Author’s note: Many of the books and authors mentioned here are well-known. There are dozens more from writers of various nationalities, and only a lack of space precludes complete inclusion. It is my hope, however, that any bookish reader with an interest in Orientalism may find something to enhance their interest with some works still to be discovered. The prevalence of British authors here does not indicate prejudice, but does reflect the books that are actually on my shelves.

There has been much debate about the authenticity, or otherwise, of Orientalism and its influence on socio-political thought. The books and authors figuring in this essay had, with the exception of Kipling, Lawrence and Gertrude Bell, no political axe to grind. Most of them were travelers who found the East, indeed, “other” than what they experienced at home. Their quest was a personal enthusiasm for the Orient. I would contend that their writings and translations had no relevance to a debate about socio-political attitudes based on worldly devices. The world of the spirit is likely to be more enduring and, as for this world, socio-evolutionary investigation would be more apt.   

The British may currently be retreating to their island home, but in earlier times they were inclined to leave their homes at the drop of a hat. Those with the wherewithal journeyed away to sometimes sunnier and definitely more exotic regions. One of the noticeably inherent vanities of the British, however, was founded upon the notion that they were never actually foreigners in whatever region they found themselves beyond their own coastline.

Sir Richard F. Burton must have had a horror of doing a proper job because he went to extraordinary lengths to avoid a nine-to-five existence. Even when being extremely erudite, he was also eloquently funny in a sardonic sort of way and his dealings with the Oriental mind were tempered by a perfect understanding of the conditio humana, which means the state we are all perpetually in. For his two-volume Personal Narrative of a Pilgrimage to Al-Madinah and Meccah, Sir Richard elected to travel by choosing a travel box to contain his necessities that was sturdy enough to withstand falling off a camel’s back twice each day. With a command of Farsi, Hindi, and Arabic, together with the dialects thereof, which he learned among tons of other languages and picked them up the way lesser mortals collect butterflies, he disguised himself as a wandering Dervish. He explored bazaars, frankly searching out the bizarre (which must surely be a derivative), and drinking countless cups of chai in his attempt to find rare manuscripts about Al-Islam.

The point of Sir Richard’s drop-out endeavor is that he certainly spent more hours daily than he would be required to submit to in a mundane job. There must have been the endless waits, the errant camel or donkey that refused to be moved, the aggravation of monetary negotiation. In 1856, Burton made clear his reasons for exotic travel. Notwithstanding his erudition, he was heard to maintain: “The gladdest moments in human life, methinks, is the departure upon a distant shore into unknown lands. Shaking off with one mighty effort the fetters of Habit, the leaden weight of Routine, the cloak of many Cares and the slavery of Home, man feels once more happy. The blood flows with the fast circulation of childhood…the glorious face of nature gladdens the soul”.

Many Orientalists went, quite obviously, in search of something ethereal, the atmospheric interludes in life that may offer a hint of the divine. If any reader has heard the hypnotic call to prayer from a muezzin, floating at dawn over palms at the edge of a jungle, they will know what I mean. The point is that although there may be a sudden crashing rise of birds, the voice itself does not shatter the silence. It really does float hauntingly as an isolated sound. The call to prayer heard in a city is often more strident but no less enchanting. One is struck by something stealthily all-encompassing, something impossible to ignore. Something that lingers in a suddenly pervasive brittle silence.

It was the likes of Wilfred Thesiger, whose Arabian Sands and The Marsh Arabs became must reads for devotees of the Arab experience. His memoir The Life of My Choice would seem to echo the sentiments of Burton. The intrepid Freya Stark gave us, among many other works, The Southern Gates of Arabia and Valleys of the Assassins. Her book Ionia is about the history of Asia Minor, Turkey today. She was heard to maintain, “I do like people who have not yet made up their minds about everything, who in fact are still receiving.” These resolute travelers fashioned the romantic notion of eccentric Brits plodding resolutely across an impossible desert on an understandably belligerent camel. Despite the political implications – which your correspondent suspects were sometimes a handy excuse – Gertrude Bell, who also translated Hafiz, and, of course, T. E. Lawrence, both seemed to be seeking the sort of satisfaction that only the delights of foreignness could offer.

