5. CIVILISATION
Mankind is
distinguishes from animals by Culture. Culture creates Civilisation which
transforms the earth. The evolution of this planet is, therefore, not
independent of human activity. This fact is incorporated in the Islamic notion of
Vicegerency.
The
concepts, processes and forces by which a culture is described are not the same
as those used in Psychology or Biology. A culture is not a material things though it manifests through materials, and yet it is
real. We have here a phenomenon at quite a different level. It creates a world
which no animal can create, recognise or adjust to.
Civilisation
connects people together. It forms the character of the people and each person
contributes a little to varying degrees to form the
civilisation. However, each civilisation has several sub-cultures which are
only partly independent of each other, and they differ in their level and
direction of development and in their degree of integrity. Influences pass
between them and a tendency for diffusion, exchange and stimulation exists, the
rate of which depends on geophysical, technological, economic, political and
ideological factors. All civilisations are connected in the same way with other
past or contemporary civilisations. Humanity may, therefore, be considered to
be a single entity having a single mind though it has different parts, organs
and tissues. However, the parallelism with a biological organism or an
individual human being should not be carried too far. Though it is more than
merely the sum of the individuals in it, it is an entity of a different type,
and it requires a different set of concepts to study and understand its
structure and behaviour.
The
Development of Culture and Civilisation creates a new unit, the human community
or humanity as a whole rather than the individual. This is because:-
1. The
culture is not the work of any one individual, but the resultant of the
behaviour of all the individuals. It has a unity of its own. It contains its
own structure, parts, currents and forces.
2. The
individual is formed by the Culture in which he is brought up, and through his
behaviour he modifies it, which then affects the development of the next
generation.
3. The
community in so far as it has an isolated history has its own genetic make up
as distinct from another, describable by the frequency and relationship with
which different kinds of genes occur in it. The genetic constitution of the
community is created by the civilisation in so far as it determines which
characteristics are useful. Some of the ideas, attitudes and behaviour patterns
arise from the genetic constitution. When two communities come into contact
there is a diffusion of culture, but also a diffusion of genes.
4. The
community lives in a particular locality and affects, and is affected by, the
experiences provided by the physical nature of that locality - its terrain,
climate and vegetation etc.
There is,
therefore, more to a society than is contained in the consciousness of any
individual. The Society is a self-adjusting system containing many over-all
patterns, currents, processes and forces of which we are not aware and have not
been described, though sometimes a vague awareness arises in the form of myths
and symbols. Democracy may be regarded as a recognition
of this fact where control of affairs is taken out of the hands of individuals
or groups and given over to the Community as a whole. This organism may be
regarded as not yet having a centre of integration or “I”, but one
appears to be developing. Centralised Governments represent the physical
manifestation of this.
We may
suppose that this organism is itself merely a part of a much greater total
system which has its own patterns, processes and history of development. It
also affects human communities at an unconscious level. No concepts or
techniques exist in science to study this.
The
culture is the method by which the community adjusts itself to the world in
which it finds itself. Its underlying unity is what we call Religion, though
this may be formulated in different ways according to awareness. As
consciousness, knowledge, experience and contributions increased, this became
more elaborate, developed and differentiated into separate activities.
Intellectual activities produced the Philosophies, emotional interactions led
to increasing organisation, and physical activities led to the arts and crafts.
Each of these differentiated further. The sciences came out philosophy, and
themselves split into different specialities. The same happened in the other
fields. The awareness of the underlying unity was gradually lost - the forest
could not be seen owing to the many trees. One of reasons for this is that
intellectual activity was diverted to verbal description as in science.
Religion, however, is concerned with behaviour, and this, because all parts
depend and affect each other, has a coherent unity. Religious truth is that
which leads to appropriate adjustment to the world.
As human
beings arise and are formed by a civilisation, it is not possible to fully
understand a human being by biology or psychology alone, but it also needs a
science of sociology. This ought to be a study of Civilisation, a name
referring to the wholeness formed by the interaction of all the cultural,
social and economic factors. Civilisation, individually and collectively,
cannot be understood without knowing something about human psychology on the
one hand and something about the greater environment in which it exists, on the
other.
Only a
small part of the human brain is needed to perform all the functions required
for survival. The brain can be divided into three parts:- That required for
survival, that which is connected with social living and much of the frontal
lobe which can be cut out without appreciably making any difference to a person’s
outer behaviour. Many an organ has developed in the history of life which only
found a function later. The frontal lobe may be one of these. It may have
something to do with the inner life, its connection with the greater
environment. It may be responsible for the great insights which occur from time
to time in those few individuals who are responsible for the revolutionary
advances in civilisation.
Apart from
the unused potentialities, there is a correlationship between the size of the
cerebrum relative to the rest of the brain and the social activity of animals.
The larger it is, the greater is the community in
which they live. This is about 80% of the brain in human beings, greater than
in any animal, and calculations show that a human community should then be
about 150 persons strong. Most of the brain is, therefore, concerned with all
those activities which relate to social interactions. This includes community
feelings, empathy, sympathy, cooperation, etiquette, customs, and communication
including language, gesture, and symbolisation. There is, therefore, a built-in
group consciousness or tribalism which excludes others. This accounts for
double standards and conflicts between groups. And, indeed, primitive man lived
in groups about that size and even today organisations containing about that
number are formed for purposes of management and stability.
When the
number becomes greater then stresses arise, with which people deal in various
ways:-
(i) By inventing methods of escape and isolation.
(ii)
By creating smaller groups within the larger, with their own separate
identities, maintained by differences in dress, ideas, interests, rules,
activities, emblems, symbols, slogans and even sub-languages and behaviour
patterns.
(iii)
By adopting artificial methods of unification. This requires a hierarchical
organisation with authorities, officers, formal laws, rules and procedures.
This is why large States are machines.
(iv) Another way this is done is when a
group dominates over or enslaves others who are then treated as non-persons or
things to be used. Class stratification arises in this way.
(v)
However, there is a method of avoiding all these. Each individual can interact
with that number of people, but it does not have to be the same group for everyone.
This allows the formation of a network in which an individual becomes a link
between more than one groups.
(vi) Another method is the Informal or
Organic Hierarchy. That is, some members, perhaps the leaders from numerous
independent groups collectively form a new group. Several such higher groups
form a still higher group.
From the
scientific point of view, Man in his present form is thought to have existed
for the last 40,000 years. That is, little biological evolution has taken place
since then and all the characteristics which produce civilisation were then
complete. All further development has been in culture, especially in
technology, with an accelerating speed. This is because (a) the increase in
size of the population, (b) the learning or educational process and (c) the
application of the inventive faculties to create techniques. All three take
time, but as they grow the capacity for further increase in all three respects
also grows.
In every
civilisation people differ in the power and direction of their capacities, but
owing to their inter-dependence, the overall level of the civilisation limits
the variation of capacities and achievements, and vice versa, the variation
limits the level of civilisation. The advances in civilisation depend on the
achievements of a relatively few people and these achievements usually occupy
only a small fraction of their time. Most of the potentialities, therefore,
remain dormant and unused. But it takes time and effort for these achievements
to diffuse through the rest of the population. It is only when this has reached
a certain level then further advances can take place.
A set of
achievements depends on the existence of a suitable previous set and stimulates
or enables the arising of still further sets. The present state of civilisation
is, therefore, the result of the accumulation of such efforts by many millions
of people over many thousand years. It may happen that the previous stages in
this development become redundant and disappear or that achievements exist
which have little immediate value, but may become important in themselves or become foundations for further development
later or elsewhere. A number of achievements have been premature, and have made
little or no impact on the civilisation until much later when conditions were
ripe. Others have appeared rather late in some communities, thereby allowing
long periods of stagnation. Some appeared in one community where correct
conditions existed for their arising, but were exported and established in other
communities which provided suitable environments for their development. If the
rate of change is too rapid stresses are set up which create problems or
conditions which destroy those achievements or neutralise their value. If the
rate of change is too slow in one place, it tends to create apathy and
decadence there, but accelerated development elsewhere. Thus civilisations rise
and fall and replace each other.
These
achievements set up a pattern of social behaviour which may be compared to the
kind of information contained in genes. Though they are recorded in books and
other media, strictly speaking, they do not have a physical basis in the
conventional sense since they have to be transmitted by learning, interaction
and organisation and exist in a diffuse form over the whole population or
groups, and they are also inter-dependent. A gene for Capitalism, Legal system
or technology cannot be found. Aeroplanes and cars certainly exist and they are
reproduced and do have an evolutionary history, but that which controls these
processes are diffuse structures in the minds of many people.
Culture
has three elements, a psychological, a social and a material. These combine in
various ways to form Ideologies, Communities and Technologies.
Human
beings not only use tools, as some animals also do, but invent and make tools.
This is called technology. That is, thinking is involved and there is a social
element since they learn from each other, cooperate in making and using them
and build on what they have learnt. It is not, therefore, an instinctive
phenomena. Similarly, ideas do not only occur but are created and social
interactions do not merely happen but are organised.
A tool may
be a material one, e.g. knife, or a social one, e.g. an organisation or a psychological
one such as the methods that helps in organising or stimulating ideas or
inducing certain conscious states, attitudes or emotions. Each may have a
material aspect, (e.g. books for ideas), a social aspect, (e.g. a discussion
group to develop ideas), or a psychological aspect, (certain ideas produce
certain psychological states and certain types of people in certain
associations and moods etc produce certain ideas).
A
technology, even when material not only has a direct functional aspect, (e.g. a
knife meant for cutting), but it also has a social aspect. It is symbolic and
communicates something (e.g.. the knife may be made of iron or gold, plain or
decorated to show status, as do clothes and cars; and commercial products
advertise the company or nation which makes them). It also has a psychological
aspect in that it is has design and style, shows symmetry and pattern and so on
which are connected with the way the psyche works. The same applies to social
organisations and ideas. Ideas are not purely representational. They
communicate more than what is explicitly stated, e.g. status, class, race or
nationality through accent, choice of words, structure of sentences etc. They
have a psychological aspect in that they reveal the aggression, docility, optimism,
pessimism, modes of selecting, interpreting and organising data and so on.
Social organisations are not created merely to obtain a desired end, e.g.
production, but they depend on the psychology of the people involved and the
material used.
Each of these
may also be directed to any of these three ends. Ideas are not merely in a
person’s head, but material books transmit them and so do social
conversations. Thus the material book has an ideological function. Other
materials are required and made for a purely social purposes (houses, rooms for
conference and entertainment), and others are made for material purposes, e.g.
machines. Social organisations may be designed to facilitate thinking or to
induce certain emotions or other psychological states, to produce goods or for
political purposes. We may think not only in the abstract about the nature of
the Universe, but also about social matters and material things.
The
material environment, both natural and human, structures, affects the social
interactions as well as ideas; social organisation affects the material
environment as well as ideas; ideas depend on the material experiences, on
social factors and on psychological ones. Thus the same material conditions in
different places can produce the same ideas independently among different
people. Even when socially transmitted, ideas can undergo modification in
different social and psychological conditions. Similar social conditions in
different places can produce similar ideas. The same psychological conditions
in different places can also create the same ideas. The mind forms patterns,
and given the same elements the same pattern may form in different minds. The
transmission of ideas is not, therefore, a simple thing.
Culture is
said to derive from the human characteristic, the tendency to play. But it
could be argued that unless the meaning of the word ‘play’ in this
context is widened, there is more than play involved in such activities. Here
we prefer to call it the self-extensive instinct or urge. Play is found in
animals but there it is confined mostly to the young where its function is to
pass the time in exercising and developing the faculties for use in adult life.
But in human beings it is also found in adults. Human play has the following
characteristics:-
1. It
leads to activities which are more than merely for self-preservation or
reproduction and may even go counter to these needs as in the case of risk
taking and dangerous adventures and sports. Human beings deliberately seek out
or create dangerous situations which induce fear and provide the thrill of
overcoming it.
2. There
is an inner need for activity. Boredom is an unpleasant state which people
avoid. Adult animals go to sleep when there is are no
sexual or self-preservative needs.
3. The
activity takes the form of (a) exercising and developing the faculties, (b)
increasing experience and knowledge of the world and (c) experimenting and
exploring for possibilities.
4.
Symbolisation; the use of the imagination to represent one thing by another.
This creates speech, writing, drawing, drama, ritual and all the arts.
Unfortunately, the symbol is often mistaken for the real object and all forms
of idolatry arise. We cannot, for instance, talk to the word, picture or statue
of a ‘man’, though these are often subconsciously treated as if
they were the man.
5.
Creativity and inventiveness - Making new shapes by (a) re-arrangement,
varying, distortion, addition, subtraction, (b) balancing and (c) making
patterns, rhythms etc through repetition or extension.
6. Abstraction;
selecting certain features of complex objects by comparing and contrasting.
This allows one to (a) analyse, (b) associate or relate (c) synthesise.
