Humanism

IN THE NAME OF ALLAH – THE SOURCE OF MERCY – THE MOST MERCIFUL

IN THE MINDS OF PEOPLE, THE TERM "HUMANISM" HAS CERTAIN MAGIC, ELECTRIC CHARM LIKE THE "ALADDIN'S LANTERN". IT BEMUSES MANY WITH ITS SO-CALLED RATIONAL, LIBERATING GIMMICKS. MANY MUSLIMS, THEREFORE, HAVE DEVELOPED FALSE OPINIONS WITHOUT QUESTIONING THE ORIGIN OF WESTERN HUMANISM AND ITS EFFECT ON MODEM MAN. SHALL ATTEMPT TO CLARIFY THIS SUBJECT.

THE PUNDITS OF ALL SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT CANNOT AGREE UPON A PRECISE DEFINITION OF THE TERM "HUMANISM". A DEFINITION OF WHAT IS HUMAN WILL VARY ACCORDING TO THE RELIGIOUS BELIEF, SCIENTIFIC PERSPECTIVE OR PHILOSOPHICAL SCHOOL. DESPITE ALL THE AMBIGUITY AS TO THE PROPER MEANING OF HUMAN EXISTENCE, THE AGGREGATE OF THE GENERALLY ACCEPTED ASSUMPTIONS MAY BE LABELED AS "HUMANISM". IN THE BOOK, "MARXISM AND OTHER WESTERN FALLACIES. AN ISLAMIC CRITIQUE", "BY HUMANISM, WE REFER TO THE SCHOOL OF THOUGHT THAT PROCLAIM ITS ESSENTIAL GOAL TO BE THE LIBERATION AND PERFECTION OF MAN, WHOM IT CONSIDERS A PRIMARY BEING, AND PRINCIPLES OF WHICH ARE BASED ON RESPONSE TO THOSE BASIC NEEDS THAT FORM THE SPECIFICITY OF MAN." [1] IN TODAY'S WORLD THERE ARE FOUR INTELLECTUAL CURRENTS WHO, DESPITE THEIR MUTUALLY CONTRADICTORY NATURES, CLAIM TO REPRESENT THIS HUMANISM. THESE ARE: (1) WESTERN LIBERALISM, (2) MARXISM, (3) EXISTENTIALISM AND (4) RELIGION.

WESTERN HUMANISM IS DEEPLY ROOTED IN ANCIENT GREEK MYTHOLOGY WHERE WE FIND JEALOUSY, COMPETITION AND OPPOSITION BETWEEN THE FORCES OF HEAVEN AND EARTH, BETWEEN THE WORLDS OF GODS AND MEN. HUMANITY SEEKS TO LIBERATE ITSELF FROM THE YOKE OF OPPRESSION, TYRANNY AND CAPTIVITY AS LAID UPON IT BY THE GODS IN ATTAINING SELF-AWARENESS, FREEDOM, LIBERTY, INDEPENDENCE AND SOVEREIGNTY. IT STRUGGLES TO RULE OVER NATURE TO UNSEAT ZEUS, WHO SYMBOLISES THE RULE OF NATURE OVER MANKIND. HE WANTS TO BE THE "ONLY" MENTOR OF HIS DESTINY. AS SUCH, A BOND OF ENMITY BETWEEN THE GODS AND MEN WAS ALTOGETHER NATURAL AND LOGICAL TO THE GREEK MYTHS.

HOWEVER, IT WAS, WRONG AND OBVIOUSLY SO, ON THE PART OF GREAT MINDS OF WESTERN HUMANISM FROM DIDEROT AND VOLTAIRE TO FEUERBACH AND MARX TO EQUATE THE MYTHICAL WORLD OF ANCIENT GREECE, WHICH REMAINS WITHIN THE BOUNDS OF MATERIAL NATURE WITH THE SPIRITUAL AND SACRED WORLD OF ANCIENT RELIGIONS OF THE EAST (ISLAM IN PARTICULAR). THEY HAVE COMPARED AND EVEN DARED TO EQUATE HUMANITY'S RELATION TO ZEUS WITH THAT OF ALLAH, WHEREAS THE TWO SETS OF RELATIONS ARE IN TRUTH ANTITHETICAL. IN THE FORMER WORLD, PROMETHEUS STEALS "THE DIVINE FIRE" FROM THE HEAVENS WHILE THE GODS WERE ASLEEP AND BRINGS IT TO EARTH. FOR THIS SIN HE IS PUNISHED AT THE HANDS OF THE GODS. ON THE CONTRARY, IN ISLAM, ALLAH CURSES IBLIS FOR NOT PROSTRATING TO ADAM, THE FIRST MAN. FURTHERMORE, ALLAH ENTRUSTS THE "DIVINE FIRE" IN THE FORM OF HEAVENLY LIGHT OF WISDOM, OF REVELATION, TO HIS PROPHETS SO THAT IT MIGHT BE BROUGHT TO HUMANITY FOR BRINGING THE PROGENY OF ADAM OUT OF DARKNESS TO LIGHT. MAN IS ENTRUSTED TO BE HIS VICEGERENT ON EARTH. ALLAH, IN CONTRAST TO MYTHICAL ZEUS, WANTS HUMANITY TO BE FREE OF THE YOKE OF SLAVERY TO NATURE AND PROCLAIMS, "ALL THE ANGELS HAVE PROSTRATED THEMSELVES AT THE FEET OF ADAM AND LAND AND SEA HAVE BEEN MADE SUBSERVIENT TO YOU." IT IS, THEREFORE, IN THE MYTHIC WORLD-VIEW OF ANCIENT GREECE, QUITE NATURAL AND LOGICAL THAT A HUMANISM SHOULD GROW IN OPPOSITION TO RULE BY AND WORSHIP OF, THE GODS. AND AS SUCH, IT IS EASY TO SEE THE FALLACY OF WESTERN HUMANISM, WHICH IS BORN OUT OF THE GREEK MYTHS AND TO SENSE ITS OPPOSITION AGAINST THEISM (OR WESTERN AND EASTERN POLYTHEISM).