Looming as one of those literary mountains that remains to overshadow all others is Charles William Doughty’s Arabia Deserta. Setting off from Damascus in 1876, the author endured the deserts of what were regions previously unexplored by travelers from the West. He found a way to become attached to the Hajj of his day and his account was couched in a somewhat archaic English. Initial publication was denied due to his inaccessible language but – and this is a personal view – if the first step in meditation is concentration then Arabia Deserta deserves to be approached with the sort of perseverance that can flower into the magic of immersion that great literature can offer. In this case one will feel the sand in one’s shoes and savor the odor of a camel train in all of its pungency. T. E. Lawrence defended and fostered further publication of Doughty’s recordings and also wrote a forward to an edition of the book. Charles Doughty, who was born in 1843, wrote his monumental work in 1888. Arabia Deserta eventually came to be known among discerning readers as being the finest travel book in the English language.

E. Lawrence’s The Seven Pillars of Wisdom, which became his magnum opus, was published in 1926. Lawrence was at first an archeologist who became enchanted with the Arab mind while passing through the Holy Land on foot. He felt a great affinity for the peoples he met in his travels, which can be sensed pervasively in his great work. The Seven Pillars of Wisdom tells of the political side to his nature but also relates of his unswerving affection for his Arab friends and his appreciation of Islam. By all accounts Lawrence was a man of some complexity. One senses a somewhat philosophical passion in his thinking. He adhered to what he would have likely maintained was “the rightness” of things – although capable of indulging in war. Well, many will have read the book, many more will have seen the movie. Whatever the outcome, we will be aware that this was Lawrence’s Arabia, a place in which he probably felt most at home.

We come, quite unavoidably, to Arthur John Arberry, a British orientalist who was born on May 12, 1905. His work was rooted in a profoundly scholarly endeavor and he cannot be counted among those who were simply fascinated by the exotic East as a travel destination. In his slim volume of biographies, British Orientalists, Arberry relates of the sustained passion for the Islamic world pursued by British academics, translators, travelers, and linguists of all stripes. This passion was inflamed at an early date and we read of a 12^th century philosopher, one Adelard of Bath, who preceded, according to Arberry, nigh on 100 others sharing similar enthusiasms. There were even more, of course, but Arberry names only the most prominent who made a solid contribution to Islamic studies. With more than 70 works to his own name, which includes his own translation of the Qur’an in which he attempted to retain the poetics of the Arabic original, Arberry was probably the most seriously academic of all Orientalists. One of Arberry’s most useful books is The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam – and other Persian Poets. Together with the Rubaiyat, in Fitzgerald’s first edition of 1859, and the fourth edition of 1879, the book offers samples of the works of twenty-five Persian poets – including Rumi, Saadi, Hafiz, and all of the others your correspondent has still to fully discover. Arberry’s The Islamic Art of Persia, is a wonderfully edited volume containing the writings of many Orientalists, which includes an essay by Vita Sackville-West who writes charmingly about Persia gardens.

R. A. Nicholson was a colleague of Arberry but his works are largely unknown to myself. In his Mystics of Islam Nicholson brings to light an expert appraisal of Sufism. Without demeaning his subject, the book is fashioned in a concise and easily understood way. A fascinating passage begins, “…seventy thousand veils separate Allah, the One Reality, from the world of matter and sense. And every soul passes before birth through these seventy thousand.” At the time of submission I can only offer Nicholson’s translation, from a different source, of a succinct burst of beauty by Hafiz of Shiraz, a poet Goethe proclaimed to be unsurpassed:

STRIFE

The calm circumference of life
When I would fain have kept,
Time caught me in the tide of strife
And to the centre swept.

Of this fierce glow which Love and You
Within my breast inspire,
The Sun is but a spark that flew
And set the heavens afire!

Edward William Lane’s Arabic-English Lexicon, a 3,064-page work from the 19th century, would appear to be something that could be a starting point for budding   Arabists. Lane is also credited with an acclaimed translation of A Thousand and One Nights. His most accessible work, however, and one often quoted by Burton, is his Manners and Customs of the Modern Egyptians, which was first published in 1836 and was to have several editions. The work is an astounding coverage of life in Muslim Egypt. Despite the obvious conclusion that what was modern in the 1800s is no longer pertinent today, Lane’s book covers what is indeed the very life of Egypt. His essays, chapter for chapter, are on characteristics and dress, infancy and early education, religion and laws, language and literature, ad infinitum. Lane addresses just about every conceivable aspect in his subjective social research. The work is further enhanced by the author’s own magnificently detailed engravings.

