ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Science and the Muslim Ummah Necessity of Learning Other Sciences There is no division of opinion on the necessity of acquiring know­ledge particular to religious studies. Accordingly, we shall abstain from any further discussion of the subject.24 Instead, it is worthwhile to con­centrate on the question of necessity of learning other sciences in the view of the Qur’an and sunnah.

In this regard there are a number of argu­ments whose discussion we shall take up immediately. If knowledge of a science is a preliminary requirement for attaining an Islamic goal as envisaged by the Shari ah, its pursuit is an obligation (wajib) since it entails the preliminary condition for fulfill­ment of a duty prescribed by the Shariah. For example, the physical welfare of individuals in an Islamic society is necessary, hence it is a wajib kifa'i for the Muslims to study medicine.

Some are of the opinion that in this context the duty to learn any specific science depends on the need of the society for it. For example, in our day, in order to succeed in large‑scale agriculture or commerce, specialized knowledge of these subjects is necessary. Accordingly, it is a wajib kifa’i for Muslims to acquire specialty in these fields.

Evidently, if the Muslims restrict themselves to the religious sciences and limit themselves to a minimum of what is necessary for their survival, they can never hope to overtake the non‑Muslim world in its scientific progress.

(4:141) In order to realize this goal set by the Qur’an, it is essential that the Islamic society should have cultural, political and economic indepen­dence; this in turn necessitates training of specialists of high calibre in every field and creation of the necessary scientific and technical facili­ties in Islamic societies.

It is clear that one of the reasons of decline of Muslim societies in the recent centuries is that they left the study of those sciences to others which they themselves deserved to study most and made themselves dependent on others.