Science is the systematic study of the behavior of certain phenomena (that is, regularities, uniformities) in the physical universe. Scientific study is based on observation, experimentation, measurement, and the formulation of universal laws that describe these facts and phenomena in general terms and enable prediction.

The process of describing regularities (i.e. things that happen in a particular way) is incomplete and never exhaustive because regularities are not exact and deterministic. There is actually quite a lot of approximation and simplification involved in this process. If an exact equation is desired, then these scientific laws, which are useful for prediction, must be formulated in mathematical terms; this represents the whole business of science.

The huge popularity of science is due to its practical results, such as the previous technological examples stated previously. Science is about studying regularities in the material world and describing those regularities in order to make predictions and to make possible the technology that we use daily possible.

It is important to stress that describing and making use of science is not about explaining, but rather using it to make sense of something; here, description is not to be confused with explanation. Therefore, science is about describing, not explaining. The moment a scientist talks about the meaning behind a law or regularity in nature and our ability to benefit from it, he is no longer talking science and he is venturing into the realm of metaphysics and the philosophy of science. Just because someone is a great scientist, it does not mean that he has a deeper insight into the meaning of the laws of the physical world and universe.

What science seeks to explain

Science does not answer questions of meaning or questions of agency (like, who is doing what for what reason? What is responsible for a given regularity?) and we cannot criticize science for not dealing with these questions. They may be important questions but it’s not the responsibility of the field of science to answer these questions. For example, consider the Law of Gravity. We drop a pen and it falls. Why did it fall? Because of gravity.

We observe that, without exception, the pen always falls when we lift it and drop it. Then we call the conjunction between performing an action and its regularity the law of gravity. This means that the law of gravity is simply the name we have given to this regularity; however, it does not mean that the pen is falling because of gravity. Gravity is the name given to the process, not an explanation for it, but in our minds both the name and the explanation for the phenomenon have become one and the same.

The question arises: Is it logically justified to explain an experience through a causal law that is derived through the same experience?

In the beginning, when scientists started asking these questions, it was unclear what the difference was between description and explanation. For a long time science was thought to be a venture competing with religion in providing answers for life.

Regarding natural laws, 19th century American philosopher Charles Peirce stresses on the point that natural laws serve as a description of natural events, not as explanations of these very events: “no law of nature makes a stone fall, or a Leyden jar to discharge, or a steam engine to work.”¹

A law of nature left to its self would be quite analogous to a court without a sheriff. A court in that predicament might probably be able to induce some citizen to act as sheriff; but until it had so provided itself with an officer who, unlike itself, could not discourse authoritatively but who could put forth the strong arm, its law might be the perfection of human reason but would remain mere fireworks. Just so, let a law of nature – say the law of gravitation – remain a mere uniformity – a mere formula establishing a relation between terms – and what in the world would induce a stone, which is not a term nor a concept but just a plain thing, to act in conformity to that uniformity?²

The law of gravity is just a formula, just a name. It cannot make a stone act in accordance to it.

It is important to note that the notion of law is closely related to issues of agency and also to the affinity of the human mind to perceive natural phenomena and the possibility of finding patterns in nature beyond science (i.e. how is it that we are so in tune to what is happening in the world that we can pick up all these regularities?). These issues announce the “greatness” of science. When it comes to the affinity of the human mind to realize recurrent patterns in the universe, Peirce says:

. . . the mind of man is strongly adapted to the comprehension of the world; at least, so far as this goes, that certain conceptions, highly important for such a comprehension, naturally arise in the mind; and, without such a tendency, the mind could never have had any development at all.³

Therefore, there would be no science if one could not grasp the regularities.

In our scientific inquiry, it is reasonable for us to be searching out these regularities and hoping that they will remain stable, but we cannot assume that we have explained how or why such regularities or laws are in effect. It may also be reasonable to say that there are regularities and we hope that these regularities and so-called universal laws will come into effect in the future so that technology can be made from predictions. There can only be hope, and not certainty, because science is based on observation and there may be some instances where the same observation may not occur.Even though science is based on exactitude, there is still a measure of hope and faith involved.

A scientific law states a repeated observation about nature. How do we come to the conclusion that we have a scientific law? Several events occur, (not just to the researcher) that hold to certain regularities, according to a certain pattern, and a generalized statement is formed. The process of generalization from a limited number of observations to form a universal statement or law is called the process of induction, or looking at a certain number of events and saying that things are going to happen all the time. The assumption under the process of induction is that the more observations made about a particular phenomenon, the more it will reinforce the law.

There is only one way for such an assumption to be true, and it has nothing to do with the number of observations. We assume a relationship or connection between the object and what occurs, the cause and effect. The assumption is that there is a necessary connection between the cause and the effect. One must be able to explain this connection in a logical way, not as something that depends solely on observation but something that necessitates the event. If this is unable to be done, if it is only based on observations, then induction is a problem. In formulating a scientific law, generalizations made through the method of induction are problematic.

Because of induction, the basic application of our inductive reasoning is twofold: firstly we think we can describe what we have seen by the use of universal laws, and secondly, that we can use these established laws in predicting what we will see. There is, however, a problem with the mechanics of the inductive process. Are we justified in formulating these universal laws simply on the basis of a discrete number of past observations that have been made?

For example, based on the scientific observation of planetary motion, we could suggest that “the sun will rise every day.” However, just because the sun has risen in the past, it does not mean that it will continue to do so either tomorrow or the next day. So the induction based on the number of occurrences of a particular phenomenon is illogical. There is no guarantee that we will ever see the sun rise again. The sense of faith we have in the scientific laws of planetary motions is based on the supposition that some kind of necessity has caused the sun to rise in the past and will therefore continue to cause the sun to rise in the future. We assume that the connection between the cause and the effect are necessarily related. To use another common example, everyone in Europe thought the statement “All swans are white” was true because every swan that they had ever seen was white. However, when travelers came back from Australia and New Zealand, they reported having seen black swans, thus providing a real life example of how induction can falter. This observation negated the previous generalizations.This brings us to the issue of causality.

Causality is the relationship between an event (the cause) and a second event (the effect), where the second event is understood as a consequence of the first. In relation to one another, induction only has to work sometimes whereas causality always has to work. It has little to do with the number of occurrences; it has to work for each cause-effect relationship. The consequence of this model of the world is that empirical knowledge is connected to the causal relations between objects and events. According to this view, the logic of scientific discovery is inductive. In other words, it infers universal laws from particular statements.

The logic of induction proceeds as follows: First, it conjectures that induction is valid, and then concludes that causation is true. Whereas, from the point of view of logic, it is just the other way around; induction can be justified only by proving that causation is logically valid i.e., that the relation between cause and effect is necessary. Induction is therefore logically not a justified method to attain universality. As the Australian-British philosopher of science Sir Karl Popper observes, scientific induction is “logically inadmissible,” that scientific “theories are, therefore, never empirically verifiable.”⁴

Can we count on the laws of nature? It depends. We can have faith in them; we can hope that they will continue to hold in the future but there exists no logical certainty. But we cannot prove that they will remain true because we cannot observe something that will occur in the future (the dogma of the experiment).

The British philosopher Bertrand Russell calls the dogma of induction, the “biggest scandal of philosophy.” He provides the example of a farmer and his chicken. The chicken notices that the farmer comes every day to feed it. It predicts that the farmer would continue to bring food every day. According to the principle of induction, each feeding event added justification to its prediction. Then one day the farmer came and wrung the chicken’s neck. Russell’s point is that induction cannot justify any conclusions!

Critical problems with the method of induction have been in discussion long before the more recent debates, and are often connected with the concept of causality. The same issue was also at the center of a heated debate among Muslim philosophers and theologians as early as the 12th century. This critical problem with the method of induction was also pointed out earlier by the 18th century Scottish philosopher David Hume. Hume stated that when we observe two events to be causally related, say a seed (a) resulting in the growth of a shoot or tree (b), what we in fact observe is only a contingent conjunction of two events. That is, the causation that we think we perceive is not actually “out there in the world” for us to observe. When we see two events and judge them to be causally related, it is merely through a habit of the mind, something we project onto the world. A necessary causal link, as such, is not guaranteed. Hume writes:

Were any object presented to us, and were we required to pronounce concerning the effect, which will result from it, without consulting past observation; after what manner, I beseech you, must the mind proceed in this operation? It must invent or imagine some event, which it ascribes to the object as its effect; and it is plain that this invention must be entirely arbitrary. The mind can never possibly find the effect in the supposed cause, by the most accurate scrutiny and examination. For the effect is totally different from the cause, and consequently can never be discovered in it.⁵

This means that causal laws of nature are not true logically and there is no concrete evidence that these will continue to hold in the future. We simply cannot postulate universal laws that tell us the way the world irrefutably is and will always be unless we have some good reason to trust such generalizations. And even if we could trust such universal laws as “the sun will always rise,” it is not clear how many times we would need to see the sun rise in order to justify proposing this law. Scientific observation, although detailed and informative, has no claim to being the irrefutable truth of the matter.

The solution

Sir Karl Popper offered a potential solution to this problem by thinking about the way we do science in a new light. Popper turned science on its head by claiming that we are looking at science in the wrong way. Instead of looking to science to provide us with theories that are definitive and true, Popper said that we should be looking to science to provide us with theories that we have failed to prove false for a very long time. This approach to science is referred to as “Falsificationism.” Less of a solution and more of a shortcut, it is a tool which we are allowed to use in the game of science. He describes the Falsification approach by noting that for the scientific method to be rational, it must make claims to knowledge that is logically sound. That is, science is not about making grand universal laws, but about the examination of individual observations. According to the model of falsification, science is concerned with evaluating and refining. What we commonly think of as scientific claims to knowledge, are only hypotheses that we accept till they are proved wrong.

Fundamentally, Popper accepts that science can never provide us with complete 100% certainty, but he claims that this is not really a problem because it is not actually science’s job. The purpose of science is to provide us with a theory that is likely to be true based on the fact that we haven’t yet managed to prove it wrong. One unfortunate consequence of this, however, is that you can only ever be certain of the things that you have proved wrong. We know, for example, that the world definitely is not flat. The problem with this fact is that, although certain, it is not particularly useful to know that something is definitely false. For Popper, the best we can hope for is that a given claim is corroborated at one instance in time and if we presume otherwise, we are begging the question of the uniformity of nature: that what has always been, will (for apparently no good reason) continue to be.

To recapitulate, science does not deal with explanation; this is the realm of metaphysics. How we explain things depends on our beliefs and world view.

Dr. Yamina Mermer is a member of the Scriptural Reasoning Group based at the Faculty of Divinity, University of Cambridge, UK.
Dr. Eren Tatari is Assistant Professor of Political Science, Rollins College, Florida.

