Figure 1.--Freedom is a huge issue througout the Middle East. For many Muslims in Muslim majority countries, freedom means the right to supress other religions or other Muslim sects. And many like this woman, the very idea of freedom, the great gift of the West, is rejected. Muslims are often thinking in religious or political terms, but there are repercussions that ripple through every aspect of scociety. And it is no accident that theMuslimworld, nearly a quarter of humanity, is a vast scintific black hole. More science id one in tiny Israel.

The question of Muslim science is a particularly interesting one. Sciebce was once one of the glories of Islam. After the fall of the Roman Empire an collapse of clasical civilikzation, learning of all kind declined in Christian Europe, let alone any form of science. The era is referred to as the Dark Ages because of the decline of learning. Is it at this time that the Arabs fired with the revelations of Islm broke out of the Arabian Peninsula. The resulting Islamiv Caliphate became a center of learing and tolerance at the same time the Christian West was mired in the Dark Ages. The floweing of learning in the Caliphate including art as well as many diiferent intelecual disciplines and one of the most important of these was laying the ground wirk for the eventual development of science. The accomplishment of Muslim mathematics and other scholrs at this time are truly impressive. Advances in chemistry and medicine were probably the most impressive, but there was important work being done in many other disciplines as well. Much of the work came from the translation of classical workd lost to the West, but Muslim scholars also produced inovative work of their owm. But just before Muslim sccholars began to build on the early advances, the Muslim world stepped back from reason to a revitalization of faith. Islamic clerics managed to supress any further substantial secular work just as Muslim scholars were in the cup of invnting experimntal science. This same turning point occurred in the West. Christian clerics attempted to supress scientific work. The most prominant incident was of course Galileo, but many other early scholars had similar difficulties. The Renaisance in the West, of course, eventually succeeded and the focus of many was shifted from the adoration of God to the developing the full use of his mind and reasoning abilities. One of the results of course was modern science. There was, however, no Renaisance in the Muslim world. And the decline of science and other academic disciplines in the Muslim world has been notable. We have discussed the subject of science with a Pakistani reader. He objects to this assessment and we will present his comments to provide a view from the Muslim world. I am not sure how widespread his biew is, but suspect it is prominant among many Muslims. Other readers are encouraged to send along their insights.

Europe: Dark Ages

Sciebce was once one of the glories of Islam. After the fall of the Roman Empire an collapse of clasical civilikzation, learning of all kind declined in Christian Europe, let alone any form of experimentation in what we now call science. The era is referred to as the Dark Ages because of the decline of learning. Is it at this time that the Arabs fired with the revelations of Islm broke out of the Arabian Peninsula. The resulting Islamiv Caliphate became a center of learing and tolerance at the same time the Christian West was mired in the Dark Ages. Some historians object to the term Dark Ages, but in terms of science and other intelectual persuits except religion, in seens an apt term. We do not haveca page specifically devoted to the Dark Ages, but within the Medieval section of HBC is a Chronology that provides some information by century.

The Islamic Caliphate: Flowering of Learning:

At a time that Christian Europe was mired in dogmatic faith and the learning of the classical era had largely disappeared, there was a flowering of a learning and culture in Islam. Islamic scholars made great advances in mathematics, astronomy, geography, archetecture, and other disciplines. To a large extent these advances were based on translations of classical Greek and Roman texts. The Abbasid Calophate oversaw a flowering of learning that was unrivaled in the world at the time. Bagdad and other major Islamic cities were important centers of learning. Harun al-Rashid (786--) is perhaps the best known of the Abbasid caliphs. This is largely because of the fictional role given him in The Thousand and One Nights. His reign and that of his immediate successors constitute the the Golden Age of Islam. This Golden Age produced the first important work in the physical sciences since the decline of the Classical world. Islamic scholars revived clasical works, but also did important work in mathematics, astronomy, medicine, and chemistry. There were many practical technological advances. Islamic scholars not only collected and corrected existing astronomical data, but they constructed the world's first observatory. It was Abbasid scholars that developed the astrolabe, an indespensible scientific instrument. Islamic scholars were renowned for advances in medicine. They actually conducted some experimebtal work and began to questiin clasical scholars. They experimented with diet, drugs, surgery, and anatomy. They made many important discoveries in chemistry. Abbasid scholars also worked on agriculture. They worked on water management (wells, canals, and waterwheels), livestock breeding. They promoted cotton cultivation, an almost unknown fabric in Europe. They also began making paper which they learned from the Chinese. There were also important literary works, including biography, history, and linguistics. One of the glories of the Caliphate was the Translation Movement. Thhis was centered in the House of Wisdom in Baghdad where not only the work of clasical Greek and Roman scholrs were translated, but also the work of Indian and Chinese scholars. This created a body of knowledge that appears to have exceded tht of even the great lbrary in Alexabdria. The acquisition of works was financed by many caliphs and the works were thus available to Islamic scholars, a factor in their notable accomplishments.

