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266

TAWḤĪDIC INTELLECTUALITY:
ITS ESSENCE AND SIGNIFICANCE IN THE FACE OF
WESTERN DOMINANCE IN CONTEMPORARY TIMES



Marina Munira Abdul Mutalib 1

1 Submitted for “The Qur’ān and Sunnah: Foundation of Islamic Personality,
Society and Culture. The original paper has been edited and updated. (Ed.)

267

1. INTRODUCTION

The concept of Tawḥīd, the very essence of Islam, is the
premise that determines whether a good deed of a human
being is accepted as an ‘ibādah to Allāh S.W.T. Without a clear
(ṣahīh) and sound (salīm) concept of Tawḥīd, one’s act can be
regarded valueless or invalid. Al-Farūqī regards Tawḥīd as the
core of the Islamic worldview. It is a view of reality, of truth,
and the verification of human destiny.2 It is incumbent in the
very aspects of Islam, Īmān, Taqwā and Iḥsān. Therefore,
Tawḥīd or the Oneness of Allāh, is the source of every matter
concerning Muslims, a testimony verified in the beginning and
at the end of every deed. The denial of this vital essence will
inevitably bring all deeds of the servant of Allāh to a fruitless
end.

There are plenty of arguments for Tawḥīd in the Holy
Qur’ān, which demand the engagement of the intellect. This is
because Divine Revelation and reason share, though not in
similar ways, high degrees of importance in the world of
epistemology in Islam. Tawḥīd, as the Qur’ān elaborates,
denotes the principle that is knowable to humans, as Allāh
S.W.T. has created Ādam (‘a.s.) and his progenies with the
capacity of reaching it. Allāh attests to this fact with His words
of Truth:

2 Ismā‘īl Rājī al Fārūqī, Al-Tawḥīd: Its Implications for Thought and Life (Kuala
Lumpur: International Islamic Federation of Students Organization, 1983).

268

…‫َفا ْع َل ْم أَنَّه َلا ِإلَهَ َّلا ّل َّلا‬
“Know, therefore, that there is no one worthy of worship
but Allāh […]” (Q. 47:19).3

Allāh S.W.T. taught human beings that His creations are indeed
verifications of His Signs – Signs of The Absolute Power and
The Ability to make everything with His Own Will and
Knowledge. This is apparent from His Beautiful Names Al-
Kamāl (The Perfection) and Al-Jalāl (The Divine Majesty) which
calls for the total submission of His servants to Him. In
contrast, skepticism is the denial of truth, which is the very
opposite of al-Tawḥīd.4

Tawḥīd is the first element discussed by prominent
scholars of Islamic religious sciences in their discourses, as in
the works of Imām Abū Ja‘afar al-Ṭaḥāwī, a representative of
those among the ahl sunnah wa al-jamā‘ah. In his al-‘Aqīdah al-
Ṭaḥāwiyyah, al-Ṭaḥāwī lists down the essentials of what a
Muslim must know and believe:5 that Allāh is The One and Only
God, is in no need of any partner and none resembles Him. In
the above treatise, al-Tahāwī endeavours to explain the

3“Know, therefore, that there is no god but Allāh, and ask forgiveness for the
fault, and for the men and women who believe: for Allāh knows how ye move
about and how ye dwell in your homes.” (Holy Q. 47:19). Quoted by
Muhammad ‘Uthman El-Muhammady, lecture in class (Feb 2012).
4 Al Fārūqī, Al-Tawḥīd: Its Implications for Thought and Life, 45.
5Abū Ja‘far al- Ṭaḥāwī, al-‘Aqīdah al-Ṭaḥāwiyyah, (d.321). Available online at
http://www.scribd.com/30078298/Al-Aqidah-at-Tahawiyyah.

269

relation between the servants and the Lord, where al-Tawḥīd
plays its crucial role. No human imagination and intellection or
any other faculties of the ‘aql can fully comprehend Allāh
S.W.T., as the ‘aql is merely His creation, yet He is The Creator
(Al-Khāliq) Who is The Absolute and above all of His creations
(makhlūq).

This contradicts secular Western worldviews, in which
the compatibility between reason and revelation is
nonexistence. The preoccupations of Western epistemology
with the rational faculty have so much overshadowed
Revelation and faith. This paper will attempt to bring forth the
main ideas of the Qur’ānic worldview, by highlighting the
cardinal aspects of Tawḥīdic intellectuality and elucidating its
importance through the realisation of the Ādamic man, the
virtues of ‘ibādah and the ethico-religious worldview in the
Qur’ān, vis-à-vis, the dominance of the Western outlook in
contemporary times.

2. THE ĀDAMIC MAN: TOWARDS REALISING THE
ONENESS OF ALLĀH

What makes the Ādamic man is not his physical characteristics,
which are not dissimilar whether he is from the East or the
West, but the distinctive spiritual vision in him, i.e., “the

270

integrated centre for realizing the Truth”6, which is the
spiritual value of being the servant of God. (…‫) فَا ْعلَ ْم أَنَّه َلا إِ َلهَ َّلا ّل َّلا‬

Allāh S.W.T. gives man the capacity to comprehend His
Lordship (Rubūbiyyah), and His Divinity as The One and Only
God and Sustainer (Ulūhiyyah). Al-Attas explains that man is of
dual nature: body and soul.7 The body and the soul should
demonstrate a consistent balance that should lead the soul to
be as “the centre for positive and saving change” 8, enabling
man to gain tranquillity in this transient world and attain the
saving truth for salvation and felicity (al-falāḥ) in the hereafter.
When Allāh S.W.T. taught Ādam the nature of all things, the
knowledge (‘ilm) included that of the accidents (a‘rāḍ), the
attributes (ṣifāt), the sensible and intelligible values (maḥsūsāt
wa ma‘qūlāt) that would help make his descendants aware of
the relations of these values with their existence in this world.
Al-Attas also clarifies that this explains why the knowledge
given does not include information on the Essence of Allāh
S.W.T. (al-Dhāt) and the unrevealed Secrets of Allāh (al-Sirr).9

6 Shaykh Muhammad ‘Uthman El-Muhammady, Lecture Notes, 28th October
2011, ISTAC.
7 Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas, The Nature of Man and the Psychology of
the Human Soul (Kuala Lumpur: ISTAC, 1990).
8Shaykh Muhammad ‘Uthman El-Muhammady, Lecture Notes, ISTAC, 20th
October 2011.
9 Al-Attas, The Nature of Man…

271

The important substance of the Ādamic man is that his
intelligence would result in his spiritual consciousness and
maturity. When man utilises his sight and his hearing, and
engages his heart, he will comprehend the truth. Otherwise, he
will be worse than an animal. Allāh says in the Qur’ān,

‫َوقَالوا لَ ْو كنَّا نَ ْس َمع أَ ْو نَ ْع ِقل َما كنَّا ِفي أَ ْص َحا ِب ال َّس ِعي ِر ۝‬
“They said if only we listened or used our intelligence, we
will not be among the inmates of the fire” (Q. 67:10).

َّ‫َولَ َق ْد ذَ َرأْ َنا ِل َج َهنَّ َم َكثِيرا ِهم َن ا ْل ِج ِهن َوال ِإن ِس َله ْم قلو ٌب لاَّ يَ ْفقَهو َن بِ َها َولَه ْم أَ ْعي ٌن لا‬
‫ي ْب ِصرو َن ِب َها َولَه ْم آذَا ٌن لاَّ يَ ْس َمعو َن ِب َها أ ْو َلـئِ َك َكاْلَ ْن َعا ِم بَ ْل ه ْم أَ َض ُّل أ ْو َلـئِ َك هم‬

‫ا ْلغَافِلو َن ۝‬
“Many are the Jinns and men We have made for Hell: they
have hearts wherewith they understand not, eyes
wherewith they see not, and ears wherewith they hear not.
They are like cattle nay more misguided: for they are
heedless (of warning)” (Q. 7: 179).

Allāh S.W.T. constantly reminds, that those who are granted
with the correct understanding of al-Tawḥīd will bear the
significant outcome of becoming “a nation justly balanced”
(ummatan wasaṭa) – a balanced community promised in the
Qur’ān, whose character is of the utmost excellence.