7. The
social feature. (a) Self-assertion - display of skill and prowess, competition
and rivalry, the desire to show off, to rise above the environment, the common,
and one’s fellows in some way, to make a mark, to draw attention, to
boast. (b) the formation of groups, cooperation and
teamwork. (c) Rule making to reconcile the needs of the individual with the
group, the needs of competition with cooperation. All games have rules.
All these
features, since they can be seen in the play of children, must be built-in
features of human nature, and can be seen in the whole of culture.
The
question is:- Why is this so? How have they arisen?
What are its evolutionary advantages?
It is
obvious that societies where there is (a) greater knowledge, (b) better
cooperation (c) better motivation and skill will expand at the expense of those
with less, and that the conditions of life established by a culture will exert
a selective effect in favour of those in whom the capacity for these is
greater. Nature always produces variety, including mutations, in order to
increase the possibility of advantageous characteristics arising. The
advantages survive and the disadvantages die out. There is, therefore, a
cumulative effect. This applies equally to all the ideologies, institutions and
technologies.
There are,
however, certain difficulties with this view. One would assume a steady
automatic development of civilisation. It does not explain the malfunctions
within them, their variations, their rise and fall and replacement by others
and their movement from one locality to another. It ignores the influence which
the development of human capacities, their versatility and their products (ideologies,
institutions and technologies) have on the development of civilisation and the
environment, or the civilisation has on the development of man. It ignores the
fact that man is part of the greater world, the rest of the cosmos which must
also exert some affect.
The Islamic
view adds another dimension to this. According to the Quran:-
“The life of the world is but a pastime and a game. Better by far
is the abode in the Hereafter for those who keep their duty to Allah. Will you
then not understand?” 6:32
“The life of the world is but a pastime and a game. Lo! the home of the Hereafter - that is life, if they but
knew.” 29:64
“Know that the life of the world is only play, and idle talk, and
pageantry, and boasting among you, and rivalry in respect of wealth and
children, and is like vegetation after rain when the growth is pleasing to the
farmer, but afterwards it dries up and you see it turning yellow and it becomes
straw. And in the Hereafter there is grievous punishment and also forgiveness
from Allah and His good pleasure, whereas the life of the world is but a matter
of illusion.” 57:20
“Wealth and children are an ornament of the life of the world. But
the good deeds which endure are better in thy Lord’s sight for reward and
better in respect of hope.” 18:47
“Lo! We have placed all that is in the earth as an ornament
thereof that We may try them as to which of them is
the best in conduct.” 18:7
“Have they not pondered upon themselves? Allah created not the
heavens and the earth, and that which is between them, save with truth and for
a destined end. But truly many of mankind are disbelievers in the meeting with
their Lord.” 30:8
“Systems have passed away before you. Do but travel in the land
and see the nature of the consequences for those who reject truth.” 3:137
“If He will, He can be rid of you and bring instead some new
creation. That is not a hard thing for Allah.” 35:16-17
“The Day when We shall roll up the heavens
as a recorder rolls up a written scroll. As We began
the first creation We shall repeat it. It is a promise binding upon Us. Lo! We are to perform it. And verily We
have written in the scripture, after the Reminder: My righteous servants will
inherit the earth. Lo! there is a plain statement for
folk who are devout. We sent thee (Muhammad) not save as a mercy for
peoples.” 21:104-107
“How many townships have We destroyed
while it was sinful, so that they lie to this day in ruins and how many a
deserted well and lofty tower! Have they not travelled in the land, and have
they hearts wherewith to feel and ears wherewith to hear? For
indeed it is not the eyes that grow blind, but it is the hearts which are
within their bosoms that grow blind. And they will bid thee to hasten on
the Doom, and Allah fails not His promise, but lo! a
Day with Allah is as a thousand years of what you reckon.” 22:45-47
“And how many generations have We
destroyed since Noah! And Allah suffices as Knower and Beholder of the sins of
His servants. Whoso desires that which hastens away, We
hasten for him therein that which We will for whom We please. And afterwards We have appointed for him hell; he will endure the heat
thereof, condemned rejected. And whoso desires the Hereafter and strives for it
with the effort necessary, being a believer, for such, their efforts find
favour. Each do We supply, both these and those, from
the bounty of thy Lord. And the bounty of thy Lord can never be walled up. See
how We prefer one above another, and verily the
Hereafter will be greater in degree and greater in preference. Set not up with
Allah any other god lest you sit down reproved, forsaken.” 17: 17-22
“And every nation has its term, and when its term comes they
cannot put it off an hour nor yet advance it.” 7:34
Several
meanings can be seen in these verses:-
(1) That
human beings are psychologically immature and their attitudes and interactions
with each other and the environment are childlike. They are playing games but
take these seriously without consciousness or understanding. This situation can
alter and produce other consequences. In fact life on earth is a learning, maturing and developing process. This is
provided both by suffering and pleasure.
(2) That
the Social and political conditions and human history is driven by illusory
goals created by egotistical and selfish rivalries and conflicts instead of
cooperation towards a serious goal. Human activity depends on their nature, on
how they interpret their experiences and behave.
(3) That
the real purpose of life on earth is development. Development is no longer a
question of biology but of sociology, psychology and correct ideologies.
(4) That
there is a kind of experimenting and testing in nature, a trial and error. All
its products or mutations are not necessarily advantageous, and the
disadvantageous one do not necessarily die out
immediately. The disadvantages for some may, in fact, be useful for others,
stimulate useful developments, be advantages under different conditions, or
become themselves modified into advantages. There is always a balance between
advantages and disadvantages which may shift in favour of one or the other.
(5) That
civilisations rise and fall. They fall when they cease to fulfil their function
and do not continue to adapt and develop. Thus, though there is a general
tendency to evolution, there is no guarantee that any particular individual,
group, community or civilisation will evolve. In fact the destruction of
malfunctioning or stagnant civilisations ensures continuing evolution.
Thus,
though Islam agrees that play is an important factor in the development of
civilisation, it sees it as having three aspects:-
(a)
In man it takes not only a physical, but also an emotional and intellectual
form, and it has psychological, social and environmental consequences. People
play games in their attitudes, the way they think and conduct their social
relationships. They practice rationalisation and self-deception, play hide and
seek with facts, invent fantasies, and indulge in the desire for toys and so
on. Most of the products created by industry are wanted not because they are
necessities, useful or beneficial, but only because people have a fascination
or irrational desire for them, and that the production, organisation and supply
of these create the very economic chaos which brings unemployment and suffering
to many.
(b)
Its function must be regarded as developing the faculties for a life beyond
adulthood. This may be interpreted as life after the death of the individual. The
life of the Society, humanity and the Biosphere goes on after the death of the
individuals in it, and the individual may be regarded as being still alive in
another form because of his effects and influences on the society and the
environment as a whole. This is similar to the cells in the body of the
individual which also have a short life relative to the individual. From the
scientific point of view the individual is immortal by virtue of the genes
which contain the information upon which he is constructed, and which continue
to live on in other people and descendants. But man is immortal also by virtue
of their effects on the culture, and the cultural causes which form them. From
the religious point of view it is information or truth rather than matter which
is the basic principle of the Universe.
(c)
It also means that humanity has not yet matured and that much of life can be
explained by frivolous motives such as rivalry, boasting, exhibitionism, the
desire for praise and admiration, to dominate over or belittle others and
jostling for position. It is also still experimenting to find its proper
function. As such, it makes errors and the resulting suffering has an
educational and developmental value.
One does
not have to be a scientist to observe that life, indeed, has not only
beneficial and constructive but also harmful and destructive ingredients.
----------<O>----------
Nothing in
the world is static. Creativity has not come to an end. There is a constant
radiation on earth from the Sun and the rest of the Cosmos, and the earth is
constantly radiating out into the cosmos. There is a constant shifting balance
between the two processes. Human civilisations appear to have arisen due to the
increased ability to gather, process and communicate
information through language. Language, however, is only one manifestation of
communication in general, which is a manifestation of a still more general
capability:-
(a)
That of forming concepts, manipulating them within the mind and organising them
into patterns,
(b)
The existence of greater empathy or feeling of identity which allows sympathy,
cooperation and organisation, and
(c)
The ability to control and manipulate one’s organs, particularly the
vocal chords and limbs, thereby allowing the construction of technologies.
Connection with these abilities are the capacity for (a) laughing (b) crying,
and (c) appreciating (gratitude, awe, pleasure from accomplishments etc) not
found in animals, and, therefore, comedy, tragedy and inspirational works, all
of which involve the cognition of order or harmony. Laughter and crying are
different methods of reconciling contradictions and inconsistencies. In other
words, these abilities derive from consciousness, conscience and will.
Following Darwin’s Theory of
Evolution, most people in the West not only confused biological evolution with
the development of civilisation, but also thought that the superiority of
Western civilisation over others meant that Western man was superior to others,
and that continued progress was assured. Yet history shows that civilisations
have risen and fallen many times.
It is
possible to compare development of civilisation to the pouring down of sand in
a heap. It rises to a peak, reaches a state of instability unless there is an
inner reorganisation, and then the heap begins to crumble, forming numerous
other heaps which may also grow and crumble or reorganise themselves. Or it may
be compared to a tree which produces many seeds. The tree dies and some of
these seeds grow into new trees while the others rot to fertilise the growing
ones.
The
ability to reorganise often depends on the introduction of some new global idea
or new circumstances which removes the habits of thinking and behaving formed
by past processes, or adding to, or altering them. The multiplication of heaps
may be regarded as experiments. Many civilisations have crumbled and
disintegrated into smaller units, some of which have grown into new
civilisations. There is no way of moving from one peak to another except by a
descent.
Three
things should be noted about evolution:- Firstly, it
is a constantly shifting balance between order and chaos. There are cycles
within cycles. Secondly, that it has an inevitable over all direction of
development which does not apply to particular systems. And thirdly, it unites
all things together.
Human beings,
their societies, like life itself, are a state of equilibrium between order and
disorder. Given too much disorder the system is too delicate and disintegrates
easily under very small adverse circumstances. Given too much local order we
get a state of stability which is stagnant. This is the essential difference
between a dead crystal and a living cell. Even among living things, ants and
bees display a stable social system which has remained the same over many million
years. They constitute an evolutionary dead end. Only three things are possible:-
(a) that
systems constantly arise and decline to be replaced by others, like the waves
in the sea, or the replacement of one generation by another;
(b) that systems
have a built-in adaptability so that they survive by self-transformation - the
religious view is that man himself can achieve this;
(c) that
if they reach a state of local stability this is incorporated as part of a
larger system in which it has a function, otherwise it must eventually be
destroyed. The direction of development is to produce, eventually an overall
stable system. No local stability can be sustained for ever.
The
processes going on in the sun and the solar system, its motions through the
galaxy causes periodic changes on the earth such that conditions favourable to
certain kinds of life alternate with conditions which are disadvantageous.
There are changes in the earth itself, its electrical, magnetic and
gravitational fields, in response to cosmic events so that land masses drift
and collide and sink into the sea or new lands rise out of them. The sea level
rises or sinks according to how much water is locked up as ice in Poles,
tectonic motion of the land masses, and redistribution of the mass as the earth
rotates giving rise to earth quakes and volcanic action, The
earth’s axis of rotation also changes. There are sea shells high up in
mountains, and relics of land creatures and even cities under the sea. There
have been atmospheric and weather changes, periods of great heat and drought
and storms, and there have been several Ice Ages, impacts from Meteors and
earth upheavals which have destroyed most of life, fossil records show,
followed by periods of recovery, and the new life forms which emerged were
different from those which existed in the period before. Some of these
disasters were so sudden that now extinct animals such as mammoths were found
buried in the Siberian ice with plant foods in their mouths. Both these animals
and the plants indicate that the region must have been quite warm once. In
other places we find the skeletons of a great number of animals which could not
possibly live together, but which must have been herded together, perhaps by
floods, and then drowned. The evolution of life on this planet appears to be
the result of these cycles of experimentation and selection, destruction and
reconstruction both on a small and on a large scale. Human civilisations have
undergone similar stages. This is evident both from the scriptures and
scientific investigation. Allah creates, judges and recreates. A new earth arises
from time to time. The records of ancient peoples report worldwide disasters
connected with the arising of a new planet Venus as a result of which the revolution
of the earth was altered so that the length of the year changed from 360 days
to the present 365.25 days.
This
planet is not dead matter. It is a wholeness which consists of solid land,
liquid seas, and a gaseous atmosphere. These interpenetrate to a certain
degree, and there are cyclic processes between them ,
for example the water cycle. It also has gravitational, magnetic and electrical
fields. The Biosphere, life and human civilisations are also part of it. In all
of these there are many complex structures, processes and currents. All parts
of it must adjust to the whole and the planet itself must adjust itself to the
Solar system and the rest of the Cosmos, and ultimately to Allah. A point of
view which looks only at parts or individuals is inadequate, since these have
little meaning apart from the wholeness to which they belong. These parts or
individuals can be seen at three levels:- (1) As
individuals having their own structure, (2) as interacting entities, and (3) as
an aspect of the whole. It is evident that the first depends on the second and
the second on the third. A reading of the Quran shows that religion is
concerned primarily with the third.
