The Originator of the Social and Cultural Systems of Knowledge (Dr. Basharat Ali)

The Holy Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.), the Founder and the Originator of the Social and cultural systems of Knowledge

Dr. M. Basharat Ali

The history of knowledge, according to the research findings of the modern scholars, in epistemology and the knowledge systems, may be traced from the 4^th century B.C. Psychologically speaking it is to be assumed that the acquisition of knowledge and search for cognition and truth forms the innate parts of human nature. The knowledge came into being with the advent of man, on this planet. The above two facts, prior to their expression in the modern literature in knowledge, epistemology and the Wissensoziologie—the sociology of knowledge, fund factorial analytical expression in the Sura Al-Baqarah under the story of Adam, stating that the Adam was taught with all the Names (2:31 c.f. 2:30-39).

With the steady growth of man and the human civilization, ‘the variegated systems or knowledge got advancement in all the great nations of the world, prominent being the Greeks, Romans and the nations which fall under the periphery of the ‘People of the Book’. In this list, according to the Qur’an, the great deviant nations, categorized as Mushrikeen like Namrod and Pharoah, etc., may also be included. The diversity of nation hoods and the variations in the cultural forms in all space/time dimensionality should not be a cource of estrangement in the etiological and taxonomical orientation. The nations described by the Qur‘an and the nations which are “universes” of research for learning activities and scholarly contributions may be classified unanimously under two heads. Their cultural mentality is the paradigmatic source for their gradations in their knowledge contribution. The ‘Mushrikeen’ and the great nations credited as great in all the fields of knowledge by the modern research scholars of the relevant fields were unanimous in their world outlook and the cultural mentality. Thus the people of the Qur’an and the men of the modern scholars like Greeks, and Romans.etc., were one and the same in their learning and the cultural activities.‘ They were all guided predominantly by the Sensate outlook of life; cognition, knowledge and truth. Whereas the nations who were guided by the respective prophets of the concerning ages, were reluctant to believe in the sensate realities of life. They were guided by the ideational outlook, taking sensatism as something delusive and false. This life became nothing for them—a simple fraud, transient, slippery and presumptionary. The only true life is the life of the hereafter. These two nations produced varied kinds of knowledge systems—one Sensate the other Ideational. Both are misleading, anomalous, contradictory, disintegrated, and polemically dichotomous and oscillating.

Another thing which is to be noted in both the systems in the lack of Ideal, axiologism and sociologism. In contrast to these facts, in Islam the knowledge systems got adumbration, being and becoming with the study of the phenomenal world of nature. It is composed of things and objects covering heavens and the earth. These objects are not free from depth and level values and the spiritual meanings. Another features of the phenomenal world, is its sociality. Each constituent thing of the heavens and the earth, not only individually but in their totality, are socialized and socioaxiologically oriented. The verses of the Surah Baqarah relating to the advent of Adam. lay emphasis on the following facts:

l. There is a logico-meaning causal relations between man and the phenomenal world of nature. This connection remains continued throughout the life of man from birth to death. It is always in a process of expansion, increase and constant growth.

2. The phenomenal world of nature is a social world, full of ideas, ideal values and meanings. Each of its objects has tremendous influence to exercise on the life and growth of man. Man cannot live in this world without having the full knowledge of each object of the phenomenal world. This knowledge must lead him to conquer each of them physically and spiritually. Physical conquest if not integrated with the spiritual conquest, it will lead‘ to contradiction, conflict and dismay. The knowledge and understanding of each and every constituent thing of the phenomenal world of nature is the innate part of human nature and human existence. This is why the Qur’an says that “We taught Adam the Names of all Things”.

The reference of values and meanings by the Qur’an is not to be found in the cosmological and studies of the past nations. lnspite of much success in the conquest of nature in the modern times, nothing is to be found even succinctly about the sociologism and value orientation patterning of the things of the world of nature.

3. The phenomenology and the cosmology of the Qur’an places man as a socio-cultural and value-patterned being, in the same away as the thing world is composed of. This is again something not existent in the past or even today. The correlation between man and nature, as elaborately referred to initially by Surah Baqarah under the story of Adam; and later on given reiterated expressions in the Surahs Rad, Nahl, Yasin, Rahman and in others. They place man in the ontological, cosmological, teleological, epistemological and finally, axiological frameworks of reference.

4. Having placed man in these constellations not only the Qur’an guides man to make each and everything subservient to himself, but demand to have a thorough and full knowledge of God Al-Mighty. Who has created the entire world as source of knowledge and testimony about Him. Man with his-ontological, epistemological and cosmological studies can understand in full the very meanings exposed by the thing world in all their depth and levels. This open expression of nature has made the man: (a) to account for sense perception; (b) to make his mind capable to construct by own objects; (c) to take things as values; (d) to take the phenomenal world as the common world of through-going sociality. Finally, this cosmogenic and epistemological study in due course of time will convince him that the Ultimate Reality is independent, and man should discover this Reality through subjugation of nature and the micro world of his own self—Afaq and Anfus. The constant study of nature, may give knowledge about Divine Being, but still he cannot exclusively rely on this knowledge without Divine Guidance through some Agency. The initial condition of having such guidance is the constant prayers as done by His Prophet Abraham (A.S.):

“Our Lord. and raise up in them a Messenger from among them who shall recite to them Thy Messages and Teach them the Book and the Wisdom and Purify them. Surely Thou art the Migl1ty;the Wise (2: 129, 151) (3: 163).

The knowledge gained through the study of the phenomenal world is to be implemented with the knowledge-systems received through revelations and other sources like the historical, philosophical and scientific knowledge. These systems are to be made congruous with the Divine Knowledge and Truth Systems.

