Islamization Of Knowledge

Islamization is a concept of structuring the life of human being in line with the principle of Islamic teaching. It is a process of a Muslim seeking the pleasure of Allah by practicing what is recommended in Islam. Islamization through transformation and improvement help to achieve happiness, peace and security in this life & hereafter.

Islamization of knowledge is a term which describes a variety of attempts and approaches to synthesize the ethics of Islam with various fields of modern thought. Its end product would be a new ijma’ or consensus among Muslims on an appropriate fiqh or jurisprudence and a scientific method that did not violate Islamic ethical norms. According to Imad al-Din Khalil, Islamization of knowledge means involvement in intellectual pursuits by examination, summarization, correlation and publication from the perspective of an Islamic outlook on life, man and the universe (Salisu Shehu, 2011). A Palestinian philosopher, Ismail Al-Faruqi argued that by using tools, categories, concepts and modes of analysis that originated wholly in the secular West, there was a disconnect between the ecological and social reality of Muslim nations. It leads to the total inability to respect or even notice violations of ethics of Islam itself.

The Islamization of knowledge is the foundation of Tawhidi episteme, which holds that the universe has a Creator who is One and Unique, the Originator of all things and their Provider, Observing yet Unobserved, Subtle and All-Knowing. He made revelation and the natural world principle sources of knowledge, so studying them within a framework of pure tawhid would result in the production proper, discerning, and purposeful knowledge.

Knowledge becomes imperfect or polluted due to human error and bias. For this reason, these imperfect knowledge need to be Islamized (Sa’idu Sulaiman, 2011). The Islamization of knowledge is essential so that people cannot be misled by imperfect knowledge. Many people thought the knowledge that they acquire does not require Islamization. The moment people hear the phrase “Islamization of Knowledge”, they begin to argue that knowledge is neutral or it is already Islamic, hence it does not require Islamization to it. A person who is lacking proper understanding of the concept of Islamization of knowledge can make mistake. For instance, a person who is trying to Islamize Economics may end up by economizing Islam. The task of Islamization of knowledge involves the mastery of Islamic teachings contained in the Qur’an and Sunnah. Also, it involves the mastery of discipline that want to be Islamized.

There are three basic goals in Islamization of Knowledge (Sa’idu Sulaiman, 2011).. There are: 1) to ensure that what is known or to be known does not oppose the Islamic teaching. 2) To ensure that the procedures, methodologies and means of acquiring, validating, imparting and applying knowledge are in line with Islamic teaching. 3) To ensure that the purpose of acquiring and applying knowledge does not oppose the Islamic teaching. Islam has its own guideline in which we as Muslims have to follow. But, before we implement the Islamic elements into the knowledge, we should first instill the Islamic elements in our own self. Only then we can Islamize the knowledge.

Abu Darda (one of the sahabah) reported from Prophet Muhammad s.a.w that whoever was given a share of politeness was, in fact, given a share of goodness; and whoever was deprived of a share of politeness was, in fact, deprived of goodness. It is reported by Jabir that God’s Messenger said, “The people from among you who are dear to me and will sit close to me on the Day of Judgment are those who have good manners and are POLITE. And the people among you whom I dislike and will be far removed from me on the Day of Judgment are those who are impertinent and impolite to people.”



References:

Sa’idu Sulaiman. Islamization of Knowledge: Background, Models and the Way Forward. Retrieved from World Wide Web on March 6, 2011 from http://www.i-epistemology.net/e-books/toward-islamic-anthropology/571-islamization-of-knowledge-background-models-and-the-way-forward-.html

Salisu Shehu, Islamization of Knowledge: Conceptual Background, Vision and Tasks. Retrieved from World Wide Web on March 6, 2011 from http://www.i-epistemology.net/e-books/toward-islamic-anthropology/623-islamization-of-knowledge-conceptual-background-vision-and-tasks.html