Quick question: Who discovered America? The
almost guaranteed answer: Why, Columbus, of course. The bright student may even
know the famous story that Columbus thought he had reached India and therefore
called the people he found Indians.
If providing sound knowledge and developing
critical thinking capabilities are any goals of an education system, the answer
highlights the miserable failure of the education system prevalent in the
Muslim world today on both counts. For no one asks the obvious: How can anyone
be credited with discovering a land that was already heavily populated?
Columbus was the first European to discover America, not the first man.
Hundreds of thousands of other men and women had reached there before him and
had been living for centuries. The assertion about Columbus reveals a
Euro-centric mindset but the bias goes undetected and unquestioned.
This is not the only questionable fact that
our schools and colleges, and textbooks and teachers have been dispensing. In
every field of study, they have been passing on "facts", ideas,
values, assumptions, perspectives, explanations, "truths", and
principles that are questionable, secular and anti-Islamic. All while sincerely
believing that they are providing a great service by promoting education.
Education is a wonderful thing. But, what
are we really teaching?
In science, we are teaching our students to
look at the universe from the viewpoint of a person who does not know God.
"And how many Signs in the heavens and the earth do they pass by? Yet they
turn their faces away from them." [Yusuf, 12:105]. A proper study of
science would make one appreciate both the Power, Majesty, and Grandeur of
Allah’s creations and the humbleness and limitations of human knowledge and
abilities. Today our science education, in its best form, gives exactly the
opposite message. It also fails to enable students to separate scientist’s
opinions from their facts. Let’s ask: In the wide Muslim world is there any, Islamic
school teaching science whose graduates can challenge Darwin’s Theory of
Evolution on scientific grounds? As we teach science, are we teaching our
children to put science in its proper place, to know its limitations? Can they
competently question the "technological imperative"?
A medical doctor would not be considered
competent if he did not know the limitations of the medicines and procedures he
used. An engineer would be considered unqualified if he did not know the
limitations of his tools. Why then our teaching of science does not include a
discussion of its limitations? Because for the secular mindset science is the
ultimate tool, the supreme arbiter of Truth and Falsehood. Without even
realizing it, we have accepted the proposition and our science education
reflects that assumption.
The problem is not limited to science and
technology. The best of our MBAs have learned that the goal of a business is to
maximize profits, the goal of marketing is to create demand, and the proper way
of making business decision is through cost-benefit analysis. All of these are
as solid in their eyes and as questionable in reality as the assertion about
Columbus. The best of our journalism graduates do not have a different model
for journalism than the one presented by the West. They do not have their own
definition of the news, their purpose for gathering it or their own moral
standards that must regulate its dissemination. In economics we have been
teaching that human beings are utility-maximizing animals governed by Maslow’s
hierarchy of needs. In our teaching of history, we see random events without a
moral calculus driving them. We do not see Allah’s laws that govern the rise
and fall of nations. In psychology or sociology, medicine or engineering,
civics or geography, it is the same story. In fact, our schools and colleges
have been the main agency for secularization of Islamic societies. They have
been effectively teaching that Islam is irrelevant to understanding this world
or to solving its problems. Many of their graduates develop misunderstandings
and doubts about their faith. But even when they are strong practicing Muslims,
they have not been trained and educated to detect and challenge the secular
dogmas that have been integrated into their curriculums.
This great tragedy is of a recent origin
and a historical perspective may be helpful. For centuries our societies,
culture, and education system were free of the secular/religious dichotomy. Our
schools taught all subjects of importance using a naturally unified approach.
As long as Muslims were the leaders in all the sciences (until the fifteenth
century C.E) subjects like medicine, astronomy, and chemistry had not developed
their secular biases.
The dichotomy started in the West during
its "Renaissance" as it threw away its religious dogmas--which had
become a burden--and found a speedy path to material progress using a-religious
or secular approaches. The industrial revolution gave it momentum. Colonialism
brought secular ideology and the religion of secular humanism to the Muslim
lands.
At this time, Muslims were at a low point
on several fronts. They had surrendered intellectual leadership to the West and
had failed to keep pace with scientific developments there. They found
themselves in a no-win situation. If they accepted and taught the Western
sciences, they would also be teaching anti-Islamic dogmas. If they stayed
isolated, they would be left behind in science and material progress.
In response, Muslims developed two
approaches. Our Darul-ulooms preserved Islamic knowledge and values by
hermetically sealing themselves against western influences. It is due to this
effort that Islamic knowledge is alive and well today. (Where they were lax in
this matter --- as in some Arab countries--- the result was a compromise in
their Islamic character without any advantage in the quality of education.)
However, they are not equipped to provide leadership in most other areas of the
society. This role has gone to the graduates of the Western-style schools and
colleges. Unfortunately, these schools and their curriculum nurture secular
ways of looking at this world and solving its problems. The tensions created by
the two diametrically opposed systems can be seen today in every Muslim
country.
This dichotomy must end. We cannot move
forward without revamping our education. We cannot fully establish Islam in our
societies without producing educated citizens and leaders needed for an Islamic
society. The time is now to develop Integrated Islamic curriculums and remove
secular biases from all of our education. Merely establishing more schools is
not the answer. Developing educational institutions that can teach every
subject in the wholesome Islamic context is. It is a monumental task. But
without it we’ll continue to spread ignorance in the name of education.