The study of nature is to be implemented with constant prayers, because, man is sure to be eluded, as shown in the case of Abraham, who took sun, moon and other planets as God Almighty. At this critical moment, had he not been guided, he would have gone astray. He prayed and Almighty God helped him. “…If my Lord had not guided me, I should certainly be the erring people” (6: 78). Thus the Qur’an in this way guides the Muslims that all the pursuits of knowledge and scientific investigations should be constantly correlated with constant prayers. Knowledge gained outside the lock of prayers, in all probability might lead to estrangement, deviancy and bewilderment. “…I am clear of what you set up (with Allah)” (6: 78). Y..A. The study of the common world, which is a value world, must be implemented with one more instrument. The researchers should go on travelling, studying the conditions of different countries (29: 20); study of the histories of the different peoples of the world (30:9). Abraham set the example of the study of nature, which was correlated with prayers; and Moses set forth the example of gaining knowledge through constant travelling. He was guided by a leader of an ideal type. This means that whatever, the type of knowledge may be, the learners and the researchers are always in need of Rasekhoon and teachers. This process is in congruity with the nature of the nature of man. Man can receive knowledge, through teachers and without realizing this basic condition neither he can manipulate knowledge nor transmit it to the future generations. The knowledge received and gained either by Abraham or by Moses, was not all integrated. systematically systematic super systematically oriented and scientifically methodical. And again, none of them were given direct knowledge, fully co-ordinated value-patterned and idealistically oriented, as the knowledge received by the Holy Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ). Both of them prayed for meaningful orientation in the reception, manipulation and transmission of knowledge, but the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) instantaneously was guided with the reception of knowledge which was total in meanings: .

“Read! in the Name of Thy Lord! Who creates man from a clot—Read, and Thy Lord is most Gracious, Who Taught by the Pen, Taught man what he knew not”. (Alq)

The knowledge received by the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) was the Divinely Inspired knowledge, which came to him instantaneously, like a flash light. This inspirational knowledge befitted him to read without undergoing all the ordeals needed for the acquisition of knowledge. As he was inspired to read instantaneously, so he was made cognizant to this fact, that all knowledge originates, flourishes, grows and becomes a perpetual reality only by keeping itself firmly established preserving, expanding and perpetuating itself through God and God only. Inspite of instantaneous, prompt, and expeditious attainment of knowledge, the Prophet (ﷺ) kept the human instinct of curiosity and pursuit of knowledge as directed by the Qur’an through constant prayers for increase in knowledge (20: 114). In compliance to requirements of constant and ever-increasing in knowledge the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) used to pray, “O, God, show me the realities of the things of the phenomenal world of nature”. This was again done to meet the requirements of attainment of knowledge as directed by the Qur’an.

The continued study of nature and the ever new prayers for the increase of knowledge, are the categories of the completion of faith. Imam and A’mal, the constituent parts of the development of personality, completion of socio-cultural machinery and the instrumentalities of the subjugation of Psyche and nature. The pursuit for knowledge and the prayers for its acquisition are based on this concept, that knowledge is an object of Divine Creations. The Surah Baqarah has established this fact that knowledge was created in one synchronicity with the creation of mm on the earth. The knowledge which carne into existence with the advent of man on the earth was the phenomenal knowledge (2: 30). After having attained life and got advent on the mundane world, the man was segregated from the spiritual knowledge the system of knowledge communicated by each prophet from Adam to Jesus. They had no concern with the material or phenomenal "knowledge, and hence, they could only develop a human culture of the ideational type. They refrain from the knowledge and culture of the Sensate type. Abraham was made known with this dichotomous type of existence, primarily absorbed in the life after death, having no concern with the hard and fast realities of the earthly life the existential and configurational  base of hum-an life. Having realized this dichotomy and having known the value of the mundane life and feeling his own inability to evolve an idealistically integrated pattern of life, culture and systems or cognition, knowledge and truth, which could integrate the Sensate realities with the ideational realities of the life after death. Abraham prayed for the rise of an idealistically integrated cultural evolutionist and originator in this way:

“Our Lord and raise up in them a Messenger from among them who shall recite to them thy Messages and Teach them a Book and the Wisdom and purify them. Surely Thou art the Mighty, the Wise (2:129).

This prayer has been reiterated repeated by the Abraham and his prayer was accepted by the Almighty Allah in the verse 3:163. The Prophets of the past were delegated to preach the ideational form of life and the ways of thinking. The people of their times were not ripped enough to give them an integrated outlook of life, belief and action systems. They had moral and spiritual teaching void of intellectual integration. To reach that stage humanity had to wait till the advent of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). With him the, humanity got a new age of integration. The moral, spiritual forces-of life got integration with the intellectual forces. Mind and matter, phenomenology and spirituality, sensatism and ideationalism, material and non-material, this world and the world alter death, science and the philosophy, humanities and social sciences, etc., got totality and integration. Parts and whole were muted into one whole. Not only systems of cognition," knowledge, truth and spirituality, but the human civilization and patterns of life were integrated. Undoubtedly, all the prophets taught Tawheed, but the Tawheed Kamil, which is to integrate sensatism and ideationalism got universalistic propagation with the completion of the prophetic mission of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). This is why he has been called the ‘Khatum’ and ‘Rahmat al-Alameen!. The term ‘Alam’ means the worlds of the past, present and the unknown worlds of the future ages. The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) and his Mission which has been documentalized through the Qur’an has traversed all the space-time dimensionalities of the past, present and the eternal future. According to the Qur‘an, ‘Furqan’ is the synthesis and content analysis of all the Books so far revealed to all the philosophers. The Holy Prophets’ (ﷺ) mission is the totality and factorial analysis of the teachings and missionary activities of the prophets of the past. This is why the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) has been called the Imam of all the Prophets of the past.

How the constant prayers of Prophet Abraham has been given recognition by the Merciful God is to be seen in the verse below. In one simultaneity, it is necessary to note the categories of the prayers, along with the earnest desire of Abraham for the integration. “Certainly. Allah conferred a favour on the believers when He raised among them a Messenger from among themselves, reciting to them His Messages and purifying them and teaching them the Book and the Wisdom, although before they -were in manifest error". (3:163). This verse has again been repeated in Sura Saff with slight change. The previous verse quoted above form the content frame work of the Sura Amran which is the source book for the formation or being and ever new and constant becoming of the socio-cultural systems and super system of Islam. .lf the verse be analyzed in its sociological and culturological frame work it will lead to conclude that neither social nor cultural and personality systems and super-systems can come into being without Divine knowledge and the worldly systems of knowledge, philosophy, science and social sciences, etc. In the content analysis of the Sura Saff, the verse gives us an idea that even the greater aggregates and collectivities cannot attain life and expansion without the knowledge which is needed for the formation of the society and the culture configuration.