The earth
is said to have undergone four geological Eras since the formation of the crust
- The Pre-Cambrian, the Palaeozoic, the Messozoic, the Cainozoic. These are
divided into Periods - the Cainozoic into the Tertiary and the Quaternary.
These, in turn, are divided into Epochs - The Quaternary into the Pliocene, the
Pleistocene and the Holocene. These are again divided into Ages. The Pleistocene
is said to have undergone 4 Glacial stages having
three inter-glacial stages. We may now be in a fourth, The present age, the
Holocene, goes back to about 30,000 years and is divided into the Palaeolithic,
Mesolithic and Neolithic (the new stone age) periods which is followed by the
Bronze Age and the Iron Age. At this time Cro-Magnon man replaced the more
primitive Neanderthal man, and fossils appear to indicate that he had a greater
brain capacity than modern man. The present period of Human history begins
about 6000 years ago in the Middle East which
coincides with the calculation of some Bible scholars for the creation of
present humanity. But we must presume that there were other periods in
pre-history, and that there will be more in the future.
There are
legends all over the world, from those of the Mayas and Incas of America, the Ancient
Egyptians, to India and China which
affirm that there were several World Civilisations in the long past and there
are works all over the world discovered by Archaeologists which confirm this.
According to the Mexican Toltec calendar the first age of the earth was called
the Water Sun and the earth was destroyed by floods; the second was the Earth
Sun which was destroyed by earthquakes; the third, called the Wind Sun was
destroyed by winds, and we are now in the age of the Fire Sun which is to be
destroyed by Fire. Hindu scriptures also speak of such periods.
The
ancient Greek philosopher, Plato, tells us about a conversation with an ancient
Egyptian Priest, Solon, who affirms the periodic destruction of civilisations
and mentions the sinking of the previous centre of civilisation, Atlantis,
which is supposed to have existed between Africa and the Americas. In South America, Maya records tell us about the sinking of
the Continent of Mu in the East with 64 million inhabitants 8000 years ago. The
Aztecs believe that their ancestors, the people of Az,
came from Aztlan in the east which had sunk. There are, indeed, many resemblances
between the civilisations which arose in ancient Egypt
and those which arose in the Americas,
including the building of pyramids and mummification. There are still huge line
drawings of African animals in Peru
and elsewhere. There are also a great number of Phoenician and Carthaginian
inscriptions in Brazil, one
of which records a journey from Sidon, a port
which used to exist in what is now Israel. The Aztecs played a game
called Patolli which was almost exactly the same Parcheesi played thousands of
years ago in India and Persia. The
looms used for cotton weaving in Peru
are identical with those used in ancient Egypt.
The legend
of a great flood which destroyed a high civilisation, from which only a few
survivors escaped to found a new civilisation, can be found throughout the
world among unconnected peoples. It is mentioned in the Old Testament and in
the Quran. The survivors are referred to as the family of Noah. He was
Ut-Napishtam in Babylon; Yima in Persia, Deucalion in Greek and Roman legends; Baisbasba
in India; Tamandare among
the Amerindians of Brazil, Paraguay
and Argentina.
Huge pyramids were built in Mexico
and Egypt
as a means of escape from future floods. The story of the Tower
of Babel found in the Middle East as
well as in Mexico
may have referred to this, and in both legends the project was abandoned before
completion owing to a confusion of tongues. The idea that all people were one
with a common tongue exists in both the Quran and in the Popul Vuh, the
scriptures of the Maya of South America.
The Island
of the Azores and Canaries are thought to be
the peaks left after the sinking of Atlantis. There are several insects and
animals such as rabbits and dogs on these islands which could not have evolved
in isolation and show that these islands had some connection with the
continent. The original inhabitants found by the Spanish conquerors were not a sea-faring people, which makes their presence
mysterious. It is agreed that the Amerindians could not have originated in America since
there are no fossil remains of anthropoid apes or relics of civilisation before
10,000 years. They must, therefore, have come from the Old
World.
Columbus is reported to have sailed in search of the Americas on the strength of maps obtained from
the Turks and Arabs which appear to be copies of much older maps which show the
Americas, Antarctica and the
Arctic circle, places
quite unknown until recently. Although the discovery of America is attributed
to Columbus, there have, in fact, been many other journeys to America before
him - The Portuguese, Cortereal in 1477, the Scot, Sinclair and the Venetian
brothers Zeno of Venice in 1395, the Norwegian, Knutson in 1355, Prince Madoc
of Wales in 1171, Bishop Gnupsson in 1121, Karlseffini of Iceland in 1010, the
Viking Leif in 1003, Ericson in 1007. The Chinese, too, have records of sea
journeys to lands to the West. Amerindian legends also tell us of many visitors
coming from over the Eastern
Sea and they know of both
white and black men among them.
Copper and
Iron mines have been discovered in Africa which can be dated to 40,000 years
ago; in France cave
paintings dated to 16,000 years and calendar markings on bones dated 30,000
years ago; tools in Iran
dated to 100,000 years; Ruins in Mohanjo-Daro in India dated to 6000 years, and so
on. There are structures such as the Pyramids, Stone circles such Stonehenge,
newly discovered lost cities such as Tiahuanaco in Bolivia dated about 15,000
years, Machu Picchu in Peru, the 3500 year old Mayan city, Dzibilchaltun,
Temple cities of Ankor Wat and Ankor Thom in Cambodia, Anuradhapura and
Polannaruwa in Ceylon. There are huge line drawings in Peru and
elsewhere which can only be discerned from aeroplanes indicating that flight
was known, and a great many huge man-made mounds in many places of the world
which show great mathematical, astronomical and engineering skills not
possessed by the present inhabitants. Mysterious relics have been found which
indicate that the knowledge and use of electricity, steam and other forces were
known many thousands of years ago. Most of these could not be understood until
modern science had progressed sufficiently to provide the conceptual framework.
Ancient documents exist which describe brain surgery and other medical
procedures. Indeed, there is sufficient evidence that the ancient Babylonians,
Egyptians, Mayas and others had a much greater knowledge of Astronomy,
Mathematics, Engineering, Medicine and organisational skills than the people
who came after them. Degeneration has, therefore, taken place even within this
cycle.
In the
Easter Island in the Pacific ocean huge stone statues have been found which
were not created by the recent inhabitants and they had a script which no one
in modern times can decipher but which resembles a script used by the people of
Mohanjo-Daro in the Indus Valley thousands of miles away around 4500 B.C.
Excavations show that there were three cultural levels of which the oldest was
the most advanced. There has, therefore, been a regression. It could be that
highly civilised people who were also seafarers conducted mining operations,
migrated, and created settlements in various places. Even more recently the
Maoris managed to migrate from Polynesia to New Zealand with the aid of
techniques and information which could only have been acquired from other more
advanced sources.
According
to some traditions those who knew about these cycles preserved the knowledge
achieved in each cycle in secret places so that it could be gradually released
to re-establish civilisation in the next cycle. A Civilisation produces a seed
as it were, from which a new plant arises. Unfortunately, the history and
knowledge of past eras which used to be kept in great libraries were destroyed
- at Persepolis by the Greeks under Alexander
the Great, at Carthage and Constantinople by the
Romans, Alexandria
by the Arabs under Omar and a great many others by Christians. In China, the
Emperor Shih Huang To destroyed all past records
because he wanted Chinese history to begin with him. In the Americas Maya records
were destroyed by the Spanish. Much of the little which has survived has not
yet been deciphered or understood owing to differences in language, mode of
formulation and mental attitudes. Some of this material has given rise to
obscure sciences such as Alchemy, Acupuncture, Astrology, others have become
the basis of modern sciences such as Chemistry, Physics, Astronomy, some have
been converted into mythologies, and others such as Numerology and Tarot Cards
have given rise to superstitions.
The idea
that man in the past was primitive and that evolution is a guaranteed straight
upwards line must be abandoned. A great number of what are regarded as modern
discoveries must be regarded as rediscoveries and even these were often
stimulated by records from the past. It also seems clear that there are several
alternative directions of development from which a selection is made. This is
determined by Cosmic forces. The human
characteristics, their organisation, and the exact way in which knowledge is
selected, formulated and applied will differ from age to age.
It is
likely that the destruction of past civilisations and their records in the
present cycle is a Cosmic necessity. The direction of
development had to be changed and the influences from the past could only be
allowed to determine the next stage to a limited and selective extent. Some
aspects are permanently retained while others are discarded. In particular,
human beings were required to remain vigorous by making the necessary and
correct efforts. This appears to be the message of the Quran. But to understand
this requires the idea that Cosmic events are not
indifferent to human development and respond to them - an idea as yet
unacceptable to contemporary science. It could, however, be pointed out that:-
(1)
Human development could well take a course whereby they become capable of
averting such disasters.
(2)
The weather and other ecological and environmental conditions are not
independent of human activity as we already know.
(3)
The effect of Cosmic forces on earth depend also on
the condition of the planet. The atmosphere, and the magnetic field, for
instance, can filter these.
(4)
Human beings are transforming devices and emit various chemical substances,
electromagnetic radiations, and probably affect the field in which they exist;
that though individually the effects may be small, they are not small en mess;
that some small factors can have large scale catalytic effects; that these
physical effects are affected by psychological factors. We know that psychological
changes in a person can create physiological changes, changes in a society
directly or by reaction, and changes in the physical environment through such
social changes and probably also much more directly.
All these
can be experimentally determined.
At least
three factors can be identified which allow human progress and survival:-
(1)
Psychological factors:- (a) Increasing awareness of
the nature of existence, the surroundings and of themselves, leading to
increasing knowledge. This is not merely a matter of science. (b) Increase in
social concern between individuals to create mutual help, cooperation and
united action. (c) Increase in adaptability, ability and control. This is not
merely a matter of technology, but also requires the capacity for social
changes and psychological reorientation.
(2) Social factors:-certain
characteristics, and ways of life which produce and select these, are more
effective than others in producing the above results. It is, in fact, religions
which try to establish these.
(3)
Certain techniques - Religion, science, technology and certain modes of
organisation.
One
of the great influences in the progress of civilisation is writing. This allows
the creation of more permanent records than memory, the accumulation, transmission
and diffusion of knowledge, and its progressive re-arrangement, organisation
and synthesis. There are at least three forms of this:-
Hieroglyphics as used by the ancient Egyptians, Ideographic as in Chinese, and
the Phonetic, which assigns letters to sounds, as used in most of the modern
world. It is only this last which has made science possible. It is thought that
this mode of writing arose when the recording of time became important and this
was done by counting the days of the lunar month. The Hebrew and Arabic
alphabet are still used as numbers.
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Given the
expansion of the human population and the faculties of man for perception,
exploration, thinking, creativity and communication, it is inevitable that
there should be social development and evolution not only through the
accumulation of the results of efforts and achievements, but also because each
stage allows even greater synthesis of experience. However, there are also
destructive tendencies which militate against the smooth upward movement. These
include habits, obsessions, selfishness, aggression and war, fantasies and
perversions. This tends to make human history a struggle between Evolutional
and Involutional forces, a to and fro motion between extremes where one or the
other tendency dominates and cycles are produced. We notice, however, that because
the Involutional tendencies are self-destructive, and themselves provide the
stimulus to development - since pain and suffering are repulsive, the overall
tendency is evolution and the cycles become upward moving spirals. There is a
struggle between good and evil, as the religions confirm, and the good
eventually triumphs.
Not much
is known to science about the beginnings of civilised man. Studies show that
human societies underwent several stages of evolution owing to certain
revolutionary discoveries. These include the making of special tools, including
knives and spears (not merely the use of natural products as tools as some
animals do), the creation of language, the discovery of the use of fire and
ability to make and control it, the discovery and use of metals, the
domestication of animals for food and work, the discovery of agriculture, the
making and use of the wheel, the discovery and use of writing. the development of various systems of thought and
organisation, the making of machines, the invention of the scientific attitude
and procedures. Each discovery depended upon and led to a great number of
economic, social and ideological changes which transformed life at an ever accelerating
pace.
The early
history of man is divided into Ages such as the Stone, Bronze and Iron Ages.
Man kind
is said to have undergone five stages of development: -
(1) They
may have been originally food gatherers, living on fruit and when these were scarce
they became scavengers.
(2) This
gave them a taste for meat and when appropriate tools were developed they
became hunters.
(3) They
then learnt to herd food animals and domesticate them. They became nomads,
their life being centred on the grazing needs of these animals.
(4) Later
while their animals were grazing they discovered how plants grew, and can be
deliberately grown. The discovery of agriculture caused them to settled down, create villages and cities and an organised life. As
food was plentiful and there was more leisure, some people devoted themselves
to the crafts, others to organising life and others to thought and the various
sciences. The plenty they enjoyed attracted raiders from other tribes, and
protection from them demanded a military force. Agriculture meant ownership of
land and trade. As this led to disputes, this encouraged the development of law
and administration, the recording of transactions, measuring of land and
weighing of goods. Thus the development of writing and mathematics were
stimulated, as well as political, scientific and philosophical thinking.