Footnotes

1. Online Past Masters text, The Collected Papers of Charles Sanders Peirce, (University of Virginia E-text Center), 1.323. (The online texts is drawn from The Collected Papers of Charles Sanders Peirce, Vols. I-VI ed. Charles Hartshorne and Paul Weiss (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1931-1935), Vols. VII-VIII ed. Arthur W. Burks (same publisher, 1958).
2. Ibid., 5.48.
3. Ibid., 6. 417.
4. Popper, Karl. (1959). The Logic of Scientific Discovery. Hutchinson & Co. (Original work published in 1935).
5. Hume, David. (1772). An Enquiry Concerning Human Understanding. Hackett Publishing Co.

Whatever the conditions may be, a believer should not go out of the frame of good manners, civility, and decency, for others ascribe all of their actions to faith. Thus, even in the face of the most grave situations or unyielding cases, believers should not swerve from their direction. Examining the life of the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, we see that he never changed his manners, even at times when he was challenged by Abu Jahl, the man who did all possible evil to oppose the Prophet.

There is occasionally a bitter tone in some of the Qur’anic passages as far as unbelief and unbelievers are concerned. However, we should clarify here that this harsh style is for devious thoughts and ideas, not for individuals. The Qur’anic message does not position any individual as an opponent just because of who they are. It is profane thoughts and views of denial – which are not unique to certain individuals but which have always existed and will continue to exist – that the Qur’an deals with rather harshly. This is a lesson believers should learn from the Qur’an in their engagement with others.

This is an attitude to be adopted not among people only, but among states, too. Let us reify the concept by an example from the Qur’an. God’s message to Moses, peace be upon him, concerning his encounter with the Pharaoh was, “but speak to him with gentle words, so that he might reflect and be mindful or feel some awe (of me, and behave with humility)” (Ta Ha 20:44). Speaking with gentle words and softly, even if it is the Pharaoh you are going to deal with – the Pharaoh who afflicted you and your nation with all possible oppression and violence. Another remarkable point here is that the Qur’an binds reflection and God-consciousness to “gentle words.” By a reverse conceptualization, we could induce the meaning that “in case you advance towards him in virulence, he shall neither reflect nor stand in awe.” So, benignity and tolerance are indispensable articles to communicate a message, whoever the addressee is.

That is, a believer always has to stand in the climate of a gentle attitude, gentle state, gentle heart, gentle conscience, and gentle words, so that they can serve others with true guidance. Otherwise, all the states and attitudes of those who have not been softened, melted, and molded in this Prophetic spirit will be artificial and theatrical. Such insincere people may smile for a while, but they will expose their teeth and present their genuine nature when their tails are stepped upon. Indeed, for how long could a firefly deceive astronomers that it is a star?

In the light of these criteria, it is also possible to read the descent of the Messiah on earth in the latter times with a message of being “without a hand to those who beat you, without a speech to those who curse you, and no hearts for those who break hearts,” even if some may consider this out of balance.

The example of Bediuzzaman, the sufferer of the age, is unique. Even towards those who had been his most merciless, inhumane torturers he managed to communicate the truths of faith and was never offended. Indeed, have believers not exerted every single effort to shine the inspirations of their souls to those who dug ditches and pushed them in?¹

Communicating with someone, or spreading a message, is impossible by raving or clamoring, violence or anger. Maybe violence was once a method or tool; but time has invalidated it. Today, the principle of persuasion is, and will be, dominant ever after. Today’s devotees of love should reach the level framed above, and should make abundant practices about that.

As as pointed out above, in the latter times, the Messiah will surely descend on earth in order to fulfill that significant mission, even, say, if he is in the remotest corner of the Hereafter. But this descent is dependent upon the meaning and spirit within your representative, collective body. Yes, he will descend to be the mold for that meaning. If that spirit is missing, I think, his corporeal descent will not mean anything. To conclude, we should know that a resurrection in the latter times will be realized by the reviving breaths of the heroes of love who represent gentle states, gentle attitudes, gentle hearts, and gentle words.

1- See 85:4 in the Qur’an for the short passage on tyrants who dug ditches of fire and killed believers.

With all of its faculties, a human being can be thought of as an index of the whole universe. Therefore, we witness correlations between the processes taking place in the human body and in the universe. Accordingly, the world we live in has a correspondence to human biology. For example, the cyclical processes in the environment (water cycle, carbon cycle, etc.) ensure the continuous recycling of the same matter, hence the cleanliness of the habitat for all. Similarly, the human body includes mechanisms to cleanse itself from harmful and unnecessary materials.

Prior to the development of such an understanding, the prevailing attitude encouraged consuming natural resources and using the environment as a “trash can.” Even today, we live in a world that promotes excessive consumption of daily goods leading to accumulation of incredible amounts of trash. For example, in developed Western societies, an average family discards more than one ton of trash every year, which is mostly paper, packaging material, and kitchen waste.

Nevertheless, as we realize the importance of the recycling systems in nature and the multi-faceted harms of trash accumulation on the environment, recycling of conventional and technological waste is encouraged by collecting plastics, glass, paper, and tins. On a larger scale, recycling centers have been developed to minimize the damage to the environment and to meet the need for raw materials.

The recycling process consists of three main steps as depicted by the famous three-arrows symbol representing 1) the collection of materials, 2) the remanufacture of new materials from the collected ones, and 3) reselling or reusing as new products. Thus, recycling centers not only contribute to the economy, but also serve as clearance sites to maintain the harmony of the environment.

Cellular recycling through “fasting”

Similar to recycling centers at the macro level, there are recycling centers in the cellular level too. These centers have the duty to help with the digestion of cellular trash (i.e. damaged cellular organelles, misfolded proteins, toxic load) so that energy can be generated and raw material obtained for the construction of new cellular units. This recycling phenomenon was simply named as autophagy (i.e. self-eating) by cell biologists. What is interesting, though, is that autophagy is primarily activated or enhanced via fasting or food deprivation.

How autophagy works

Autophagy is a process that occurs when astarving cell starts to form double membrane containers through an orchestration of several proteins. These containers are called autophagic vesicles or autophagosomes ¹. Their main role is to target and collect cellular trash. Then, they start to fuse with lysosomes, the digestion centers of the cells, to degrade the trash into building blocks—amino acids. The amino acids can then be used both for the construction of new proteins needed by the cell and in the production of ATP, which is a source of energy for the cell.

The whole process corresponds to micro-scale representation of a real world recycling concept: collection, re-manufacture and resell/reuse. Through autophagy, a cell recycles its own material and obtains energy ².

Fasting: An emerging trend

With the discovery of mechanisms initiating autophagy and its involvement in various diseases such as cancer, neurodegenerative disorders, auto-immune diseases etc., autophagy has gained a unique significance that is progressively increasing ³. After the year 2000, the number of publications on autophagy-related research began to increase exponentially. Moreover, due to the increased conviction about the link between fasting and autophagy, fasting started to become a real trend in modern civilizations. Let’s examine a few of the important recent findings that reveal the relationship between autophagy and fasting.

In a study involving mice, the response to fasting was assessed in liver cells (hepatocytes) by tracking the presence of a protein (GFP-LC3) that indicates autophagy. It was seen that the lack of food, which is the source of energy, led to the disintegration of mitochondria, which are the power plants of the cells. Subsequently, the components that made up those mitochondria were re-utilized for the building of other necessary proteins⁴. These results indicate that unnecessary mitochondria were eliminated for the sake of recycling organic materials during fasting.

Neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson, etc, are linked to the accumulation of trash in the brain cells, which is indicative of a lack of autophagy. Drugs developed for these diseases do not possess effective treatments since they are unable to penetrate into the brain cells (a concept known as the blood-brain barrier). During another study involving mice, in one track, animals were exposed to fasting, and in the other, their brain cells, (more precisely cortical neurons and Purkinje cells) were isolated and exposed to food deprivation. In both tracks, researchers observed that fasting enhanced autophagy, suggesting that fasting could be a simple, cheap, and safe therapeutic cure for prevention of neurodegenerative diseases ⁵.

In another study, this time involving a subset of kidney cells (proximal tubule cells), a lack of autophagy resulted in the accumulation of dysfunctional mitochondria and other cellular debris. As a result, the cells grew in size abnormally (hypertrophy), decreasing the functionality of the kidney. This suggested that autophagy was part of the continuous maintenance of proximal tubule cells and that inducing autophagy in the kidney may provide a novel therapeutic approach to minimize acute kidney injury ⁶.

As a final example, one more study revealing the association between autophagy and the immune response should be mentioned. It was found that the number of autophagic vesicles (chambers) in the macrophages, a subset of immune cells that are the first to perceive threats to our body, increased as a response to invading bacteria. These vesicles wrapped, sequestered, and digested the bacteria eaten by macrophages ⁷. Thus, fasting has the potential to improve the fighting ability of macrophages against invading pathogens by enhancing autophagic machinery.

Taken together, the autophagy process seems to be a recycling mechanism with minor variations depending on the cell type and activation triggers. Once initiated, it leads to a) reduced accumulation of cellular trash (toxic protein aggregates); b) an improved immune response for removing bacteria (intracellular pathogens); and c) the protection of the interior of the cell (cytosol). As one of the main stimulators of autophagy, fasting or food deprivation seems to be a way for improving health.

Next time you fast, keep in mind that while you are starving, your cells are feasting for your health. Just as the natural world is structured to continually cleanse and renew the earth, fasting seems to trigger similar processes inside the human body. While individuals may choose to fast for spiritual cleansing, their physical bodies experience a cleansing as well.

Abdullah Acar is freelance writer in the US with a special interest in biology.

References

1. Mizushima, N., et al., Autophagy fights disease through cellular self-digestion. Nature, 2008. 451(7182): p. 1069-75.
2. Mizushima, N. and M. Komatsu, Autophagy: renovation of cells and tissues. Cell, 2011. 147(4): p. 728-41.
3. Yang, Z. and D.J. Klionsky, Eaten alive: a history of macroautophagy. Nat Cell Biol, 2010. 12(9): p. 814-22.
4. Kim, I. and J.J. Lemasters, Mitochondrial degradation by autophagy (mitophagy) in GFP-LC3 transgenic hepatocytes during nutrient deprivation. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol, 2011. 300(2): p. C308-17.
5. Alirezaei, M., et al., Short-term fasting induces profound neuronal autophagy. Autophagy, 2010. 6(6): p. 702-10.
6. Kimura, T., et al., Autophagy protects the proximal tubule from degeneration and acute ischemic injury. J Am Soc Nephrol, 2011. 22(5): p. 902-13.
7. Fujita, N. and T. Yoshimori, Ubiquitination-mediated autophagy against invading bacteria. Curr Opin Cell Biol, 2011. 23(4): p. 492-7.