Among the prophets of the past, the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) stands at the zenith because he was the Prophet of the knowledge. He was the residual force for all types and categories of knowledge. This residual force was of the kinetic kind, allowing so many other systems to be derived. The being and becoming of the derivative and creative systems of knowledge. knows no limit or exhaustion. So long the world to exist Qur‘an and Ahadith and as the integral source for action systems, the Sunnah will have power to yield knowledge to humanity in all the spatiotemporal dimensions, till the day of resurrection. .

No followers of any prophet of the past, was given a prophet of knowledge as the Muslims. This fact has been stated in a highly emphatic tone. Allah conferred a favour on the believers, says the Qur‘an (Opat 3:163]. The favours enumerated are cordially and exclusively related to cognition, methodically oriented and systematically systemic knowledge of various types. The holy prophet propagated and expanded the Divine system of knowledge as received by him. The expansion and communication of Divine knowledge to humanity at large at the first instance, hasty own logico-meaningful causality and spatio-temporal polarity. The Divine knowledge which was first to be communicated to make this basic existential fact crystal clear that no systems of Society. Culture and personality can come into existence and growth without axiological system and the divinely inspired system of knowledge like will no cognition and systems of knowledge and truth can come into life and growth without having axiological existential base. Thus knowledge, whether spiritual or mundane, originates from the matrix of the divine knowledge. The reference to this fact has been made in this way—reciting to them His messages (3:163). If without this knowledge there is no possibility of the evolution of the Socio-Cultural systems, similarly, there is no possibility of the development of human Personality without the background of the Divine system of knowledge.

The Book, on the basis of which the socio-cultural systems, super-systems, personality system and systems of cognition, knowledge and truth, both of the types of material and spiritual, was revealed to the prophet (ﷺ) and he instantaneously communicated to the people in the sequential continuity of the time and causality for the total period of 23 years. This document is an eternal document incumbent on the generations of the Muslims to use it categorically for building their variegated patterns of life from birth to death in all times and space. Among the periphery of the revealed books given to the various prophets in all times this book is the only book which is idealistically integrated in terms of ideationalisrn and sensatism. This means that the Qur’an is the only last book which is fully oriented to lead man from cradle to grime on the material side and in the spiritual side, it is the document which can build the spiritual and eschatological life of man. None of the book of the past served as a source book for origination and development of cognition and variegated forms of material and Supra-material systems of knowledge, except Quran. For this intergalactic pattern, the prophet throughout his life taught the Quran, methodically and systematically. Factoral analysis, critical vision deep in sight were the instruments for the communication of the Qur’anic knowledge.  As the Islamic socio-cultural systems, super-systems, cognition, knowledge, truth and spirituality can neither get life not grow and expand without Qur’an and the continued study of the Qur’an, the prophet (ﷺ) made every Muslim responsible to receive the Qur’an to manipulate the Qur’an and to transmit it from generation to generation encompassing all the constituent individuals groups. communities and collectivities of the Muslim society. This process of reception manipulation and transmission of the Qur’an has been referred to as social heritage and the cultural milieu or legacy. In the language of the Qur'an it is Hahlillah (حبل اللہ) or Urwatil Wusuqa (عروۃ الوثقی).

The knowledge of the Qur‘an which is binding for each Muslim should become the source of preservation and expansion of the Islamic socio-cultural systems, Personality system and the super-system on the one hand and the Qur’an should give impetus and momenta on the other, to identify and discover new systems of knowledge, from the exclusive base of the Qur’an. The systems of knowledge received from other nations in the course of contact and clash with other cultures, must be evaluated, listed and verified on the value judgment standards of the Qur‘an. The knowledge captured or derived in all forms of material frame work, philosophy, since literature, ethics, politics humanities, social sciences and even all the spiritual sciences are to be made congruous with the content, form and meanings of the Qur‘an. Both for the knowledge gained from other nations or even from the knowledge formulated, derived and systematized by the Muslims, Quran should become the criterion. This is why the Qur’an provides the following methods of evaluation:

A.—The Process of Evaluation

(1) Value Judgments and the process of evaluation.

(2) Evaluation according to standards.

(3) Evaluation according to rules.

(4) Deliberation.

B. Value Judgment—

(1) Judging and experiencing judgment

(2) Value judgments and imperatives.

C. The Justification of value judgments—Verification and Vindication.

(1) What does it means to justify a judgment.

(2) The process of Verification.

(3) The process of valuation.

(4) The eradication of Scepticism.

 D. Value judgment and the point of view:—

(a) what is point of view:

(1) Qur’anic

(2) Anti Qur’anic

(i) Ahli Kitab

(ii) Mushrakeen

(b) Place of Point of View in judgment.

E. Justification of Value  judgments vindication

(1) Valuation and vindication.

(2) The process of vindication;

F. Justification of Value judgments Rational choice

(1) The concept of way of life.

(2) The concept of rational choice.

G. Prescription—

(1) Prescription and roles.

(2) Prescription and value judgment.

(3) The logical relation between prescription and valuation.

(4) Categorical prescriptions.

(5) Values and scientific knowledge.

(6) Normative decision.

(7) The ways of classification of values.

It the main idea of the Qur’anic systems of knowledge and the Sunnah as the system of value orientation pattern is to evalue meaning full and idealistically integrated Personality and the idealistically integrated socio-cultural system, than the verse lays down once for all that the Qur'an is to be documentationalized and should be manipulated transmitted to the generations of the present and future as a- document. This document is the final document which is based on laws and principles values norms and meanings. All these synthetical facts and factoral analysis from the content frame work of the NAS (ناس)—purifying them and teaching them the Book—(3: 163) Qur’an in itself is the systems of knowledge which gave inspiration to the Muslims to formulate, originate and systematize various systems of knowledge, analyzed by Allama Jallaluddin Sewti in his book Etqan. This legacy will have to be carried over by the generations to follow throughout the future. It is to be expected that these generations will capture old systems of the Qur’anic knowledge, and surely they will identify and discover new systems from the Quran commensurating the gap. A. Islamic sociology—sociology of Religion—

(1) Religion as a social institution.