Rudyard Kipling’s works can be difficult to find in India today. His was an imperialist stance and he was a stout defender of the British army. Nevertheless, he came to write the famous… OH, East is East, and West is West, and never the twain shall meet, Till Earth and Sky stand presently at God’s great Judgment Seat;

But there is neither East nor West, Border, nor Breed, nor Birth,
When two strong men stand face to face, tho’ they come from the ends of the earth!

The last line mitigates much that Kipling was accused of. Whether or not the British had good cause to be India will be debated until doomsday, and when Kipling published his poem, The White Man’s Burden, in 1899, he was accused of promoting the cause of imperialism. But Kipling did spread before us the magnificent panoply of the Indian subcontinent, and he was also recorded to have said, “Asia is not going to be civilized after the methods of the West. There is too much Asia and she is too old.” The Kipling Society in London maintains that he believed in British rule over India, but he did not hesitate to criticize the government savagely. It may be well to consider that Kipling was a man of his time and place. He was born in Bombay in 1865 of Anglo-Indian parents and he obviously knew and understood, and was largely sympathetic, to the colorful life around him. Only such experience could have made possible the publication of Kim, in 1901. Kipling produced an astonishingly varied wealth of works. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1907.

It has long been my personal love of good writing, despite having no special interest in the subjects at hand, which led me to R. H. Blyth’s inestimable Zen in English Literature and Oriental Classics, which was first published by the Hokuseido Press in Tokyo in 1942. Here is a survey to the finest detail of literature displaying the quality of the words transcending the confines of conventional literary usage. In this sense Blyth did not merely travel to the East but also sought echoes of the East in works of the West. Zen may be described variously as a fragrance, hint, nudge, or breeze that cannot be clutched though its effect can be observed, but with no sly wink seeking collusion, for therein is to be found the headache we call “mind.” Blyth’s works also include his investigations into Haiku poetry and Japanese culture. The writer’s approach to that indefinable essence of life that makes life itself agreeable, perhaps even acceptable, in its endless display of what could be called, to borrow and amend a phrase, the good, the bad, and the sometimes lovely.

Francis Edward Younghusband’s The Heart of a Continent is a book in which the author elaborates on the difficulties of travel in regions comprising almost inaccessible terrain. He took himself off from India to China, the hard way, and then found an even more difficult way to come back via the Gobi Desert, Turkestan, the Himalayas, with a great deal in between, then the Pamirs, Kashgar and eventually back home (but hardly in time for tea). Younghusband was indeed a nice man, a stalwart Christian but one who allowed much scope in his thinking for other religions. Younghusband apparently suffered greatly from mosquitoes on the way out. I would suggest that there could be an interesting discourse about why God created mosquitoes. I was put straight by a restaurant waiter in Kerala who maintained that, “God chose the mosquito to be India’s heraldic beast.”

The Canadian Colin McPhee is possibly less known, but should be wider read. His A House in Bali was first published in 1944. It is a transcendent book, one that makes reading a deeply satisfying experience. The author was a highly talented composer and ethnomusicologist who studied with Edgar Varèse and became a jazz critic of note. There were collaborations with Benjamin Britten to make their recording of Balinese Ceremonial Music for Two Pianos. He was also a friend of Margaret Meade’s family and figures often in Meade’s memoir of her life and work. It is McPhee’s obvious sensitivity that charms the reader. These were the days before Bali became a tourist destination, and the author captures the lingering, slow-motion lapse of time, and the throb of the gamelan gongs which reverberate with an insistency across the hills of that lush island that he knew so well and so lovingly described.