Life, illness, and death are basic human conditions. But at the same time, it is a very individual decision which specific meaning you ascribe to these elements. These meanings also affect the behavior patterns of our life and its consequences. Ascriptions of meaning can – considered without any judgment – be of religious, nationalist, pluralist, and atheistic nature, or be supported from the symbiosis of several ways of thinking.

In the training of health care professionals and in public lectures, the author of this article noticed that illness has a very negative image: the color which stands for physical and mental discomfort is a deep black, while shiny white is the color of health. Consequently, modern medicine therapies have been developed that do not necessarily try to diagnose the causes of diseases, but most of all combat the declared enemy. For this purpose, high-dose drugs, radiation and other weapons are out in the field, according to the motto: attack is the best defense.

The doctors make every effort to win the battle, but there is a risk that the emotional state of the ill person falls into despair – because it is taught to him that his new physical condition is an unnatural, undesirable condition. Thus, a melancholy forms, which reduces the quality of life dramatically. The patient regards the illness as invincible.

In the following, I will present some perspectives that renowned scholar Said Nursi (d. 1960) demonstrated decades ago. They are still powerful today. In my opinion, they harbor the potential to raise the quality of life not only of the ill, but also of healthy people.

In his treatise “The Twenty-fifth Gleam: 25 Remedies for the Sick”¹ Said Nursi throws 25 views (Turkish: Deva² ) on the phenomenon of illness. His outlook could assist in transforming the negative picture of illness into a positive one.

What makes a shift in perspective so important?

Anyone who prepares himself while he or she is a healthy person, if they later catch a more serious illness, will benefit from this text. Nursi’s thoughts on the meaning of illness and potential remedies can play an important role in preparation. Those who internalize his message can help prevent the emotional fall into depression and may instead hope for a cure.

Said Nursi’s first view presents its readers with the understanding that illness should not be seen as a problem that brings bitterness into life, but that you can also draw strength out of it. There may, as said before, be different ascriptions of meaning to human life, but ultimately all people agree that life is something precious and offers a variety of opportunities. The direction of our lives depends on which use we make of these opportunities.

Those who consider illness as something negative will experience every illness as a curse. Such an attitude has a negative impact on the patient and their environment and turns them very pessimistic. They might castigate themselves, and ask questions like: “Why is it me of all people who has ​​this disease?” In extreme cases, this can lead the patient to become delusional and withdraw from society. A shift in perspective, however, can release positive energy and let sorrow and pain melt away.

Those who recognize the opportunities offered by life and appreciate the efforts and labors of everyday life as something positive will concede that even diseases have a meaningful function – for themselves and humanity as a whole.

Nursi says that ill people perceive time differently, which enables them to observe their environment from a more passive perspective. This passivity is supposed to tear modern, urbanized people from the hustle and bustle of everyday life and move them to a pause. It decelerates the lives of those affected and leads them to horizons healthy people find difficulty to access.

Nursi’s second view goes to the role of prayer which he defines in two forms: positive and negative prayers. He refers to prayers like ritual worship, fasting, supplication, and other forms of remembrance as “positive” (müspet) prayers. “Negative” (menfi) prayer on the other hand is attaining awareness and knowledge of one’s own vulnerability and mortality – which is more likely to arise in moments of illness rather than any other time – as a result of which one turns to God in praise of His ultimate power and infinity. Nursi signifies these positive and negative prayers as the second remedy.

The insight into our own transience, which is the third remedy, allows the ill person to recall their past mistakes, many of which might have been forgotten, and allows them to reconcile with themselves and their fellow humans. According to Nursi, this allows a person to realize they are not as perfect and as infallible as they thought. Illness makes people honest: honest with themselves and with others. The confession of the own fallibility is tantamount to an admission of human weakness and mortality.

Viewed from this perspective, the question arises as to whether illness itself is a cure for mankind. It conveys us new views and leads us to reconsider our previous positions. The ill person becomes an observer, and he finally has time to start thinking. As said by Nursi, he realizes that mankind may be considered the crown of creation. But man’s frailty, his aging, and also the health problems of other people make him realize that life on earth is not all there is – a realization that opens his eyes and takes him out of the darkness into the light. Becoming aware of one’s mortality takes away any thoughtlessness. It causes a person to shed laziness and reflect on their obligations.

If the patient manages to do so, they will feel gratitude and be patient, not least in dealing with physical ailments. This gratitude and patience is what Nursi refers to as the fourth remedy. For Nursi, the body is not the property of man, but rather a loan, which he may not dispose of freely. Suffering is to be endured, since it can do some good, too. Nursi characterizes it as a kind of bonus, which God the ultimate owner of our body grants to us, and we should not protest against it.

Chronic diseases or disabilities, which are seen very negatively in today’s society, can be reinterpreted positively in this way because, as Nursi asserts, they bring a gain in knowledge compared that we cannot achieve when healthy. As a result of their illness, they understand new things that healthy people cannot, just as blind, deaf, or dumb people perceive their environment differently, and sometimes more sharply, than people without physical limitations.

Each person strives for well-being, mercy, and forgiveness, and every sorrow and misfortune also harbors rays of mercy in it. From behind the veil of the illness many quite pleasant insights can emerge. A new consciousness arises, and thus many people gain the courage to take risks and reposition oneself in life.

This maturity Nursi describes as the fifth remedy and it can be observed especially in young ill people. Because of their illness, and in contrast to their peers, they have to cope with issues that seem to contradict their youth. They do not fall into the typical noise of youth and are relieved of thoughtlessness and of the pressures of everyday life.

From this point of view, health, for some people, can be even a calamity that can make their heads spin and blind, and lets them lose sight of the fact that their life does not last forever.

Conclusion

Even these first 5 of 25 views on the subject of illness show that not everything, which is interpreted as negative, is actually negative. A shift in perspective can often work wonders.

Nevertheless, such a shift in perspective appears quite disconcerting initially in our modern society in which health equals to a gift and illness to a disaster. If we have considered diseases as the enemy for so long, why should we suddenly welcome disease? A notion that a disease may also enrich the patient and their friends and family is a useful approach. Surely, the thought that positive thinking can influence the illness (coping), and even contribute to the healing process, is quite common. However, the angle shift described by Said Nursi goes much further. And in my eyes, there is no doubt that it is able to significantly improve the quality of a patient’s life and environment.

Illness allows ill persons to pull out from everyday life, at least for some time. Thereby, it gives them new insights and opens doors that probably would have remained closed if they had stayed healthy. Illness allows a refocusing of which we can benefit from as individuals and communities.

Erdogan Karakaya is pursuing a master’s degree in history in Heidelberg, Germany.

Footnotes

1. Nursi, Said. 2009. 25 Remedies for the Sick, the Twenty-fifth Gleam, NJ: Tughra Books.
2. Deva in Turkish actually means cure, resort, and solution. In this article it is also understood as view or view angle.

A sugar is a monosaccharide if it is made up of a single sugar molecule; it is disaccharide if it is built by two sugar molecules; and a polysaccharide if it is composed with multiple sugar molecules.

Sugars that we ingest are broken, in the digestive system, into monosaccharides of glucose, fructose, and galactose. Almost all of the absorbed monosaccharides are first converted into glucose in the liver. This conversion is a very important task of the liver: 80% of the sugars passing into the blood are glucose. As a result, very limited amounts of fructose and galactose are present in the blood. Therefore, when blood sugar is mentioned, normally glucose is taken into consideration and the fructose and galactose levels in the blood are ignored. Glucose, which is also called grape sugar, is most abundantly found in grapes, while fructose is called fruit sugar, as it is plentiful in fruits, and galactose is named milk sugar after its dense presence in milk. The most important characteristic of fructose is that it is sweeter compared to other simple sugars.

Insulin is secreted from the pancreas in order to lower elevated blood glucose levels after digestion. Insulin functions in the transport of glucose from the blood into cells to provide necessary energy, therefore reducing blood sugar levels; furthermore, it also plays a role in the storage of excess glucose as glycogen, which is found primarily in the liver. Once glycogen storage limits are reached in the liver and muscles, glucose is then stored as fat. Fat tissue acts as sustenance during long fasting periods.

Differences between fructose, glucose, and galactose

Glucose and galactose are absorbed actively, depending on salt. They cannot be absorbed without salt while passing through the intestines. Salt is necessary for the absorption of glucose which is present in the starches of potatoes and other foods. Thus, when potato is consumed with salt, the transport of glucose into the blood is facilitated.

However, salt is not necessary in the case of fructose absorption. The intestinal absorption of fructose contained in fruit is delayed by fruit fibers, since these fibers prevent or balance the transport of fructose into the bloodstream. However, when fructose is ingested as a fruit juice, it is absorbed and joins the bloodstream much faster because of the lower fiber content.

A person feels full after a meal when neurons in the satiety center of the hypothalamus are stimulated by elevated blood glucose. Then, hunger center neurons are repressed, eliminating the feeling of hunger. Therefore, a person reduces their food intake during a meal as their blood glucose levels increase. Increased levels of amino acids and fatty acids in the blood also suppress hunger and stimulate fullness after meal. However, one important point is that fructose does not stimulate fullness in the brain. Therefore, if the blood fructose levels are elevated instead of glucose, a person cannot generate a sensation of fullness sensation. As a result, a person desires to intake more food during consumption of fructose. It is only possible for fructose to generate fullness after it has been converted into glucose by liver.

How to consume fruits?

We should prefer direct consumption of fruits instead of drinking natural or industrial fruit juices because of the high fructose content of fruits. The Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, consumed fruits before meals, the wisdom of which we learn only today. Fruits should be consumed at least an hour before or two hours after a meal, for sufficient time should be given for the fructose of an ingested fruit to be absorbed by the intestines and converted to glucose by the liver. Such practices will result in a reduced appetite and food intake. If fruit is consumed after a meal, a delay occurs in the conversion of fructose into glucose since the liver will be occupied by other biochemical processes, along with a full storage of nutrients; this will increase blood fructose levels and fail to reduce appetite. Fatty liver occurs as a consequence of high fat content of the blood. Arteriosclerosis and cirrhosis of the liver may be seen in people with a habit of excessive post-meal fruit consumption.

In a research carried out on laboratory animals, it was found that glucose induces fullness in the hypothalamus and suppresses food intake, whereas fructose was found to repress this effect of glucose, stimulating food intake.¹ Insulin reduces the harms of accumulating sugar in the blood by increasing lipid synthesis. Insulin also takes place in leptin secretion from adipose (fatty) tissue. Leptin is important in the prevention of obesity; therefore, insulin helps in weight loss, too. The leptin hormone causes reduced food intake by stimulating nerve cells in certain parts of the hypothalamus.² Fructose does not cause any leptin secretion because it does not stimulate an insulin release; therefore, it is not effective in generating a sense of fullness.