(2) Religion in differentiated and indifferentiated societies.

(3) Definition of religion.

Which book place due to the atrophious and lethargee attitude of the Muslims on the one hand and accelerate the rate of advancement in the Qur’anic systems of knowledge, augmenting the addition of them, to revine the dynamic attitude and scientific research spirit of the Islam—a legacy which has been transmitted by the Qur‘an on the other. The term Wisdom in the verse used in many fold sense involvements. At .the first instance, the Muslims should undertake the ever new and non abating responsibility for methodical and systematic scientific study in all systems of philosophical, physical social, humanistic and spiritual systems of knowledge. As there is instantaneous relations between man and the phenomenal world of nature composed of things in munulist details in the frame works of atoms, particles and elements, man should study it so long he exists in this world. This study has got many fold causalistic advantages and needs involvements. Man at the first instance cannot understand himself his vocational and ideal in life, meaning of the meanings of life. The identification of man through nature is the inevitable corollary for the identification of the God Almighty who not only created him but atonistically each and everything of the heavens and the earth was created by Him. The constant study and the concentrative methodical research into the depth and levels of the thing world of nature will give him an idea that this world is the ever increasing and expanding world. As assumed by some religions that Allah created the world once, and He stands pole apart and totally unconcerned with the world. Such ideas are heretical and blasphemous according to the Quran. The process of creation, expansion and increase is the continued process, non ceasing. God alone knows this continuity will be abated. This dynamic world is the dynamic world in categorical and atomistic detail. Everything is dynamic and placed in a dynamic and evolutionary-order. It has reiteratedly been pointed out that nature is neither foreign nor something outside the group of man. It is a common world, having actions and reactions on man. It acts on man and when man conquer it atom by atom and element by element it has its own reaction. Effect and counter effects are the every increasing process of reciprocal relations between man and the thing world of the phenomenal nature. The continuity of the process of effects and counter effects are the clear indications that everything in nature is living and full of depth and levels meanings values, cognitions and truth.

The scientific study of nature and every bit of cognition, knowledge and truth, material or spiritual must be studied methodically and systematically instruct congruity with the laws, principles, values, meanings, norms and factoral analysis of the form and content of the Qur’an. Wisdom means the corroboration and concordance of all systems of Physical or Scientific and Social sciences with the content and meanings frame work of the Qur’an. The science is a methodical and systematic pursuit of knowledge, involving the categories of the nature enunciated below:

a)     Science should lead to abstraction, inferences, derivation and residual conclusions.

b)     Science should be descriptive. taxonomical and logico meaning fully causalistic and inspirational, giving momentum to continue pursuit.

c)     Everything in science must give impetus and direction to discover values and meanings involvements in all the componential elements, things, particles and atoms of the phenomenal world of nature.

d)     Nothing in nature is chartic. Everything is organized, order oriented, value patterned logico meaningfully and causally related and finally coordinated and interdependent. Individual identity of the things go in togetherness with their totality and the social constellations of the related things.

e)     All knowledge provided by the constituent parts and the whole of nature is well organized corroborated and in tuned with values, norms and meanings.

f)       The scientific knowledge is conceptional and common to all. It means that this knowledge is in gramed with the depth and levels of human nature, as this nature is intertwined with the Divine Unity. And as such science is concerned with common to all.

g)     Science is concerned with interrelated activities. It means the continuity of focal study and research into the nature and its realms of values.

h)     The Quran has rejected the non-metaphysical view point of the modern science, Nature upholds unity says the Qur’an, and as such it is full of values and the spiritual meanings.

i)       The Qur’an teaches that the nature is objective. This is necessary for the discovery of God, man, Eman, knowledge systems socio-cultural systems, Qur’an and Sunnah etc.

The modern systems of culture, prevalent in the west creates dichotomy, anomaly and contradiction between science, philosophy and religion. In the term Wisdom, the three are well united and integrated into one totality. They do not stand poleaparts as polemies or paradoxes. but as interdependent enteIichies and coordinated entities. There is no religion without philosophy and science and vice versa. The above enamciations find the vulnerable exposition in the imperative law of the Qur’an which states and teaching them the Book and the Wisdom (opcit 3: 163). The Book stands for revelations the exclusive documentationalized base for religion, spirituality, systems of knowledge, cognition, truth, values, norms, meanings truth, philosophy, science, socio-cultural systems of knowledge and all the artifacts and the componential elements involved in all the ways of life from birth to death. Thus science, philosophy and religion are inseparable systems of Islamic Din, Eman and Amal.

The verse 3-163 and the verses 2:129, 151 and the 61:2-4 are the documentationalized verdicts of the Islamic cultural premier of intellectual, moral and spiritual integration. Thus with the coming of the holy prophet the age of idealistic integralism came into existence. This integralistic approach to life has given an idealistic perspective to man, life, culture, beliefs, actions, religion, science, philosophy, cognition, social and spiritual systems etc. ‘How one can disintegrate the philosophy and science, life and faith when in all the processes and categories of them all philosophy and science are involved. The categories of thought the factorai analysis of all the processes of life and actions are in tuned with the categories and method of science and philosophy whether it may be ontological or epistemological and telilogical or transcendental. This totality, integralism and idealism are the greatest ever-living miracles of the holy prophet. They are needs of mankind tor all times to come. They are the needs of ail situations, events, occurrences, periodicities and changes.

And we have sent not thee, but as a mercy to nations (21: 107). The advent of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) gave to the human world an idealistically integrated culture. (2) The human world received an idealistically integrated the concept of life and knowledge (3) The world came to know that all the systems of knowledge, whatever their type, genesis and nature maybe are intertwined with ideas, ideal, values, meanings all conglomerated in one all embracing “Universe” of meanings the Tawheed. (4) All cognition, knowledge and truth are not only systematically systematic, but in all categorical details they are based on sociality. According to the Qur'an, knowledge is not simply knowledge but framed in its final form—the form, content and meanings oriented in terms of Wissen Soziologie i.e. the sociology of knowledge. In method they are couched with the unified philosophical and scientific methods.