Medieval Muslim Science (750-1100 AD)

Some see science as the single most important contribution of Islam to civilization. One historian writes, "The Arab has left his intellectual impress on Europe. He has indelibly written it on the heavens as any one may see who reads the names of the stars on a common celestial globe." [Draper] Another historian explains, "It was under the influence of the Arabs and Moorish revival of culture and not in the 15th century, that a real renaissance took place. Spain, not Italy, was the cradle of the rebirth of Europe. After steadily sinking lower and lower into barbarism, it had reached the darkest depths of ignorance and degradation when cities of the Saracenic world, Baghdad, Cairo, Cordova, and Toledo, were growing centers of civilization and intellectual activity. It was there that the new life arose which was to grow into new phase of human evolution. From the time when the influence of their culture made itself felt, began the stirring of new life. .... Science is the most momentous contribution of Arab civilization to the modern world; but its fruits were slow in ripening. Not until long after Moorish culture had sunk back into darkness did the giant, which it had given birth to, rise in his might. It was not science only which brought Europe back to life. Other and manifold influence from the civilization of Islam communicated its first glow to European Life." [Briffault] We would not say Islamic scholars invented science, but we would say that they were on the cusp of doing so. Another historians mentions some of the most important Medieval Muslim scientists, "It will suffice here to evoke a few glorious names without contemporary equivalents in the West: Jabir ibn Haiyan, al-Kindi, al-Khwarizmi, al-Fargani, al-Razi, Thabit ibn Qurra, al-Battani, Hunain ibn Ishaq, al-Farabi, Ibrahim ibn Sinan, al-Masudi, al-Tabari, Abul Wafa, 'Ali ibn Abbas, Abul Qasim, Ibn al-Jazzar, al-Biruni, Ibn Sina, Ibn Yunus, al-Kashi, Ibn al-Haitham, 'Ali Ibn 'Isa al-Ghazali, al-zarqab, Omar Khayyam. A magnificent array of names which it would not be difficult to extend. If anyone tells you that the Middle Ages were scientifically sterile, just quote these men to him, all of whom flourished within a short period, 750 to 1100 A.D." [Sarton] A Muslim reader adds, "The greatness of Islamic Civilization discussed here came from a time when the land was ruled by Shariah and not man-made laws like today in Islamic Countries."

Importance of Medieval Muslim Science

Just how important was Muslim science? One historian writes, "The same author goec even further in describing Muslim science. "The debt of our science to that of the Arabs does not consist in startling discoveries or revolutionary theories, science owes a great deal more to Arab culture, it owes its existence. The Astronomy and Mathematics of the Greeks were a foreign importation never thoroughly acclimatized in Greek culture. The Greeks systematized, generalized and theorized, but the patient ways of investigation, the accumulation of positive knowledge, the minute method of science, detailed and prolonged observation and experimental inquiry were altogether alien to the Greek temperament. Only in Hellenistic Alexandria was any approach to scientific work conducted in the ancient classical world. What we call science arose in Europe as a result of new spirit of enquiry, of new methods of experiment, observation, measurement, of the development of mathematics, in a form unknown to the Greeks. That spirit and those methods were introduced into the European world by the Arabs. It is highly probable that but for the Arabs, modern European civilization would never have arisen at all; it is absolutely certain that but for them, it would not have assumed that character which has enabled it to transcend all previous phases of evolution." [Briffault] It seems to us that the author here goes too far. Of course just because Muslim made important contributions does not mean that the same discoveries would not have been eventually discovered by others. And a substantial portion of Muslim science was based on translations of classical works or inspired by those works. But before Islam began to turn away from science, Islamic scholars were making important discovries. But we do not pretend to be experts on Medieval Muslim science and readers interested in the issue can persue the subject. There is not doubt the Muslim contribution was substantial and important and played arole in both the European Renaisance and the development of modern science. A Muslim reader writes, "Islam have literally laid the foundations for the modern science and technology as we know of today. Had it not been the Muslims, the western world would have still been groping in the dark." Again this seems an overstatement. We tend to see the classical world building on the work of earlier civilizations (Mesopotamians, Persians, and Egyptians) as laying the foundation for modern science. Nor would we say that without Muslim scientists that Eutope would be still groping in the dark, bur neither would we denigrate the importance of Muslim science. It played a very important role. Without the Muslims important classical works would have been lost. And Muslim scholars built on and expanded that clasical heritage.