Acquisitiveness, domination , class distinction, and
war appear to have developed at this stage. Not much is known about human
history beyond about 4000 B.C because of the absence of written records.
(5) The
industrial revolution again transformed human society. This too, has several
stages, from the mechanical to the electrical and now we are entering the age
of information technology.
There
will, no doubt, be other revolutions to come. If the Theory of Seven is to be
taken seriously then there should be two more stages, the next probably
emphasising social development. The communist revolution was thought by some
people to have introduced the new era of social life, but it was probably
premature and, therefore, defective. In fact, however, there is an increase in
social concerns throughout the world and most governments have to place
increasing attention and efforts in Social policies. The next and last stage
will probably devote itself to Psychological or Spiritual development. The
present cycle of human development should then end, followed by a new cycle,
and a new humanity should then arise. Archaeological finds indicate that there
may have been several cycles in the Past.
The
Quranic version of events, similar to ones found in other scriptures, is as
follows:-
“And when thy Lord said unto the angels: Lo! I am about to place a
vicegerent in the earth, they said: Wilt Thou place therein one who will do
harm therein and will shed blood, while we, we hymn Thy praise and sanctify
Thee? He said: Surely, I know that which ye know not. And He taught Adam all
the names, then showed them to the angels, saying:
Inform Me of the names of these, if ye are truthful. They said: Be glorified!
We have no knowledge save that which Thou hast taught us. Lo! Thou, only Thou,
art the Knower the Wise.” 2: 30-32
“O mankind! Be careful of your duty to your Lord Who created you from a single soul and from it created its
mate, and from them twain has spread abroad a multitude of men and
women.” 4:1
“Mankind was one community, and Allah sent Prophets as bearers of
good tidings and as warners, and revealed through
them the scriptures with the truth that it might judge between mankind
concerning that wherein they differ. And only those unto whom the scripture was
given differed concerning it after clear proof had come to them through hatred
of one another.” 2;213
It
appears, therefore, that a single male with human consciousness arose first,
perhaps by the normal process of mutation. He may have procreated males and
females similar to himself. The inter-marriages between them resulted in modern
mankind. The name ‘Adam’ may be a composite one or may refer not to
a physical form but to the faculty of consciousness and the ability to
manipulate concepts, and, therefore, to act independently unlike animals or
man-like creatures before that. It is likely, however, that it does not refer
to a physical entity at all but to a cosmic or spiritual phenomenon, something
which occurred in the realm of Ideas or the World of Information. The attitude
that events should be understood in material terms is only a recent one. What
is certain is that all human beings can inter-breed and are, therefore, a
single species having a common origin.
There must
have been an age of innocence when people lived according to their inherent
nature. But as experience, thinking, symbolisation and language developed, then the mental world and life became more complex, Owing to
the human ability to manipulate the data of experience, the mental world of
different people began to diverge from each other and from the real world.
Illusions arose, mistakes were made, and disputes and conflicts arose.
Communities had to be guided by those with the greatest experience,
consciousness and intelligence. But habits, egotism and self-interest caused
rebellions and civil wars. This led to the scattering of man. The dispute
between Cain and Able, the sons of Adam, seem to point to a dispute between the
Nomadic and Agricultural way of life. No doubt as numbers expanded, the
pressure on resources increased, and the local food supply was depleted owing
to erosion and mis-management, they had to gradually
disperse. But conflicts would have made this even more urgent.
The
decline of a central civilisation due to some natural disaster, created by man
himself, lack of appropriate technologies for transport and communication,
conflicts and war, would have removed the uniting factor and isolated different
communities from each other. The Flood of Noah and the Building of the Tower of Babel indicate such disasters. In the
case of the Tower
of Babel the people
wished to reach heaven (to build a Utopia or ideal world), but they used bricks
(artificial concepts or ideas) rather than stones (natural truths). Therefore,
there was a confusion of tongues, the project was abandoned and the people
dispersed. Cultural developments and differences in conceptualisation produced
misunderstandings and conflicts. This takes place to this day.
The
scattering of people, the isolation of groups from one another and the local
geophysical conditions caused them to develop separate cultures usually due to
the activity of extra-ordinary men. Communities and Civilisations arise because
they are well adjusted to the Cosmic process or Divine
Will and then decline and are destroyed because they fail to conform to it. The
Quran mentions as examples the people of Noah before the Flood, the Egyptians, the peoples of Lot, Job,
A’ad and Thamud. This destruction does not take place until they have
been warned by messengers from Allah - those who were more conscious of
reality. Those who heed these warnings and make amends
escape and recover. Destruction is not, therefore, inevitable. New communities
and civilisations may arise from those who separate and migrate out of these
degenerating communities and settle elsewhere. or have
learnt from their fate.
However,
the development of transport, communication and trade in the modern world is
bringing them together again, making them inter-dependent and into a single
unit once again. This appears to have been foreseen and the Quran addresses
itself to the whole of mankind. The scattering was probably essential to
produce learning and variety so that the eventual synthesis would be
comprehensive and versatile. Certainly, modern civilisations benefit from
features which could not have developed in a single culture, but required quite
different mentalities. Western Civilisation is constructed out of an amalgamation
of elements derived from the Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Hebrews, Indians and
Chinese civilisations.
Humanity,
then, is one and arises from a single source. It is, or is growing into a
single organism, in which all parts are inter-dependent. It comes out of a very
small beginning, multiplies, differentiates and progressively organises, like
the fertilised egg grows, into an adult. It has not yet matured into a new
organism.
----------<O>----------
By culture
we mean everything created by the society, its philosophy, art, sciences,
crafts, technology, industries, organisation, institutions, laws, morals,
etiquette, conventions, cities, farms and artefacts. These products, however,
should be regarded as no more artificial than the nests of birds or the hives
of bees.
There is
what we might call a Spirit which defines the unity of culture, a certain
attitude to life, a way of experiencing, thinking, feeling and doing things,
and a way of relating to each other, to the environment and the whole of
reality. It is changes in the receptivity of people which allows new
information to enter them and this in turn modifies them and their receptivity.
The cultures of the different peoples of the world differ from one another in
accordance with the religion which dominates there. The Christian, Buddhist,
Hindu and Islamic religions produce different cultures.
Although
the cultures have grown up gradually, their origin can be traced back to single
extraordinary Great Teachers or to a series of Teachers, whom we will call
Prophets. This is certainly the case with the Islamic Civilisation. Some of
these Teachers were regarded as gods by the people affected, as the legends of
ancient civilisations such as the Egyptian, Babylonian, Greek and Roman show.
The names of Prometheus, Hermes and Mercury, the messenger of God, to name a
few, appear in them. In the Americas,
Quetzalcoatl is said to have brought civilisation to the Aztecs, Kukulkan to
the Mayas, Gucumatz to the Quiche-Maya in Guatemala,
Bochica to the Chinches in Columbia.
These religions and cultures are also affected by previous cultures and influence
each other. Though each religion is subject to the law of increasing entropy,
that is, the degradation of information or truth, there is an evolution owing
to renewed conscious efforts and the inspiration introduced by successive
religions.
The Roman
Civilisation, and to a large extent the Greek too, were very dominated by the
impulses for self-aggrandisement, sensuality, callousness, cruelty, violence,
and thirst for blood. The present Western civilisation claims to be based on
these. If this is so then how do we account for the fact that in many ways it
is a more compassionate, charitable and caring civilisation, and some of the
leaders were motivated by a desire to serve the people. The transformation must
be attributed to Jesus. However, this transformation did not take place at
once. When the Roman Empire was Christianised,
the same blood thirsty practices continued, and even later, history shows, the
Christians perpetrated the most vicious atrocities. However, the teaching of
love and charity continued and much in western Civilisation can be attributed
to these activities. Though Governments continue to be callous and violent at
least some of the leaders have been influenced. The signs, however, are that
people are once again reverting to self-seeking, self-indulgence, cruelty and
violence as shown by both their social conditions and their culture.
One of the
most ancient civilisations which developed after the introduction of
agriculture and having written records was in Egypt. The river Nile floods periodically making the surrounding valleys
fertile. It is this which encouraged agriculture, settlement and city
building. The abundance of food released time and energy for the development of
crafts, organisation and thinking.
The people
here, as their hieroglyphics show, are known to have wondered about the nature
of existence and their origin and destiny. This produced a religion and they
built Temples
in the form of the largest man-made structures in the world, the Pyramids, and
their city, Karnack is a wonder of the ancient world. The efforts required to
do this indicate great technical and organisational skills as well as the
importance of religion in their life. Egypt enjoys clear skies and they
could see the majesty of the heavens laid out before them every night. Not only
did this facilitate a study of the motions of the stars and, therefore, the
development of Astronomy, but it also inspired the awe and reverence which are
the basis of religion. No separation had yet occurred between the intellect,
feeling and action, and their thinking shows a comprehensiveness which is a
synthesis of their environment, their social life and cosmological view. They
saw the Milky Way and identified it with the River Nile, the source of their
life. They saw the cyclic motion of the stars and the changes in the seasons
associated with these and developed the notion of death and resurrection. They
saw the rain falling from the sky reviving life on earth, and identified this
with heavenly semen. They systematised all these observations to form an
elaborate doctrine, just as scientists do today, except that they designed it
to help in the conduct of life and adjustment to the world rather than merely
to describe or to create a technology. The doctrine they constructed is
something as follows:-
At first
there is Chaos. Out of the waters of Chaos comes the supreme God, Amun by a
process of self-construction and He creates Order, the Universe. He does so by
masturbation, and the semen which bursts forth creates the lesser gods, male
and female. It is these which actually construct and maintain the Universe. The
greatest fear the Egyptians had was of chaos since their civilisation depended
on order in the midst of barbarism and chaos. Therefore, they worshipped and
served Amun. Order on earth was identified with their civilisation and chaos
with the conditions, and the primitive and barbaric people, outside Egypt. The
ruler, Pharaoh, who maintained order in Egypt, was the representative of
Amun on earth. This worship took the form of conquering and subduing the
surrounding territories, the attempts at bringing civilisation to them and
constructing the massive ordered structures as temples, filling them with the
treasures from far and wide, and creating a well ordered social system.
However, since their god was a hidden mystery, they located a representation of
him in an inner chamber to which only purified priests had access. It is these
who performed secret and, therefore, unknown ceremonies for the rest of the
community. They also had a High Priestess, known as the wife of Amun on earth
and identified with his hand, obviously the one with which the masturbation was
done. It is not certain whether this led to actual temple prostitution as some
people claim.
Amun sent
his son, Osiris (identified with the Sun, the source of all heat, light, energy
and life, and, therefore, with consciousness and creativity.) down to earth to
create a civilisation. Every evening Osiris entered into his mother, the
Goddess of the Sky, in order that she might give birth to him the next morning.
He was, therefore, both father and son. Osiris had a wife, Isis, identified
with the Moon which also exerts influences on the earth, for instance, by means
of the tides which was identified with the female menstrual cycles. It
illuminates the night, shining by reflected light from the sun and, therefore,
also represents sub-conscious forces. Jealousy caused Osiris to be murdered by
his brother Seth (Satan?), and his body was cut into pieces and scattered all
over Egypt.
Isis became distressed, searched and gathered
these pieces together, brought Osiris back to life long enough to impregnate
her and he then ascended into heaven, becoming the constellation Orion. Isis gave birth to Horus, identified with the planet
Mercury which is nearest to the sun and regarded as the Messenger. Horus
re-established civilisation. The kings of Egypt were regarded as incarnations
of Horus, who was, of course a recreation of Osiris, and Osiris, by the same
symbolism was a recreation of Amun. Isis,
after her death, also ascended into heaven and became the star Sirius which in
the heavens follows Orion.
The
rituals, the social organisations and even the structures the Egyptians created
were based on this doctrine. The Pyramids are built with tunnels in them which
used to point directly at these stars. They are also distributed so as to
reproduce a map of the sky on earth. The social and political organisation was
meant to imitate the conditions in heaven. There is evidence to show that the
rituals were meant not only to celebrate, but also to control the forces of
nature and above all to enhance human powers by absorbing the cosmic and divine
forces.
Both the
rise and fall of the Egyptian Civilisation are connected with this Religion.
The city of Karnack,
for instance, to which each successive Pharaoh added further structures
became a centre of trade, organisation and culture, and for excellence in all
the crafts, arts and sciences of civilisation. But as the organisation became
more elaborate the power of the priests increased and conflicts arose between
the priests and the Pharaoh, between the religious and secular authorities.
This division was exploited by many other less civilised peoples who eventually
conquered and destroyed the Egyptian civilisation, thereby bringing the very
chaos which they had feared. Later Christianity, which had at first been
persecuted by the pagan descendants of this religion, replaced it, but not without
both persecution of its own and absorption of some of its ideas. Christianity
in turn was replaced by Islam.