With the origination and development of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) as the messenger of Allah knowledge came into being. In by own time many systems of knowledge got emergence and growth. With the emergence and growth, there came into being the systems of knowledge which integrated them into system and super system. The methodical system further got momentum with the adumbration and growth of the sciences of methodology systematic and logico meaningful and causalistic orientation, taxonomy, etiology, editing compilation and concentrative research. From the first revelation (Alaq) all through the process of periodic and time apportioned revelation of the Quran for the entire period of 23 years, Qur’an was never left without inquery and search, methodical orientation, taxonomical and causalistic coordination. This arrangement from the very beginning of revelations, there came instantaneously the systems of methodology and editing etc. This methodology became universal and became the instrument for the arrangement, systematization and investigation into the different universes or contents forms and meanings of different systems super-systems and subsystems of different knowledge (Cf Fiqh and Ahadith etc.). Throughout the 23 years of the Qur’anic revelations during the time of the holy prophet himself from the universe of the Qur’an itself there came into being many Quranic systems of knowledge the Ilam al Qur’an (علم القرآن).

1.     The first being the Arabic scripts and the system of writing—Rasmil Khat (رسم الخط)

2.     The system of knowledge relating to the revelation of the Qur’an in the philosophical methodical involving the paradizm of why, how, what, when and what for.

3.     The knowledge system in relation to the Qur’anic content analysis and objectives, .

4.     The knowledge system about the compilation and coordination of the Qur’an Jamma (جمع) and coordination Tarteeb (تربیب).

5.     The system of knowledge dealing with the style and the charm of the Qur’an -.Asloob and Ejaz (اسلوب و اعجاز)

6.     The systems of knowledge dealing with the recital (Qirat) pronunciation, pulsation accentuation and expression Lahja (لہجہ).

7.     The system of knowledge called Tajreed (تجرید). The synthetical knowledge of diction.

8.     Commentary – the Tafseer with its derivative systems like Oosoel (اصول) Maani (معنی) linguistic, syntax, etymology phonetics, retitorie semantics and host of others. We have made mentioned to those systems which got instantaneous and prompt emergence with the advent of the holy Qur’anic systems of knowledge. grew with the accelerated rate of advancement during the course of 4 centuries. The number swelled every years. So much so Jallaluddin Sewti enumerated them as much as seventy (70) thousand. But the moderately assessed the number should he in maximum not more than seven thousand and in minimum the number is three thousand (Cf. Etqan).

The second system which got emergence by the advent of the holy prophet is the system of Ahadith which is moderately to be enumerated not less than into one hundred twenty systems and subsystems. With the origination of Ahadith; there arose seerat magazi (سیرۃ مغٰزی) and Shimal (شمال) etc. Like Qur’anic systems of knowledge these systems of knowledge are based on synthesis and factoral analysis. The methodology which was used as the logico-philosophical and scientific. The constituent elements are ontology, epistemology and observation. Critical evaluation form the basis of verification and validation.

At the first instance the Qur’an, Qur’anic systems of knowledge, Ahadith and its causally related systems are the canons of appreciation of the life and career of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), one can understand indefinitive terms the place of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) in the life and culture, social and the spiritual constellation of the Islam and the entire world. All these systems and super systems would have never been come into existence without him. He, his personality and his action throughout his existence, categorically has attained the value and meanings of the (1) Value system (2) Value orientation pattern system (3) reference system (4) the type system and socio-cultural, religio-spiritual configuration systems.

In the sociological and the culturo-logical language be is the totality of the axiological system, vehicle system and the agency system without them in one totality no system of society, personality, culture and super system can come into being and becoming (For the place of Risalat See RaghibTabbakh (راغب طباخ) Tarikh-i-Afkhar wa Uloom-i-Islam; (تاریخ افکار و علوم اسلامی). Among the systems which were identified and systematized, the one which are to be made mentioned here are the value of the Ahadith and Seerat as systems of commentary of‘ the Qur’an on the one hand and the Ahadith and Seerat being the sources of the systems of knowledge what we call the pattern system the Sunnah on the other. This system has its own system involvements:

1.     The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) as an actor has become an action system For the milat, so long the Islam exists on the surface of the earth.

2.     He is the behavioural system.

3.     He is the belief system.

4.     He is the social, cultural and Personality.

5.     He is the idealistic system—that gh. is the realm of value himself.

6.     His life and career are the verification, validation and value judgment standard.

7.     He is the pattern of value integration and intellectual and moral integration. As such he is ILM, he is mollim (معلم) he is a taleem, he is tallum and he is a mblergh.

Prophet Muhammad‘s fundamental categories of action are to be found in Ahadith, Seerat and the Qur’an. Hence in the cultural system of Islam one can not violate the causal relativity between the three componential entities referred to above. Hadith and Qur’an go intogetherness. The one cannot be separated from the other. Such disintegration would eliminate the Muslims and the culture of Islam. If one intend to see the structural and functional base of the socio-cultural system, action system, belief system and the religio-spiritual system, one should observe the life and saying of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) which form the tafseer (تفسیر) of the Qur’an. On the basis of such value orientation, he has been called Ras-i-Khona-fil llm by the verse 7 in the Sura Ale Imran. He is not only the foundation of Ilm, but the formulator and systematized of method, classification, etiological, ontological, pragmatic and epistemological processes of knowledge in all its much causational system. This methodology was developed by the prophet in accordance with the methodological procedure given enunciation by the verse of Ale Imran referred to above. Another feature of his Seerat and Ahadith is to be seen in this first principle of human life that they provide categories of the orientation and organization of action.

