is quite clear to you that all the people see that lower kinds of creation
could have been made in a different way from that in which they really are, and
as they see this lower degree in many things they think that they must have
been made by chance. But in the higher creation they know that it is impossible
to have been made in a more perfect and excellent form than that given to it by
the Creator. So this opinion, which is one of the opinions of the Mutakallimun is both against the Law and philosophy. What
we say is that the opinion of possibility in creation is closer to a complete
denial of God, than leading us nearer to Him. At the same time it falsifies
philosophy. For if we do not understand that there is a mean between the
beginnings and ends of the Creation, upon which is based the ends of things,
then there can neither be any order nor any method in it. And if they be
wanting then there can be no proof of the existence of an intelligent and
knowing Maker; for taking them together with cause and effect we are led to the
fact that they must have been created by wisdom and knowledge.
But,
on the other hand, the existence of either of two possibilities shows that they
may have been performed by a not-knowing Maker and by chance alone. Just as a
stone falling on the earth may fall in any place, on any side, and in any form.
It will show the want of the existence either of a creator at all or at least
of a wise and knowing Creator. The thing which has compelled the Mutakallimun of the Asharites to
adopt this opinion is a denial of the action of those natural forces which God
has put in all things, as He has endowed them with life, power and so forth.
They avoided the opinion that there was any other creator but God, and God
forbid that there be any other, for he is the only creator of the causes and
they are made effective by His command only. We will talk of this in detail
when discoursing on Fate and Predestination. They were also afraid that by
admitting the natural causes they might be accused of saying that the universe
came into being by chance only. They would have known that a denial of it means
a denial of a great part of the arguments, which can be advanced for a proof of
the existence of God. One who denies any part of God's creation denies His
work, which falls very near to a denial of a part of His attributes.
On
the whole as their opinion is based upon hasty conclusions, which come to the
mind of a man by superficial thought and as apparently it appears that the word
"intention" can be applied to one who has power to do bad or
otherwise, they saw that if they did not admit that all the creation is
possible, they would not be able to say that it came into existence by the
action of an intending creator. So they say that all the creation is possible
so that they may prove that the creator is an intelligent one. They never
thought of the order which is necessary in things made, and with that their
coming from an intelligent creator. These people have also ignored the blame
they will have to bear in thus denying wisdom to the creator; or maintaining
that chance should be found governing creation. They know, as we have said,
that it is necessary, on account of the order existent in nature, that it must
have been brought into being by some knowing creator, otherwise the order found
in it would be by chance. When they were compelled to deny the natural forces
they had to deny with them a large number of those forces which God has made
subservient to His command for the creation and preservation of things. For God
has created some things from causes which He has produced from outside, these
are the heavenly bodies; there are other things which He has made by causes
placed in the things themselves, that is; the soul, and other natural forces,
by which he preserves those things. So how wicked is the man who destroys
philosophy, and "invented a lie about God" [Qur'an 3.88].
This
is only a part of the change which has taken place in the Law, in this and
other respects, which we have already mentioned, and will mention hereafter.
From all this it must have become clear to you that the method which God had
adopted for teaching His creatures that the universe is made and created by Him
is the method of kindness and wisdom, towards all His creatures and especially
towards man. It is a method which bears the same relation to our intellect, as
the sun bears to our senses. The method which it has adopted towards the common
people about this problem is that of illustration from things observed. But as
there was nothing which could be given as an illustration, and as the common
people cannot understand a thing, an illustration of which they cannot see, God
tells us that the universe was created in a certain time out of a certain
thing, which He made. He tells us his condition before the creation of the
universe, "His throne was above the waters" [Qur'an 11.9]. He also
says, "Verily your Lord is God who created the heavens and the earth in
six days" [Qur'an 7.52], and "Then He set His mind to the creation of
the heavens, and it was smoke" [Qur'an 12.10]. In addition to these there
are other verses of the Book, pertaining to this subject. So it is incumbent
that nothing out of them should be interpreted for the common people, and
nothing should be presented to them in explaining it but this illustration. For
one who changes it, makes the wisdom of the Law useless. If it be said that the
Law teaches about the universe that it is created, and made out of nothing and
in no time, then it is a thing which even the learned cannot understand, not to
speak of the common people. So we should not deviate in this matter of the Law.
. . .