‫كنت ْم َخ ْي َر أ َّمة أ ْخ ِر َج ْت ِللنَّا ِس تَأْمرو َن ِبا ْل َم ْعرو ِف َوتَ ْن َه ْو َن َع ِن ا ْلمن َك ِر َوت ْؤ ِمنو َن‬
… ِ‫ِبال هِل‬

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“Ye are the best of peoples, evolved for mankind, enjoining
what is right, forbidding what is wrong, and believing in
Allāh…” (Q. 3: 110).

In short, the process of actualising al-Tawḥīd results in
transforming human morality. This is because the perfecting of
one’s observance of the Oneness of Allāh and the denying of
any resemblance to Him, bears upon the person’s authentic
knowledge from his honed spiritual and rational intellects. The
Qur’ān illustrates this in Sūrah Ṭa Ha when Allāh S.W.T.
confirms to Prophet Mūsā (‘a.s) that

‫َوا ْص َط َن ْعت َك ِلنَ ْف ِسي ۝‬
“… I have prepared thee for Myself (for service)” (Q.
20:41).

The acceptance was due to Prophet Mūsā’s complete obedience
and constant spiritual contemplation. Therefore, in their
practice, many ṣūfī scholars infer from the above, with full
acknowledgement that the Prophet’s spirituality is of the
highest degree.10

As the bearer of this amānah (trust) that God has
entrusted upon humankind, man has fully accepted his role as

10Aḥmad bin Muḥammad bin ‘Ajībah al-Ḥasanī, Awakenings of the
Inspirations: A Commentary of al-Hikām of Ibn ‘Ataullah (South Africa:
Awaiting Publication, 2002), 28.

273

Allāh’s vicegerent on earth (khalīfah) – a responsibility that the
mountains, the heavens and the earth had declined. Allāh says,

‫ِإنَّا َع َر ْضنَا ا ْْلَ َمانَةَ َعلَى ال َّس َما َوا ِت َوا ْْلَ ْر ِض َوا ْل ِجبَا ِل َفأَبَ ْي َن أَن يَ ْح ِم ْلنَ َها َوأَ ْش َف ْق َن‬
‫ِم ْن َها َو َح َم َل َها ا ْل ِإن َسان ِإنَّه َكا َن َظلوما َجهولا ۝‬

“We did indeed offer the Trust to the Heavens and the
Earth and the Mountains; but they refused to undertake it,
being afraid thereof: but man undertook it; - He was
indeed unjust and foolish” (Q. 33:72).

Understanding God and His attributes enlightens the Ᾱdamic
man with the integrated essences, values and personality that
provide him with the spiritual dynamism needed for the above
trust.

‫َو ِإ ْذ تَأَذَّ َن َربُّك ْم لَئِن َش َك ْرت ْم ْلَ ِزيدَنَّك ْم َو َلئِن َكفَ ْرت ْم ِإ َّن َعذَابِي َل َش ِديدٌ ۝‬
“If ye are grateful, I will add more (favours) unto you;
but if ye show ingratitude, truly My punishment is
terrible indeed” (Q. 14:7).

Mawdūdī illustrates this intimate and strong relation between
Tawḥīd and man beautifully in his writing;

The edifice of a complete Islamic life can only be built on
a belief in God’s Oneness (Tawḥīd) that permeates a
person’s entire personal and social life, and which is so
strong that he considers himself and all that he possesses
as belonging to God; he accepts Him as the sole rightful
Owner, Object of Worship, Receiver of obedience and
Law-giver for himself as well as the rest of the world; he

274

considers Him the fountainhead of guidance, and is
totally aware that disobedience to God, indifference to
His guidance or an inclination to associate some other
being as a partner with Him in His Being, constitute
deviation from the Right Path.11

3. THE QUR’ĀNIC WORLDVIEW

3.1 ‘Ibādah

Naturally, the fundamentals of Tawḥīd extends to the concept
of ‘ibādah, i.e., good deeds with the sole intention of pleasing
Allāh S.W.T. It is the key towards the acceptance of one’s deeds
by the Lord Most Gracious. Islam prescribes a belief structure
that permeates every facet of a Muslim’s life – Islam (professing
submission), Īmān (belief) and Iḥsān (perfecting both Islam and
Īmān). Tawḥid is the sole determinant for human actions to be
accepted. The word waḥḥada, yuwaḥḥidu, and Tawḥīd literally
mean the Oneness of God, which culminates in the
uncompromising monotheism of Islam. Scholars found its
importance in relation to the quality and degree of servitude by
the servants of Allāh S.W.T. to The Creator, i.e. ‘ibādah. This
concept substantively elevates the relation of man with his
Creator, man with his fellow beings, and man with other
creatures. Consequently, Tawḥīd plays a significant role in the

11 Sayyid Abul ‘Alā Mawdūdī, “Foundations of Islamic Morality”, in Riza
Mohammed and Dilwar Hussain (eds.), Islam the Way of Revival (UK: Revival
Publications, 2003), p.164-165.

275

physical, social, spiritual, affectional, moral and ethical
associations of a Muslim with others.

Furthermore, ‘ibādah in Islam encompasses all aspects of
life, wherein a Muslim expresses the utmost reverence and full
submission to Allāh at any place and time without fail. The
beauty of the Islamic ‘ibādah is that it provides no demarcation
between the spiritual and physical well-beings of a human
being. Al Fārūqī explains;

In all religions of the world, ‘ibādah or worship means a
ritual consisting of legomena (things thought or recited)
and dromena (things done or acted) performed by
people, more often regularly rather than at random, by
which people adore, thank or petition God, the Ultimate
Reality.12

This definition has a particular reference to the five pillars of
Islam. Furthermore, as Al Fārūqī continues, ‘ibādah also
includes

[…] any and all actions entered into for the sake of God
and fulfilment of the general imperative of Islam
regarding human life on earth.13

12 Al Fārūqī, “Inner Dimensions of Worship”, in Riza Mohammed and Dilwar
Hussain (eds.), Islam the Way of Revival, (UK: Revival Publications, 2003), 171.
13 Al Fārūqī, “Inner Dimensions of Worship”, p.171.

276

It implies that ‘ibādah is the sole reason for a person’s entire
life.

A human being’s reason to be, the meaning and purpose
of his existence, is to serve God i.e. to fulfil His will.14

This all-encompassing meaning of ‘ibādah and the Islamic
notion of Tawḥīd should, at the end, produce good Muslim
servants of God, whereby

His heart is always moved by the desire for good; but
good is itself the desire or command of God.15

‘Ibādah demonstrates the sense of fulfilling one’s raison
d’être, i.e., the purpose for this worldly life. Imām Ibn ‘Aṭā’i’Llāh
identified three important stages regarding Iḥsān, namely -
murāqabah, mushāhadah and ma‘rifah. “You worship Him as if
you witness Him” is the principal basis that rests upon
murāqabah16, i.e., contemplation. Next is mushāhadah17, i.e.
witnessing Divine manifestations and signs and finally
attaining ma‘rifah, i.e., the true knowledge of Allāh18. Shaykh

14 Ibid., p.172.
15 Ibid.
16 Murāqabah defines as contemplation and conscious remembrance of Allāh
with reflection upon your deeds.
17 Mushāhadah defines as full realisation and constant awareness of Allāh’s
pressence.
18 Al-Ḥasani, Awakenings of the Inspirations…, p.42.

277

Uthman el-Muḥammady spells out another three values of
experiencing the certainty of knowledge that is in line with the
concept of spiritual witnessing (maqām al-mushāhadah) in
Qushayrī’s Risālah, which are the certitude of knowledge (‘ilm
al-yaqīn), the certitude of vision (‘ain al-yaqīn) and the
certitude of Truth (ḥaqq al-yaqīn), as mentioned in the Qur’ān
(Q. 102:5, 102:7 and 26:95, 69:51 respectively).