Ghrelin is a hormone secreted into blood by stomach cells during hunger. This hormone, which produces stomach acids, is enacted through the hypothalamus. It induces hunger, and therefore increases appetite. Insulin secretion increases along with the blood glucose levels during satiety. This eventually causes the increase of the leptin hormone, which also leads to a decrease in ghrelin secretion. As a result, fructose gets absorbed more than glucose in the intestines. Elevated fructose in the blood leads to insufficient or reduced insulin secretion. In this case, a person continues eating.

Fructose and diseases

Free circulation of lipids in the blood damages arteries and veins. For this reason, lipids are transported in “molecular vehicles” that are called as high, low, and very low density lipoproteins (HDL, LDL and VLDL). Neutral lipids (triglycerides) that are present on VLDL (very low density) vehicles are broken down with an enzyme. These lipids are then unloaded from the vehicles by cellular uptake and stored as fats. This transfer of lipids into adipose (fatty) tissue is enhanced via the insulin hormone. In the case of fructose intake, without its insulin secretion effect, lipids accumulate in the blood and liver and eventually prepare ground for liver damage and arteriosclerosis.As the result of a fructose based diet in laboratory animals, it was discovered that lipid production shifted from adipose tissue into the liver, therefore elevating the risk of high blood and liver fat levels.

There are two reasons for this shift. The first one is that fructose acts on the fat producing enzymes of the liver whereas it does not act likewise in adipose tissue.

Secondly, fructose plays an inhibitory role in the conversion of glucose into lipids in adipose tissue. Also, fructose consumption in humans has been linked to elevated blood fat levels.

Overconsumption of fructose causes increased liver fat synthesis. Phosphofructokinase is the limiting enzyme regarding the breakdown of glucose in the liver. This enzyme is regulated by citrates and ATP produced by glucose catabolism and the Krebs cycle, limiting glucose breakdown. However, there is no such limitation in fructose breakdown. Through fructose catabolism, glucose, glycogen, pyruvate, lactate, glycerol and the acyl part of acylglycerol are synthesized. This synthesis can not be limited. As a result of this excessive output and high amounts of triglycerides, VLDL is produced.³ It has been found that persons who consume two or more boxes of fructose sweetened beverages every day carry a 35% higher risk of heart disease.⁴

This isn’t the only disease associated with fructose. In some studies on laboratory animals, it has been reported that a high fructose diet is associated with hypertension.⁵ A lot of research exists suggesting that excessive fructose consumption leads to insulin resistance in both the liver and peripheral tissues, which can often cause diabetes.⁶ In a recent study, it was claimed that excessive fructose intake poses risks for renal diseases leading to glomerular hypertension, renal damage, and inflammation and damage to renal tubules and tissues.⁷

In a study conducted on 21,483 Americans who were older than two years, daily consumption of 37 gr. of fructose (8% of total calorie need) was found to be elevated to 54.7 grams (10.2% of total calorie need) gradually between the years of 1988-1994, mostly consumed by younger people. Increased use of fructose syrup was linked to obesity during the last 35 years.⁸ Furthermore, in a study carried on 1,749 male and female children and teenagers, a positive relation was found between body mass index (BMI) and excessive consumption of carbonated beverages containing high fructose concentrations.⁹ There many studies that support this report.¹⁰ Excessive fructose consumption is known to cause “metabolic syndrome” in which many diseases like obesity, arteriosclerosis, and diabetes emerge together.

Are fruit juices harmful?

Fructose syrup is being used at increasing rates in the food industry. According to the annual report of US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the year 2000, fructose syrups are sugar solutions containing approximately more than 50 % fructose. It is often synthesized by a conversion of corn starch into glucose by glucose isomerase.¹¹ There is also a third syrup type containing 90% fructose, however this has limited uses.

The sweetness of fructose syrup is similar to that of table sugar. It prevents the dehydration of food with its hydrophilic character. It is mostly used in aromatic foods, especially carbonated beverages and fruit juices. It prevents the proliferation of microbes with its high osmotic pressure property and makes food more resistant against them. Syrups containing 42 to 55% of fructose are used in baked goods, cereal products, dairy products, processed foods, both carbonated and regular beverages, ice creams, and frozen desserts. High fructose syrups are used in foods to decrease water activity and prevent spoilage.

Fructose syrups have a very low ash level due to application of intense purification processes during production and product color is water-white. Therefore colors of fructose used industrial foods are white as well. Fructose syrups have a lower viscosity and density compared to glucose syrups and therefore it is runny like water and not as sticky.

How to consume sugars after a meal?

Especially after a fatty meal, our body seeks sugar. The reason behind this is the requirement of sugar for the storage of lipids into fat tissue. However, this sugar should absolutely be glucose instead of fructose. Therefore, some amount of sugar can be consumed to facilitate the removal of lipids from blood after meals. This is recommended to lower blood lipid levels. However, this should not be done with fruits but with natural sugars like grape molasses. A baklava or a dessert made with industrial sugars (fructose) will not be beneficial but harmful.

In conclusion, the consumption of corn-derived fructose syrup is gradually increasing in recent years. Fructose syrup is used both in various carbonated or regular soft beverages, and in desserts. The reason for our fructose syrup preference is that it helps preserve foods longer and it leads to food addiction because it enhances appetite due to its strong sweetness. Fructose syrup is synthesized by the conversion of natural glucose in corn into fructose by isomerase enzymes. In this sense, today’s increased consumption of fructose is altering the existing sugar balance of natural food items. Overconsumption of fructose can pave the way to obesity, metabolic syndrome, arteriosclerosis, diabetes, hypertension, and arteriosclerotic heart and kidney diseases.

Arifagaoglu is a professor of medicine in Ankara, Turkey.

References

1. Wolfgang MJ, Cha SH, Sidhaye A. et al. Regulation of hypothalamic malonyl-CoA by central glucose and leptin. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2007; 104: 19285-19290.
2. Guyton AC, Hall JE. “Dietary Balances; Regulation of Feeding; Obesity and Starvation; Vitemans and Minerals.” Textbook of Medical Physiology, Saunders, 2010, 843.
3. Rutledge A, Adeli K. Fructose and the metabolic syndrome: pathophysiology and molecular mechanisms. Nutr Rev. 2007; 65: 13–23.
4. Fung TT, Malik V, Rexrode KM, Manson JE, Willett WC, Hu FB. Sweetened beverage consumption and risk of coronary heart disease in women. Am J Clin Nutr. 2009;89:1037–42.
5. Barone BB, Wang NY, Bacher AC, Stewart KJ. Decreased exercise blood pressure in older adults after exercise training: contributions of increased fitness and decreased fatness. Br J Sports Med. 2009;43:52–6.
6. Blakely SR, Hallfrisch J, Reiser S, Prather ES. Long-term effects of moderate fructose feeding on glucose tolerance parameters in rats. J Nutr. 1981;111:307–314.
7. Johnson RJ, Sanchez-Lozada LG, Nakagawa T. The effect of fructose on renal biology and disease. J Am Soc Nephrol. 2010; 21(12): 2036-9.
8. Bray G. Fructose: should we worry? Int J Obes 2008;32: S127-131.
9. Forshee RA, Storey ML. Total beverage consumption and beverage choices among children and adolescents. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 2003; 54: 297–307.
10. Forshee RA, Anderson PA, Storey ML. The role of beverage consumption, physical activity, sedentary behavior, and demographics on body mass index of adolescents. Int J Food Sci Nutr. 2004; 55: 463-478.
11. Melanson KJ, Angelopoulos TJ, Nguyen V, Zukley L, Lowndes J, Rippe JM. High-fructose corn syrup, energy intake, and appetite regulation. Am J Clin Nutr. 2008; 88(6):1738S-1744S.

This mystical unveiling, found in Ibn `Arabi’s vision of The Universal Tree and Four Birds, appears in his work entitled, Cosmic Unification in the presence of essential witnessing, through the assembling of the Human Tree and the Four Spiritual Birds. Ibn `Arabi’s vision offers a mystical grounding for dialogue among religious traditions, echoing the forms of dialogue identified by contemporary scholars and practitioners of interreligious dialogue. Ibn `Arabi’s distinctive philosophy of the Oneness of the Many or Diversity within Unity is an insight that will provide the basis for such mystical grounding (Chittick 1998, 169).

Background

If we are to understand Ibn `Arabi’s writings, the background for such concepts is important.

Five centuries after the advent of Islam in 1165 CE, Muhyiddin Muhammad Ibn `Arabi was born at Murcia in southern Andalusia in the Golden Age of Islam. During that period, the Iberian Peninsula witnessed an extraordinary cultural interaction between Muslims, Jews, and Christians under Islamic rule,which existed until the Christian domination of Spain became complete under the reign of King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella in the year 1492, thereby ending this cultural interaction (Hirtenstein 1999, 9).

Diversity within Unity

As a young boy growing up under such extraordinary conditions, Ibn `Arabi displayed visionary

abilities. His greatest vision occurred nearly thirty years later when he experienced a spiritual ascent beyond the seven celestial bodies, arriving at “the Universal Tree surrounded by four mystical birds: the Ringdove, the Royal Eagle, the Strange Anqa and the Jet Black Crow” (Jaffray 2006, 35). From this vision Ibn `Arabi came to develop his philosophy of Diversity within Unity (Jaffray 2011, 1).6 Author Angela Jaffray says, “Ibn `Arabi clearly acknowledges the monotheistic sense of God, but acknowledges Diversity among the different religions, but in Diversity, God wills unity” (Jaffray 2011, 1).

In the Universal Tree is observed a diverse unity based on the multiplicity of beings rooted together in one Divine Being. The tree and four feathered creatures that sit upon its branches bring forth a type of mystical grounding, fostered in unity for dialogue among religious traditions. The types of dialogue revealed within the tree will be the dialogues of life, of study, of prayer, and of spirituality, all of which, if followed in an atmosphere of mutuality, will have the potential to facilitate people toward the dialogue of action—an action bringing forth a vision of justice for all.

Discourse of the Universal Tree

Upon meeting the Universal Tree, Ibn `Arabi greeted it and the tree responded by saying:

Listen, O wayfarer, O king. I am the Universal Tree of synthesis
and likeness. I have deep roots and my branches are lofty…
… I am the synthesis of the divine words… (Jaffray 2006, 35-37)

In her commentary, Jaffrey interprets for us: the Tree consists of unity and multiplicity. The well-rooted trunk represents unity, and multiplicity reflected in the leaves. The leaves represent human beings, and the branches a synthesis of all the Divine’s Names and Attributes manifested to the leaves [humankind] (Jaffray 2006, 82, 83).

