Bismillah, In the Name of God, is the beginning of all good things. So we too shall start with it.This blessed phrase is a sign of Islam, and all creatures constantly recite it in their unique way. If you want to understand what an inexhaustible source of strength and blessing bismillah is, then listen to the following allegory:
For a stranger who travels in the deserts of Arabia, it is necessary to get the protection of a tribal chief. Only then may he escape the mischief of robbers and be sure his needs will be met. Traveling alone would be a waste of time because of the enemies and unmet needs he must face.
Two men once set out on such a desert journey. One was humble, the other arrogant. The humble man took the protection of a tribal chief, but the arrogant one didn’t. The former traveled everywhere in safety. Whenever he met a robber, he would say, “I’m traveling in the name of such and such chief,” and the robber would move on without molesting him. He would be treated with respect in every tent he entered because of that name. By contrast, the arrogant one suffered indescribable disasters throughout his journey. He trembled in constant fear and was obliged to struggle and beg for his every need. He became low and mean
THINKING STRAIGHT AND THE WAYS TO ACHIEVE IT
Some truths are absolute, universal and without exception, some are general and some relative. For example, God’s existence with His essence, attributes, names and works are absolute and universal truths; so are principles of faith such as divine justice with its dimensions of unity, gathering, destiny, forgiveness, munificence and mercy. Occurrences that can be examined by sciences like physics and chemistry are general truths for which exceptions can be found. On the other hand, truths showing differences in color, tone and character dependent on time, individuals, or conditions as opposed to seriousness, discipline, gentleness and tolerance, are relative truths. The number of relative truths in our lives is much greater than the number of absolute and universal truths. If we evaluate knowledge as "an accumulation of information obtained as a result of a person’s effort, merits, and capabilities," then man will come to this world without knowing anything and will encounter an endless universe where innumerable creatures come together and countless events unfold. Everything in the universe outside of man’s influence is in its proper place and complete order, harmony and balance reign. We can say that all the spiritual and scientific principles underlying the unshakable order, harmony and indestructible balance of this vast and complex universe, of which the human body comprises a miniature, are the sum of truth or truths.
On the other hand, sciences like physics, chemistry and biology—regardless of whether or not they are accurate—examine the universe and universal relationships with their own peculiar principles. The data from these sciences are taken up by philosophers, scientific and existentialist philosophers, etc. and data from human relations is used by sociologists and psychologists. In contrast, through their basic tenets of faith, monotheistic religions like Islam see the universe and man as an expression of the same truth in all relationships, principles of life and particulars of existence. In this situation divine books like the Quran are an expression of, in fact, comprise, themselves, the truth that provides universal harmony, balance and order or the totality of truth. Throughout history philosophers, sociologists and psychologists who have determined or discovered truths have differed among themselves, which has lead to the emergence of different schools of thought. In contrast, all prophets and the divine books they brought have espoused the same thing. Consequently, we can say that all the principles that bring about the universe in all kinds of events and relationships and provide universal harmony, order and balance and the Quran, the only divine book that has remained unchanged, are the "truth itself." Thinking and drawing conclusions according to these in view of all things and events can be called "thinking straight."
TRUTH AND RELATIVITY
With the publication of the “Theory of Relativity” at the turn of the century, the world-view based on the laws of simple cause and effect physics that began with Galileo and reached its peak in the 19th century, received a severe blow. Goethe’s observation that “people running after an idea fall into more and more error” was tellingly demonstrated, and scientists themselves were obliged to acknowledge the limitations of scientific theories. For example, T.G. Masaryk’s admission - that “Theories, after nourishing for a while the organs in the body of science, dry up and fall to the ground like leaves” - pointed out how difficult it is to maintain constant and permanent success in the sciences.
For centuries scientists had accused religion of being a collection of dogmas and religious people of being dogmatists. However, only with the demonstration of the limitations of classical physics did they realize that they too had become dogmatically attached to their theories. As Bertrand Russell put it: “Newton’s law reigned for such a long time and explained so many things that no one believed that it would ever need correcting. But eventually it became apparent that correction was needed. Let there be no doubt about it, one day these corrections will need to be corrected.” Science advances, if and when it does, by trial and error. In spite of this, Einstein’s Theory of Relativity which replaced the classical physics of Newton’s Law is treated in many circles as if it were absolute truth, and the fact that it will need revision is kept hidden from sight. It is quite probable that eventually it will give way to a new theory.
It seems that going to extremes in the pursuit of a single idea is a constant trait of human beings. Whereas, while there is a share of truth in each of these great ideas, they are not the only means nor the only expressions of truth. If we think of truth as a light at the center point of a circle or a straight line, we see that the light will be reflected ray by ray to an infinite number of points on the circle’s circumference or along the straight line. Each point is touched by a ray of the truth and therefore each can be said to be true. However, the fact is that only the light of the truth in the center never changes, since it is absolute in contrast to each point which is only a relative truth. What gives the relative truth its particular dimensions and properties, its relevance, is the nature of the receiving point, its own properties, time and conditions. This is true for the natural sciences, as much as for the social sciences; indeed, it also applies to fields of Islamic learning such as tafsir (commentary on the Qur’an) and fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence).