3.2 The Qur’ānic Worldview of God

The Tawḥīdic intellectuality prescribes man with the purity of
belief in Allāh S.W.T. without a taint. He produces and His act of
creating is not due to any secondary reason. Allāh S.W.T.
creates and sustains only through His Will. This is in
contradiction to deistic understanding, where God is merely a
great watchmaker. The Qur’ān states in many places, for
example;

‫الَّ ِذي َخ َل َق َف َس َّوى ۝‬
“(Allāh) Who hath ordained laws. And granted
guidance” (Q. 87:2).
and

‫… َوأَن َت َخ ْير ال َّرا ِزقِي َن ۝‬
“for Thou (Allāh) art the best Sustainer (of our needs)" (Q.
5:114).

A man of spiritual vision will comprehend that everything
happens due to Allāh’s Power and Will. It is incumbent for

278

Muslims to relent (ridhā) and observe patience, perseverance
and constancy (ṣabr) on all occasions regardless of whether the
event, as perceived by human shortsightedness, is good or
bad19.

‫إِنَّ َما أَ ْمره إِذَا أَ َرادَ َش ْيئا أَ ْن يَقو َل َله ك ْن فَ َيكون ۝‬
“Verily, when He intends a thing, His Command is,“be” and
it is” (Q. 36: 82).

‫… َوه َو ك ْرهٌ لَّك ْم َو َع َسى أَن تَ ْك َرهواْ َش ْيئا َوه َو َخ ْي ٌر لَّك ْم َو َع َسى أَن ت ِحبُّواْ َش ْيئا‬
‫َوه َو َش ٌّر لَّك ْم َوّل هلا َي ْع َلم َوأَنت ْم لاَ تَ ْعلَمو َن ۝‬

“[…] it is possible that ye dislike a thing which is good for
you, and that ye love a thing which is bad for you. But Allāh
knoweth and ye know not” (Q. 2: 216).

According to Fazlur Rahman, in realizing the Ultimate
Reality, God has listed three different attitudes, which are
theocentric, anthropocentric and nihilistic.20 He confirms that
the comprehensive guidance of Islam has led Muslims towards
the theocentric attitude of the Ultimate Reality, rather than the
anthropocentric or nihilistic attitude. The reason is that the
theocentric view of the Ultimate Being is supra-cosmic,
personal and Divine. God reveals Himself as Signs in the cosmic

19 Abul Qāsim al-Qusyairī, Al-Qusyairī’s Epistle on Sufism (translated by
Alexander D. Knysh) (UK: The Centre for Muslim Contribution to Civilization,
2007), 306-308.
20 Muhammad Fazlur Rahman Ansari, The Qur’ānic Foundations and Structure
of Muslim Society (Kuala Lumpur: Islamic Book Trust, 2001).

279

order, casting a distinct, but harmonious relationship between
Him as the Ultimate Reality and man as His creation. Man
acquires perfection through his acts of worship, and in so doing
actualises his godly potentials in reflection of the Divine
Attributes of God. In the anthropocentric view, the Ultimate
Reality is intra-cosmic and impersonal. God is thought to exist
in the Cosmic Order between the natural and the supra-natural.
These two are rivals, in which the supra-natural’s function is to
free man from the bondage of the ‘natural’. Thus, in order to
attain perfection, man has to undergo a strict ascetic life as to
free themselves from the evil of natural inclinations. The third,
the nihilistic attitude, views the Ultimate Reality as an illusion,
and the cosmos as a mere accident. Nihilism proclaims that the
world is hostile towards human beings, and that men have lost
all hope in it.21

3.3 The Qur’ānic Ethico-Religious Worldview

The ultimate goal of the Qur’ānic ethico-religious worldview is
God-realisation in its full sense. Fazlur Rahman further
elaborates thatthe Qur’ānic self-realisation is of three
dimensions: religious, ethical and intellectual. The Qur’ān as
the Book of Guidance is deemed to have served its primary role
upon one’s realising the fundamentals of Tawḥīd, which is to
obliterate all anthropomorphic notions about God (as in

21 M. Fazlur Rahman, The Qur’ānic Foundations…, pp.101-102.

280

Hinduism and pantheism) and hence, establishing Islamic
monotheism in him.22 This is the first role of the Qur’ān, which
is to establish in the conscience of man, the absolute Oneness of
God, His Divine Attributes and Holy Names (Ṣifātu-hū wa
Asmā’uhū al-‘Ulyā) which are uniquely His, and shared with
none in His creation. However, it is through cultivating the
potentials that Allāh in His Wisdom and Grace has placed as
inherent in the original human nature (see Q. 15: 29 and Q. 38:
72)23 – a reflection upon the Supreme Attributes and Names of
Allāh through which man finds his way to Allāh S.W.T.24

… ‫َو ِل هِلِ اْلَ ْس َماء ا ْلح ْس َنى فَا ْدعوه ِب َها‬
“The most Beautiful Names belong to Allāh: so call on Him
by them [...]” (Q. 7: 180).

In fact when Allāh is praising Himself, in the abbreviated
forms as stipulated in many chapters of the Qur’ān, including
Sūrah Maryam, al-Baqarah, al-Kahf and others, Nīsābūrī
(d.728) in his Gharā’ibu al-Qur’ān wa Raghā’ibu al-Furqān says
that this aspect proves the Tawḥīdic dimension of the Qur’ān.
Nīsābūrī also relates that Allāh’s attribute is of al-Istighnā’, i.e.,
The Supreme and in no need of any, and all others are totally in

22 Ibid., p. xxx
23 These potentials are in consonant with the following verses of the Qur’ān,
when Allāh S.W.T. “breathed unto him of My Spirit”, namely sūrah al-Ḥijr,
verse 29 and sūrah Ṣād, verse 72.
24Shaykh Muhammad ‘Uthman El-Muhammady. Lecture Note, ISTAC. 28th
October 2011.

281

need of Him.25 He is not subject to any addition or subtraction.
It entails the denial of any multiplicity and resemblance of His
Essence on the servants. Some scholars elaborate that the
articulation of the Oneness of Allāh, can be made through five
dimensional avenues with which Tawḥīd exists. Namely, they
are:

i. Within the clear utterance made by the tongue (qawl al-
lisān);

ii. The utterance of the heart (qawl al-qalb);
iii. The practice of tongue (‘amal al-lisān);
iv. The practice of the heart (‘amal al-qalb); and
v. The practice of the body (‘amal al-jawāriḥ).26

Moreover, al-Qushayrī’s definition of al-Tawḥīd is
comprehensive in that it reflects the all-encompassing
relationship between God and His creatures.27 Al-Tawḥīd offers
humanity the way to realising the perfection of His Oneness,
denying any counterparts and purifying the understanding of
Him from any similarities.

25Al-Qāsȋ al-Nīsābūrī, Gharāib al-Qur`ān wa Raghāib al-Furqān.
<http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=2&tTafsirNo=22&tSoraNo=1
9&tAyahNo=1&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1> (accessed on
12th Jan 2012).
26 Syamsul Bahri Andi Galigo, al-Madkhal ilā al-‘Aqīdah al-Islāmiyyah (Nilai:
Penerbit Usim, 2000), 32.
27Al-Qushayrī, Al-Qushayrī’s Epistle on Sufism…, pp.306-308.

282

The various dimensional approach of Tawḥīdic
intellectuality revealed in the Qur’ān is also discussed by Fazlur
Rahman in his The Qur’ānic Foundations and Structure of
Muslim Society. Rahman explains the existence of God in
relation to the Cosmos. According to the Qur’ān, God is Eternal
and Absolute while the cosmos is relative. Yet, the cosmos is
originated by the Will of the Absolute and sustained by Him.
This reveals the philosophical doctrine of the ahl sunnah wa al-
jamā‘ah, that “the relative has no independent existence of its
own and the Absolute neither excludes nor includes the
relative.”28 This idea also affirms the compatibility between
revelation and the faculty of reason possessed by human
beings. Rahman asserts that God proclaims the basic Truth
about Him in His Revelation and invites His vicegerents to
experience the truth through their observations. Human senses
and reason, though limited in ability, are capable of
corresponding with the Revealed Truth. Therefore, Rahman
affirms that “true religion and true scientific approach to Truth
stand in the relation of unity.”29 Another important idea
examined by Fazlur Rahman is on the holistic unity of the
human personality, in that man as a unitary being, with the soul
(nafs), the mind (‘aql, qalb), the body (jasad) and the spirit
(rūḥ) forming an integrated organic whole. This notion also
develops into the Qur’ānic ideal of integration, that human

28 M. Fazlur Rahmān, The Qur’ānic Foundations…, 160.
29 Ibid., 162.

283

personality comprising the physical body, the moral, the
affectional, the rational, the spiritual and the social needs
sustained purification and development in order to achieve the
ultimate felicity (al-falāḥ) and bliss (al-sa‘ādah).