THE FIG: A FRUIT WHOSE PERFECTION HAS ONLY
RECENTLY BEEN REVEALED
[I swear] by the fig and the olive.
(Qur'an, 95:1)
The reference to the fig in the first verse
of Surat at-Tin is a most wise one in terms of the benefits imparted by this
fruit.
The Benefits of the Fig for Human Beings
Figs have a higher fibre level than any
other fruit or vegetable. One single dried fig provides two grams of fibre: 20%
of the daily recommended intake. Research over the last fifteen years or so has
revealed that the fibre in plant foods is very important for the regular
functioning of the digestive system. It is known that fibre in foods assists
the digestive system and also helps reduce the risk of some forms of cancer.
Nutritionists describe eating figs, which are rich in fibre, as an ideal way of
increasing one's fibre intake.
Fibrous foodstuffs are divided into two
types: soluble and insoluble. Foods rich in insoluble fibre facilitate the
passage of substances to be expelled from the body through the intestine by
adding water to them. They thus accelerate the digestive system and ensure its
regular functioning. It has also been established that foods containing
insoluble fibre have a protective effect against colon cancer. Foods rich in
soluble fibre, on the other hand, have been shown to reduce cholesterol levels
in the blood by more than 20%. These are therefore of the greatest importance
in reducing the risk of heart attack. Excessive levels of cholesterol in the
blood collect in the arteries, hardening and narrowing them. Depending on which
organ's blood vessels the cholesterol accumulates in, disorders connected to
that organ arise. For example, if cholesterol accumulates in the arteries that
feed the heart, problems such as heart attacks result. Accumulations of
cholesterol in the kidney veins can lead to high blood pressure and kidney
deficiency. Furthermore, the intake of soluble fibre is important in terms of
regulating blood sugar by emptying the stomach because sudden changes in blood
sugar can lead to life-threatening disorders. Indeed, societies with fibre-rich
diets have been shown to have far lower incidences of illnesses such as cancer
and heart disease.117
It is also another major health advantage
for soluble and insoluble fibres to be present at one and the same time. It has
been shown that when both forms are present together, they are much more
effective in preventing cancer than when they are on their own. The presence of
both forms of fibre, soluble and insoluble, in the fig makes it a most
important foodstuff in this regard.118
Dr. Oliver Alabaster, Director of the
Institute for Disease Prevention at the George Washington University Medical
Centre, refers to figs in these terms:
… [H]ere is an opportunity to add a really
healthy, high fiber food to your diet. Choosing figs and other high fiber foods
more frequently means that you'll naturally choose potentially harmful foods
less frequently-and this is great for your lifelong health.119
According to the California Fig Advisory
Board, it is believed that the antioxidants in fruit and vegetables protect
against a number of diseases. Antioxidants neutralise harmful substances (free
radicals) that arise as a result of chemical reactions in the body or else are
taken in from the outside and thus prevent the destruction of cells. In one
study performed by the University of Scranton, it was determined that dried
figs had a much higher level of the phenol makeup, which is rich in
antioxidants, than other fruits. Phenol is used as an antiseptic to kill
micro-organisms. The level of phenol in figs is much higher than that in other
fruits and vegetables.120
Another study, by Rutgers University in New
Jersey, revealed that due to the essential fatty acids omega-3 and omega-6 and
phytosterol contained in dried figs, they can play a considerable part in
reducing cholesterol.121 It is known that omega-3 and omega-6 cannot be
manufactured in the body and need to be absorbed with food. Furthermore, these
fatty acids are indispensable to the proper functioning of the heart, brain and
nervous system. Phytosterol permits the cholesterol in animal products, which
has the potential to harden the heart's arteries, to be expelled from the body
without entering the blood stream.
Despite being one of the oldest fruits
known to man, the fig-described as "nature's most nearly perfect
fruit" by the California Fig Advisory Board 122-has been rediscovered by
food producers. The nutritional value of this fruit and its health benefits have
led to its acquiring a whole new importance.
The fig can constitute a part of just about
any special diet. Since figs do not naturally contain fat, sodium or
cholesterol but have high levels of fibre, they are an ideal food for those
trying to lose weight. At the same time, figs have higher mineral contents than
any other known fruit. Forty grams of figs contains 244 mg of potassium (7% of
the daily requirement), 53 mg of calcium (6% of the daily requirement) and 1.2
mg of iron (6% of the daily requirement).123 The calcium level in figs is very
high: The fig ranks second after the orange in terms of calcium content. A
crate of dried figs provides the same level of calcium as a crate of milk.
Figs are also thought of as a medicine
which gives strength and energy to long-term patients as they seek to recover.
They eliminate physical and mental difficulties and give the body strength and
energy. The most important nutritional component of figs is sugar, which
comprises 51-74% of all fruits. The sugar level in figs is one of the highest.
Figs are also recommended in the treatment of asthma, coughs and chills.
The benefits we have restricted ourselves
to mentioning here are an indication of the compassion Allah feels for human
beings. Our Lord provides the substances required by human beings in this
fruit, which is so pleasant to eat, already packaged and at the ideal levels
for human health. The way that this special blessing from Allah is mentioned in
the Qur'an may indicate the importance of the fig for human beings. (Allah
knows best.) From the point of view of human health, the nutritional value of
the fig was only established with the advance of medicine and technology. This
is another indication that the Qur'an is indisputably the Word of Allah, the
Omniscient.