The Tree demonstrates the universality of God’s all-inclusive infinite ways in which He manifests Himself to creation. Ibn `Arabi writes, “People of God say there are as many ways to God as the breaths of the creatures…” (Twinch 2011, 3). In other words, there is one Divine Being, but God manifests Himself in infinite ways to each person.

In today’s global village of numerous religious and cultural traditions, we come together on a daily basis as the multiplicity of leaves on the Universal Tree interacting with one another. The daily interaction of people, known as the Dialogue of Life, is what Cardinal Arinze, past President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, describes as the form of dialogue most within the reach of anyone. “It is interreligious relationships … of daily life … we draw on the values of … different traditions … without discussing religion” (Arinze 1997, 17). This, according to Islamic scholar Mahmoud Ayoub, is the way in which during the course of daily living that “the common Abrahamic prophetic moral and spiritual heritage can help the children of all three families of Abraham come together to face the problems of the modern world, striving together for the common good of society” (Ayoub 2004, 313-319).

Discourse of the Ringdove (al-mutawwaqa al-warqa)

The Ringdove states,

I am the Dove of oft-repeated praises. Beautiful realities descend upon threads toward the hearts… in search of the One [Divine Being]. (Jaffray 2006, 41, 21)

The Ringdove receives melodious sounds offered by the tree’s branches so that She may carry the tree’s rhythmic song of unity and love (Jaffray 2006, 36) encapsulating God’s offer of grace to all. Jaffray notes that in another of Ibn `Arabi’s writings, entitled The Tarjuman Al-Ashwaq, Poem XIII, the ringdove, with her dark neck ring, represents the covenant entrusted to her by the Real(representing God or Allah). In this covenant, she is given the special job of bringing forth the inspiration of the Divine (Jaffray 2006, 84).

According to Ibn `Arabi, the Divine’s inspiration “is all the words of the Great Koran, the Gospel, the Psalms, and the Scriptures…and it is through speech, listening, and hearing, wecome to know what is in the Self of the Real, since we have no knowledge of Him except through the knowledge given to His messengers on earth by the Divine Spirit” (Almirzanah 2011, 88-89).

Discourse of the Royal Eagle (`uqab)

The Royal Eagle states,

I am the Intellect … I am the bearer of everything known, high and low
… I am His … the light of His existence. (Jaffray 2006, 43, 46)

Jaffray says that Ibn `Arabi calls the Eagle `uqab, which is associated with the ProphetMuhammad, and in philosophical terms is known as the First Intellect. The Royal Eagle is illumined with knowledge from God, the same spiritual knowledge that was given to Muhammad. Ibn `Arabi states, “the intellect [is] the bearer of everything that is known high and low … which takes from God … and is set forth … in the Qur’an” (Jaffray 2006, 46).

The grace-filled words of Allah given to Muhammad—words that verify the Torah and Gospels are, according to Muslim scholar and spiritual leader M. Fethullah Gulen, ” words that descended to the Earth [issuing in] a deep understanding of balance … heralding to its followers a path that leads to universal harmony” (Gulen 2010, 145). Such inspired wisdom given to the Messenger on earth and recorded in the scriptures according to Ibn `Arabi, “is that which God has made clear that He is in every direction turned to, each of which represents a particular doctrinal perspective regarding Him, and confirmed in the Qur’an 2:115, wheresoever you turn, there is the face of God” (Almirzanah 2011, 116).

Understanding the Divine knowledge imparted in each other’s scriptures is important for interreligious dialogue and is supported through the hard but necessary work of study, which is referred to as the Dialogue of Study (Knitter 2002, 204), or as Ayoub describes it, the Dialogue of Belief, which “engages the minds and hearts of people [together]…in their search for truth” (Ayoub 2004, 318). Discovering the truth of every faith through study, remarks Cardinal Arinze, is a way “to appreciate objectively the religion of the other and not run the risk of misrepresenting it” (Arinze 1997, 96).

Discourse of the Strange Anqa (`anqa mughrib)

The Strange Anqa states:

I am the one who has no existent entity. I am Dust in which God reveals the bodies of the world … Nothing can be manifested that I am not in … I wander through the gathering of those with bowed heads. (Jaffray 2006, 46, 47, 91)

Commentary notes from one of Ibn `Arabi’s earlier works entitled “Anqa mughrib,” according to Jaffray, identifies Jesus as the Anqa (Jaffray 2006, 93). Philosophically speaking, the Strange Anqa is also a metonym for the Greek notion of hyle (Arabic: hayula), or prime matter, which according to Ibn `Arabi, citing from Qur’an 56: 6, “. . .was scattered dust” (Jaffray 2006, 94). Dust, according to Ibn `Arabi, “is God’s desire to bring the cosmos into existence and His Theophany” (Jaffray 2006, 95). The Anqa [Dust] Ibn `Arabi says, “comprises every form…[but] human minds cannot know it by … their thinking … It is concealed, but without being absent … [and] in any form it wills, it manifests itself” (Jaffray 2006, 96).

The Anqa further explains its reality: “Although the door of my existence is sealed nothing can be manifested that I am not in… I wander through the gathering of those with bowed heads” (Jaffray 2006, 47). Ibn `Arabi claims, “Allah is revealed in every face, sought in every sign … and pursued in the unseen and the visible. Not a single one of His creatures can fail to find Him in its primordial and original nature” (Jaffray 2006, 1). In other words, bowed heads (prayer), “is the means of seeing God … [where] the form of God becomes visible to the heart” (Corbin 1969, 248).

Approaching God through prayer is essential to interreligious dialogue. Prayer, according to Gulen, “is a mysterious key to His everlasting treasures…[to] a most secure shelter… Those who step into this shelter are considered to have obtained [the] key…” (Gulen 2003, 4). Together in prayer we have the ability to obtain the key of God’s treasures, which may offer a solution to suffering stemming from the disease of prejudice and collectively help bring forth a “breeze of hope for those who are suffering…” (Gulen 2003, 4). Asking for the Divine’s guidance through prayer must always be preliminary to meeting on the level of words. Calling on the Divine, known as the Dialogue of Prayer, brings an openness to the conversation says Cardinal Arinze, “an openness to the action of God’s Grace in the person through the dialogue” (Arinze 1997, 95).

Discourse of the Jet Black Crow (al-ghurab)

The Jet Black Crow states:

I am of numbers, the singular among counted numbers. The Real summoned me into His presence and I came … His knowledge flows in me… (Jaffray 2006, 48, 50)

Although many equate the Crow with evil, Jaffray says from a philosophical and cosmological point of view, Ibn `Arabi saw that the crow represents the Universal Body—the Perfect Human Being. The Crow in Ibn `Arabi’s vision is Abraham, the intimate friend of God (Jaffray 2006, 101). In the reading of scripture and according to the commentary by Jaffray, Abraham demonstrates the true qualities of the perfect human, in trust completely abandoning the self, and filling the self with God, for he was called and he “readily responded” (Jaffray 2006, 101).

Abraham’s attribute of abandoning and filling the self with the Divine is needed in interreligious dialogue. This is a deep spirituality according to Gulen, that is very important in devotion and servitude to God, for the person who has reached complete spiritual knowledge of Godis the one according to Quran 66:6, who “do not disobey God in whatever He commands them, and carries out what they are commanded” (Gulen 2011, 149). Such souls experience the pleasure of intimacy with Him at every moment so long as they keep their “eyes fixed on the door of the Ultimate Truth” (Gulen 2011, 150). According to Cardinal Arinze, this is the Dialogue of Spirituality—”a dialogue that calls on a person to go to the higher self and indeed to go beyond self and aspire to some form of relationship with a Divine Being, or God” (Arinze 1997, 101).

This deep spirituality, according to Gulen, “should turn and direct others to God from the bottom of [our] hearts, thereby leading us to work toward improving and reforming the world…” (Gulen 2012, 219). Such spirituality allows one to be more aware of what “the faith Spirit [brings] down upon [the] heart” (Ali 2010, 219)—bridging an awareness of what the Divine commands for the world. This is an awareness that can bring about the Dialogue of Action—an action, according to Cardinal Arinze, “referring to Christians and other believers cooperating for the promotion of human development and liberation in all its forms,” (Arinze 1997, 18) demonstrating to the world how we are to dwell within God’s creation with the attributes given to us by God to promote mutuality and unity.

A Good Word Produces Action

Produced within the tree is:

A good word is as a good tree; its roots are firmly established and its branches are in heaven; it gives its produce every season by permission of its Lord. (Qur’an 14:25)

The good fruits of dialogue require us to “invite (all) to the way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious…” (Ali 2010, 156).

In interreligious dialogue, we come to see the universality of God’s love and concern for everyone. According to Cardinal Arinze, “When deeply committed spiritual leaders of different religions meet … something wonderful happens … because they are sincerely looking for God, they are better able to understand each other” (Arinze 1997, 110). Interfaith dialogue seeks to bring about a cooperative, constructive, and positive interaction between people of different religious traditions with the ultimate goal, according to Ayoub, of making possible “the ability of all women and men of faith to listen to and obey the voice of God as it speaks to all faith communities…,” (Ayoub 2004, 319) thereby bridging a path to forming new relationships and unity among believers. In creating new relationships, Cardinal Arinze considers it important that “every believer…should strive to be more open to the action of God … and be willing to go where the divine light leads” (Arinze 1997, 70, 71).

Following the divine light in spirit and in an atmosphere of common mutuality, interreligious dialogue has the potential to bridge the path toward a global ethic of love and tolerance seeking solutions to the immense social, economic, and ecological crises facing the world today. The Universal Tree demonstrates to us a well-rooted trunk from whose branches bring forth the multiplicities of God’s Names and Attributes manifested to all people in diverse ways. From Ibn `Arabi’s point of view, only through “the acquiring of gnosis (spiritual knowledge) can the Heart be receptive…to the universality of God” (Austin 1980, 146) and find “that despite the multiplicity of God’s names, attributes, and acts, there is but a single Being…” (Jaffray 2006, 12).

In an unconventional way, The Tree raises a type of cosmic conversation weaving together the dialogues of Life, Study, Prayer, and Spirituality, directing us toward the dialogue of Action—an action working for peace and justice. In the spirit of love, may we all come together like Birds of a Feather in the hands of the Divine. As Mr. Gulen notes, may we come together “as limbs of the same body … ceasing the duality that violates our very union. We should clear the way to unite people; this is one of the greatest ways in which God grants people success in the world, and how He transforms this world into a Paradise. It is in this way that the door of Heaven will be opened wide in order to give us a warm welcome. Hence, we should remove all ideas and feelings that pull us apart, and run to embrace one another.” (Gulen 2010, 7)

Brenda Pletcher is a student of religious studies at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, who has a special interest in Interfaith Dialogue.