The most important impact of believing with the
Tawḥīdic intellectuality is the realisation of God’s plan for
human beings in this world. He has created human beings as
the vicegerent on earth, endowed them with physical, rational,
emotional and spiritual faculties and created a world that
enables them to achieve this purpose in life. In fact, the
spiritual condition of the ummah will determine the human
“saving change” for the ultimate purpose in this life30. It is
fitting to reflect at this point that Allāh S.W.T. will not alter the
conditions of the ummah unless they are fit to be the recipients
of His Mercy:

‫لَه م َع ِقهبَا ٌت ِهمن بَ ْي ِن َيدَ ْي ِه َو ِم ْن َخ ْل ِف ِه يَ ْح َفظونَه ِم ْن أَ ْم ِر ّل هلاِ إِ َّن ّل هلاَ لاَ ي َغيِهر َما بِقَ ْوم‬
‫َحتَّى يغَيِهرواْ َما بِأَ ْنف ِس ِه ْم َو ِإذَا أَ َرادَ ّل هلا بِ َق ْوم سوءا فَلاَ َم َردَّ لَه َو َما لَهم ِهمن دونِ ِه‬

‫ِمن َوال ۝‬
“For each (such person) there are (angels) in succession,
before and behind him: They guard him by command of
Allāh. Verily never will Allāh change the condition of a
people until they change it themselves (with their own
souls). But when (once) Allāh willeth a people's

30 Shaykh Muhammad ‘Uthman El-Muhammady. Lecture Note, ISTAC, 28th
October 2011.

284

punishment, there can be no turning it back, nor will they
find, besides Him, any to protect” (Q. 13: 11).

The idea of this saving change illustrated in the Qur’ān has
been providing man with the stable and fundamental meaning
that he is created neither in vain nor for amusement. Allāh
S.W.T. has unceasingly testified to this with what He says in the
Qur’ān,;

‫أَفَ َح ِس ْبت ْم أَنَّ َما َخلَ ْق َناك ْم َعبَثا َوأَنَّك ْم إِ َل ْينَا َلا ت ْر َجعو َن ۝‬
"Did ye then think that We had created you in jest, and
that ye would not be brought back to Us (for account)?"
(Q. 23:115).

‫فَأَقِ ْم َو ْج َه َك ِلل ِدهي ِن َحنِيفا فِ ْط َرةَ ّل َّلاِ الَّتِي َف َط َر النَّا َس َعلَ ْي َها َلا تَ ْب ِدي َل ِل َخ ْل ِق ّل َّلاِ ذَ ِل َك‬
‫ال ِدهين ا ْلقَيِهم َو َل ِك َّن أَ ْكثَ َر النَّا ِس َلا َي ْع َلمو َن ۝‬

“So set thou thy face steadily and truly to the Faith:
(establish) Allāh's handiwork according to the pattern on
which He has made mankind: no change (let there be) in
the work (wrought) by Allāh; that is the standard
Religion, but most among mankind understand not” (Q.
30:30).

4. THE CONTEMPORARY WESTERN THOUGHT

The dominance of Western thought has brought humanity
through more than three centuries of tumults into
contemporary ideas of postmodernism. People are moving
toward the direction of what Shaykh Uthman describes as “a

285

mode of constant flickering presence and absence”, which
neither has neither validity in knowledge nor stability in
meaning.31 Life, as contemporary ideas perceive and define, has
brought human beings towards having no stable end. This is
portrayed in the argument put forth by Osman Bakar,

Postmodernism designates a multitude of philosophical
beliefs, intellectual currents, and socio-political
ideologies in the West that are united in only one thing
i.e. opposition to most of the perspectives of
modernism… ironically, it is progress in scientific
knowledge that [has brought] the era of modernism to an
end: the scientific worldview of modernism [thus] has
been shattered.32

Post modernists read the essence in human nature as fruitless
and meaningless, since “God is dead” - a famous promulgation
written by a pessimistic man, Nietzsche. Nietzsche, however,
found a future in the hand of “superman”.33 By this, Nietzsche

31 Muhammad ‘Uthman El-Muhammady, “Some Aspects of Post-Modernism-
An Examination in the Light of Islamic Mainstream Discourse, Paper
presented at the International Conference of Islamic Thought, Post
Modernism-Reconsideration in Islamic Thought, 18-20th Oct 2011, ISTAC.
32 Osman Bakar, (2011, October) Articulating a Critical Response to
Postmodernism with the Help of Islamic Epistemology. Paper presented at
International Conference on Islamic Thought after Post-Modernism organized
by ISTAC, Kuala Lumpur.
33 Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) a German philosopher, who believes on
the ideas of heroic superman or overman who can bring real solution

286

insists, “a declaration of war on the masses by higher man is
needed.”34 The view of many Nietzschians is, since religion can
only bring sick souls to human beings, therefore God and
Christian morality are deceased. Religion and faith are
traditional and only relevant for a feudalistic society, which has
no place in a so-called “modern world”. Further, Nietzsche
ridiculed the vision of progress through science, condemning
Christian morality and the essential goodness in man. The
“death” of God and all metaphysical truths mean only one
thing—the “liberation” of man. His ideas have further raised
much controversy in the world, where nothing is true and that
all is permitted, as and according to their respective definition,
understanding and “belief”.35

Post modernists reject the “grand narratives” or “meta
narratives” of truth. This idea finds no objectivity in knowledge,
since the bases of good and evil no longer hold any particular
importance. To them, knowledge, which is “produced by and

particularly those who adhere to the irrational side of human nature in the
modern European soul. This is also parallel with his idea cultivated to triumph
the glorification of a higher race – members of a master race who seek to
conquer the world according to their own values. Marvin Perry, et al.,
Western Civilization: Ideas, politics and Society (New York: Houghton Mifflin
Company, 2000).
34 Marvin Perry, Western Civilization…, pp. 697-699.
35 Shaykh Muhammad ‘Uthman El-Muhammady, “Some Aspects of Post-
Modernism-…

287

for a mere social imagination”36, is guarded by society and men
and are then controlled by this “feeble system”. In annihilation
of this “feeble system”, post-modernist ideas have gone to the
extent of total destruction of the self-image of man, his reason,
his senses and his ability to accurately decode communicative
and linguistic symbols. Whereas in the Qur’ānic perspective,
the use of language is applied at the most profound objective
level through knowing, becoming, being and doing in the
essence of Truth, enabling man to attain salvation with the
eternal blessedness, the post-modernists are lost in perpetual
subjective relativity. The Qur’ānic construction of humanity can
be further understood from the meaning of Īmān in Islam:

‫الإيمان معرفة بالقلب والقول باللسان والعمل باْلركان‬
Īmān is to arrive at the meaning of belief in the heart, and
to profess with the tongue, and to put the belief into
action.37

The use of the “sacred” language (as in the utterances which
are prescribed by Allāh in the Qur’ān and taught by the Prophet
Muḥammad (ṣ.‘a.w) is essential for the sake of praising Allāh
S.W.T. – Subḥāna’Llāh, acknowledging all bounties as His – al-

36 Ibid.
37 Ḥadīth narrated by Ibn Mājah.

288

Ḥamduli’Llāh and affirming that exaltation is for Allāh – Allāh-u
Akbar, but not limited to these exhortations alone. The Qur’ānic
objective empowers the Ᾱdamic man with a stable origin, the
ability to make choices based on wisdom and certitude and not
fall victim to his own subjective greed and uncontrolled
appetites38.