From the beginning of this new century much attention has been given on the problem of Personality. Valuable research has been done and much is to be augmented. Inspite of enormous valuable information nothing significant is to be f cunt‘-. about personality in action. Ahadith and Seerat, verify the and documentationalize the life—career of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) as a personality in the frame work of system of action. And again the entire life of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) is the embodiment of value standards. This source is the important source for getting all knowledge about him as a socio-cultural--the spiritual roles personality. In short action as such carry no meaning without reference to the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). Consequently it is indispensible for the Muslims to identify the values and the value orientation in the pattern and action systems of the Holy Prophet. In this connection it is highly important to emphasize that the—of social behaviour and personality are to be identified in the Ahadith, Seerat and Sunnah. These very same sources can lead us to get knowledge about the analysis of role obligation.

With the emergence and growth of Ahadith there came two systems, among others, namely the science of narration of Hadith and the narrators. The science of narration and narrators are guided by Philosophical methodology synthetically arranged in terms of why, how, what, who, when and what for. The sciences of narration and narrators in themselves are new systems of knowledge which came into being and significant importance, only during the life of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ), getting expansion and elaboration during the advancement of the Islamic culture. The method and analysis became pangently critical and ascriptive in terms of micro, macro and meta analysis; Nothing taken valid without verification, vindication and evaluative with reference to value judgment standards.

With the methodical arrangement of the narrators, they were placed into various strata on the basis of critical evaluation and etiological taxonomy. Not only Muhadatheen (محدثین) but their compilations of Ahadith were evaluated after the stratified evaluation. The stratification was neither abstract nor arbitraly, but systematically methodical based on laws and Principles. Stratification is in itself a methodological ingredient.

The methodological perspectivism in the classification of narrators and narration, led the Muslims to frame causalistically oriented laws and principles for arrangement and systematization of Ahadith. Thus the commonly named system of’ knowledge—the Usool-i-Hadith (اصول حدیث) came into being and flourished steadily and harmoneously in all the evolutionary periodicatics of Muslim culture and-systems of knowledge. After Qur’an the Hadith became so creatively expanding, that all the systems which emerged from its base became logical and philosophically oriented. Not only philosophy but even logic got existence elaboration and creatively impulsive, orientation through a terminology unknown to the past scholars of other cultures. Each term like Jirah (جرح) Tadeel (تاویل) etc, are separate universes of knowledge. Each of them was systematized as a subsystem under the all embracing super-systemic system of knowledge. This Hadith is not a simple monoistic system but a highly complex‘ system, conglomerating in itself various other systems and subsystems. Thus the Hadith in view of its mulhdimensconality and videth is to be called Hadithiologies. Each system and subsystem of hadithiologies produced specialists. For example there came into being and go authoritative prominence and scholars and specialists in Hadith Terminology i.e. Ilm-al Mustalih (علم المصطلح).

With the highly elaborate systems and super-systems of knowledge in relation to Qur’anologies and Hadithiologie, there came into being so many other systems of knowledge, during the very time of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). Fiqh and its derivative systems and subsystems, Politics, Administrative sciences, Economies, Sociology, military sciences, Humanities, literature syntax (Nahu نحو) Grammar (Sarf صرف) Derivative science (Eshtiqaq اشتقاق) Rhetoric and porously, argumentative science (علم البحث و الجدل) etc.), the sciences of history—historiography, historiosophy, historiology, Philosophy of history, history of civilization, dynamics of history, historicism and Rijal (رجال) etc. The development of these sciences within the short course of time of 23 years, the entire period of revelation, went hand in hand with the processes of institutionalization. For example the institutions of Muwakhat (مواخاۃ) and Suffa, played the tremendous role for the reception, manipulation, expansion and transmission of knowledge. The suffa was the aggregate of the scholars—the specialists critics, expansionists and systematizer of knowledge. in their pursuit of knowledge they were guided by different methods and systems of approach in accordance with the specific needs of the “Universes” of their studies. For example many of them who were interested in the study of the life of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ), Sunnah and hadiih were guided to follow the empirical research method intertwined with the categories of ontology, epistemology, observation, experience and experimentalism etc. The scholars guided by the Qur’an undertook to study the people and cultures other than Islam through travels. They organized themselves into specialized institutions as envisaged by the verses 3:109 and 9-122.

1.     A party to invite to good.

2.     A party to enjoin the right.

3.     A part to forbid the wrong.

4.     A party should go forth to obtain understanding in religion.

5.     They should receive knowledge through research and travelling transmitting it to the members of their own society—and that they may warn the people when they come back-- (9:122)

The science of history and its relevant systems referred to above were developed during the times of the prophet after the pattern and judgment standards of the Qur’anic Qasas. They are more or less like the cultural histories, of the various prophets. In content analysis and in ferential reasoning they are more or less like historicism, claimed to be developed in the modern age by Alfred Weber and Earnst Troeltsch. The politics, science of administration, Economics sociology, humanities, literature, grammar, rhetoric, prosody, military sciences in short all these systems got origination and development on the laws and Principles forms and contents of the Quran and Hadith. All these systems of knowledge, however differed in their content analysis and universes of discourse, but they were united in axiologism—the Tawheed and the sociologisrn.

The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) is Reality the apex of all virtues and excellence—the very embodiment and source Book of all Divine and mundane knowledge—the Book and Wisdom. He is the action system, correlating it with knowledge. Thus ILM and Amal go intogetherness to form one integral whole. By virtue of the amalgamation of these forces he is the nostalgic center of conservation of spiritually oriented socio-cultural and the expansion of these energy.

The Prophet (ﷺ).is the idealistically integrated totality of ILM (systems of knowledge) Taleem (تعلیم) as Molurn (معلم), Tallum (تعلم) as the seeker of ever new knowledge, cognition and truth (O Lord increase me in knowledge) and as Mubligh ((مبلغ. These are the Psychophysical involvements of man who is a creature, creator and crier. And again they are the involvements of culture, religion cognition, knowledge and truth, because their existence and configurational growth depend on their being receiving, manipulating and transmission.

If the true culture is the Divinely inspired culture, similarly the Divinely endowed knowledge is only true. Thus the knowledge received through Prophet is only true. The knowledge received through other sources is vain glorious.

The Uswa is the inter-related phenomena of Ilm and Amal. The-knowledge and action which emerges, grow and transmitted from the messenger of Allah is only Real and eternally binding for mankind. .