References

• Ali, Abdullah Yusuf. 2010. The Meaning of the Holy Qur’an, Madison Park, Pacific Publishing Studio.
• Almirzanah, Syafaatun. 2011. When Mystic Masters Meet: Toward a New Matrix for Christian-Muslim Dialogue, New York: Blue Dome Press.
• Arinze, Cardinal Francis. 1997. Meeting Other Believers; The Risks and Rewards of Interreligious Dialogue, Huntington, Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division.
• Austin, R. W. J. 1980. The Bezels of Wisdom, Mahwah, Paulist Press.
• Ayoub, Mahmoud. 2004. “Christian-Muslim Dialogue: Goals and Obstacles.” Muslim World 94, no 3 (July): 313-319. Academic Search Elite, EBSCO host (accessed July 3, 2012). p. 318.
• Chittick, William. 1998. The Self-Disclosure of God, Principles of Ibn al-`Arabi’s Cosmology, Albany: State University of New York Press.
• Corbin, Henry. 1969. Alone with the Alone; Creative Imagination in the Sufism of Ibn ‘Arabi, Princeton, Princeton University Press.
• Gulen, M. Fethullah. 2003. Time to Pray, The Fountain 42 p. 4,
• ——. 2010. Toward A Global Civilization of Love & Tolerance, NJ: Tughra Books.
• ——. 2011. Emerald Hills of the Heart: Key Concepts in the Practice of Sufism 1, NJ: Tughra Books.
• ——. 2012. Reflections on the Qur’an: Commentaries on Selected Verses, NJ: Tughra Books.
• Hirtenstein. Stephen. 1999. The Unlimited Mercifer; The Spiritual life and thought of Ibn `Arabi, Oxford: Anqa Publishing.
• Jaffray, Angela. 2006. The Universal Tree and the Four Birds, Oxford, Anqa Publishing.
• ——. 2011. “Water with One Water,” Ibn `Arabi on the One and the Many, http://www.ibnarabisociety.org/articles/watered.html Retrieved 8/30/2011.
• Kakaie, Ghasem. 2011. Interreligious Dialogue: Ibn `Arabi and Meister Eckhart, http://www.ibnarabisociety.org/articles/interreligious-dialogue.html Retrieved 9/12/2011.
• Knitter, Paul. 2002. Theologies of Religions, Maryknoll, Orbis Books.
• Steindle-Rast, David. 1996. Meister Eckhart from Who God Hid Nothing, Boston and London: Shambhala.
• Twinch, Cecilia. 2011.”The Circle of Inclusion,”
• http://www.ibnarabisociety.org/articles/circleofinclusion.html Retrieved 9/12/2011.

After a caterpillar undergoes metamorphosis, a mature Monarch butterfly lives for approximately six weeks under normal conditions. But as we will see, there is one exception to this rule.

These butterflies, with a wing span of 8-10 centimeters, live in Canada and the Northern USA and they migrate to South America during their migratory season. They increase their body weight by consuming flower nectar before starting the journey, to prepare for the 5000 km long route ahead of them. During this journey, they change direction many times because of rain storms and extreme weather, but they are never lost.

Towards the end of August, Monarch butterflies begin their journey from North America to the Oyamel forests in Mexico. They fly around 80 km a day, reaching speeds up to 20 km/hour. Though most generations only live for six weeks, these butterflies live for months. After an arduous journey of 8 to 10 weeks, they arrive at the 3000 meter high mountains in November and December. The Mexican mountains make an ideal place for these animals. Butterflies hibernate in this region for four months, from December to March, and survive on their fat reserves.

While this north to south journey is completed by one generation, the return journey takes four generations to complete. With the onset of spring, Monarch butterflies start feasting on honey nectar to get the energy to head back north. Around mid-March, they start to migrate northward, headed back to their birthplace. Meanwhile, having reached maturity, they reproduce. Each member of this generation lays around 700 eggs in suitable places between March and April, and then dies near mid May.

Female butterflies lay their eggs near the leaves of poisonous plants. Hatching larvae feed on these leaves. These neurotoxic plant leaves serve as a protection against predators. This poison is found to remain in the tissues of the insect even after it becomes a mature butterfly and is not harmful to it. The protection is necessary, for monarch butterflies have charming colors that attract many other animals. Thus some birds try to prey on them, only to fail each time. Because of the neurotoxin, these birds become stunned as soon as they touch their beaks to the butterfly.

It takes about a month for an egg to mature to an adult butterfly. Thus, the first generation comes to existence on the journey home. Like a programmed machine, this generation continues their parents’ journey north. They leave their eggs, for the second generation, during April and May, and then die in mid-June.

The second generation also continues the northward journey of their parents. They lay their eggs during May and June, and then die around mid-July.

Third generation Monarchs, however, arrive in Canada around June or July. The females of this generation lay their final eggs in mid-July and die during August. As a result, the fourth generation reaches maturity in a month, thus completing the annual tour. The fourth generation begins migrating south, towards the mountains of Mexico, at the end of the same month and hibernates there. This final generation lives six months more than the other generations, long enough to lay their eggs during spring. Without this character, the final generation Monarch butterflies would have died before spring, and would thus be unable to reach adulthood to lay eggs.

The migration to Mexico of a butterfly with such a delicate muscle structure confounded scientists for a long time. It is a fascinating, extraordinary event for millions of butterflies that, unlike migratory birds, lack a complicated nervous system. Yet despite this, they are able to pinpoint, and meet, in an area of around 1000 square kilometers.

An ultimate version of the global positioning (GPS) system as invented by the scientists is blessed as a birth-right to Monarch butterflies. Biologist Steven Reppert and his team from Massachusetts University have uncovered very interesting facts while studying butterfly antennae. When butterflies were placed in a flight simulator type of device with their antennae cut, they changed their direction after flying a while. Migrating butterflies with their antennae continued to move Southwest, however butterflies without their antennae flew in different directions. Not only did butterflies lose their navigational skills without their antennae but also had problems with their daily, time-dependent navigation.

Is it sufficient to explain this phenomenon by instinct only?

Pinar Celik has a PhD in medicine. She is a freelance writer from Turkey.

References

• Zhan S, Merlin C, Boore JL, Reppert SM. “The Monarch Butterfly Genome Yields Insights into Long-Distance Migration”. Cell 147 (5): 1171–85. 2011
• Davis, A.K. “Wing color of monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) in eastern North America across life stages: migrants are ‘redder’ than breeding and overwintering stages”. Psyche: 1–5. 2009
• Merlin, C; Gegear, RJ; Reppert, SM. “Antennal circadian clocks coordinate sun compass orientation in migratory monarch butterflies”. Science 325 (5948): 1700–1704. 2009
• Kyriacou, CP. “Unraveling Traveling”. Science 325 (5948): 1629–1630. 2009

Though we cannot see humor, like faith, we perceive it all around us.

Once upon a time there was a planet in an unknown corner of the vast universe. For a long time, this planet was distinguished by having inhabitants with no sense of humor at all! This sounds like a joke, doesn’t it? But I am here to tell history, not jokes. This planet’s history was studied in three eras, each having a different state of humor: the Ancient Period, the Middle Period, and the Modern Period.

I. Modern period

The inhabitants of this planet were extremely serious, conscientious, sincere, hard-working, and moral. Besides all these good qualities, they considered humor as a pathological phenomenon. They never laughed or jested, kidded or joked. There was no room for any kind of humor.

A small minority, who had some feeling for humor, occasionally laughed and joked. However, their behavior was extremely alarming to everyone else. These few people were called “laughers,” and they were promptly hospitalized. What was so obnoxious about their behavior, aside from the strange noises they made and the peculiar facial expressions they bore while “laughing,” were the utterly pathological things they said! They seemed to lose all sense of reality. They said things which were totally irrational, indeed sometimes logically self-contradictory. In short, they behaved exactly like anyone else who was deluded or hallucinating, hence why they were put into hospitals.

More importantly, it was definitely verified that this “laughter” was somewhat contagious and that certain individuals became laughers for the first time in their life only after repeated contact with other laughers. Indeed, this was another thing which made the laughers so dangerous. They were not only hallucinating themselves, but tended to pass these hallucinations to others! Hence they had to be hospitalized, not only for their own sakes, but also for the sake of the society.

In the hospitals, doctors tried quite a number of different treatment regimens to cure their pathologic behavior. Besides many unsuccessful treatment attempts, one drug, called “laughazone,” was finally found to kill the symptoms of humor. Almost immediately upon administration, the patient would stop laughing as well as quit the verbal activity called “joking,” and would instead start screaming. The patient would just lie there screaming, hour after hour, day after day, week after week, and month after month. And the most amazing thing of all is that not once during this screaming period did the patient ever laugh or make a joke or even smile. They thought this drug was really phenomenal!

The problem with “laughazone,” though, was that its effects were temporary. After the months long treatment, the patient would, for some unknown reason, fall into a deep state of depression for several weeks, and sometimes longer. After this, he would gradually convalesce, and his original symptoms of laughing and joking would return. So, the doctors had to put the patient through the treatment again and again.

II. Ancient and middle period

The Modern Period contained no literature at all on laughter, except in textbooks and periodicals on abnormal psychology. The Middle Period, on the contrary, was chock-full of laugh-literature. This literature contained absolutely no material which contemporary laughers called “funny.” Indeed the writings were written in a wholly sane, serious, scholarly, and philosophic mood. The writings consisted mainly of analysis and commentary on the ancient texts. The ancient writings, unlike those of the middle period, were totally non-philosophical. They never spoke about laughter or anything like that. They were simply what the Middle Period called “funny.” These archaic manuscripts contained all sorts of incomprehensible and contradictory material called “jokes” or “funny stories.” Therefore, philosophers of the Middle Period extolled the Ancient Period, and referred to it as “the golden age of humor, when men could freely laugh and joke and really enjoy life.” Appreciating the ancient writings required a certain, almost mystical, faculty called “humor.” What was so puzzling was that humor could not flourish in the wholly serious and rational atmosphere of the Middle Period.

So, the Middle period witnessed many discussions on humor. One such discussion which had taken place between the mystic-humorists and the skeptical anti-humorists went as follows:

The Mystic-Humorists claimed that the only reliable way humor could be known was by direct perception: “We can see humor in many situations. Life is permeated with humor, if you can only see it.”

The skeptical Anti-Humorists said, “So, you claim you can see humor! Tell me, what color is it?”

The Mystic-Humorists laughed and said, “Humor doesn’t have any color!”

The skeptics continued: “Oh, so you can see it only in black and white! Well, then, what shape is it?”

“It doesn’t have any form or shape.”

“Then I am confused! Is humor visible or invisible?”

“Of course it is invisible!”

“But I thought you just said that you can see it. Didn’t you say that you could see the humor of certain situations?”