Reason for Flowering of Muslim Science

Just why was there such an impresssive cultural flowering during the Islamic Caliphate. Therewere reasons for the advances in what we nowcall the physical sciences. 1) The Caloipjate extended from the atantic Ocean to Central asia. Scholars were needed to administer such a vast empire. 2) There was a need to determine where Meccas was fromnany point in the Empire. 3) As Muslims are expected to pray five times a day, telling time was important. 4) Metalurgy was needed for making weao=pons and for coinage. Our Pakistani reader is quite definite that he knows why secular scholarshiobflourizhed under the Clipohte. . He tells us, "There never has been a time in the history of mankind when the world saw all the universal virtues in harmonious interaction at the same time: Justice, Safety of Life, Peace, Prosperity, Economic Growth, Learning, Research, Honesty, Charity, etc etc. What produced such a society? It was 100 percent implementation of the Shariah Law! Bring in comparison any time in history when Man-Made Laws governed a land and produced such a society? There has never been any! Today, the Western Civilization is all poverful and mighty in the field of science and technology, but the question that I have always asked you: has it been successful enough to protect its women from being raped? No! You yourself have agreed that America is a violent country - why is that so? I gave you an example to which you never replied. I told you how the Western Civilization has been in constant reformation which in itself proves that it is inherently flawed and hence it needs to keep on changing itself to suit the changing times, which has never been the case in the Islamic World. Today Modernity is being replaced by Post-Modernism which is its complete antithesis, which goes on to show that either modernity was a big lie or post-modernism is. I say, they both are because 100 years from now, post-modernism will itself be replaced - as have all the previous outlooks. This is the dilemma with man-made laws." Rarely I have disagreed with a sunmission to HBC than what our Pakistami reader has provided us. Well we agree with some of the reasons that our reader supplied. But his view of the era seems rather idealized and his concept of the West speeks eloquently for why Muslim science declined and the Muslim world today is an ecoomic backwater with widespread povety.

Shariah Law

Our Western readers probably only have a vague understanding of Shariah Law. We have begun to collect some basic information on this topic. It is essentially Islamiv law based on the Koran and other Islamic books.

Faith and Reason: Decline of Muslim Science

The flowering of learning in the Caliphate including art as well as many diiferent intelecual disciplines and one of the most important of these was science. The accomplishment of Muslim mathematics and science at this time are truly impressive. Adcances in chemistry and medicine were probably the most impressive, but there was important work being done in many other disciplines as well. Much of the work came from the translation of classical workd lost to the West, but Muslim scholars also produced inovative work of their owm. But just before Muslim science began to build on the early advances, the Muslim world stepped back from reason to a revitalization of faith. Islamic clerics managed to supress any further substantial scientific work. Other developments further prevented science from developing in Muslim countries. 1) The Christian powers began resisting Muslim military advances more effectivly. 2) The Ottoman Turks reduced the power of the Caliphate and thus abikity to find and promote scholarship. The Ottomans gave a lower priority to scholarship. 3) The Mongol invasion destroyed the Caliphate and the great Baghdad libraries. The Eurphrates is said tonhve teas blck from all the ink in the destroyed book. 4) The Arabic language which had become the Lenga frabca of Muslim scholars proved more diffucult to reprouce in priunting, puring Muslim sholars at ausadvantage to Wesrern scholars. 5) The Europeans ooebed maritime routes tinthe adt, significantly resricting Arab economies, largely depebdant on trade. This same turning point occurred in the West. Christian clerics attempted to supress scientific work. The most prominant incident was of course Galileo, but many other early scientists had similar difficulties. The Renaisance in the West, of course, eventually succeeded and the focus of many was shifted from the adoration of God to the developing the full use of his mind and reasoning abilities. One of the results of course was modern science. There was, however, no Renaisance in the Muslim world. And the decline of science and other academic disciplines in the Muslim world has been notable. We have discussed the subject of science with a Pakistani reader. He objects to this assessment and we will present his comments to provide a view from the Muslim world. I am not sure how widespread his view is, but suspect it is prominant among many Muslims. Other readers are encouraged to send along their insights.