The notion of religion in the Western tradition weighs
correspondingly with witchcraft, myths and legends – one of
the very premises that has formed post modernist notions and
perceptions. This, however, is a great tarnish on religion in
general. Religion in the view of the Qur’ān sits on al-Tawḥīd,
which is the clear, firm, valid and sound basis and emphasises
the way of the straight path. The pervading idea of Tawḥīd
establishes Islam as the one and only religion – al-Dīn al-Islam.
The Qur’ān specifically affirms that there is only one upright
way (religion), a path leading to the eternal life of blessedness,
i.e., al-ḥayāt al-abadiyyah.39

The Holy Qur’ān also affirms the continuity of the human
nature in that man is able to connect to events that happened
earlier in history and derive lessons and wisdom from them.
The Qur’ān teaches the human being of his nature or ‘ibrah in
Arabic, which has significant importance on human history –

38 Shaykh Muhammad ‘Uthman El-Muhammady. Lecture Note, ISTAC. 28th
October 2011.
39 Q. 30: 30.

289

that it gives the spiritual and moral essence and meaning to
human behaviour. Hence, creation in the Qur’ān is not only
about material things, but also symbols of truth in history and
in the patterns of human behaviour. Essentially, it serves as the
“value yielding function of historical narratives and stories”40.
In other words, the Qur’ān communicates the fact that Allāh’s
creations in nature as bearing a weighty purpose and meaning
and that which bear sacred tools or Signs for spiritual
education for the Ᾱdamic man, providing instructions in terms
of morality, virtues and the straight path. As Allāh S.W.T. always
reminds humanity,

ِ‫َوذَ ِهك ْره ْم ِبأَيَّا ِم ّل هلا‬
“and remind them of the days of Allāh…” (Q. 14:5);

lessons on how Allāh S.W.T. deals with people, those who
obeyed the laws and those who opposed it. 41

The above is in fundamental contradiction with the
vision forwarded by Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), the father of
Western psychology. To Freud, civilization imposes great
sacrifices on human sexuality and his aggressiveness. “Man is
wolf to man” is among his famous adage, further emphasizing
the inapplicability of religion and the total denunciation of the

40 Shaykh Muhammad ‘Uthman El-Muhammady. Lecture Note, ISTAC. 28th
October 2011.
41 Q. 14:5.

290

Ultimate Reality as fashionably perceived in much of the world
today42. Freud states;

It seems not to be true that there is a Power in the
universe which watches over the well-being of every
individual with parental care, bringing all within His fold
to a happy ending. […] the concept of divine justice,
which according to religion rules the world, seems to
have no existence. […] Religion is only a childish illusion
deriving its strength from the fact that it happens to fall
in our instinctual desires.43

In a nutshell, religion, under Western agnostic precepts,
has deteriorated to the extent that it is viewed as that which
can only bring harm, with no positive fundamental impact on
humans, be it in philosophy, cosmology, ontology or the world
of epistemology. Religion has only served some “immature”
people the purpose of giving surrogate meaning to their life.
Thus, religion is a mere illusion or a human creation – “a
product of people’s imagination and feelings and a consolation
for the oppressed”.44

42Marvin Perry, et al., Western Civilization, p.598.
43 Quoted from Nik Mustafa, “It All Begins at Home”, Syed Othman alHabshi,
Islamic Management for Excellence (Kuala Lumpur: INMIND, 1998), 7-8.
44 Karl Marx, a strict materialism who is of the view that religion has no
validity in human lives and therefore man has to be freed from accumulated
superstition, ignorance and prejudices. Cited in Marvin Perry, et al., Western
Civilization:…, 597-598

291

On the contrary, in Islam religion provides man with the
essential meanings and values. This positive outlook of religion
in Islam teaches man that the human mind comprehends well
with the spiritual quality of human beings. The Qur’ān has
repeatedly rendered on the essence of the “contemplative
maturity of human minds”45: “afalā ta‘qilūn, afalā tatafakkarūn
– do ye not use you mind, do ye not think?”. The Prophetic
wisdom of “Lā dīn liman lā ‘aqla lahu – No religion, for those
who possess no intelligence” reminds us closely of the intimate
relation between religion and the intellect.

Western agnostic thoughts perceive nothing of value
with Revelation, what more with the quality of minds and
maturity with certainty of knowledge from Divine Revelation.
Shaykh Uthman describes this agnosticism as the “intellectual
quick sand” or “the intellectual desert”, which at the end causes
man to be trembling upon his own life and his nature of being.
Allāh S.W.T. reminds that reason must be responsive towards
virtue, goodness and spiritual beauty for a life that is blessed
and full of bliss. This would motivate towards the highest and
ultimate end of being human, which is experiencing the bliss
and happiness of being in close proximity with the presence of
Allāh (Wajhu Allāh) in paradise – the utmost satisfaction – a

45Shaykh Muhammad ‘Uthman El-Muhammady. Lecture Note, ISTAC. 28th
October 2011.

292

fulfilment that no eyes have ever seen nor ears have ever
heard.

The fundamental values derived from the Tawḥīdic
intellectuality of the Qur’ān, are objective and unchanged, since
they are from the stable essences of the Divine Attributes,
Names and Values. Since the Divine Attributes are permanent
and unchanging, values as humanity perceives should also
follow suit. Syed Muhammad Naqib al-Attas sums up the
meaning of human nature (al-ṭābī‘ah), enabling man to control
and govern “his self and his rational soul” as such:

Man thus equipped and fortified is meant to be the
vicegerent (khalīfah) of God on earth, and as such the
weighty burden of trust (amānah) is placed upon him –
the trust and responsibility to rule according to God’s will
and purpose and His pleasure. The trust implies
responsibility to rule with justice and the ‘rule’ means
not simply ruling in the socio-political sense but
fundamentally in its encompassing of the meaning of
nature (al-ṭābī‘ah), it means the ruling, governing,
controlling and maintaining of man by his self or his
rational soul.46

46 Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas, The Nature of Man and the Psychology
of the Human Soul (Kuala Lumpur: ISTAC, 1990), 4

293

5. CONCLUSION

The Tawḥīdic intellectuality of the Qur’ān obliges one to submit
to the declaration of the uncompromising monotheism of Islam,
and to reject polytheism, i.e., shirk, as it brings disastrous
impact on one’s faith and belief. The Oneness of Allāh is verified
in the shahādatayn, the two proclamations of faith – that there
is none worthy of worship but Allāh, and that the Prophet
Muhammad (ṣ.‘a.w) is the Messenger of Allāh.

The socio-religious and intellectual culture of the Islamic
civilization essentially sows and cultivates the seeds of
Tawḥīdic intellectuality, which brings the role of Revelation, i.e.,
the Holy Qur’ān and that of Prophethood to their utmost
appreciation. The Message of the Qur’ān and the Prophetic
teachings (risālat Muḥammadiyyah) are so much intertwined
that the message of Islam could not have been perfected and
conveyed without them. This Tawḥīdic worldview recognizes
the Divine Wisdom, the various sciences or categories of
knowledge and intellectual sciences.

All of these knowledge is one and inseparable as they are
from The One Supreme Source, Allāh Al-‘Alīm, Subḥānahū wa
Ta‘ālā. Tawḥīdic intellectuality verifies the peaceful
collaboration of reason with Divine Revelation – that both
should complement each other. Reason, in the notion of al-
Tawḥīd has obvious limitations, hence the need for Divine

294

Guidance availed from the Qur’ān and exemplified by the
Sunnah of the Prophet (ṣ.‘a.w).

The relationship between Divine Revelation and reason
is a complementary one, as illustrated by al Fārūqī as follows:

Tawḥīd is that which gives Islamic civilization its identity,
which binds all its constituents together and thus makes
them an integral, organic body which we call civilization.
In binding disparate elements together, the essence of
civilization in this case –Tawḥīd- impresses them with its
own mold. It recasts them so as to harmonize with and
mutually support other elements. Without necessarily
changing their nature, the essence transforms the
elements making up a civilization, giving them their new
character as constitutive of that civilization.47

47 M. Tariq Quraishi, Ismail al Faruqi: An Enduring Legacy (USA Indiana: A
MSA Publication, 1987), 22-23

295

REFERENCES

Al-Attas, Syed Muhammad Naquib. (1990). The Nature of Man and the
Psychology of the Human Soul. Kuala Lumpur: ISTAC.