“Well, yes, I said that, but I didn’t mean ‘see’ in the literal sense of ‘see with your eyes.’ Ocular vision really has nothing to do with it. I used ‘see’ in the sense of directly perceive, not see with the eyes. Perception, although as direct as vision, is really through a different sense altogether.”

“A different sense? Which sense is it – hearing? If so, what does humor sound like? Or is it smell or taste or touch or what? With which of the five senses do you perceive humor, or is it a combination of more than one of them?”

“No, it is not any one of these five senses, nor is it a combination of them. It is a totally different sense. In a way, it is a nonphysical sense. We call this sense the ‘sense of humor.'”

“Good God, you literally mean a nonphysical sense? In other words, you mean it is something occult, like telepathy or clairvoyance? But scientific integrity requires us not to believe in anything occult; hence we cannot but believe that this humor is something totally unreal, a mere figment of the imagination.”

In vain the Humor-Mystics protested that there was nothing the least bit occult about humor and said: “If only once you could see what humor was, you would realize that it is the most natural thing in the world, and also that it is delightfully pleasant.”

Another thing, the “Mystic-Humorists” claimed was that the label “Mystic-Humorist” was most misleading. They claimed that there was nothing at all mystical about humor, even though it might seem mystical to those who lacked the immediate sense of humor. They said, “Why not rather call us laughers, which is, in fact, what we are.” And so, the term “Mystic-Humorist” was gradually replaced by “laugher.” Later, this term would be used in the Modern Period as explained above.

Another discussion during the Middle Period was between the “laughers” and the Faith-Humorists, who believed that reason could be somewhat helpful in understanding humor but that an act of faith was crucial. Essentially, Faith-Humorists did not take a hostile, skeptical attitude toward the laughers, but instead believed in them wholeheartedly. They knew that the laughers were in direct contact with that which the Faith-Humorists could only reason about and accept on faith. However, they were heavily criticized by the “laughers” because of their approach to the issue:

You seem to think that knowledge about laughter is somehow more important than the ability to laugh.

You take an approach which is far too objective and scientific. You read all the literature you can find on the philosophy of humor. You perform elaborate linguistic analyses of what the word “humor” could possibly mean. The only way you will ever find out what it really means is by acquiring a sense of humor.

The most insidious error of all is to try to learn humor by merely imitating the outward forms of the laughers. You must remember that the activity of laughter is only a manifestation of humor. Humor itself is something entirely within the spirit.

Another thing that you do out of mere imitation is this ridiculous practice of memorizing jokes. You commit thousands upon thousands of jokes to memory and you think you are thereby acquiring a sense of humor! But memorizing these jokes is absolutely pointless for you until, and unless, you have acquired a sense of humor.

You combine the two techniques of joke memorization and forced laughter, and then you are sure you have matured. But God Almighty, how wrong you are! You go forth into the world claiming yourselves to be authentic laughers. Nothing sabotages our cause more than this! The skeptics who meet you are almost rightfully reinforced in their belief that humor is something which is a mere sham and delusion. Yes, the pseudo-laughers like you are the major cause of the disappearance of humor from this planet.

As laughter disappeared more and more from this planet, the people of the Middle Period realized that this was a tragic loss rather than a gain, and they did everything possible to stem the tide. Only at the very end of the Middle Period did it first occur to mankind that laughter, far from being something good, could actually be something totally undesirable. People started saying: “Maybe we should stop trying to stem the tide. Maybe the tide is our greatest blessing, although we don’t know it. Maybe it is high time that this silly archaic thing called ‘humor’ should disappear. Maybe laughter was all right for savages, and we are now becoming civilized!” Then the idea fully occurred to mankind that humor was but another form of psychosis; laughter was a type of psychopathology. Thus was ushered the Modern Period.

III. Back to the modern period

As we discussed earlier, people of the Modern Period had to accept the painful fact that the laughers were not permanently curable, at least for the foreseeable future. This fact split the medical opinion into two divergent camps; hospitals, similarly, split into two widely divergent types. Hospitals of Type I were called “laugh-scream hospitals”; those of Type II were “pure-laugh hospitals.” In the laugh-scream hospitals, the doctors realized that no patient was permanently curable. Hence, once a patient was admitted, they were admitted for life. All that could be done was to administer the laughazone treatment over and over for the rest of the patient’s life. The discipline at these hospitals was ironclad: no patient was ever released, and there was to be no letup in treatment. It was better for the patient to face reality and scream than to withdraw into his fantasy world of humor and laugh.

The philosophy of the pure-laugh hospitals was, however, entirely different. They agreed with the laugh-scream hospitals that no laugher was permanently curable. But they thought: so why not let the patient enjoy his life? Was it really all that bad that he had these fantasies? Similar to the laugh-scream hospitals, patients were incarcerated for life. But they were given no treatments whatsoever! The patients in the pure-laugh hospitals were very happy. Everything possible was done for them to ensure their happiness. The pure-laugh hospitals, in the true sense of the word, were merely isolation centers. Their only function was to prevent the inmates from infecting the outside world with their laughter-psychosis.

Thus the conditions inside the pure-laugh hospitals were close to idyllic, except for one thing! Good God, the patients cried “How unfair that our brothers are screaming themselves to death in the laugh-scream hospitals while we are free to enjoy our laughter. Those doctors at the laugh-scream hospitals! They believe that they are helping their patients! They are the maddest of all! We must find a way to free our brothers so that they can enjoy laughter as we do.”

Occasionally, patients would escape from the laugh-scream hospitals, and they would immediately rush to the pure-laugh hospitals, where they were cheerfully admitted. As the patients in the pure-laugh hospitals increased in number day by day, at last, they managed to find the loopholes in the system. It didn’t take them long to organize raids on the laugh-scream hospitals, through which they freed all the laugh-wards, and brought all the patients back to the pure-laugh hospitals. The laugh-scream hospitals eventually went out of existence.

However, laughers were not satisfied with this success. They were bothered by the thought of those outside the laugh-communities who never knew the joy of laughter. What could be done for them? Just about nothing, they decided, since the old loopholes they had used to escape were taken care of. But here, providence intervened in a very remarkable way. What happened was this:

The standard of living inside the laugh-hospital communities was far higher than outside. One by one the outsiders pretended to be laughers in order that they might be incarcerated in the laugh-communities. The pretended-laughers knew perfectly that they had no sense of humor, and they couldn’t have cared less; they deliberately lied just for the purpose of joining the laugh-communities with their high standards of living. What happened was that the lying-laughers, being surrounded by an enormous majority of genuine laughers, very soon caught the laughing sickness themselves, and in but a few weeks turned completely into genuine laughers. And so one non-laugher after another lied his way into the laugh-communities, and shortly, became a genuine laugher. Then finally, even the psychiatrists succumbed, and no non-laughers were left behind. The entire planet was now one huge laugh-hospital, and the Modern Period that was devoid of humor became the funniest era ever.

This story was adapted from Richard Smullyan’s This Book Needs No Title: A Budget of Living Paradoxes by (Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1980). Copyright (c) 1980 by Raymond M. Smullyan (Acquired necessary permissions from the author).

Nural is a graduate research assistant in computer science at the University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia.

‘Ashq, which the spirit feels outside the intervention of free will, cannot be controlled by the person so affected, for its real source is God, Who loves Himself in a way special to His Sacred Essence and is essentially independent of the created. In addition, it is essentially different from the love felt by the created for the created or the Creator. This sacred, essential love of God for Himself is the reason why He created the universe and why He caused humanity to appear in the world. It is also this love that manifests itself in human beings as love for God, as the most essential center of humanity’s relationship with God.

‘Ashq is the final step leading to God, and a lover who has reached it almost has no further steps to take. God manifested Himself first as this sacred, essential love required by His being God. I particularly avoid attributing to Him ‘ashq (passion or esctatic love) in the absolute sense of the word, and prefer using the word mahabba (love).

Some tend to call this Divine Love Knowledge, as Knowledge is the first manifestation of the Absolute Divine Being, Who is infinitely exalted above having any equals or likes. Every manifestation of the Divine Being is a condescension. This first condescension is called “Knowledge,” as it is God’s Knowledge. It is also called “the Sacred Love” in the sense that God loves to observe and to be “observed;” or “the Tablet” as it comprehends or contains all of existence; or “the Pen,” as it handles all things in existence in all their details. Jabarut (the Realm of the Transcendental Manifestation of Divine Attributes and Names) and the Truth of Ahmad (the Prophet’s Name before his coming to the world) are other titles of this condescension.

Sacred Love is a mystery peculiar to the Divine Essence. Other Attributes of His are appended to or dependent on this love. It is for this reason that those who fly with the wings of ‘ashq directly reach the Divine Essence and attain amazement, whereas others have to pass through the intermediate realms of the worlds of things and Names. The ways leading to God are almost beyond number. Sufism, the science of truth, contains the food, light, and other necessities travelers need for the journey, and the (spiritual) orders (tariqas) are the ports from which they set out, or the schools in which the principles of the journey are taught.

The ways to the Ultimate Truth can be divided into two main groups. The first is the way in which the wayfarer is offered or taught such principles as eating less, drinking less, sleeping less, increasing contemplation, and refraining from unnecessary social intercourse. Almost all Sufi orders are based on these practices. The main invocations recited by followers of this way are the Seven Names: There is no deity but God, God, He, the Ultimate Truth, the All-Living, the Self-Subsistent, the All-Overwhelming. By reciting these Names, one seeks to pass through the seven steps of the human self or soul: the Evil-Commanding, the Self-Condemning, the Inspired, the Serene and Peaceful or the Soul at Rest, the Soul Well-Pleased (with God), the Soul Pleasing (to God), and the Purified or Innocent Self or Soul. To these seven Names, some add such Names of Majesty as the All-Powerful, the All-Strong, the All-Compelling, the Master, and the All-Loving; others add such Names of Grace as the All-Independent, Single One; the One (having no partners or equals), the Unique One, and the Eternally Besought-of-All.

The second way is based on strict adherence to the Qur’an and the Sunna, and the encouragement of certain recitations. Those who follow this way strive to comply with the Sunna in whatever they do. Rather than reciting certain Names, they follow the methods used by God’s Messenger to worship, invoke, and pray, reflect on His Acts and creatures, and mention Him with all of His Names. Joining these activities with a meticulous following of the commandments of Shari’a, they are firmly attached to their guides or teachers and abandon themselves to the tides of ‘ashq and spiritual attraction toward God.

Once they have attained ‘ashq and attraction, existence with its outer dimension vanishes from their sight. They are annihilated with respect to the carnal aspect of their existence and begin to feel and observe the absolute Divine Unity. At this point, they immediately come to their senses without becoming confused or going to extremes in the relationship between the Creator and the created. In such a manner do they complete their journey.