The Holy Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ),

the Founder and the Originator of the Social and cultural systems of Knowledge

(Part-3)

Dr. M. Basharat Ali

With the origination and development of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) as the messenger of Allah knowledge came into being. In my own time many systems of knowledge emerged and grew. With the emergence and growth, there came into being the systems of knowledge which integrated them into system and super system. The methodical system further got momentum with the adumbration and growth of the sciences of methodology, systematic and logico meaningful and causalistic orientation, taxonomy, etiology, editing compilation and concentrative research. From the first revelation (Alaq) all through the process of periodic and time apportioned revelation of the Quran for the entire period of 23 years, Qur’an was never left without inquiry and search, methodical orientation, taxonomical and causalistic coordination.

This arrangement was there from the very beginning of revelations, then there came instantaneously the systems of methodology and editing etc. This methodology became universal and became the instrument for the arrangement, systematization and investigation into the different universes or content forms and meanings of different systems, super-systems and subsystems of different knowledge (Cf Fiqh and Ahadith etc.). Throughout the 23 years of the Qur’anic revelations during the time of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) himself from the universe of the Qur’an itself there came into being many Qur’anic systems of knowledge the Ilm ul Qur’an (علم القرآن).

1.     The first being the Arabic scripts and the system of writing—Rasmul Khat (رسم الخط)

2.     The system of knowledge relating to the revelation of the Qur’an in the philosophical methodical involving the paradizm of why, how, what, when and what for.

3.     The knowledge system in relation to the Qur’anic content analysis and objectives, .

4.     The knowledge system about the compilation and coordination of the Qur’an Jamma (جمع) and coordination Tarteeb (تربیب).

5.     The system of knowledge dealing with the style and the charm of the Qur’an -.Asloob and Ejaz (اسلوب و اعجاز)

6.     The systems of knowledge dealing with the recital (Qirat) pronunciation, pulsation accentuation and expression Lahja (لہجہ).

7.     The system of knowledge called Tajreed (تجرید). The synthetical knowledge of diction.

8.     Commentary – the Tafseer with its derivative systems like Usul (اصول) Maani (معنی) linguistic, syntax, etymology, phonetics, retitorie semantics and host of others. We have made mention of those systems which got instantaneous and prompt emergence with the advent of the holy Qur’anic systems of knowledge which grew at an accelerated rate of advancement during the course of 4 centuries. The number swelled every year. So much so that Jallaluddin Sewti enumerated them as much as seventy (70) thousand. But the moderately assessed number should be in maximum not more than seven thousand and in minimum the number is three thousand (Cf. Etqan).

The second system which got emergence by the advent of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) is the system of Ahadith which is moderately to be enumerated not less than into one hundred twenty systems and subsystems. With the origination of Ahadith; there arose seerat magazi (سیرۃ مغٰزی) and Shimal (شمال) etc. Like Qur’anic systems of knowledge these systems of knowledge are based on synthesis and factoral analysis. The methodology which was used as the logico-philosophical and scientific. The constituent elements are ontology, epistemology and observation. Critical evaluation forms the basis of verification and validation.

At the first instance the Qur’an, Qur’anic systems of knowledge, Ahadith and its causally related systems are the canons of appreciation of the life and career of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ), one can understand in definitive terms the place of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) in the life and culture, social and the spiritual constellation of Islam and the entire world. All these systems and super systems would have never come into existence without him. His personality and his action throughout his existence, categorically attained the value and meanings of the (1) Value system (2) Value orientation pattern system (3) reference system (4) the type system and socio-cultural, religio-spiritual configuration systems.

In the sociological and the culturo-logical language be is the totality of the axiological system, vehicle system and the agency system without them in one totality no system of society, personality, culture and super system can come into being and becoming (For the place of Risalat See RaghibTabbakh (راغب طباخ) Tarikh-i-Afkhar wa Uloom-i-Islam; (تاریخ افکار و علوم اسلامی). Among the systems which were identified and systematized, the one which are to be made mentioned here are the value of the Ahadith and Seerat as systems of commentary of‘ the Qur’an on the one hand and the Ahadith and Seerat being the sources of the systems of knowledge what we call the pattern system the Sunnah on the other. This system has its own system involvements:

1.     The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) as an actor has become an action system For the milat, so long the Islam exists on the surface of the earth.

2.     He is the behavioural system.

3.     He is the belief system.

4.     He is the social, cultural and Personality.

5.     He is the idealistic system—that gh. is the realm of value himself.

6.     His life and career are the verification, validation and value judgment standard.

7.     He is the pattern of value integration and intellectual and moral integration. As such he is ILM, he is mollim (معلم) he is a taleem, he is tallum and he is a tableegh.

Prophet Muhammad‘s (ﷺ) fundamental categories of action are to be found in Ahadith, Seerat and the Qur’an. Hence in the cultural system of Islam one can not violate the causal relativity between the three componential entities referred to above. Hadith and Qur’an go in togetherness. The one cannot be separated from the other. Such disintegration would eliminate the Muslims and the culture of Islam. If one intend to see the structural and functional base of the socio-cultural system, action system, belief system and the religio-spiritual system, one should observe the life and sayings of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) which form the tafseer (تفسیر) of the Qur’an. On the basis of such value orientation, he has been called Ras-i-Khona-fil-llm in the verse 7 of the Sura Ale Imran. He is not only the foundation of Ilm (علم), but the formulator and systematizer of method, classification, etiological, ontological, pragmatic and epistemological processes of knowledge in all its much causational system. This methodology was developed by the Holy prophet (ﷺ) in accordance with the methodological procedure given enunciation by the verse of Ale Imran referred to above. Another feature of his Seerat and Ahadith is to be seen in this first principle of human life that they provide categories of orientation and organization of action.