Al Fārūqī, Ismā‘īl Rājī. (1983). Al-Tawḥīd: Its Implications for Thought and
Life. Kuala Lumpur: International Islamic Federation of Students
Organization, 1983.

Al-Ḥasani, Aḥmad bin Muḥammad bin cAjȋbah. (2002). Awakenings of the
Inspirations: A Commentary of al-Hikām of Ibn cAtaullah. South
Africa: Awaiting Publication.

Al-Nīsāburī, Al-Qāsī. Gharā’ib al-Qur`ān wa Raghā’ib al-Furqān.
<http://www.altafsir.com/Tafasir.asp?tMadhNo=2&tTafsirNo=22&tSora

No=19&tAyahNo=1&tDisplay=yes&UserProfile=0&LanguageId=1>
(accessed on 12th Jan 2012)
al-Qushayrī, Abul Qāsim. Al-Qushayrī’s Epistle on Sufism. (2007).
Translated by Alexander D. Knysh. UK: The Centre for Muslim
Contribution to Civilization.
Andi Galigo, Syamsul Bahri. (2000). al-Madkhal ilā al-Aqīdah al-
Islamiyyah. Nilai: Penerbit Usim.
El-Muhammady, Muhmmad Uthman, Lecture Notes, ISTAC, 28th October
2011.
_______, “Some Aspects of Post-Modernism-An Examination in the Light of
Islamic Mainstream Discourse, Paper presented at the
International Conference of Islamic Thought, Post Modernism-
Reconsideration in Islamic Thought, 18-20th Oct 2011, ISTAC.
Fazlur Rahman, Muhammad. (2001). The Qur’ānic Foundations and
Structure of Muslim Society. Kuala Lumpur: Islamic Book Trust.
Nik Mustafa, “It All Begins at Home”, Syed Othman alHabshi. (1998).
Islamic Management for Excellence. Kuala Lumpur: INMIND.

296

Osman Bakar. (2011, October). Articulating a Critical Response to
Postmodernism with the Help of Islamic Epistemology. Paper
presented at International Conference on Islamic Thought After
Post-Modernism organized by ISTAC, Kuala Lumpur.

Quraishi, M. Tariq. (1987). Ismail al-Faruqi: An Enduring Legacy. USA
Indiana: A MSA Publication.

Perry, Marvin, et.al. (2000). Western Civilization: Ideas, politics and Society.
New York: Houghton Mifflin Company.

297

THE NATURE AND FUNDAMENTALS OF
THE QUR’ĀNIC SPIRITUAL ETHICS: INTELLECTUAL

AND SPIRITUAL LEGITIMACY VIS-À-VIS
MODERN ETHICAL THOUGHTS


Nur Jannah Hassan 1

1 Submitted for Islamic Spiritual Morality and Ethics. (Ed.)
298

1. INTRODUCTION

‫بِ ْس ِم ّل هلاِ ال َّر ْحمـَ ِن ال َّر ِحي ِم ۝ ا ْل َح ْمد ل هِلِ َر ه ِب ا ْلعَا َل ِمي َن ۝ ال َّر ْحمـ ِن ال َّر ِحي ِم ۝‬
‫َمـا ِل ِك يَ ْو ِم ال ِدهي ِن ۝ ِإيَّا َك نَ ْعبد وإِيَّا َك نَ ْستَ ِعين ۝ اه ِد َنــــا ال ِ هص َرا َط المستَ ِقي َم ۝‬

‫ِص َرا َط الَّ ِذي َن أَنعَم َت َعلَي ِه ْم َغي ِر ال َمغضو ِب َعلَي ِه ْم َولاَ ال َّضا ِلهي َن ۝‬
“In The Name of Allāh, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. Praise
be to Allāh, The Cherisher and Sustainer of the Worlds;
Most Gracious Most Merciful; Master of The Day of
Judgement. Thee do we worship and Thine aid we seek.
Show us the Straight Way, the way of those on whom Thou
hast bestowed Thy Grace, those whose (portion) is not
wrath, and who go not astray”2 (Q. al-Fātiḥah, 1:1-7).

These are the beautiful moving melody and graceful rhyme of
the verses of Sūrah al-Fātiḥah, the first chapter of the Qur’ān,
read no less than seventeen times each day by every faithful
Muslim. Through these, we are constantly reminded of Allāh
Subḥānahū wa Ta‘ālā (S.W.T.) and His illustration of the psyche
of those imbued with the spiritual ethics of His Revealed
Words, the Qur’ān. Upon internalising His Absolute and Utmost
Grace, Mercy and Dominion over the whole universe of
creations, the servant on the path of ethical spirituality bows
down in humility, worship and servitude, asking for guidance
and help from The Almighty alone—for none other is worthy of
such fidelity and veneration but He. Yūsuf ‘Alī explains that the

2 ‘Abdullah Yūsuf ‘Ali, The Holy Qur’ān, Text, Translation and Commentary
(Brentwood, Maryland, USA: Amana Cooperation, 1992), 14-15.

299

plural ‘we’ in “‫“( ” ِإيَّا َك نَ ْعبد وإِيَّا َك نَ ْستَ ِعين‬Thee do we worship and
Thine aid we seek”) indicates that we associate ourselves with
all (in the realm of creations) who seek Allāh S.W.T., thus
“strengthening ourselves and strengthening them in a
community and fellowship of faith”3.

This Sūrah thus signifies the nature of our spiritual
commune with Allāh S.W.T. The Lord Almighty, intimately
personal, and at the same time it binds and congregates all of
humankind, in fact all creations, through the “fellowship of
faith” and submission to The Creator, The One and Only – a
sanctified unity, an ethos that transcends time, dimension and
space. This is indeed crucial and necessary for the human is
assigned on earth in his physical form, whereupon he is tested.
It is easy for one to be led astray by the glitter and attractions
of worldly inclinations and base desires where right is most
often viewed as wrong and vice as virtuous. Thus, the internal
compass of those along the path of spiritual ethics turns to
Allāh S.W.T for His Guidance to be in the light of His Grace, and
not to grapple in darkness, confusion and futility. This is the
spiritual ethics that disciplines humankind in his worldly
journey to meet The Lord and Master of the Day of Reckoning
so that his life is blessed and his end is met with the eternal
bliss of al-falāḥ.

3 Ibid.

300

What are the things that may lead humans astray? They
come in myriad forms and guises. Despite the glut of their
appearances and façades, the fundamental premise that
rationalises and gives credence (albeit falsely) to their abidance
and subscription is none other than the absolute freedom and
supremacy given to reason (and the ensuing fancy of egocentric
whims) over revelation, some of which manifest as modern
ethical thoughts. These in turn give riots of colours to the folly
of modern and contemporary postmodern trends in education,
culture, politics, economy and civilisation. In order to be just to
the discussion, this paper will first give a brief description of a
few modern ethical thoughts before arguing for the intellectual
and spiritual legitimacy of the nature and fundamentals of
Qur’ānic spiritual ethics against them. The arguments will be
anchored primarily on the verses of the Qur’ān – the principal
reference in Islam – which touch upon the nature of earthly life,
guidance and error, the nature of humankind, the purpose of
creation, the Primordial Covenant and deliverance, moral and
ethics, the Prophetic example and the basis for developing
spiritual ethics.

2. MODERN ETHICAL THOUGHTS

The undergraduate course module for “Modern Philosophy I –
Ethical Thoughts” offered in 2011 at Newcastle University,
United Kingdom states that in the modern era, ethical theories
were generally divided between the consequentialist theories

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of utilitarian philosophers such as Jeremy Bentham (1748-
1832) and John Stuart Mill (1806-1873), and deontological
ethics as epitomized by the work of Immanuel Kant (1724-
1804). This is also the era associated with the origin of
pragmatic ethics, especially in the work of John Dewey (1859-
1952) as well as the ethical thoughts expounded by Georg
Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831)4. This paper will provide
brief descriptions to these ideas.