The Koran and Science

Our Pakistani reader tells us that it is not true that Islam impedes science. His proof? Because it says so in the Koran. Our reader writes, "Where have you read that Islam chose "faith" while the West chose "reason". This is absurd! Outrageous! How can Islam choose "faith over reason" when there are 600 explicit verses in the Quran dealing with Science (the like of embryological sciences etc). Reason is an integral part of Islam. In fact any person who have read the Quran will know that there are countless verses which provoke its reader to think and reason and reflect and argue and experiment. I am asking you a question: have you ever read a book in your life which states from the beginnign that the "reader cannot find a single fault in here?" No! that is why we have these "editions and versions" coming out, trying to update information, remove redundancies, make additions/subtrations etc everytime trying to improve the content. Not so with Quran. In fact it goes out of the way to threaten the reader that if you cannot disprove it and you still reject it as from God, then be prepared to be burnt in hell fire whose fuel is men and stones. It is going an extra mile to provoke the unbeliever - why? Because this Book is from God, and the author (God) is not kidding about it. These verses are given a open challenge to humanity to prove Quran wrong. It has been 1400 years since this challenge and not a single person have come forward successfully." eproduced below are pertinent verses from the Koran:

59:21 Had We sent down this Qur'an on a mountain, thou wouldst have seen it humbled and split asunder out of the fear of God; and these similitudes We describe for mankind that they may ponder

30:21 And of His Signs is that He created for you mates, out of yourselves, that you might repose in them, and He put love and mercy between you; in that are surely Signs for a people who ponder.

8:22 The worst of beasts in God's sight are those that are deaf and dumb and do not understand. [people who dont use their senses (reason)]

67:10 They will further say: "Had we but listened or used our intelligence, we should not (now) be among the Companions of the Blazing Fire!"

2:164 In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, and the ship that sails in the sea with that which profits men, and the water that God sends down from the heaven wherewith He revives the earth after it is dead, and scatters therein all types of animals, and the turning about of winds, and the clouds controlled between heaven and earth, there are signs for a people who understand. [Our reader asls, "What do you understand of the above verse? Is it not adressing the scientists?

2:23 And if you are in doubt concerning that We have sent down on Our Servant, then produce a Sura (chapter) like it, and call your witnesses, apart from God, if you are truthful. 2:24 But if you do not, and you will not, then fear the Fire whose fuel is men and stones; it is prepared for the unbelievers. 4:82 What! Do they not ponder over the Quran? If it had been from other than God, they would have found in it many contradictions. [Our reader asks, "what does that mean? It means don't they use reason and intellect?]

These are interesting ans some quite beautiful passages. Quite frankly, however, I am a practical person. It is fine to say the Koran promotes science and to quote verses. But saying it is so does not prove it. The proof is the resulting scientific accomplishments. If Islam encourages science, then there should be great works of Muslim science in our modern age. So lets look at Muslim science today.

Where is Muslim Science Today?

What has struck us, especially when considering the glories of medieval Muslim science, is where is Muslim science today. When I asked oir Pakistani reader this question, he sent me a great deal of information about medieval Muslim science, but has not been able to name one major scientist in the Muslim world that has made a major advance in science. We are not saying there are no scientists in the Muslim world, but wecknow of not one major scientist from the Muslim world. What major scientific dicovery have come from the Muslim world? What major diseases have been cured by doctors and scientists from the Muslim world? I hope you will not gloss oer and answer these questions. The basic question is if as you say Islam does not discourage science and scientific inquiry, where all the great discoveries, after all Muslim countries are a large part of the world populatiom. Young people in Muslim countries who want to be scientists come to the West to study. Young people in non-Muslim country not come to the Muslim world to study science. The statistics are oerwealming and here I do not mean just a comarison between the Muslim world and the West. Scientists in tiny Israel obtain more patents, publish more scirntific articles, and make more scientific discoveries than the entire Muslim world combined. In every field of science, the major advances have been made by scientists in North America and Eutope and now Japan. And we know of no leading scietific institutes in the Muslim world doing ground breaking work. One area HBC has looked at is disease. Western science has cured many major diseases, saving millions of people, including Muslims. What disease has been cured by scientists in the Muslim world. The same story holds for every other scientific discipline. Our Pakistani reader has provided his insights to this question. Even in fields like geology and petro-chemicals (important to several wealthy Muslim countries), Muslim countries have to hire Western specialists. There are various ways of neasuring this. One is novel prizes. How many Nobel prices have been won by scientists in the Muslim world? Other indicators such as ecientific papers published or patents issue show the Muslim world to be a scientific backwater. The numbers are stagering. In fact they show that more science is done in tiny Israel than the entire Muslim world. This is a staggering case of intelectual failure.