It is not
too difficult to see that here we have the roots of all religion. It is obvious
that the creation story is symbolic since it is a description in earthly images
of what refers to a transcendental and Universal process. This imagery was
developed before Christian sexual prudery took hold of the human mind. No doubt
because it was understood literally by the common people and the time was ripe
that the general mental level should be lifted to a higher stage, then it
became necessary to replace this symbolism. Note, however, that the idea of a
self-created God and order coming out of chaos is similar to those found in
other ancient religions such as that of India, that it is not incompatible
with the first few verses in the Old Testament, and that it also resembles the
conclusions of modern scientific Cosmology. As for Islam, it distinguishes
between the Unmanifest Essence of Allah and His Attributes which, therefore,
combines the notion of Chaos and Order. Chaos, it is necessary to point out,
refers to a state of homogeneity and unity in which nothing is distinguishable
from anything else. No causes can, therefore, be found in it for the arising of
order. It is simply self-existent and produces order spontaneously, that is, by
its own will. In this sense, therefore, the Islamic idea of Allah transcends
Amun since the later is only one part of the whole. Thus mythology and
symbolism have been removed. The Quran also distinguishes between the pair of
opposites, positive and negative, male and female forces and the lesser gods
are Archangels,
We have a
Trinity, Osiris, Isis, and Horus (Horus being the resultant of the other two,
the Pair). But note that this Trinity is derived from but not identified with
the Supreme God, Amun. The kings were regarded as gods or sons of god, not
because they were identified with God, but because Horus was incarnated in them and they had responsibility for the development of
civilisations. This is similar to saying that the Divine Spirit was introduced
into them and that they were Vicegerents, Prophets or Messengers. We have death
and resurrection, the distinction between body and soul, the distinction and
relationship between heaven and earth, the notion of Satan, the force of evil
as opposed to the force of good, though they are brothers, the Fall of man, and
the Prophet as Founder of restored civilisation, the human longing and striving
to escape from the limitations of the flesh on earth to reach the freedom of
the heavens. Not only has it been understood that the events on earth are
created by heavenly or cosmic forces, that there is a correspondence between
things in heaven and earth (”As above so below”), but also that man
is trying and must deliberately arrange things on earth as it is in heaven. It
is also recognised that forces in the earth, including man, descend from and
are radiated back into the heavens where they have a cosmic function.
It is
unlikely that the more intelligent Egyptians, the Priests, took these legends
literally. Literal or purely descriptive language is a recent development
connected with science, technology and law. The purpose of language was to
express, relate and affect behaviour. The method and symbols used would then be
different in different places according to the data available there. It is much
more likely that these legends formulate or symbolise an awareness of the
nature of existence and the inherent striving in man to reach heaven which even
today manifests itself in spiritual, artistic or
technological endeavours. The rituals surrounding these doctrines were meant to
express, communicate, reinforce, stimulate and facilitate these strivings. But
through Art man can only describe and through technology he can merely carry
his prison with him.
Moses the
founder of the Hebrew Religion, with which later Christianity and Islam are
associated, before his mission began, lived first in the household of the
Egyptian king (Exodus 2), and then with a Priest of Midian near Egypt (probably
an ancestor of Muhammad since he was an Ishmaelite), worked for and was
instructed by him and married his daughter (Exodus 18). It is not, therefore
unreasonable to suppose that Hebrewism and the other succeeding religions are
continuous with the Egyptian one. The Christian Scriptures recognised that
Moses had learnt from the wisdom of the Egyptians (Acts 7:22). The Egyptian
religion, having degenerated, it was the task of Moses to rescue its essential
elements and take them out of Egypt.
The Hebrews created a civilisation of their own. The degeneration and
destruction of this religion necessitated a new regeneration through another
Messenger, Jesus. Thus Christianity was born, spread and established itself as
the religion of the Roman Empire under The
Emperor Constantine. When this religion also degenerated, a new revival took
place through another Messenger, Muhammad, in the form of Islam and
civilisation passed from Europe to the Middle East.
However, Islam,
in its turn declined, but not without passing an impulse back into Europe where a Reformation of religion took place through
several reformers, and Renaissance of Civilisation. It seems that this revival
did not require a Messenger. Muhammad, according to Islamic doctrines was the
last of the Prophets, implying that the religious teachings were complete and
that man, hence forth, was to be left to his own devices. The childhood of
mankind had ended. However, the periodic arrival of reformers is forecast, and
even the return of Jesus, but not another religion.
Egypt, however, also influenced the
Greek civilisation, which in turn influenced the Roman. Modern Western
civilisation, therefore, received its inspiration from Egypt via two
different routes, the Greco-Roman and the Hebrew/Christian/Islamic. Other
influences come from China, India, ancient Europe, and more recently in the
new world from centres of civilisation in America, all of which have their
own versions of religion and history of development. Studies, however, show, that if we get beyond the particular modes and
formulations they were presented in, then fundamentally they have the same
elements. This confirms that they are all connected with something inherent and
common to mankind and the nature of world which forms them and in interaction
with which they live.
This
western civilisation has transformed both he world of
ideas and the physical world through science, technology and organisation, But
once again there is evidence of degeneration of both religion and civilisation,
though many attempts at revival are also now evident. Though Islam, as
Christianity, forecast the return of Jesus and other religions also look
forward to an Avatar or spiritual teacher, it is likely that this refers to
their spiritual influence rather than to actual persons in the flesh except in
so far as a person can be said to represent that influence. Indeed, the all
Prophets themselves are regarded as one, each representing the same Cosmic
Principle of Prophethood or the Spirit of Prophecy (Quran 4:150, 3:81,
Revelations 19:10).
----------<O>----------
The more
ancient pagan religions took their supreme realities to be goddesses. This term
refers to mother nature or the earth, which is like
the womb in which all phenomena arise. The emancipation of women is
resurrecting these pagan cults in order to reinforce the increased status of
women. This is based on a misunderstanding of symbolism and the failure to
recognise that religion also evolves. In later religions, it was realised that
the phenomena on earth arise only due to the vitalising energy which comes from
heaven, the rest of the Cosmos. Thus the fundamental reality was seen as male
and this was identified with the sun for a long time. The higher religions,
however, saw that the Universe is much greater than this and their idea of the
ultimate reality have transcended all such limitations (Quran 6:76-80). But
even here evolution may be observed.
Religion
was at first regarded as the realm of specialists, the priests, Later it was
extended to refer to a particular community and eventually made generally
available to all humanity. People at one time worshipped plants and animals,
and even their own ancestors or various spirits which they represented by
idols, then they worshipped human beings, their kings or prophets. Some, like
the ancient Hebrews worshipped a single God, but he was a tribal god more
powerful than the gods of other people. Then, though some had a vague notion of
the unity of God, they worshipped various aspects of god separately, causing
polytheism, and later combined these in a trinity. Pure monotheism came only
with Islam.
The
emphasis also changed from ritual and practices, to hope, love and faith, in
turn, then to knowledge and eventually to the cultivation of the spiritual
faculties, will, conscience and consciousness. There
can be no higher religion than one which recognises the supreme reality to be
that which comprehends all possible phenomena and requires human beings to
identify themselves with it and to act as agents of it. Religion must now be
regarded as complete, there being nothing else beyond.
Civilisation,
however, undergoes three stages which may be compared to the development of
human beings. through the embryonic stage, to
childhood, the mature adult and then the age of seniority. Humanity developed
in the womb of nature entirely under its protection and by its laws. But in the
childhood stage it had to undergo a learning process and this could only take
place under the guidance of the religions. The next or adult stage should see
it fully equipped by the previous stage to lead a responsible life where it can
apply the skills and knowledge gained. However, like adolescents who are just
entering adulthood, humanity has to try out its independence by rebellion, and
then learn from its mistakes. This, the present stage, must be regarded as a
transitional period. The age of seniority for mankind should consist of a
complete Surrender to the function of Vicegerency.
Cultures
are born, gradually mature and then grow old and decay. They first invigorate,
releasing the creativity of people, then establish themselves
and finally restrict and inhibit, owing to the development of habits. The interaction
of cultures, however, reinvigorates, and has produced vigorous new cultures in
the past.
----------<O>----------
NOTES
Civilisations have risen and fallen throughout the
history of man. The fall of the Islamic and the rise of the Western
Civilisations are no exception. Though there are always multiple causes for
this, they may be arranged in three dimensions, each having corresponding three
aspects:-
(1) External, relational and internal causes
(2) Physical, social and psychological causes.
(3) Cosmic, human and environmental.
This creates 27 categories under which all causes can
be classified.
Cosmic causes are those which derive from the Laws and
processes of the Universe such as events in the sun and the solar system, and
the motion of the sun through the galaxy, causing large scale climatic changes,
and events such as meteors hitting the earth. The rise and fall of
civilisations appear also to be part of the pattern and rhythms of Nature, like
the changes in the seasons, day and night, and of evolution itself. Though the
subject is controversial the whole cosmos may be regarded as a huge brain such
that each part affects others and the whole affects the parts. Human causes
include the changes brought about by man in the environment due to the
technologies he creates, his motives and ideologies. Environmental causes refer
to changes in the ecology, the arising of new species of animal, plant or
bacteria, earthquakes, floods, droughts or the rising and sinking of
continents.
External causes refer to the ecological system,
invasions by other nations or the introduction of foreign genes, cultures or
ideas.
Internal causes may be the arising or collapse of
economic, political or ideological systems.
Relational causes may be any of the following:- The size, distribution, quality and interactions of the
population. The kinds of organisations created and the commercial, cultural and
political relationships groups have with others determine what ideas and
attitudes are transmitted. When populations are too small or too large or
sparsely distributed this does not help development. More interactions and
exchanges of experience and ideas take place in cities than in the country. The
nature of the organisation, race and family relationship affect inter-actions. Inbreeding,
on the other hand, has debilitated many communities. Arabia
used to be an area of warring tribes. Though this kept them alert and vigorous,
it is only when the Prophet Muhammad united them that the energies of the
people were co-ordinated and given a direction of development. The decline of
the Islamic civilisation can also be attributed to their disintegration into
conflicting communities and nations while the Europeans though they united to
form warring nations still cooperated at the deeper levels of technical,
social, cultural and ideological development, specially
in science.
Some of the main causes of the arising or decline of
civilisations may be described as follows:-
1. The environment - The existence of resources, the
climate and other factors often of a cosmic nature. Thick forests, hot, dry,
deserts and frozen lands do not produce civilisations. A certain balance
between the population and the resources in an area must exist. Populations
have a habit of expanding, but one species checks the expansion of another. The
human population, in the absence of other predators including disease germs, is
checked by man himself, socially, through wars. When civilisation advances and
wars are reduced, both as causes and effects of civilisation, then populations
rise once again, unless human beings take control of their own population
balance. Thus evolution itself forces the need for a third stage - that human
beings assume responsibility for themselves as well as their environments.
Those who fail to take this step decline. The Mesopotamian Civilisation in the
Middle East and the Maya Civilisation in Central America
are examples of this decline. Three different kinds of causes operate:-
(a) Natural changes in weather conditions due to Cosmic
factors.
(b) Human technologies such as irrigation systems, agricultural
practices and industries produced changes in the environment.
(c) Under-nourishment and
hard work leads to disease and loss of vigour and absorbs all the energy which
might otherwise be used to develop suitable technologies.
When populations increase they also cause changes in
the practices, social structures and nature of the people which in turn affect
the environment. As prosperity falls and work becomes harder hierarchies may be
formed in which the few force the others to work for them. To maintain these
hierarchies certain ideologies are also established.
2. The Psychology of People. There are three aspects
to this:- (a) inherent genetic factors (b)
environmental factors (c) social factors such as the culture, organisation and education.
There is a particular mental set which informs a
particular place or time, and stage in history. Certain general ideas, motives
and attitudes exist. The way the average American thinks, behaves and is
motivated is quite different from the way the average Indian, Chinese or Arab
does. The present civilisation depends on the Scientific
spirit.
Civilisations rise because of initiative and
creativity, but as the number of these creations and products increase they
cause mental conditioning and the formation of habits. The people become
subject to convention and traditions. A contradiction arises between outer
conditions which continue to change because of human activity and the failure
to adapt because of the static nature of their ideas, institutions and
behaviour.
3. Social factors - Many civilisations have risen by
migration of a many different races into an area. The U.S.A had the advantage
of the mixture and interaction between people from a great number of cultures.
The ancient Greek and Roman civilisations and even the British also arose from
a mixture of peoples and the cross fertilisation of cultures. Others have
arisen by conquest of peoples and territories which also allowed a mixing of
people apart from the collection of resources and expansion of trade. On the other
hand many civilisations were destroyed by the invasion of barbarians. The Islamic
Civilisation was destroyed by the Mongol invasions. Thus the development and
upkeep of strong military forces by civilisations is required. However, it is
probably true to say that no such destruction could have taken place if there
had been no internal causes for degeneration. Three can be mentioned.
(a) Civilised life and prosperity makes people soft, more cultured and
less aggressive. There is greater concern with higher values such as
organisation, business and trade, science, the arts and philosophy. As they
become prosperous and secure, the threat of deprivation recedes and
self-preservation becomes less urgent.
(b) Having reached a point of excellence by dint of purposive effort and
hard work people relax and loose their values and purpose. They become pleasure
loving, a great number of perversities flourish and psychic energy is
squandered. Comfort and security creates greater attachment to material goods.
