Week Two
Classification of Knowledge
Limitations
• (a) Absolute (perfect) knowledge:
•
this is the knowledge of God who
knows the reality, essence and details
of all things.
• (b) Limited knowledge:
•
The knowledge given to His
creations;
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……cont.,
• angels,
• prophets,
• human beings,
• jinn,
• and animals.
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…..cont.,
• Limited knowledge:
•
(i) Gifted knowledge:
a. Instinctive knowledge (natural): it is
imparted in the
very nature of the
creation.
b. Revealed/Sacred knowledge: the
knowledge that Almighty God reveals
to human beings.
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(ii) Acquired Knowledge
• Gained through effort by way of
reflection, senses and experience.
• (a) Recommended (praiseworthy)
i- Fard ‘ayn ii. Fard kifayah
• (b) Prohibited (blameworthy)
-Magic (kindly refer to slides 46-48)
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General Classification of
Knowledge in Islam
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General classification of
Knowledge in Islam
Absolute Knowledge
Gifted Knowledge
Sacred
Limited Knowledge
Acquired Knowledge
Instinct (ilham)
Praiseworthy
By external
influence
Fard ‘Ain
Blame worthy
By itself
Fard Kifayah
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Al-Ghazzali’s Criteria for
Classification of sciences :
1. Theoretical and practical
2. Presential and acquired
3. Religious and intellectual
4. Individual obligatory and
communal obligatory
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Classification of Knowledge
According
to al-Ghazali
Theoretical
Practical
Presential
Attained
Religious
Intellectual
Fard ‘ayn (Personal
Obligatory Knowledge)
Fard kifayah(Collective
Obligatory Knowledge)
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Al-Ghazzali’s Criteria for Classification of sciences
1. Theoretical and practical (philosophers)
Theoretical: to know the states of beings
as they are( to realize/
comprehend the reality of
beings; celestial & terrestrial)
Practical:
deals with man’s actions
To find out what is useful to
mankind in this life as well as
in the Hereafter
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….Cont.,
2. Presential & acquired (tasawwuf) (the
mode of knowing)
Presential : intuitive, contemplative
spiritual experience revelation
Acquired : empirical, rational, logical
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….Cont.,
Which one is better?
Al-Ghazzali:
• the presential is superior to the
acquired, It is free from errors &
doubt, certainty on spiritual truths
• This is true with the revelation and
intuition received by the prophets
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• The intuitive knowledge
claimed by people other than
prophets may not be taken for
granted unless it is judged in
light of the established
principles of Islam
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….Cont.,
3. Religious and intellectual (the source)
Religious (transmitted sciences):
Acquired from revelation/ prophets
1. Roots (Qur’an, sunnah, consensus)
2. Branches (law and ethics)
3. Ancillary sciences (grammar and
lexicography)
4. Complementary sciences (Qira’at,
commentary, history)
Intellectual: attained by human intellect alone
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….Cont.,
4. Fard ‘Ayn and Fard kifayah
(the need for learning)
Fard ‘ayn:
• What should be learned by each
and every Muslim.
–Individual responsibilities
–Things which can’t be done on
behalf of others
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….Cont.,
• Beliefs, worship, halal and
haram, core moral values, how
to discharge one’s
responsibilities towards others
(man’s obligations to family and
society), necessary skills for
daily life.
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….Cont.,
Fard kifayah :
- the community’s needs that can be performed
by a sufficient group on behalf of others.
- collective responsibilities
• Religious sciences: knowledge that is not
needed for daily practice of Islam.
• Intellectual knowledge: all types of
knowledge needed for the welfare of the
society in this life
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….Cont
Praiseworthy sciences:
• Enhances human well being and
the environment within the
boundaries outlined by shari’ah
• All sciences which are useful,
beneficial and satisfy the
requirements of science.
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Blameworthy sciences:
• A science which does not meet the
requirement of science, or it is
purely or usually harmful.
• Blameworthy by its nature by an
external factor
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….Cont…
Magic:
It is defined as “seeking the help of
demons to perform something harmful
against somebody” or “showing
something to an audience, which is
contrary to reality.
• Reasons why magic is prohibited in Islam:
• 1) It is an act of blasphemy (kufr). Allah
says in the Holy Qur’an:
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• “And when there came to them a
Messenger from Allah confirming what was
with them, a party of those who were given
the scripture threw away the book of Allah
behind their backs as if they did not know.
And they followed what the devils gave out
falsely of magic of the reign of Solomon; for
Solomon did not disbelieve but the devils
disbelieved, teaching men magic and such
things that came down at Babylon to the
two angels Harut and Marut, but neither of
these two (angles) taught anyone (such
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things) until they had said: we are only for trial,
so don't disbelieve. And from them (magicians)
people learn that through which they would
cause separation between a person and his
spouse, but they could not thus harm anyone
except by Allah's leave; and they learn that
which harms them rather than profits them.
And indeed they knew that its practitioner
would have no share in the Hereafter. And how
bad indeed was that for which they sold their
own selves if they but knew.” (2:101-102).