H. V. Morton was a British writer of note. In 1934 he published In the Steps of the Master which ran to four editions. Although the book related his efforts to trace the passages of Jesus through the Holy Land, Morton was a man of fine sensibility and he records much of the life in Palestine with inclusion of his encounters with the Arab fellahin, the common folk within the population. What was Morton’s greatest talent, which he showed in all of his works, was his equal degree of quality of content and refinement of literary style. The author opens with the following passage as he approaches the Holy Land from Egypt. “As the sun goes down, a stillness falls over Egypt. Water channels that cross the fields turn to the color of blood, then to bright yellow that fades into silver. The palm trees could be cut from black paper and pasted against the incandescence of the sky. Brown hawks that hang all day above the sugar-cane and the growing wheat are seen no more and, one by one, the stars burn over the sandhills and lie caught in the stiff fronds of the date palms”. The book also contains nearly forty of the author’s own fine photographs, mostly black and white, but beautiful and exemplary images of the Holy Land.

The Fountain: What was the role of Islamic civilization in the interim period between the ancient Greeks and the European renaissance?

Salim Ayduz: The advent of Islamic civilization was after the Indian, Chinese, Egyptian, and Greek civilizations. Muslims studied and analyzed the developments these previous civilizations had made in the sciences and technologies, and then built their own science. Islamic civilization made a brilliant analysis of the earlier ones. Muslims engaged in a fascinating translation work of many ancient books into their own languages, mostly Arabic, and occasionally Persian and Turkish. They did not remain limited to translation; they were critical of what they were translating, and drew upon the text to develop the ideas further. While they were transferring knowledge to their culture and context, they also enhanced it, corrected some mistaken views, and came up with countless new things. Because these contributions from Islamic civilization to science are not known, there is a common misconception that Muslims merely transmitted knowledge through translations.

It is claimed many works and inventions originating from Islamic civilization were adopted in Europe without acknowledgement; are there any concrete examples of this?

There are numerous examples. The most famous one is Copernicus. We see that Copernicus exactly copied scientific facts-such as the models of the moon, solar system, and some facts about the movements of the moon-from previous Muslim scientists, such as Ibn Shatir and Nasir al-Din al-Tusi, who had established the first real observatory in Maragheh, East Azerbaijan. However, Copernicus neither mentioned al-Tusi nor Ibn Shatir. Likewise, there was a person who used the name Constantine the African and died around 1099. He translated many books written by Islamic scientists and published them as if they were his own works. The scientific terminology that was used in the Renaissance period did not appear from nowhere, but was taken from the heritage of Islamic civilization, which had accumulated over centuries. It is possible to give a lot of examples of this kind, not only in philosophy but in almost all areas of life. There are number of words and terms that passed from Islamic civilization to Europe. For example, the word “arsenal” means a store of weapons. At the time, it used to denote a dock for the construction and repair of ships. Etymologically, it comes from the Arabic dar-as-sina’ah/house of industry. It first became darsana, and then darsanal. It finally passed to English as Arsenal.

It is difficult to cite a good many great scientists and great inventions in Europe before Isaac Newton. The few existing ones became prominent with a few translated works from the Islamic world. Thus, Newton made a great leap due to the developments and scientific values of Islamic civilization. As an expression of this fact, Newton said, “If I have seen further, it was by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Undoubtedly, he was referring to the Muslim scientists who had lived previously.

It was the same with Copernicus. Leonardo da Vinci, as well, made copies or more developed forms of the works previously developed by Al-Jazari, Ibn Khalaf al-Muradi, and the Banu Musa brothers. According to a recent report in The Guardian, Da Vinci’s mother was a woman of Middle East origins. Interestingly, most works from this period of Islamic civilization are found in the library of manuscripts in the Vatican. For example, there is only a single copy of Al-Muradi’s Kitab al-Asrar fi Nataij al-Afkar (Book of Secrets in the Results of Ideas), which is a very significant work in Islam’s history of technology and engineering, and that is conserved in the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana of Florence.

So you are saying that Europe adopted the sciences produced by Islamic civilization?

Islamic civilization made great contributions to science. For example, one of the most essential subjects studied throughout the world is Algebra, which was developed by Al-Khwarizmi. His work, Al-Jabr wa al-Muqabala, is the foundation of all math textbooks in the world today.

One of the most important components of science is laboratory research and testing. But where does the tradition and system of laboratory research come from? A book published in the U.S. – Ibn al-Haytham: First Scientist – gives us the answer: Ibn al-Haytham was an Egyptian scientist who lived in the eleventh century. He invented the dark room, the antecedent of the photo camera. In addition, he is famous for making the first laboratory experiments. He made pioneering works for the laboratory systems of today. It is necessary to give everybody their due in the history of science.