(c) The products of human activity accumulate. The increase in the
number and inertia of institutions, organisation, law, and regulations restrict
human freedom, initiative, creativity and adaptability. There is a transfer of
effort and energy from creativity to maintenance and conservation of what has
already been accomplished. There is also an accumulation of the harmful side
effects, problems and waste which begin to overwhelm the society.
Civilisations sometimes arise when a powerful State
comes into being which holds together and brings peace to warring tribes or
communities, but when it collapses owing to inner tensions, this also causes
social disintegration and destroys the civilisation. The Islamic civilisation
developed when the tribes of Arabia were unified
under Islam, but began to decline when divisions took place owing to
sectarianism, nationalism and regionalism, and these, in their turn led to a
decline in civilisation.
The Indian as well as the Muslim civilisations
degenerated owing to the strength of convention and tradition which prevented
adaptation, but also due to the moral degeneration of the people. Thus the need
for constant psychological stimulation and spiritual renewal is obvious. As in
life, old forms must be destroyed in order to allow new better adapted ones to
arise. If the society does not do it by itself then other advancing nations
conquer, dominate and exploit them. This has three possible consequences.
(a) The resources and achievements which the dominated nations have
wasted are transferred to the dominating nation which uses them to better
advantage. It stimulates there further development. The development of the
Western civilisation certainly owes much to the fact that the resources of
Asia, the Americas, Africa
and Australia
became available to them.
(b) The dominated nations degenerate further as this transfer takes
place and their populations may also decline while that of the conquerors
increases.
(c) The dominating nations establish their technologies, institutions
and cultures among the dominated people. The latter also learn from them, or
the humiliation and suffering acts as a stimulus to their development. There is
a synthesis and diffusion of civilisation. The dominating nation may begin to
decline because of its prosperity and the balance of power changes. They
dominated nations then revolts and successfully re-establish their
independence.
It is, therefore, evident that the process of
development is not only inevitable, but is also ultimately good and wise.
However, this process refers to the relationship
between one community or nation with the greater
system to which it belongs. This system, in its turn, belongs to a still
greater system. Humanity belongs to the biosphere containing many other
species, which in turn belongs to the planet as a whole and so on. Processes
similar to the ones described above may be taking place at these higher levels.
It is not, therefore, the case that the mere success of a particular
civilisation in a particular period of time is an indication of the success of
humanity in adjusting to these higher systems. The whole species may be
destroyed by another which is better adjusted. Or a new species may arise to
replace man.
----------<O>----------
One way of describing the development of civilisation
is the Marxist way - that economic factors are
responsible for it. But the study of man and his civilisations shows that
development depends on three interdependent things:- appropriate
(a) physical environments (b) social conditions and (c) psychological states.
The Marxist position, therefore, seems rather inadequate since it takes into
consideration only one of several factors affecting human beings. A more
realistic modification of this has already been described elsewhere. It
requires the realisation that human beings are affected by:-
(1) Cosmic factors, those which have influenced their evolution.
(2) Social factors which are divisible into (a) ideological and cultural
(b) Socio-sexual factors which includes politics, family relationships and
civic matters, organisation in general. (c) and
economic.
(3) Factors connected with the Physical Environment such as the terrain,
mountains, forests, animals and local climate.
A correct psychological state requires (a) knowledge
and ideas (b) motives and (c) behaviour and actions.
Knowledge does not only come from sense data - reason
allows us to see more than what is given by the senses. But both sense
experience and reason depend on the quality of consciousness. Though sense data
and reason have played their part in the evolution of civilisations, it is
observable that the major steps up the ladder are due to inspiration, whether
ideological (religious, philosophical, scientific), or social or economic.
There is a state of consciousness or a spirit which informs an age. These steps
have the same function at the psychological level as mutations have at the
biological level. They affect masses of people. Though they manifest through
individuals, these individuals must be regarded as having been affected
genetically, socially and culturally by the community, the times and places in
which they live. We must, therefore, not only speak of a social or mental field
created by people collectively, but also of a spiritual field, a collective and
a universal consciousness, probably at a sub-quantum level, from which inspiration is derived. It is
perfectly possible that all the so called psychic or paranormal phenomena are
explicable in terms of this field.
The desire for prosperity will not itself produce
prosperity. It depends on the other features of civilisation. The desire for a
high civilisation will not itself create a high civilisation. It requires the
other factors, the psychological one being of the greatest importance. It
requires the release and enhancement of human potentialities. This requires:- (a) The removal of inner and outer obstructions to energy
and creativity. (b) These must be channelled, given proper direction or
purposes. (c) They must be cultivated and organised by modes of stimulation and
incentives.
The purpose must be (a) the realisation of the human
function and significance with respect to the world they live in, (b) human
growth and fulfilment, and (c) the desire to fulfil the responsibilities this
bestows on them. The purpose of Religion is to instil these. Civilisation is a
side effect.
----------<O>----------
Human history could be divided into:-
Pre-civilisation,
Civilisation and Post-civilisation.
The Pre-civilisations were concerned primarily with physical
survival within the environment. There were probably three stages of
development:- food gathering, hunting and eventually
herding, the domestication of animal. The people were constantly on the move as
the resources in one area ran out.
Civilisation begins with agriculture when the
production of food was deliberately undertaken and people settle down in areas
where this was possible such as fertile river banks. The word civilisation
indicates that it is derived from the word civil which refers to cities, and
these only arise when agriculture makes settled life possible. But it should
also be regarded as only one stage in human development. Civilisation also
appears to have three stages.
In the first stage, the greater availability of food
makes division of labour possible. Only the few need produce it and others have
to develop various crafts which they can sell in exchange. This encourages the
development of industries, commerce and finance. The division of labour and
need for exchange develops an administrative structure and the law; the need to
measure the land and food leads to the development of mathematics; the need for
settled peoples to defend themselves against marauding people requires the
development of a military force and a soldier class. And so on.
The second stage begins with the industrial revolution.
The machine takes over the work done by man or animal, and the need for energy
sources is greater than for food.
The third stage of civilisation, now underway, has
more to do with the collecting and exchange of information and with scientific
research.
The word ‘Civilisation’ is used very
ambiguously. Sometimes it is used to refer to any kind of culture whatever
without judgement as to higher or lower forms of it, since these are often
subjective judgements. If we refer to the arts alone, including those connected
with etiquette and manners, then all nations have produced their own, and it is
only a matter of taste whether one is regarded as better than another. But we
could take into consideration the skills involved and their educational or
evolutionary effects. We could identify civilisation with high philosophy and
spiritual ideals and point to India.
On the other hand the Western world, in its own eyes, is the most civilised.
This judgement could only be based on the idea that civilisation refers to technology,
organisation and wealth. We could, however, refer to the behaviour of people
and point out that there is less barbarism, crime, lechery and violence, and
more family and social solidarity in Islamic countries than in the West, and
less abject poverty, differences in wealth and indifference to the human
condition than in the East. A much more balanced view would be that
civilisation refers to the state of development of human beings, and that this
can, but not necessarily, manifests in their ideas, motives and actions, and in
the structures they create.
Civilisations may, therefore, be studied at three
levels:-
(a) Their products, the wealth, the physical
structures they create such as the buildings, cities, roads farms and so on. A
civilisation is usually judged by the kind of environment it produces. This is
because these are the only remains left behind by past civilisations.
(b) the organisations, institutions,
governments, empires; the economic, social, political, and legal systems. These
can often be deduced from the physical remains or their writings.
(c) the cultures - the science, art, craft,
philosophies and religions. The products of civilisation can often tell us
something, not only about their organisations, but also about the nature of the
people, their skills, abilities, ideas, world view, sensitivities, patience and so on.
A study of the Quran shows that Islam, as other
religions, is not primarily interested in Wealth, Empires, Cultures or
Civilisations but with human psychological development. This is a stage
regarded by many religions as one which has to come in the future. It is not
difficult to see from studies in biology that nature is concerned with
evolution of the species rather than merely with their products and environments.
Though some people still speak admiringly about Empires and even the Christian Churches
in Britain
and elsewhere contain statues honouring their Empire builders, many other
people have greater moral sensibilities and see that Empires are mostly a story
of mass murder, torture, looting, destruction, exploitation, suppression,
enslavement, barbarity and psychopathy. Any benefits which came through them in
the spread of civilisation was purely unintentional.
Empire building or imperialism, however, still continues today in a much more
subtle way through political, economic and even cultural rather than military
means. As for civilisation, this has some advantages which are usually
neutralised by more or fewer disadvantages to man, mainly because it develops
automatically without coordinated, conscious, objective purpose.
We can, therefore, speak about a third stage of human
development beyond civilisation. Post-civilisation may be regarded as a
condition yet to come where human beings take full responsibility for the
administration, control and welfare of the planet and their own evolution.
Humanity will have matured, values will have change, the desire to exploit the
environment for personal embellishment will no longer exist, and cooperation
will have displaced conflict. Indeed, this is an age forecast and looked
forward to by many religions. We can, for instance, imagine that human beings
together form a super-organism such that it has a collective consciousness of
which the consciousness of each individual is a cooperative part.
The changes in the environment may, however, not only
be the consequences, but may also be facilitating causes for such development.
They are means to an end and not the ends themselves. However, the various
quotations given elsewhere regarding the fate of communities, show that Islam
is also concerned with civilisation. The main concern of people in the present
age is with environmental questions. Though these are not specifically dealt
with in the Quran and the Hadith, mainly because they were not urgent at the
time the Prophets taught, it is not difficult to discover from the various
verses which speak about the earth, its vegetation, animals and weather that Islam
is also interested in the environment. Indeed, the term “Vicegerent”
as applied to man implies that he is responsible for the environment. Thus we
have three subjects of interest and they are inter-dependant.
The psychological condition of man affects the way he
organises his society as well as what he does to the environment. The social
conditions affect his psychological development as well as the condition of the
environment. The environment certainly affects the way he organises his society
as well as his experiences, the thoughts, motives and actions and his genetic
selection.
The Islamic attitude, as well as that of other
religions, is that if man concentrates his attention on psychological
development then he will also be able to deal adequately with the other
factors, the civilisation and the environment. Otherwise not.
“Lo!
Allah changes not the condition of a folk until they change what is in their
hearts. And if Allah wills misfortune for a folk there is none that can repel
it, nor have they a defender besides Him.” 13:11
“Seek
ye first the Kingdom
of God and His
righteousness, and all these other things will be added unto you.”
Matthew 6:33
Therefore,
the Prophet Muhammad, as previously the Prophet Moses, set out to create a
social system in which psychological development could take place.
----------<O>----------
An organisation binds together individuals into a
greater unit, the community. We can divide human organisations into several
types:-
Type A - A study of primitive tribes shows that they
were organised by what we might call Natural Hierarchies. They had a Chief and
Elders who were usually the oldest, most experienced and most able in the
community. Their function was to settle disputes, keep the
community united as a cooperative whole, co-ordinate its activities and give
it direction. The community was a network of families and gave the elders
voluntary obedience. There was no economic stratification. There was a degree
of harmony socially as well as with the environment and psychologically. This
was achieved because there existed no separation
between the physical or economic activities of the community, its social
relationships and its religion which provided the psychological, ideological or
intellectual basis. The cognitive, affective and conative aspects were in
harmony.
But the size to which this community could grow
depended on the economic conditions, the binding power of this organisation and
the ideology. All these changed as the population expanded and experiences
grew. Like the cells, having reached a certain size they split up into separate
units. Having split up these communities also distributed themselves in
separate environments. They also became distinct from one another
organisationally and ideologically and began to see each other as foreign
bodies.
Type B - As populations grew and the pressure on resources
increased, conflicts and wars arose between these communities. There is also
evidence that conflicts between one community and another concerned not food
but sex, and sometimes ideological differences. Many raids were conducted to
capture women. It may be that a community to strengthen itself against others
required increasing its population or reducing that of the other. They also
needed to increase their strength by improving their organisation and through
technology. These wars led to conquests by communities which had become
stronger and the enslavement of the weaker communities. They also reduced
populations to levels equivalent to existing resources. Thus Dominating
Hierarchies arose. This affected not only the society but also the ideology and
the economic attitude. All kinds of dichotomies arose as a result:- The master-slave in which the physical labour was mostly
placed on the one and the satisfaction of wants or consumption was mostly
placed in the other. Connected with this is the dichotomy between work and
pleasure, intellectual activity and physical activity, idealism and
materialism, mind and matter. The economic desire to dominate and exploit the
environment rather than live in harmony with it and the scientific principle of
objectivity which requires the observer to be separate from the objects
observed are also consequences of this. The resulting aggressive attitude which
requires competition and confrontation can be seen in the legal system, in
science, philosophy, politics and elsewhere in the form of debates rather than
discussion. The need to control the slaves created its own Hierarchy.