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• 2) According to the following authentic hadith, magic
is a deadly act:
• The Prophet (s.a.w) said: “Avoid the seven deadly
acts which are: ascribing partners to God, magic,
killing the human self which Allah prohibited except
with right, eating usury (riba), devouring the
orphan’s wealth, defecting from the battle-field
(without a justified reason) and slandering chaste,
unwary believing women.”
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• Magic being harmful and evil act, Allah has told us to
seek His protection against it:
• “Say I seek refuge in the in the Lord of daybreak
From the evil of that which he created; From the evil
of the darkness when it is intense, and from the evil
of malignant witchcraft, And from the evil of the
envious when he envies.” (Surah al-Falaq)
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Differences between magic and
miracles (mu‘jizat)
• Magic is from devils (see the above Qur’anic verse:
2:101-102)while miracles are from Allah.
• On the other hand, miracles are real while magic is
deceptive; it is covering the truth with falsehood).
• Because miracles are from Allah, they could only be
performed by Prophets while magic, which is from
devils, can be performed by anyone who associates
himself with the devil.
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• Horoscope
• Not only magic is prohibited in Islam but also
horoscope or reading one’s palm to foretell the
future.
• The Holy Qur’an affirms that no one knows the
future or the unseen except Allah: “He knoweth the
Unseen as well as that which is Open.” (6:73) “With
Him are the keys of the Unseen, the treasures that
none knoweth but He...” (6:59)
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• The Holy Qur’an also asserts that not even
Muhammad knows the unseen:
• “If I had the knowledge of the unseen, I
should have secured abundance for myself,
and no evil would have touched me.” (7:188).
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• The Prophet (s.a.w) said: “Whoever goes to
a fortune teller (a soothe sayer) or a diviner
and believes him, has, in fact, disbelieved in
what has been revealed to Muhammad.”
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….Cont..
Example: Horoscope
Capricorn: (Dec 23 - Jan 20)
Today’s stars encourage you to be more
diplomatic and inclusive in your relations with
others
Aquarius: (Jan 21 – Feb 19)
On the Zodiac’s Day of Metamorphosis, you
need to transform ideals into reality, and turn
dreams into concrete plans. If you work
patiently towards your goals, you can achieve
the long-term success you are looking for.
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…Cont.,
Astrology:
• It is the study of the positions and aspects of
celestial bodies.
• Muslims scholars agree that astrology is a
prohibited field to deal with. For example,
Imam Ibn Taymiyah said: “Astrology that is
concerned with studying the positions and
aspects of celestial bodies in the belief that
they have an influence on the course of natural
earthly occurrences and human affairs is
prohibited by Almighty Allah’s Book, the
Sunnah, and the unanimous agreement of the
Muslim scholars.
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• Ibn `Uthaymeen, said: “Astrology is a kind of
sorcery and fortune-telling. It is forbidden
because it is based on illusions, not on
concrete facts. There is no relation between
the movements of celestial bodies and what
takes place on the Earth.”
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• During the Prophet’s lifetime, it happened that the
sun eclipsed on the same day when the Prophet’s
son Ibrahim died. The people then thought that it
had eclipsed because of the Prophet’s son’s death.
On knowing this, the Prophet (peace and blessings
be upon him) led them in the Eclipse Prayer and then
delivered them a speech saying: “The sun and moon
are but signs of Allah; they do not eclipse because
so-and-so died or was born.”
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• The above hadith indicates that the Prophet
(s.a.w) denied all relation between the
movements of the heavenly bodies and events
on the Earth.
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• Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him and
his father) reported that Allah’s Messenger
(s.a.w) said: “He who has acquired some
knowledge of astrology has acquired some
knowledge of sorcery; the more he acquires of
the former the more he acquires of the latter.”
(Reported by Ahmad, Abu Dawud, and Ibn
Majah)
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• Commenting on the above hadith, alShawkani said that the Prophet (s.a.w)
compared between astrology and sorcery
because sorcery was known to be forbidden;
and so, he who would get some knowledge of
astrology would do something forbidden and
would be sinful.
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• To sum up, astrology is based on lies and deceit; it
has no scientific basis. The astrologists’ usage of
computers to convince people that what they do is
technological and scientific is nothing but deceit.
There is no scientific proof that there is a relationship
between the appearance of a star in a specific time
and the character and behavior of someone born at
that time.
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Conclusion
•
•
•
Sciences are inter-related, and none
of them can exclude the others.
Humanities, natural sciences, and the
religious sciences unite to produce
true understanding of this world and
the causes behind its existence.
Religious scholars are in need of
philosophical and natural sciences as
much as scientists are in need of the
religious sciences.
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•
•
•
Natural and philosophical sciences are to
enable the Muslim to explore, exploit and
get a better insight into what Allah has
created in this universe.
Religious sciences are to guide people to
understand the reality of this life, their
origins and their mission.
And to set the moral and legal guidelines
that should be observed by human beings for
a meaningful and better life.
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