What are your suggestions in this respect?

Textbooks must relate the necessary facts. It is unfair to talk about Copernicus and Kepler in the history of Astronomy but not about al-Tusi, Ibn Shatir, Taqi al-Din Rasid, and Ali Qushji. It is wrong to solely mention Newton without any reference to Abu Bakr Razi and Jabir. It is unfortunate to not find Avicenna, Ibn Nafis, and Zahrawi mentioned in the history of medicine.

History does not record any developed math prior to Muslims. People wrote on dust and made calculations by fingers. Roman numerals were not suitable at all for math. By transferring methods from Islamic civilization, Fibonacci developed the numerals, numbers, and system of formulas, and came up with modern mathematics.

As for another example, Al-Biruni was the person behind the science of mineralogy. He was one of the people who scientifically proved, for the first time, that the world is round and is turning.

And today these scientists are being uncovered in the West?

Yes. Ironically in the West, rather than in the East where they are faded into oblivion. For example, Ali Qushji lived in Istanbul and was one of the chief architects of Ottoman science. He was the scientist who proved, in terms of physics, that the moon is round and the world is rotating around its own axis. The West has newly begun to discover Ali Qushji.

How about the later periods? Is it possible to count other such names?

Within the last century there are numerous examples, such as Hulusi Behçet, the person who described Behcet’s disease first. I wrote an article on two innovative Sufi sheikhs. One of them is Ethem Effendi, who was the sheikh of the Sufi lodge of the Uzbeks in Istanbul and lived during the time of Sultan Abdul Hamid II. He invented a single-piston engine and some other tools. All of them are preserved today in the same Sufi lodge. The other is Tevfik Effendi, one of the greatest math researchers. His book named Linear Algebra was published in English in 1872 in Istanbul.

There are many important scientists who merit attention. While talking about mathematics, it is necessary to mention the names of Al-Khwarizmi, Abdul Hamid ibn al-Turk, Mustafa Sidqi, and Matrakçı Nasuh. Most people have never heard their names. Teachers should mention their names in certain contexts. Or they should talk about Jabir ibn Hayyan, when talking about chemistry. Most of these were founders of a discipline, and you do not found a discipline everyday! Just as Jabir ibn Hayyan was the founder of chemistry, Ibn Khaldun was the pioneer of sociology.

Only people like the cartographer captain, Piri Reis, are known to some extent, thanks to UNESCO and some media coverage about him. Islands, mountains, and regions that appeared on his world map were discovered by Europeans three centuries after he drew this world map. We still have not discovered the secret of the Piri Reis’ maps.

It seems that what we know about the history of science needs a good deal of revision.

There were very important masters of firearms technology, who produced weapons, gunpowder, and cannons. Some of them developed the first rockets, but there is not even a decent museum to display such works. The same goes for architecture, but fortunately, it is possible to see many of the works at least. The great architectural genius Sinan constructed 477 buildings. Look at Süleymaniye Mosque in Istanbul. It is still standing firm despite many earthquakes over five centuries. How did he achieve it?

What was the factor that brought about the period of decline? Was it simply laziness, a change of regime, or lack of means?

Actually, it is not possible to explain everything with a single reason. On the one hand, there was political and, more importantly, economic decline. The most important incentive behind the scientific developments in the West was prosperity. Most scientists were from aristocratic families. They collected important manuscripts of Islamic civilization without any financial problems. Then they locked themselves in their homes and studied for days. On the other hand, there were the financial gains from newly discovered lands, which facilitated the process. New inventions triggered further developments.

Is there sufficient financial support for this field in Muslim countries?

It is a bit difficult to say. When you suggest a project as a scientist, the budget they provide is so low in comparison to those in Europe. Let me give a simple example. Ptolemy has an essential work in the field of geography, titled Almagest. It is the most important historical work on geography, astronomy, space science, and cosmology. It was a work from which Muslim scientists greatly benefited. In the 9th century, it was translated into Arabic. The original copy is lost. The budget allocated to a European scientist who would unearth all translated versions of this work to rebuild the original was five million euros. It is almost impossible in Muslim countries to get high amounts to unearth a single manuscript.