Type C- To these dichotomies, apart from natural
disasters, we can trace almost all the causes of human suffering. However, it
is also clear that this development was inevitable and even necessary for any
further evolution. It is the competition between communities which led to
further development in all three spheres, technology, social organisation and
ideology. The development of agriculture relieved the pressure of resources and
allowed the population to grow. But this could not have taken place unless
methods of organisation and administration had also grown. The need to live in
areas where agriculture was possible itself exerted pressure for such development.
And both required the development of appropriate technologies. The greater ease
of food production also released time and energy for the development of crafts
and ideas. This allowed further differentiation of function among human beings
which itself created problems of coordination and cooperation which had to be
solved. Agricultural communities were, however, still raided by nomadic peoples
and military power had to be established to counteract them. Conflict between
communities and the need to subdue raiding tribes led to the need for further
conquests and expansion of empires. The limits to these were again set by the
organisational power. However, in order to strengthen the community it was also
necessary to reduce inner conflicts which the master-slave relationship had
created. This was gradually done by the development of the Formal Hierarchy.
These differ from the Natural Hierarchies in that they create Economic
stratification and the social order depends not on family connections and voluntary
acceptance but on rules which define position, function and promotion. This
changes the status of both master and slave.
Type D - The conflict between the Natural Organisation
and the Dominating Organisation caused the arising of the higher religions
which attempted to bridge the gap. According to these, man has a bridging
function between the Cosmic factor, which is
understood in its wholeness under the term ‘Heaven’ and the
physical environment or world. This also creates a Hierarchy but one based on
Knowledge, Virtue and Ability, the head of which is a Teacher and Guide. We may
call this a Transcendental Hierarchy. Though communities certainly arose which
tried to live in accordance with this principle they were under constant
pressure from the other forms of organisation, though they also influenced
their development. It is, therefore, found that most of these movements
succumbed to various degrees to these other three forms of organisation.
However, it is likely that in the future that the Formal Hierarchy will
continue to be modified until it approximates the Transcendental Hierarchy. This,
in its turn, will lead back to a natural Hierarchy though at a higher level.
----------<O>----------
There also appear to be signs that humanity is
differentiating increasingly into three distinct types -
(1)
The rich and educated who dominate and control
societies constitute Group 1.
(2)
The majority of ordinary humanity who are employed and follow orders form Group 2.
(3)
A smaller group of spiritually more aware people who are concerned with human
development form Group 3.
These groups have their own way of life, functions, and
cultures, usually intermarry among themselves and live in different areas. They
even produce different economies. The kind of goods Group 1 buy is not the same
as those bought by Group 2. They pay each other much larger quantities of
money, thereby causing two different kinds of circulation. Group 2 is used as
labour force by Group 1 in the same way as cattle were used. Conflicts in Group
1 lead to wars, but use Group 2 to kill each other.
----------<O>----------
The history of the development of Religion can be
regarded as the history of the evolution of human consciousness. The human
organism can be regarded as a record of the accumulated experiences of living
organisms over their long evolutionary history. But consciousness of this must
also develop gradually. It develops at first in symbols as in dreams. When man
first became conscious about existence, he must have wondered about the
fundamental experiences, birth, life and death. This gave rise to the most
ancient Fertility Religions. He noticed the cycle of the seasons, how
vegetation died in winter and sprang to life in spring. This gave rise to the
notions of re-incarnation and resurrection. At first the source of life was
regarded as female, and Mother Earth was the Goddess. The Tree of Life is one of the most
ancient religious symbols. Mother Earth produced the Tree. The Tree produces
its fruits which ripen and fall to ground, decay and are recycled as fertiliser
for the Tree which produces a new crop of fruit. These fruit, therefore,
symbolise the individuals who are also born, grow and die and a new crop of
individuals arise. It is doubtful whether originally the notions of
resurrection or reincarnation were associated with individual egos. The notion
of self, as distinct from the rest of the tribe was not as well developed as it
is today. Human sustenance depended on these cycles. The processes of nature
were honoured and worshipped in mimicry and attempts were even made to
influence or control them through the ritual of sacrifice. Animals were
sacrificed on an alter, but their blood was allowed to
flow into the ground thereby re-fertilising it.
The role
of the male in providing the seed and the role of Heaven as the source of rain
and of the light and heat of the sun, was only noted
later. We then get the male God in Heaven. The religion based on both a male
and female deities replaced the former religion, probably after much conflict
between them because of the devotion, fear and emotional attachments. The
goddess herself was transferred to heaven, and a trinity arose when the
offspring was also taken into consideration. This offspring was male and
represented the father coming through the mother, thereby re-incorporating the
Fertility Religion. Catholic Christianity revived this idea by introducing the
worship of Mary, mother of Jesus where Jesus is both God and the Son, and Mary
becomes the ‘mother of God’.
----------<O>----------
One of the most ancient symbols used in many religions
and cultures throughout the world is the serpent. This symbol is deeply
ingrained in the unconscious mind and arises in dream among all peoples. It is
both feared and held in awe, and worshipped by many peoples. The serpent is
unlike man, being thin and long, without arms and legs, yet mobile and
powerful. While man when awake stands upright, the serpent lies horizontally, a
position man adopts in sleep. The serpent is associated with the Tree of Life.
It is like the branches of the Tree. It represents the male phallus, the source
of life. It eats by swallowing whole, strangles and kills by poison, thereby
representing danger and death. It sheds its outer skin periodically, thereby
representing renewal, resurrection and immortality. Even Moses was instructed
by God to make a Serpent of copper so that “everyone that is bitten when
he looks upon it shall live.” (Numbers 21:8).
Thus sexuality, death and life are linked. It moves silently, thereby
symbolising subtlety, cunning and insidiousness. Its motion represents the
movement of time. But it forms coils which represents Eternity and cycles of
repetition. It lurks in the undergrowth or hidden places and comes out of holes
in the ground, thus representing the forces coming out of the unconscious mind.
It is, therefore, both the guardian of hidden knowledge and its indicator. This
knowledge is both a treasure to be desired and the dark forces of the
unconscious to be feared. Both are connected with sexuality and immortal life.
It also connects the hidden knowledge with fear. To obtain this treasure,
therefore, there are dangers and difficulties to be faced requiring courage,
effort and ingenuity. Human evolution is represented as the uncoiling and
rising of the serpent (Kundalini).
Yet, according to the Hebrew Scripture (Genesis
chapter 2) the Fruit of the Tree of Knowledge in Paradise,
where man resided in his innocent period, was forbidden to man. The symbol of
the Tree of Knowledge does not arise until the coming of Hebrewism and marks
another development of religion. The serpent, rather than
guarding it, tempted man to eat of it. The result of this was, as he was
warned, the loss of immortality and banishment to a life of toil and trouble.
He lost access to the Tree of Life. (Genesis chapter 3).
This is also mentioned in the Quran. If man had not partaken of the fruit then
we would have no knowledge, no civilisation and no human progress. It may be
that he partook of the fruit too early, that is, before he became fully mature
and before he was tested. Perhaps the presence of the Tree of Knowledge was
itself the test, to see whether he would become independent. The dangers and
troubles he is now facing are the price he has to pay for his further
evolution. They may yet destroy him.
Three possibilities exist:-
(a) Had he matured first, perhaps knowledge would have become available
to him without the suffering.
(b) On the other hand, the temptation was placed there because he was
meant to sin, to assert his independence. It is part of his God-made nature.
The Fall of man is part of the plan. He can only, and
must evolve, through difficulty and suffering.
(c) There is no contradiction between the Tree of Life and the Tree of
Knowledge, or between the conscious and unconscious minds, but they have to be
reconciled. This reconciliation is provided by a third factor, namely the
Prophets and the religions they create. This is also inevitable in view of an
original unity. It is, therefore, perfectly possible to have a life without
suffering caused by the prevalence of evil.
There
appears to be a natural contradiction between the striving for the fruits of
the Tree of Life and the striving for the fruits of Tree of Knowledge. The
serpent once worshipped as god is depicted as an enemy to man in Hebrewism,
thus setting the whole Hebrew Christian and Islamic continuum against the
former pagan traditions. On the other hand, one would presume that these
teachings imply that Hebrewism (and Christianity and Islam) require man to
return to the original Fertility religion, to neutralise the effects of the
Tree of Knowledge. It is supposed by some people that whereas these Pagan
traditions sought knowledge and science and control of the serpent through
magic and technology, these later religions based themselves on the pursuit of
immortality while suppressing the pursuit of knowledge. Therefore, the pagan
tradition is more in keeping with modern trends. Indeed, Genesis 3:22 tells us
that when man ate of the Tree of Knowledge “ The
Lord God said, Behold the man is become as one of us, to know good and
evil.”. Herein lies the explanation of the
apparent contradiction. Man, by discriminating between good and evil, acquired
an independent purpose and became god-like. Indeed, he made himself into a god,
but the actions and creations which flow from this could only contradict
God’s creation, thereby causing chaos. Instead of seeking life he sought
merely knowledge. He engaged his intellect rather than his heart. The Hebrew
serpent is that of subjectivity and self-will, not of wisdom.
The most likely fact,
therefore is that the tragic consequences of such behaviour must have already
become evident when Hebrewism arose to counteract them. Among them was the
growth of superstition, social inequality and injustice, and ecological
disasters. The Religion of Egypt was corrupt. It fed on slavery, superstition
and idolatry, on exploitation, suppression, formalism, literalism and rules. All
these are recorded in the scriptures. Religions also degenerate and have to be
opposed by new formulations which come to rectify them. The Serpent made by
Moses swallowed the serpents made by the pagans. (Exodus 7:10-16) The serpent
made by Moses on the instructions of God had to be destroyed also on the
instructions of God (2Kings 18:4). There appear to be cycles in which the two
traditions alternate. It is likely, therefore, that the present Paganised age
based on the Tree of Knowledge will soon give way to a revived religion based
on the Tree of Life.
It should be noted that the Quran dispenses with the
myth of the serpent. Man is tempted by Satan. The notion of Satan does not
occur in the Books of Moses, but only in later Hebrew Scriptures. It is then
taken up by Christianity and Islam. Islam places emphasis on knowledge as well
as on development and immortality. The two Trees are combined through a
discipline.
The myth connected with the serpent encapsulates the
whole of human history. Religious myths should be taken seriously but not
interpreted in a naive literalist fashion.
----------<O>----------
One of the personalities who transformed the world was
Alexander the Great (356 - 323 B.C.), king of Macedonia,
Greece,
who is also mentioned in Quran 18:83-98 as Zul-qarnain. While still very young,
he was the greatest General known to history and carved out a Hellenistic
Empire, stretching from the Punjab in India
to Egypt,
the greatest Empire until then. He became a legend and was feared, admired and
adulated as a god by many people both friends and enemies. Some modern
historians regard him as having been a blood thirsty and arrogant psychopath
who got carried away by his successes and the adulation of the people to regard
himself as a god, the son of the god Jupiter, an idea taken from Egypt where
the Pharaohs were gods, son of the god Amun.. He was, however, a man of
exceptional courage and intelligence and a pupil of Aristotle, probably the
greatest thinker known to History. It appears that his military adventures were
made necessary to secure the boundaries of Macedonia
against the destruction and invasions of foreign and barbaric raiders in the
West and mainly against the intrusion of The decadent Persian Empire in the East. He did have a sense of
mission and destiny - to bring Hellenic Civilisation to barbarians.
He brought stability, order and wealth to a Macedonia and
the territories of his Empire. But his main influence was that Greek rational
methods of thinking and Philosophy spread into Asia, the Middle East and Europe. This affected Hebrewism in that a class of Rabbis
(teachers) arose who began to apply the Greek methods. Buddhism and Hinduism
were affected by Greek ideas and Buddha, who had been regarded only as a great
teacher, began to be regarded as a god. Later the Roman Caesars were also
described as gods. This idea also affected Christianity, and Jesus was regarded
as god, son of god by some of his followers such as Paul who were well versed
in Greek thought. The idea is clearly not a Hebrew one. In particular, the
admiration of the Alexander’s sense of mission and military successes led
Christians to the desire to spread the gospel, not by love, but by the sword.
The Quranic view of Alexander is different. He is
regarded as a man sent by Allah with power and opportunity (”the ways and
means to all ends”). But it is his justice (18:86-88), tolerance (18:91)
and good works (18:93-98), not his military exploits which are mentioned. He is
regarded as a man whose motives were the service of Allah not his own
aggrandisement (18:95, 98). His mission was not to civilise or Hellenise
primitive people, but he left them to themselves (18:91) Thus, though, he is an
agent of Allah, he is not a Prophet or Messenger, much less a god. Though it
could be that some Islamic military leaders were also inspired by the legends
of Alexander to expand their empires, this is certainly not an Islamic idea.
The lesson to be learnt here is that Allah uses other
agents besides Prophets - An Alexander arises because of certain genetic,
social and political conditions in a locality and has a function with respect
to the world. Later Chenghis Khan may also be regarded as such an agent who
brought about great world changes in that he weakened the Muslim World while
strengthening the Christian world. The legends associated with these
personalities tend to take two opposite extreme forms and produce two opposite
effects. The truth lies hidden between them.
