This is clearly stated in the Qur'an...

This is clearly stated in the Qur'an, so that sometimes it praises “certain knowledge” and encourages “firm action”, exhorting human beings to strengthen the bond between knowledge and action. At other times, it denounces ignorance, idleness and disunion between knowledge actions.3 The Qur'an thus attempts to provide grounds for correct action and accurate knowledge and a harmonious relation between the two which is the basis of the “rational life” of individual and society.

Thereby it seeks to safeguard humanity from falling into the abyss of ignorance, inertness and death, and to vitalize it. Furthermore, in order to make it easier for humanity to traverse this path and reach its sacred end, the prophets, as perfect human beings who had attained to “rational life” on the basis of the three principles mentioned, accepted the responsibility of guiding humanity towards realization of this ultimate goal.

Theoretical and Practical Knowledge The relationship between knowledge and action in the human being is such that all its actions are based on its knowledge, dictated by, it, and follow its leadership. However, not all of man's knowledge directly affects his actions. In fact, some of man's knowledge has a purely speculative and theoretical aspect, having no direct or clear cut in­fluence over his activities.

Whereas other aspects of his knowledge directly affect his actions and provide the plan and framework for them. Thus, the domain of human knowledge is wider in scope than, that of human action. In other words, knowledge is something unlimited, while action is something limited. That is why knowledge enjoys a stature completely denied to and out of reach of action.

The reason for this is that some of the things known by the mind transcend the `, arena of human life, and the human being plays no role in their realiza­tion. On the contrary, the human being owes its existence to some of these realities and is an “effect” of which they are the “cause”. Other things known to man, however, fall within the domain of his life, and their realization depends on his will and efforts, so that if man did not exist these things would also not exist.

It is, at this point that division of knowledge into “theoretical” or speculative” science and “practical” science ( al-hikmah al-nazariyyah and al-hikmah al-`amaliyyah) is established, and the influence and limits of human knowledge in each of these areas are studied.