ভূমিকা

Shiavault - a Vault of Shia Islamic Books Seal of the Prophets and His Message Lesson Fourteen: The Relationship of the Qur’an to Modern Science Part I The Qur’an deserves to be evaluated from different points of view. One topic for examination is the artistic and verbal beauty of the Qur’an and its style which is neither poetry nor prose.

It does not have the characteristics of poetry, which may be thought as giving free flight to the imagination and indulging in poetic exaggeration, and equally it does not exemplify conventional prose, for it is imbued with a distinctive rhythm and melody that are the means for it to exert a powerful and unique spiritual attraction on all who make its acquaintance. Then the intellectual and scientific content of the Qur’an also calls for examination.

It is true that it is not the aim of the Noble Qur’an to uncover and expound scientific phenomena, to set forth all the natural motions and events that occur within the system of being in accordance with a specific set of laws, or to explain the properties and mode of operation of nature.

We should not expect the Qur’an to discuss, in an organized manner, the various branches of science and to analyze the topics connected with each of those branches, or to solve the various problems that are encountered in different fields of research. The ability to experiment and to conduct scientific research has been made inherent in the human being's nature, and he can obtain the knowledge and the arts he needs in his life by means of thought and reflection.

He makes valuable advances through his unceasing efforts to gain control over the forces of nature. Concerns such as these are alien to a book of moral edification. The aim pursued by the Qur’an is the training of the human being as a being conscious of his duties; it reinforces and accelerates his spiritual ascension, together with all of his qualities, toward a state of true loftiness and the dignity of which the human being is worthy.

The emergence of such a being requires a comprehensive reform of the human being, involving various changes such as the negation of false values and meaningless criteria deriving from the Age of Ignorance and the creation and fostering of a creative energetic spirit within him. The Qur’an can thus be said to melt the spirits of human beings and pour them into a new mould, where they acquire a different, richer and more valuable form.