----------<O>----------
Western civilisation differs from past civilisations
in several ways. The present Western culture is the dominant one on earth, is
spreading rapidly and eroding all other cultures and may eventually produce a
uniformity and stagnation in the world unless some other physical, social or
psychological factor enters into it. It has, however, undergone many changes. It
has renewed and transformed itself without undergoing a noticeable decline.
The present age developed over the last century is
quite different from the previous centuries. This is probably because of three
factors:-
(a) The discovery of new lands to which it could spread,
(b) The ability to import resources, people and ideas from other places.
and
(c) The existence of greater knowledge and control than formerly.
However, there are signs that it, too may be declining
owing to an accumulation of problems. Whether this takes place or not depends
on (i) a study of the causes of its rise and the
problems associated with these, (ii) the invention of appropriate methods to
counteract these and (iii) application of these methods.
The causes of Western Civilisation are probably as
follows:-
(a) Environmental factors. Western peoples find themselves in fertile
lands with an abundance of rainfall and many mineral resources. The cooler
weather limits the growth of bacteria and insects, thereby reducing the
likelihood of disease and pestilences. The cold winters make the people hardier
and encourages innovation as a means to adaptation. The fact that Britain is an Island
encouraged them to develop sea power by means of which they were able to
explore the world, expand the trade which stimulated the Industrial revolution
and created a large empire.
(b) They were able to increase their resources by importing them from
other lands. They did not need to migrate to other places, but only to
militarily subdue and exploit other peoples. They also exported their surplus
population to other newly discovered lands in America,
Africa and Australia.
(c) They enhanced their capabilities by means of suitable ideologies,
organisations and technologies imported from other past civilisations, which
they also adapted and developed further.
Thus Western Civilisation has advantages which did not
exist in the past. The civilisations of the past must be regarded as living on
in the present. Their endeavours have not been lost. Nor can the present
civilisation be regarded as purely a Western one since it depends not only on
the ideas, but also on the labour and suffering of the peoples of other nations
and on their resources. The fact that Western Civilisation is spreading to
these other lands and peoples world-wide is,
therefore, a legitimate exchange or recompense. Civilisation, however, is not
static and must be replaced by a higher one.
The
development of organisation, science and technology increasingly allows man to
take fuller control of his own affairs and that of the planet, and makes him
less dependent on natural processes. He could take control of the factors which
cause the arising, development or decline of civilisation. These developments
allow:-
(a) control of the environment; the overcoming
of hostile conditions, the creation of new materials and energy sources, and
the use of material which had no use before.
(b) the study of the nature, techniques and
effects of social processes and organisations allows social engineering.
(c) It is also becoming possible by means of suitable educational and
developmental methods to produce and maintain the human qualities required.
It has, therefore, become possible to establish,
maintain and enhance civilisations by concentrating attention on the creation
and application of suitable systems of ideas and techniques regarding the
environment, social organisation and psychological development. The problem is
not knowledge or ability, but one of motivation as all religions have correctly
diagnosed. It has become clear to an increasingly greater number of people that
this is so. This is a matter for religion and psychological development. But in
order to establish correct motivations requires that the organisation of human
affairs must also change.
----------<O>----------
When civilisations flourished in ancient China, India
and the Middle East the people of Europe were
barbarians. The first civilising force came to them in the form of Christian
missionaries. Christianity could not make headway in the East and it appears
that the missionaries were sent West as a deliberate
policy. (New Testament Acts 16:6). It may well be that their more aggressive
and violent nature needed modification through the doctrine of ‘turning
the other cheek’. Learning, crafts and organisation and charities were
associated with the monasteries.
The Romans also expanded their Empire to cover most of
Europe and brought law and order. The Roman Empire, however, held the West together only
through military force, though this also allowed linkages to be made through
trade and culture. An ideological basis for the unity was also required. This
was provided when the Roman Empire, under Constantine,
adopted Christianity as the official religion. This association with secular
power, however, transformed Christianity. It became involved in the political
and commercial life of the people and adopted the forms of organisation and law
of the Romans. The Church became corrupt.
Under the domination of Christianity, there was at
first, what has been called an Age of Faith. as can be
determined by the relics of the literature, architecture, painting and music.
There was, however, a collision with Islam when Muslim forces invaded many
areas of Europe and established their own
cultures. This was a traumatic event with far reaching consequences. European
armies, sent to fight crusades against them periodically, were defeated. Muslim merchants also brought their
silks, spices and other exotic goods from the East to the West. The Muslims had
gathered the learning and arts from past civilisations in the Middle East, from
India, China and Greece. They established many
universities which also attracted Western students. These contacts introduced
new influences into Europe. It was only when
the Islamic civilisation was on the decline, having been destroyed by the
Mongol onslaught, inner civil wars and struggles against the Crusaders and
Christian Armies began to destroy Muslim institutions, particularly in Spain, that this rich culture was released into Europe. It expanded their consciousness of the world, physically,
socially, intellectually as well as spiritually. The new ideas flowing into Europe produced a Reformation and a Renaissance.
However, the conflicts with Islam created a fear and
an antagonism towards Islam in the West, from which it is still suffering. This
prevents them from acknowledging their debt to Islam. Their political policies
are still directed towards suppressing Muslim nations and peoples. It also
prevented them from examining the Islamic religion and accepting some its
valuable features. Western civilisation, though it incorporated features and
institutions developed in many other cultures is, therefore, regarded as being
based mainly on Greek and Roman foundations. However, the Reformation of
Christianity and its break up into numerous independent sects which broke the hold
of the Catholic Church over the minds and lives of the people, particularly the
intelligentsia, must be regarded as having its cause in the influences
emanating from Islamic sources. This allowed the creation of independent
nations, the supremacy of secular power, the development of the sciences and
the transformation of their culture. The modern Western world came out of this
impact with Islam.
The worship of Nature replaced Christianity as can be
verified from the transformation of their philosophy, literature and art in the
17th and 18th centuries. This much is evident, but the cause of the
transformation, and it must have a cause, is seldom acknowledged. They could no
longer accept the intricacies of the Christian doctrine or the authority of the
Church which had become corrupt, nor could they, because of antagonism, pride
or prejudice, and probably did not dare, acknowledge its Islamic source. It is in
Islam, not Christianity, where attention is drawn to, and respect cultivated
for, Nature and the processes of the Universe. But, as man needs for his
security, in the face of a vast, unknown and uncontrollable world, to identify
himself with something greater than himself, he prefers that which he can see.
Thus Nature replaced God in his mind. It is this which created the transformation
of attitude and consciousness whereby nature rather than scriptures were
recognised as the source of beauty, truth, goodness and usefulness. The worship
of nature became not only the source of Western art but also of science,
economics and morality. Indeed, connected with this was the idea that man is
part of nature and has the right to exercise his faculties - a tacit admission
that he is a vicegerent.
Next, the Age of Nature Worship led smoothly to the
Age of Exploration, investigation, adventure and even conquest. It led to the Europeans
to discover America, Australia, Africa and Asia.
and eventually to their domination over the rest of
the world. The sciences, technologies and new forms of arts began to develop. It
also led to the desire for freedom from convention, tyranny and tradition,
particularly from those of the Church. This desire led to political
revolutions, but unfortunately revolutions always ended up with new tyrannies
and despair. There was a French Revolution, a Russian revolution, revolutions
in Spain, Italy, Hungary and many other countries.
Man does not seem to be ready for freedom. This is because freedom requires
responsibility, and the previous tyranny had removed this.
The development of science, and the need to trade with
and exploit the wealth of the newly discovered lands, however, led to
Capitalism and the Industrial revolution. This led eventually to the worship of
the machine, money and materialism, that is, to idolatry. The machine became
the model on which the social system, its economic, political and legal systems
were also based as well as all intellectual activity including science itself. There
is, however, evidence that the mechanical age is declining having been
destroyed by changes in Science itself. But equivalent changes in the social
and psychological spheres have yet to take place. This development lies in the
future and offers the only hope.
----------<O>----------
In the study of Civilisation, facts and values are
entangled even more thoroughly than in studies about things which are further
from the human. The facts we study and how we interpret them, as well as the
efforts we make depend on how the word ‘civilisation’ is
understood. This notion judges all human ideas, interactions, behaviour and
constructions, past, present and future. It must, then, also determine how we
see human history, science, political, economic and cultural systems,
institutions and constructions.
1. In the West it used to be understood as something
which separated man from nature, allowed him to transcend and control it. This
was because nature was feared as the source of danger, uncertainty and
insecurity. The word, therefore, had the following meanings:-
(a) Cleanliness - To remove dirt and the disease germs which lurk in it.
The mark of civilisation was the amount of sanitation and sterility which was
produced.
(b) Order - The removal of chaos and sources of uncertainty.
(c) Technology - The amount of control and power of manipulating the
environment.
(d) Literacy - The ability to read and write and, therefore, to
communicate experience and knowledge.
(e) Rules = The manners, etiquette,
conventions and customs which distinguished a cultured person from one who grew
up naturally.
(f) Cities. The changes created in the human environment.
(g) The sophistication of ideas.
2. However, it was found that cities created
congestion, dirt, numerous social and psychological problems as well as dangers
such as traffic accidents, technology created pollution and ecological
imbalance, and that custom and convention and excessive order were oppressive,
that literacy also propagated illusions and lies, and that ideas created
conflicts and so on. This caused a reversal of values. Nature was regarded as
good and evil was that which destroyed nature. A back to nature movement began
and the attitude towards people previously looked down upon as primitive and
uncivilised changed. A civilized person could then be regarded as one who is
well adjusted to nature.
There is sometimes a conflict between these two views
and sometimes compromises are made.
3. There is a third, the Islamic view. Man is a
Vicegerent and civilization is to be judged according to the degree to which
this function is fulfilled. Nature as well as man are inter-dependent and exist
to grow and develop, and it is the responsibility of man to facilitate this
development. It is not a question of man distancing himself from nature or of conforming
to nature.
----------<O>----------
We have considered the progression of Science from the
study of matter, Physics (including Chemistry), to the study of life, Biology,
the study of man and his psychology, to the study of Civilisation, human
societies. What subject can we study beyond this? It is evident that Physics
itself depends on a previous study of mathematics and logic in general. This
derives from the progress of civilisation. Mathematics is not a study of matter
but of the structure of existence in general and of its potentialities. There
are, for instance, geometries other than the Euclidean one of three flat
dimensions, and it is likely that some of these having more than three or four
dimensions give a better description of existence.
It is observable that a study of physics requires
mathematics and it may be that it will also require some biological knowledge
since there is no absolute distinction between dead and living things, but only
of degree. The study of Biology certainly requires Physics and chemistry on the
one hand and some psychology on the other as there is no absolute distinction
between human and animal behaviour, but only of degree. The study of man
requires knowledge of biology on the one hand and of sociology on the other. It
may, therefore, be presumed that the study of civilisation or human sociology
requires a knowledge of psychology on the one hand and
some other higher science on the other hand. We may call this Metaphysics or
Theology. It should deal with existence as a whole. This again should reconnect
with sociology on one side and the modes of thought, mathematics and logic on
the other, creating a full circle. But this subject is, at present, beyond the
scope of Science.
Theology must necessarily deal in symbols, extremely
abstract concept because they apply to what is fundamental and universal. This,
of course, involves the danger that the naive will reduce them to
superstitions.
One
of the most profound problems in Theology having both scientific and ethical
implications is ;- Why was the forbidden Tree in Paradise? From the scientific view if all things are
determined by the Law of Causation or even by Chance, how does the possibility
of voluntary action, of choice or even reason come into existence? How is it
possible for man to alter anything? If everything is determined then so are his
scientific theories and their truth or falsity is quite irrelevant. From the
ethical point of view the good is that which Allah commands. Human beings like
everything else cannot but obey Allah and morality could not then have any
meaning. Human beings would be eternally innocent. But He placed a Tree in Paradise, the fruit of which it was possible for man to
eat, but it was forbidden. Did Allah wish human beings to break his command?
Did He wish man to become independent of His will? To mature as a child must
do? Why did He make Satan to tempt man? If He had commanded men to eat of the
fruit then man would still be dependant. The ability to break the command
implies that man has an imagination wherein he can re-arrange the data of
experience to do something other than that which is given, thereby flouting
nature and his own nature. But this creativity can be used for either good or
evil. Indeed, Purpose cannot exist without good and evil, and these cannot
exist without choice. It is a method by which His own creativity is introduced
into parts of the Universe, and so is experimentation, testing, purpose and
development. It is not, therefore, possible to understand the Tree without
regarding man as an agent of Allah. It is also not possible to understand the
fundamental nature of the Universe, ourselves and our interaction with the
Universe without God, and vice versa.
----------<O>----------
References:-
Mysteries
from Forgotten Worlds - Charles Berlitz
Worlds
in Collision
- Immanuel Velikovsky
Earth
in Upheaval
- Ditto
Ages
in Chaos - Ditto
The
works of Desmond Morris
Encyclopaedia
Britannica
New Scientist
Magazine
Various
Histories of the World
----------<O>----------
Contents