Before Britain, you used to work in Turkey. Are there any such manuscripts that call for research?

There are thousands of manuscripts left to oblivion in libraries. Each of them is precious like a diamond, but it is unreasonably difficult to approach them. There has been press coverage about the condition of the manuscripts in the Topkapi Palace. They were almost left to decay. It is one of the most valuable libraries in the world and they kept it closed for more than five years. Now you need to have an appointment to enter and there are different obstacles for researchers. They have opened an establishment for manuscripts. We are trying to publish here a facsimile of a work whose original is found in Topkapi Palace. They insisted for nine months that they wouldn’t give us a copy of the work. Similarly, it took me six months to receive the copyright payment of a project about the Piri Reis map, which will be published by Oxford University. Authorities have to facilitate easy access to these archives and manuscripts for researchers to be able to uncover the treasures of the past, possibly in digital format via the Internet.

It is said that some manuscripts were destroyed or smuggled abroad within the last century. Do you have any knowledge about this?

We hear every now and then that manuscripts are taken to countries where they are sold for higher prices. This has been a serious problem for many years. When they are not appreciated at home, it almost becomes inevitable for them to be taken abroad. Some works taken abroad and bought for personal libraries disappear for good. However, some, particularly the works that reach libraries in Europe and the U.S., are preserved well and it is easy to study these works. In addition, there are antiques trading companies in the West. For example, I contacted an establishment named Sam Fogg in order to see a manuscript in their possession. They invited me right away and gave me the opportunity to study. When I went there, I saw that hundreds, maybe thousands, of works of Islamic civilization were awaiting sale. The bitter fact is that they are not accessible once they’re sold to personal libraries. I wish it were possible to get a digital copy of such works before they are sold.

What are your opinions about a history of science curriculum?

Instead of teaching history of science as a separate subject, I think it will be more appropriate to refer to these scientists during the normal course of a given subject. If you ask students of medicine what they learned about Ibn Sina (Avicenna), their answer will most probably be “nothing.” Until the 1800s, Avicenna’s work al-Qanun was studied by European medical faculties as an essential course book; in the East and West alike, nobody could become a doctor without studying al-Qanun.

Another great figure, Şerafettin Sabuncuoglu, is completely unknown. He was a surgeon who lived during the time of Mehmed II. He was the scientist who wrote the first illustrated book of surgery in the world. He showed methods of surgery and how to use surgery tools. Incidentally, let me note that there were female surgeons as well, which is wonderful.

Another surgeon, Zahrawi of Andalusia, invented nearly 200 surgical tools, almost all of which reached our time and are still being used in hospitals.

Who was the greatest scientist of the Ottomans in your opinion?

I’d say Taqi al-Din Rasid, without hesitation. In the 1570s, he founded an observatory in Istanbul, which I think was the most remarkable observatory of all Islamic civilization. He made very important contributions, through books he wrote, to such disciplines as mathematics and astronomy. He invented a water pump with six cylinders. Nobody knows today about the observatory he established in Taksim. He made astronomical observatories from the Galata Tower for many years.

She began to question religious thought under the influence of philosophy she studied when she was eighteen. She searched for answers but failed to convince herself. Since her grandmother taught her to be “honest” all the time, she decided to end her connection with the church, stating, “I do not have the faith and I still continue to go to church; this is not right.”

One day, in the library of the Sorbonne University, she encountered a half page text describing the views of Rumi written by Dr. Muhammad Iqbal. She grew confused after reading the article. Either Rumi or the Greek philosophy which she had been reading up until that time was correct. She looked for publications regarding Rumi to investigate the matter comprehensively. But she failed to find any record related to the topic in the entire library. She read Muhammad Iqbal’s book called The Reconstruction of Religious Thought in Islam in English, expecting she could reach the opinions of Rumi through him. She found many answers to her questions in this book. She became a Muslim in 1954, as a result of this enlightenment, and changed her name to Hawwa.

Hawwa was very impressed with the collections of Rumi, accepting him as a guide. She translated almost all of his and Iqbal’s works into French. She worked ten years to translate Rumi’s magnum opus the Mathnawi. She became the reason for many French intellectuals to discover and grow closer to Islam by her translations, radio speeches, and lectures. She made many visits to Turkey and attended Rumi programs.