Why Has the Muslim World Failed at Science?

There seem to be a range of reasons why the Muslim world has failed at science.

Our view

Our view is that a range of factors combine to discourage science in Islam. e are not prepared to make any definitive statements, but anumber of actors occurr to us. One is Islam itself. Muslims have forsaken reason for a faith-based society. Thre primary goal in life appears to be to serve God. Their world is a faith-based one and young Muslims are not encouraged to ask two many questions. Mohammed is the Messenger of God who delivered truth to Muslims in the 7th cerntury. And Muslims are not allowed to dispute those basic principles. Onviously if you have truth you do not need to seek truth. And what is cience nut the pursuit of truth. Thus the best minds in the Muslim world do not go into science. And the educational system is not only inderfunded, but not suited to encourage the study of science. Overall there is a great deal of illiteracy in the Muslim world, especially among women. Thus a substantial portion of the population has no opportunity to studay at all, let alone persue science.

A Muslim View

A Muslim reader strongly objected to our assessment of modern Muslim science. He writes, " how many more times do i have to tell you that there is no Islamic Civilization today which enforces the Shariah Law beyond 05% in toto? How many more times do i have to tell you that you need to judge a car by putting an expert driver behind the wheels who is not only aware of the all its features but also know how to use and show them to us in his driving most effectively? Your question: "The question I am wrestling with is, how could a society that produced such intelectual brilliance in the medieval era become such an intelectual backwater in the modern world?" Quite simply put it = we have abandoned Islam. This is what I have been trying to explain in all those previous hundred emails, but somehow or the other the point just doesnt come across to you! This is from where i raised the issue of man-made laws vs. shariah laws. You have yourself agreed for the umpteenth time that indeed the Islamic Civilization produced 'intellectual brilliance in the medieval era' which YOUR WESTERN intellectuals call as the 'Golden Era of the HUMANITY!' [HBC note: We know of no important historian (ouutside the Muslim world) who refers to medieval Islam as the "Golden Era of the HUMANITY!" We would not use that therm to any specific era, including the West tgoday. In fact we consider the term to be both arrogant and a failure to respect cultural diversity./]

Importance of Science

Interestingly when we asked about Muslim science our Pakistani reader proudly provided us a great deal of information to show the results of Islamic learning. But when we pointed out that science in the Muslim world today, he suddently suggested that sciebce wasn't all that important. He wrote, " It is not only about science and technology as civilization is founded upon people and not microwave ovens and cell phones!" I find it interesting that he and other Muslims point to the glories of the Golden Age of Islam (which also impresses us). You kindly focused me many links and quyes to prove the achievemts of Medieval science. That suggests to me that Muslims are very proud od those achievements, but now that Muslim countries do not produce such glories, some Muslims say, well they really aren't all that important. Why did you not say that all the work of all these Brilliant Muslim scierntists really wasn't very important, what was important was the practice of religion in the Caliphate? Somehow science was important in the 8th-12th century, but now it is not all that important. To me that sounds like tortured logic, but we present it here because we want to provide an open forum. We would suggest on the contrary that science is very important. Many people in the Muslim world are alive today because of the benefits of medical science developed in the West. Scientific advances in agriculture have greatly increased food production. And a range of scientific studies have greatly expanded industrial production significantly aleiviating the poverty thatvhas limited mankind sinces the earliest days of civilization. This prosperity has allowed people living in democratic, modern societies that promote science and encourage free markets and speech to lead more comfortable, rewarding lives.

Sources

Briffault, Robert. Making of Humanity.

Draper, John William. Intellectual Development of Europe.

Sarton, George. Tribute to Muslim Scientists in Introduction to the History of Science Vol. I.

Created: 11:16 PM 2/17/2007
Last updated: 7:34 PM 6/11/2015