2.1 Consequentialism

Consequentialism refers to the moral theories that hold that
the consequences of a particular action form the basis or creates
a structure for any valid moral judgment about that action.
Thus, from a consequentialist (such as Bentham and Mill)
standpoint, a morally right action is one that produces a good
outcome or consequence. The defining feature of such moral
theories is the weight given to the consequences in evaluating
the rightness and wrongness of actions with the consequences
of an action or rule outweighing other considerations5.

4 Newcastle University Undergraduate Study, “PHI2003 : Modern Philosophy
I: Ethical Thought”, (Year: 2011), Module Leader: Dr David Rose, Owning
School: Chemical Eng. & Advanced Materials,
<http://www.ncl.ac.uk/undergraduate/modules/module/PHI2003/>
(accessed Dec. 30th, 2011).
5 J. L. Mackie, Ethics: Inventing Right and Wrong (London: Penguin, 1990),
149-150.

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The questions that consequentialists often ask, for
example, “What sort of consequences count as good
consequences?”, “Who is the primary beneficiary of moral
action?” or “How are the consequences judged and who judges
them?”6 all boil down to the “ends justifying the means”7. Then
there are concerns of which consequences, depending on which
thought – whether hedonistic, eudaimonic or aesthetic – count
as good. However, whether a particular consequentialist theory
focuses on a good or another, single or many, conflicts and
tensions between different states arise because of
consequentialism’s position of the ends justify the means8.

2.2 Deontology

Deontological ethics determines goodness or rightness from
examining acts or the intentions of the person doing the act, as
it adheres to rules and duties.9 An act may be considered right

6 Ibid.
7 Stephen Darwall (Ed.), Blackwell Readings in Philosophy: Consequentialism
(Oxford, UK & Berlin, Germany: Blackwell Publishing, 2003), 9-66.
8 Hedonistic utilitarianism - a good action is one that results in an increase in
pleasure, and the best action is one that results in the most pleasure for
the greatest number.
Eudaimonic consequentialism - a full, flourishing life, which may or may not
be the same as enjoying a great deal of pleasure, is the ultimate aim.
Aesthetic consequentialism - the ultimate aim is to produce beauty.
Ibid.
9 Larry Alexander, and Michael Moore, "Deontological Ethics", The Stanford
Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Fall 2008 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.),

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even if the act produces a bad consequence10, that is, if it
follows the rule that “one should do unto others as they would
have done unto them”11, thus even if the person who does the
act lacks virtue and had a bad intention in doing the act. For
deontologists, the ends or consequences of our actions are not
important in and of themselves, and our intentions are not
important in and of themselves.

Kant argues that to act in the morally right way, people
must act from a sense of duty, that it was not the consequences
of actions that make them right or wrong, but the motives of
the person who carries out the action. Kant's contention begins
with an argument that the highest good must be both good in
itself, i.e., when it is intrinsically good, and good without
qualification, i.e., when the addition of that thing never makes a
situation ethically worse12. Kant then argues that those things
that are usually thought to be good, such as intelligence,
perseverance and pleasure, fail to be intrinsically either good
or good without qualification; when for example, taking

<plato.stanford.edu/entries/ethics-deontological/> (accessed Dec. 31st,
2011).
10 Olson, Robert G. “Deontological Ethics”. In Paul Edwards (ed.) The
Encyclopedia of Philosophy (London: Collier Macmillan, 1967), 343.
11 Larry Alexander, and Michael Moore, "Deontological Ethics".
12 Immanuel Kant, “Preface”, in The Metaphysical Elements of Ethics, first
published in 1780, translated by T. K. Abbott, eBooks@Adelaide, South
Australia: The University of Adelaide Library, 2009), 2-8.

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pleasure in watching someone suffering makes the situation
ethically worse. He concludes that there is only one thing that is
truly good – both intrinsically and without qualification – a
good will.13

2.3 Pragmatic Ethics
Associated with the pragmatists, especially John Dewey,
pragmatic ethics holds that moral correctness evolves similarly
to scientific knowledge: socially over the course of many
lifetimes. Much as it is appropriate for scientists to treat their
discoveries as ‘truth’ at a practical level, ethical pragmatists
acknowledge that it can be appropriate to practice a variety of
other common normative approaches (e.g. consequentialism
and deontological ethics), whilst admitting the practical need
for mechanisms that allow society to advance beyond such
approaches, thus, it promises a freedom for discourse that does
not take any such a theory as assumed. It enables "moral
leadership" to raise the rest of their community to levels of
morality, which would not be attained purely through the
practice of an already existing moral criteria, through

13 Immanuel Kant, Fundamental Principles of the Metaphysic of Morals,
translated by T. K. Abbott, eBooks@Adelaide, South Australia: The University
of Adelaide Library, 2009).

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mechanisms such as, for example, legal protections for freedom
of speech, thus effecting in social reform14.

Pragmatic ethics differs theoretically from other
normative approaches in such a way that it, first, focuses on
society, rather than on lone individuals, as the entity which
achieves morality.15 It claims that society (not just individuals)
advances morally, that dissent from people stirs reform, and
that such dissent therefore should be protected as morally
valuable. In this case, other normative approaches are ‘true’ in
the pragmatic sense that they are tools, which moral leaders
can use to guide or manipulate others into advancing society as
a whole16. Second, it does not hold any known moral criteria as
that beyond potential for revision. Pragmatic ethicists maintain
that their endeavour is objective on the ground that it
converges towards something objective17. Lastly, it allows that
a moral judgment may be appropriate in one age of a given
society, but will cease to be appropriate after that society
progresses (or may already be inappropriate in another
society)18. In this way, Pragmatic ethics may be viewed as

14 Hugh Lafollette, ed. The Blackwell Guide to Ethical Theory. Blackwell
Philosophy Guides (Wiley-Blackwell: n. p., 1st ed., 2000), 400-419.
15 Ibid.
16 John Dewey, Human Nature and Conduct (New York: Henry Holt and
Company, 1922), 89-168.
17 Hugh Lafollette, ed. The Blackwell Guide to Ethical Theory.
18 Ibid.

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practising relativism, and uses the mechanism of pluralism for
its purpose.

2.4 Hegelianism

Hegelianism is a collective term for schools of thought
following or referring to G. W. F. Hegel's philosophy which can
be summed up by the dictum that the rational alone is real,
which means that all reality is capable of being expressed in
rational categories. His goal was to reduce reality to a more
synthetic unity within the system of transcendental idealism—
the Mind—described by Hegel through his Philosophy of
Nature. To Hegel, the Mind is the goal of nature and the truth of
nature19. For whatever is in nature is realized in a higher form
in the mind, which emerges from nature. To the Hegelian
Philosophy of Mind, the essence of the Mind is freedom, and its
development must consist in breaking away from the
restrictions imposed on it by nature and human institutions20.

The State, according to Hegel’s Philosophy of History, is
Mind objectified. The individual mind, which, on account of its
passions, its prejudices, and its blind impulses – is only partly
free, subjecting itself to the yoke of necessity, which is the
opposite of freedom, in order to attain a fuller realization of

19 Allen W. Wood, Hegel’s Ethical Thought (Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press, 1990).
20 Ibid.

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itself in the freedom of the citizen. This yoke of necessity is first
met with (i) in the recognition of the rights of others, next (ii)
in morality, and finally (iii) in social morality, of which the
primal institution is the family. The State is the perfect social
embodiment of the idea, and in relation to other States, it
develops international law, and in its general course through
historical vicissitudes, it passes through what Hegel calls the
"Dialectics of History". The ground of historical development is
rational, since the State is the embodiment of reason as its
spirit. Historical happenings are to be understood as the stern
yet reluctant working of reason towards the full realization of
itself in perfect freedom.