IT IS WORTH MENTIONING HERE THAT CATHOLICISM AS PRACTICED IN THE MIDDLE AGES, WHICH WAS AT ODDS TO HUMANITY, WAS FURTHER RESPONSIBLE FOR INDUCING HUMANISM IN THE WEST. IT MAINTAINED THE SAME OPPOSITION BETWEEN HEAVEN AND EARTH LIKE ANCIENT GREECE AND WITH ITS GREEK-STYLE EXEGESES OF ORIGINAL SIN, ATONEMENT, AND MAN'S EXPULSION FROM PARADISE, IT REPRESENTED MAN AS HELPLESSLY CONDEMNED BECAUSE OF DIVINE DISPLEASURE AND ANGER AND DECLARED HIM TO BE A WEAK SINNER. IT EXEMPTED ONLY THE CLASS OF CLERGY AND HELD THAT THE ONLY MEANS OF SALVATION FOR THE REST OF MANKIND LAY IN BLINDLY FOLLOWING THEM AND THROUGH THE MEMBERSHIP IN CHURCHES. WE, THEREFORE, NOTICE THAT EVEN THE ARTS OF THE MIDDLE AGES REVOLVE AROUND THE IMAGES OF SUPER-HUMANS, ANGELS, AND EVEN IF HUMAN FIGURE APPEARS, IT IS ONLY IN THE PERSONS OF APOSTLES AND SAINTS WITH THEIR FACES OBSCURED BY A HALO OF CELESTIAL LIGHT. EVERYWHERE, THUS, IN MEDIEVAL CATHOLICISM, WE SEE A GOOD RESEMBLANCE BETWEEN MYTHICAL-CHRISTIAN GOD AND MYTHICAL-GREEK GOD ZEUS. IT IS, THEREFORE, EASY TO VISUALISE HOW THE THEORY OF SECULARISM WOULD EVENTUALLY INFLUENCE THE MINDS OF WESTERN MEN OF LEARNING AFTER THE RENAISSANCE AS A MERE BY-PRODUCT OF THAT VERY WESTERN HUMANISM WHICH WANTED TO LIBERATE HUMAN SPIRIT FROM THE CLUTCHES OF OPPRESSIVE CATHOLICISM.

JUST AS IT WAS NATURAL FOR GREEK HUMANISM, THROUGH THE DENIAL OF THE GODS, DISBELIEF IN THEIR RULE, AND CUTTING OFF THE BOND BETWEEN GODS AND MEN, TO STRUGGLE TO ARRIVE AT AN ANTHROPOCENTRIC UNIVERSE AND TO TEND TOWARDS EARTHLY MATERIALISM, SO IS MODERN WESTERN HUMANISM DRAWN INTO THE SAME FOUNTAIN OF ANCIENT GREECE. "THE HISTORY OF WESTERN CULTURE IS THE PERSISTENCE OF THESE TWO CONTRASTING CURRENTS THAT ISSUE FROM THE SAME SPRING, WHETHER WE REFER TO RELIGION OR SCIENCE." [2] BOTH THESE DIVERGENT STREAMS OF TODAY HAVE THEIR ROOT IN GREEK HUMANISM. MARXISM AND BOURGEOIS LIBERALISM ALIKE SHARE THIS HUMAN MATERIALISM IN THEORY AND IN PRACTICE. THUS, WE FIND MARX AND VOLTAIRE BOTH CLOSING THEIR EYES TO SPIRITUAL DIMENSION OF THE HUMAN ESSENCE. IT IS ONLY NATURAL, THUS, THAT BOTH THESE PHILOSOPHIES ARE CENTERED ON AND AROUND THE "PHYSICAL" MAN.