ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Sociology of the Quran Part 3 : Is Man Social By Nature? The problem regarding the factors responsible for the emergence of social life in human beings, has-been raised from the ancient times. Is man born with the instinct of gregariousness, i.e.

whether he was naturally created as a part of a whole, with an urge in his nature to be united with the whole; or if he was not created as a gregarious being, but external compulsions and determinism imposed upon him a collective life? In other words, is he by nature inclined to live freely, and is disposed not to accept any kind of obligations and restrictions which have been imposed upon him, although they may be essential for social life?

Has he in fact learnt from experience that no one is able to continue one's life in isolation, and so he has been forced to surrender to limitations imposed by social life? Or, although he is not gregarious by nature, the factor that persuaded him to accept social existence was not compulsion, or at least compulsion had not been the sole factor?

Or, was it by the ruling of his reason and through his faculty of calculation that he arrived at the conclusion that only through co­operation and social life could he better enjoy the gifts of nature, and, therefore, he chose to live in company with other human beings? Accordingly, the problem can be posed in three ways: (i) Man is social by nature; (ii) he is social by compulsion; (iii) he is social by his own choice.

According to the first theory, man's social life is similar to the partnership of a man and a woman in married life; each of the partners was created as a part of a whole, and, by nature, yearns to be united with the whole. According to the second theory, social life is like co­operation, such as a pact between two countries which are singly unable to defend themselves against a common enemy, and are forced to work out an agreement of co-operation and collaboration.

According to the third theory, social life is similar to the partnership of two capitalists, which gives rise to a commercial, agricultural or industrial company aiming at attainment of greater profits. On the basis of the first theory, the main factor is inherent in man's own nature itself. On the basis of the second theory, it is some­thing external to man's essence and independent of it.

And according to the third theory, the main factor responsible for social life is man's intellectual and calculating faculty.