In consequence, Hegelians’ widest view of history
consists of three most important stages of development:
Oriental imperial (the stage of oneness, of suppression of
freedom), Greek social democracy (the stage of expansion, in
which freedom was lost in unstable demagogy), and Christian
constitutional monarchy (which represents the reintegration of
freedom in the constitutional government)21. Even in the State,
the mind is limited by subjection to other minds. Thus, Hegel’s
Philosophy of the Absolute Mind sees the final step in the
process of the acquisition of freedom in art, religion, and
philosophy, where the absolute mind subjects itself to itself
alone. In art, the mind has the intuitive contemplation of itself

21 Wood, 1990: 26-37.

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as realized in the art material – the actualization of mind or the
idea. In religion, the mind feels the superiority of itself to the
particularizing limitations of finite things.

Here, as in the philosophy of history, there are three
great moments, Oriental religion, which exaggerated the idea of
the infinite, Greek religion, which gave undue importance to the
finite, and Christianity, which represents the union of the
infinite and the finite. Last of all, the absolute mind, as
philosophy, transcends the limitations imposed on it even in
religious feeling, and, discarding representative intuition,
attains all truth under the form of reason. Whatever truth there
is in art and in religion is contained in philosophy, in a higher
form, and free from all limitations. Philosophy is, therefore,
“the highest, freest and wisest phase of the union of the
subjective and objective mind and the ultimate goal of all
development”22.

2.5 Modern Ethics, Science and Secularism

The discussion above studies in brief the fundamentals of four
Western modern ethical thoughts, which developed between
the mid-18th to the mid-20th centuries. The essences of these
thoughts are in short:

(i) Bentham and Mill’s utilitarian consequentialism argues
that the question of good or bad harbours on the

22 Ibid.: 36-50.

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consequence of an action, i.e. the end (consequence)
justifies the means.
(ii) Kant’s deontological ethics contends that the measure
of good and bad revolves around motive or intention,
i.e., a good will regardless of the consequence.
(iii) Dewey’s pragmatic ethics maintains that moral
correctness is historical, evolving (much like science)
on utility. The pragmatic stance means that it may be
practising relativism with application of pluralism for
its utilitarian purpose.
(iv) Hegelian ethical philosophy claims supremacy of the
mind, whose essence is freedom, and argues that first,
the mind is the goal of nature and second, the mind is
the spirit of the state, the highest form of organization.
To a Hegelianist, the rational alone is real. Hegel’s
thoughts portray Euro-Christian centric view in that in
all the different areas of development of the mind (and
thus of freedom), he insists that the Oriental being the
lowest level, develops in sophistication to the Greek and
next to Christianity, before proceeding to philosophy.
The ‘absolute mind’ is the final step of freedom in which
art develops in sophistication to religion and finally to
philosophy – the highest level of mind and freedom.

One salient feature that all these Modern theories share is – the
absolute freedom, ascendancy and superiority of the human

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reason above revelation. This case of the Western modern
period is precisely a mutiny brought about by the contentions
and conflicts between ‘the objective truth’ discovered by
science, and ‘the categorical truth’ prescribed by the church
which saw many prosecutions, indictments and murders of
modern scientific figures and proponents. To the modernists,
truth is objective only when proven empirically by modern
scientific epistemology and methodology, thus removing
humankind from the metaphysical and spiritual realities. This
later accumulates to what George Holyoake (1817-1906)
introduced in 187123, and defined further in 189624, as
secularism.

Secularist ethics is founded upon the principles of a
purely naturalistic morality that is independent of revealed
religion. It is a view of life that limits itself not to the material
exclusion of the spiritual, but to the human here and now in
exclusion of humankind’s relation to God here and hereafter.25
Secularism may be understood in lay terminology to mean that
God and spirituality is left to the domain of personal private

23 G. Jacob Holyoake, The Principles of Secularism (London: Austin & Co,
1871); ebook#36797, (Project Gutenberg Ebook, 2011).
24 G. Jacob Holyoake, Origin and Nature of Secularism; Showing That Where
Freethought Commonly Ends Secularism Begins (London: Watts, 1896);
(Current publisher: Rarebooksclub.com., 2012)
25 T. F. Mcmahon, “Secularism” in The New Catholic Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition,
Vol. 12, (The Catholic University of American Press: Sept 2002), 863-864.

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space, with or without the inclusion of atheistic inclinations.
Essentially, it excludes or even rejects the All-Encompassing
Divinity and Supremacy of God (though not necessarily
rejecting God), reducing the concept as a historical product of
the human mind. As such, it robs humans of their holistic
nature, from their intimate and innate connection with God and
puts human reason and science on the ‘all-encompassing
absolute, objective pedestal’ replacing God and His Revelations.

The human reason and science are taken as the ‘pseudo-
quasi-neo gods’ of this cult of modernism. Bereft, deprived, and
with the guise of liberation, humanity is left at the device of
unguided intellect. Without Divine Direction and valid spiritual
guidance from God the Supreme and Absolute, the mind is most
often clouded and corrupt, grappling in the ever-proliferating
darkness of convoluted jargons of the confused minds. As a
result, we see rapid general dissolutions of human values – the
crises of humanity, at the base of relentless predicaments of
Western thoughts, culture and economy, cultural and political
imperialism, chronic environmental degradations and acute
climate change – all on a frightening and disastrous global scale
due to human tampering with nature and disregard of its
wholeness.

‫َظ َه َر ا ْلفَ َساد ِفي ا ْلبَ ِهر َوا ْلبَ ْح ِر بِ َما َك َسبَ ْت أَ ْي ِدي النَّا ِس ِلي ِذيقَهم َب ْع َض الَّ ِذي َع ِملوا‬
‫لَعَلَّه ْم يَ ْر ِجعو َن ۝‬

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“Mischief has appeared on land and sea as an outcome of
what men’s hands have wrought: and so He will let them
taste (the evil of) some of their doings, so that they might
return (to the right path)” (Q. al-Rūm, 30:41).

On the contrary, the Qur’ānic spiritual code of ethics forms the
overarching principle that guarantees the proliferation of
harmony, positive and holistic human developments and
endeavours, civility, advancement, sustainability and
conservation of the environment and the sustainability of the
human life here and hereafter.

3. THE NATURE AND FUNDAMENTALS OF QUR’ĀNIC
SPIRITUAL ETHICS: THEIR INTELLECTUAL AND
SPIRITUAL LEGITIMACY

3.1 Earthly Life, Error and Guidance

The earth is where humankind is assigned in his physical life, a
bridge to the everlasting life of the hereafter. It is on earth that
he is tested. The glut of uncertainties – which, is to be
considered good, which evil as portrayed by the book title
Ethics: Inventing Right and Wrong26, is inevitable in the world
whose ethics is defined by the misguided intellect of the
modernists and (post-)post-modernists. Can reason
legitimately invent right and wrong? Will the criteria of the
invented right and wrong be valid and relevant? Whose reason

26 Mackie, 1990.

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shall be considered as rightful? Then again, on whose authority
can rightful be judged not false? What more can be expected of
these thoughts: the consequentialist’s “the end justifying the
means”; the deontologist’s “criteria of a good will regardless”;
the pragmatic ethicist’s “evolution of moral correctness”; or the
Hegelian notion of “the rational alone is real”? Whose
definition of good, which authority may decide what is amoral,
how to discern right from wrong, whose criteria? The
philosophy of each school of ethical thought has argued back
and forth unremittingly since more than 300 years ago, but
what a futile exercise! Humankind’s freedom to decide and the
realm of his reason is limited – what more if it denies direction
from uncorrupted Divine Revelation and Guidance from God
The All Knowing, The Omniscient!

Yūsuf ‘Alī in his commentary on al-Fātih̦ ah states:

…the Straight Way is often the narrow way, or the steep
way, which many people shun. By the world’s perversity
the Straight Way is sometimes stigmatised and the
crooked way praised. How are we to judge? We must ask
Allāh’s guidance. With a little spiritual insight we shall
see [who], are the people who walk in the light of Allāh’s
Grace, and [who] are those that walk in the darkness of
Wrath.27

27 ‘Abdullah Yūsuf ‘Alī, The Holy Qur’ān, 1992: 15.

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