From the beginning of this new century considerable attention has been given to the problem of Personality. Valuable research has been done and much is to be augmented. Inspite of enormous valuable information nothing significant is found about personality in action. Ahadith and Seerat, verify the and documentationalize the life—career of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) as a personality in the frame work of system of action. And again the entire life of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ) is the embodiment of value standards. This source is the important source for getting all knowledge about him in the socio-cultural realm and the spiritual roles personality. In short, action as such carry no meaning without reference to the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). Consequently it is indispensible for the Muslims to identify the values and the value orientation in the pattern and action systems of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). In this connection it is highly important to emphasize that the domains of social behaviour viz-a-viz his personality are to be identified in the Ahadith, Seerat and Sunnah. These very same sources can lead us to get knowledge about the analysis of role obligation.

With the emergence and growth of Ahadith there came two systems, among others, namely the science of narration of Hadith and the narrators. The science of narration and narrators are guided by Philosophical methodology synthetically arranged in terms of why, how, what, who, when and what for. The sciences of narration and narrators in themselves are new systems of knowledge which came into being and significant importance, only during the life of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ), getting expansion and elaboration during the advancement of the Islamic culture. The method and analysis became pungently critical and ascriptive in terms of micro, macro and meta analysis; nothing taken valid without verification, vindication and evaluative with reference to value judgment standards.

With the methodical arrangement of the narrators, they were placed into various strata on the basis of critical evaluation and etiological taxonomy. Not only Muhadatheen (محدثین) but their compilations of Ahadith were evaluated after the stratified evaluation. The stratification was neither abstract nor arbitraly, but systematically methodical based on laws and principles. Stratification is in itself a methodological ingredient.

The methodological perspectivism in the classification of narrators and narration, led the Muslims to frame causalistically oriented laws and principles for arrangement and systematization of Ahadith. Thus the commonly named system of’ knowledge—the Usool-i-Hadith (اصول حدیث) came into being and flourished steadily and harmoneously in all the evolutionary periodicatics of Muslim culture and systems of knowledge. After Qur’an the Hadith became so creatively expanding, that all the systems which emerged from its base became logical and philosophically oriented. Not only philosophy but even logic got existence, elaboration and creatively impulsive orientation through a terminology unknown to the past scholars of other cultures. Each term like Jirah (جرح) Taweel (تاویل) etc, are separate universes of knowledge. Each of them was systematized as a subsystem under the all embracing super-systemic system of knowledge. This Hadith is not a simple monoistic system but a highly complex system, conglomerating in itself various other systems and subsystems. Thus the Hadith in view of its multidimensionality and depth is to be called Hadithiologies. Each system and subsystem of hadithiologies produced specialists. For example there came into being and gained authoritative prominence and scholars and specialists in Hadith Terminology i.e. Ilm-al Mustalih (علم المصطلح).

With the highly elaborate systems and super-systems of knowledge in relation to Qur’anology and Hadithiology, there came into being so many other systems of knowledge, during the very time of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ). Fiqh and its derivative systems and subsystems, Politics, Administrative sciences, Economics, Sociology, Military Sciences, Humanities, Literature syntax (Nahu نحو) Grammar (Sarf صرف) Derivative science (Eshtiqaq اشتقاق) Rhetoric and porously, argumentative science (علم البحث و الجدل) etc.), the sciences of history—historiography, historiosophy, historiology, Philosophy of history, history of civilization, dynamics of history, historicism and Rijal (رجال) etc. The development of these sciences within the short course of time of 23 years, the entire period of revelation, went hand in hand with the processes of institutionalization. For example the institutions of Muwakhat (مواخاۃ) and Suffa, played the tremendous role for the reception, manipulation, expansion and transmission of knowledge. The suffa was the aggregate of the scholars—the specialists, critics, expansionists and systematizer of knowledge. In their pursuit of knowledge they were guided by different methods and systems of approach in accordance with the specific needs of the “Universes” of their studies. For example many of them who were interested in the study of the life of the Holy Prophet (ﷺ), Sunnah and hadith were guided to follow the empirical research method intertwined with the categories of ontology, epistemology, observation, experience and experimentalism etc. The scholars guided by the Qur’an undertook to study the people and cultures other than Islam through travels. They organized themselves into specialized institutions as envisaged by the verses 3:109 and 9-122.

1.     A party to invite to good.

2.     A party to enjoin the right.

3.     A part to forbid the wrong.

4.     A party should go forth to obtain understanding in religion.

5.     They should receive knowledge through research and travelling transmitting it to the members of their own society—and that they may warn the people when they come back-- (9:122)

The science of history and its relevant systems referred to above were developed during the times of the Prophet (ﷺ) after the pattern and judgment standards of the Qur’anic Qasas. They are more or less like the cultural histories of the various prophets. In content analysis and in deferential reasoning they are more or less like historicism, claimed to be developed in the modern age by Alfred Weber and Earnst Troeltsch. The politics, science of administration, economics, sociology, humanities, literature, grammar, rhetoric, prosody, military sciences in short all these systems got origination and development on the laws and Principles forms and contents of the Quran and Hadith. All these systems of knowledge, however differed in their content analysis and universes of discourse, but they were united in axiologism—the Tawheed and the sociologism.

The Holy Prophet (ﷺ) is reality the apex of all virtues and excellence—the very embodiment and source Book of all Divine and mundane knowledge—the Book and Wisdom. He is the action system, correlating it with knowledge. Thus ILM and Amal go in togetherness to form one integral whole. By virtue of the amalgamation of these forces he is the nostalgic center of conservation of spiritually oriented socio-cultural and the expansion of these energies.

The Prophet (ﷺ) is the idealistically integrated totality of ILM (systems of knowledge) Taleem (تعلیم) as Moalim (معلم), Tallum (تعلم) as the seeker of ever new knowledge, cognition and truth (O Lord increase me in knowledge) and as Mubaligh ((مبلغ. These are the Psychophysical involvements of a man who is a creature, creator and crier. And again they are the involvements of culture, religion, cognition, knowledge and truth, because their existence and configurational growth depends on their being, receiving, manipulating and transmission.

If the true culture is the Divinely inspired culture, similarly the Divinely endowed knowledge is only true. Thus the knowledge received through Prophet (ﷺ) is only true. The knowledge received through other sources is vain glorious.

The Uswa is the inter-related phenomena of Ilm and Amal. The-knowledge and action which emerges, grows and is transmitted from the messenger of Allah is only real and eternally binding for mankind