The basic principles of this second way are regular worship, love, spiritual attraction toward God, regular recitation, and the companionship of one’s guide or teacher. In this context recitation, in addition to mentioning God with all of His Names, involves study or attending classes in whatever leads one to God. This is what the Prophet, upon him be peace and blessings, meant when he described this kind of recitation: They study together. At times, a lover finds himself or herself in the stream of joyful zeal and yearning, regarded as another dimension of ‘ashq.¹

O God! Guide us to what You love and are pleased with, and bestow blessing and peace on Muhammad, the one with whom You are pleased, and on his faithful Companions.

1- Muslim, “Dhikr,” 11.

How good are we aware of the operations of systems and mechanisms that make us walk?

Costly research and development efforts are under way in centers throughout the world seeking to build walking robots by mimicking human mobility. After 14 years of research, automotive firms built Asimo, a robot which can walk bipedally and climb stairs like humans. Even though the moves Asimo could make matched those of a one year old baby, it was still considered a great success for the robot technology.

Hardships encountered during these research projects proved walking to be a great miracle, apart from normal habits of movement. We often become aware of how extraordinary movement is and that the moves we repeat hundreds of times, such as walking, running, bending, sitting and standing, are blessings granted to us only when we see someone who has lost some of their mobility.

That humans can walk bi-pedally is truly exceptional. Most organisms have a front leaning skeletal structure and walk on four extremities; they only stand upright when absolutely required to, since it is very difficult for them. Human ability to stand upright and walk on two legs truly signifies them as special amongst creatures, and sets them apart from all of creation. The lively, regal posture of dexterous bipedal humans constitutes very important evidence showing they are “the most superior of all creatures.”

The multifunctional, flexible nature of our skeletal system enables us to complete very simple moves automatically. Walking seems to be a very easy task, however, it occurs as a calculated outcome of many factors, such as determination of stepping distance, the toning of corresponding muscles of the same and opposite direction, relaxation and contraction levels, and relocation of the body’s gravity center.

Walking takes place via the coordinated works of the locomotor (musculoskeletal) system, motor control system, and balance-coordination system.

Locomotor (musculoskeletal) system

The framework of the human body is built together with 206 bones of variable hardness. With their strong nature and capacity to endure extra weights, bones takes up 20% of a body’s mass, and are the major load bearing part of the body’s structure.

The main part of our skeleton is the vertebral column. It consists of 33 small bones, known as vertebrae, positioned on top of each other. Wear-preventing discs are found in between vertebrae to protect against motion related wearing over time. As the vertebral column holds the weight of the upper body, it is created in a way to keep the body upright. The spinal cord inside the channel that is surrounded by the vertebral column is a very important signaling network providing coordination between the brain and other organs.

Joints and ligaments are among the moving parts of our body. The most important joints for walking are the hips, knees, and ankles. The curvy shape of the foot and its contact to the ground at three spots supports bones against body weight and helps with balance. This is why flat footed people struggle with walking and get tired easily. The curves of our spine at the neck, back and waist regions, and the hips, knee joints, and curvature of the foot, are perfectly shaped for standing upright and walking.

In order to move we need a muscle system along with the skeletal system. Muscles are made up of thousands of contractible muscle fibers. There are more than 6 billion muscle fiber motors in the human body. We walk, run, eat, breathe, talk and do many more moves by using ability granted to muscles. Approximately 35 muscles in each leg, and around 100 muscles in the whole body, function during walking.

Ligaments and tendons are links that secure bones and muscles together; they also help to stabilize joints, thus when standing, joints remain in place without muscles contracting.

Four different mechanisms are involved in walking:

1. Proper upright posture and maintenance of balance during walking
2. Forward motion of body via muscle power
3. Reduction of shock-impact effect while stepping
4. Maintenance of motion with the least amount of energy.

A series of movements is generated in the legs to provide a forward motion and these are constantly repeated. These constant repetitions are called the “walk cycle.” The “passing pose” is defined as the time frame when the leg is in the air, and the contact pose is the phase during ground contact. In the middle of the contact pose, even though body is in balance, because of the forward momentum of the body, balance is lost, thus the body leans forward. Balance is then restored by stepping on the ground with the leg in the air. As a result of this rhythmic loss and restoration of balance, the body moves forward.

In a person standing upright, the center of gravity is in front of the fifth vertebra. At the start of a walk, the body leans forward to carry the center of gravity towards the front; then the initiation of the motion via forward transfer of the power with toes and joints takes place, followed by the lifting of the heels, the bending of the knees, and the lifting of the foot, thus displacing the center of gravity of the forward leaning body towards the front.

Balance should be maintained when one leg is lifted in order to let the other leg carry the load of the body’s weight. The gravitational center of the body is located in the distance between the two legs since each leg is located on the side. Body balance is maintained by the contractions of dorsal muscles located across the side of the stepping foot, working in parallel to support and transfer body weight to the foot via the hip and femoral muscles. These events happen so quickly that we often do not even notice all the complicated processes.

The great Sufi figure Abdul-Qadir Gilani was often asked questions such as, “Master, show us a miracle.” He would stand up to walk three to five steps and sit back down. Everybody was confused, looking at each other. One person among them was heard saying, “Master, excuse us but we can all do that as well.” Gilani replied then, “Is there a greater miracle than walking? You see it, but do not understand.”

Motor control of walking

Bodily motions are controlled via the primary motor centers that are located on the side and cortex region of the brain. These centers are created in a way to prepare and organize motor programs involving body movements, and to integrate them with the proprioceptive memory. This synthesis of information enables the adaptation of motor commands to the present posture of the legs and arms regarding intended moves.

A desire to make a move is a necessary prerequisite for the stimulation of muscles pertaining to it. If we want to hold something, we can easily do it; when we want to raise our arm, our elbows bend; to run or walk, our leg muscles start to move and work. How do all of those moves happen? Is our desire enough to do so? Can the guidance of all the bones and muscles, working together towards the same target, happen by itself or occur via coincidences?

In order for muscles to move, our thoughts must be relayed to them and this is provided by the nervous system and nerve network. There is an amazing communication network present in our body. In case of an intended move, an electric signal is sent by the brain. During this journey, which seems to be complicated, the signal arrives at the spinal cord and then quickly diverts to the corresponding organ. Millions of motors that make up the muscle are stimulated by the electric signal, contracting the fibers instantly upon reception of the signal. In order to do a coordinated move, it is necessary to know the related body organs’ positions and their relations to each other. Millions of transmitters that provide this information have been placed throughout the body. This data come from the eyes, the inner ear’s balance and sensory organs, muscles, joints, and skin. There are billions of micro receptors located in muscles and joints programmed to send instantaneous positions of the body to the central nervous system. In every stage of a move, the positions of the muscles are reported instantly to the command center by these micro receptors inside the muscles. New commands are given to the muscles based on the assessments made here. This way, each second, billions of bits of information can be processed and assessed.

The cerebellum is another center that is in charge of functions such as maintenance of balance during walking and standing, carrying out proper and coordinated moves with visual control, providing coordination among muscle groups, promptly starting and stopping movements, and the maintenance and organization of normal muscle toning. The cerebellum is tasked primarily with hastened muscle activities like running, typing, and talking. Thus, fast moves necessary for the balance system are sustained properly and successively without abnormal oscillations.

Specific motion templates have been programmed in the spinal cord for all muscle-covered regions of the body. Rhythmic movements, such as forward and backward motion of the legs and arms, and coordinated activities of other body parts in tandem with walking, are controlled here. The task to control repeated moves like walking is assigned to the nerve network consisting of the spinal cord, brainstem and cerebellum.

Balance and coordination system

One of the requirements to walk and move is to stay in balance. Despite our advanced musculoskeletal system, without balance, this system of ours would be useless, or even dangerous.. Our balance system, which is in charge of the instantaneous control and fine adjustments regarding our body, is granted to us as a blessing of Divine compassion.

There are three systems that provide data involving the positions of the head and body: vestibular system (the apparatus of the inner ear), visual senses, proprioceptive senses

The vestibular structures are an essential part of the balance system. They are found in the inner ear, and are small and complicated systems. This 6.5 mm diameter wide system is composed of semicircular channels that contain specific fluid and ciliated sensory cells that cover the inner linings of the channels. This system constantly reports information involving our status in the outer world and instantaneous changes to the balance system.

When we move, the fluid inside the semicircular inner ear channels get displaced; this motion vibrates the cilia. This vibration causes an electric signal to generate in the cells. This electrical signal is then transmitted to the cerebellum; received information gets evaluated instantly in the cerebellum. This system is created to function autonomously without our will and control. When this system is impaired, balance disorders occur, such as dizziness.

Information regarding our position in the environment and the relative status of the environment according to us is sent to the cerebellum and brainstem via our visual senses.

Proprioceptive senses are formed via the activities of tension receptors built in muscle fibers, tendons and joint capsules. These are sensitive to motions and positions. These receptors regularly provide information to the central nervous system. The cerebellum receives information from all the muscles and joints of the body, including the eyes. These inputs are analyzed very promptly at the cerebellum, and the relative gravitational position of the body is finely calculated, thus the proper motions of muscles are determined. The resulting response is relayed towards muscles by nerves. These events take place in a time frame that does not even last for a hundredth of a second. We easily walk, run, and do complicated moves without feeling any of these activities happening inside us. Yet the calculations taking place in our body even for a single moment of those movements can fill thousands of pages.

To understand the fascinating side of our ordinary movements, let’s consider a person climbing up the stairs. First, the eyes scan the surroundings, then the three dimensional information of positions acquired from the materials and belongings in the environment are transmitted to the brain. Once received, the information is analyzed and the necessary commands are sent to the target organ from the motor centers of the brain. Commands passing through related tracks and centers finally arrive at the musculoskeletal system. Many factors, like the height of stair steps, length and depth of the foot step, center of gravity and position of the body, are calculated and determined almost instantly.

Proprioceptive signals constantly report the positions of organs, like the arms and legs, to the command center. Inner ear receptors are in charge of the prompt transmission of information necessary for balance, like motion, speed, and direction of the body. These inputs are calculated in milliseconds at corresponding centers in order to maintain the coordination and harmony of the entire body. A person who is running up the stairs may think to jump a couple of stairs. This change of command is rerouted to the locomotor system as a new and different command from the brain. All of these processes are completed in centiseconds. In the mean time, the head, shoulders, and arms are employed for rhythmic oscillations in order to adapt to the overall body momentum.

In conclusion, standing and walking are miraculous and take place via thousands of interrelated activities. Nonetheless, we usually do not notice any of the thousands of processes that are constantly taking place. One hopes that every blessing we have is seen through the window of thanksgiving and appreciation.

Kemal Serce is a professor of veterinary medicine in Bursa, Turkey.