In a live broadcast, Ms Hawwa gave the following long answer to questions such as, “Why did you choose Islam? What have you found in Rumi? Why Turkey and not another Islamic country?”

The Western media happens to have launched an attack against the religion of Islam. When you listen to French or German televisions and radios, you would hear awful statements regarding the Islamic religion. You would hear that Islam is about violence, jihad, fanaticism, etc. Despite these continuous attacks, there are scores of people in Western countries adopting Islam. I know many people who have accepted Islam in France, England, Germany, and Spain.

According to the data I have obtained from French authorities, many of the converts are intellectual people. They were seeking something and they found what they were searching and longing for in Islam. It is because their interpretations on creation and existence were not addressing these feelings anymore and also materialism disappointed them completely.

I have discovered a very different Islam than the one taught at the school or university, or depicted on newspapers and televisions. I am proud to say that the work of Rumi I last translated took ten years. This is an extraordinary book. In my opinion, the West was thirsty for spirituality. I also think this is very significant for our era. I go to Konya every year and love it there since it is the town of Rumi. I feel as if I am from Konya when I am there. I also love Turkey very much; since it represents my acquaintance with Islam, I am very happy there and I feel like a Turk. I found a religion in the Mathnawi that rejects radical religious ways, strict rulings, fanaticism, and conservative approaches; a religion which is entirely sincere, tolerant, and suitable to my beliefs.

The need for spirituality in our time is not satisfied. But I also do not think that humans can quench this by withdrawing from social life. In addition, scientific developments have demonstrated such an amazing universe. What is extraordinary of Rumi (which is not my reason for adopting Islam) is his projection and this impresses people, especially a young generation who has a passion for science. Consider that Rumi tells, ‘If you split an atom, you will find a solar system.’ He speaks of planets orbiting inside and outside of us, but also warns us to be careful. Since when these atoms open their mouths, they can eject a fire that can destroy the whole world. As seen, he talks about the dangers of the atomic bomb in the thirteenth century. It mentions the presence of nine planets, whereas modern science only proved this in the 1930s. Previously, seven planets were believed to exist. Number eight was found by a French researcher in the 1840s, and the ninth was discovered by an American scientist in 1930. However, Rumi already knew that there were nine planets back in his era. While the sun was believed to orbit earth in the West, Rumi tells that earth, like other planets, is a small planet that revolves around the sun. He also mentions other extraordinary things.

I often receive frequent phone calls, usually from intellectuals, even professors, authors, and journalists, and they tell me that, ‘Do you know Madam, I have accepted Islam and this was possible via Rumi.’

I now have translated all of his books including, ‘Majales-e Sab’a (Seven Sessions), Fihi Ma Fihi (In It What’s in It).’ The most important one is the Mathnawi. I am truly happy. Furthermore, I think that the time is very suitable for the publication of such works. This is because our world is being devastated by wars, conflicts, hatred, and aggression. However, Rumi’s works are full of love, peace, and tolerance, which are essential messages for today. True Islam is a universal religion with a perfect message of tolerance. The teachings of the prophets before Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, are accepted as valid. Therefore, Islam provides satisfying answers to people seeking clearer, universal and general answers compared to their own religions. Yet I am repeating once more that conversions are totally different from each other. For instance, I know people who adopted Islam suddenly. These people experienced something, saw something, and joined Islam. Some people like me, however, adopted Islam after doing many investigations, passing through many stages, completing PhD work on Islamic philosophy, but the goal as a result is the same. Spain was Muslim for 800 years; right next to it was France, and Spain was decidedly more advanced, intellectual, and civilized than France and the rest of Northern Europe.

I only assess the situation with a Western point of view and I do not mention either Turkey or Arabia. I am talking about the West. I am talking about such a tolerance in Spain, where ministers were Jewish, doctors were Christian, and Caliphs were Muslim. In this country governed by Muslims, business was advancing much faster than other countries. This was a great threat to Christian countries, kingdoms, and the Papacy. As you know, in order to get rid of something disturbing, it must be put down. The West did that. It started imperialism wars by putting down Islam. They expanded their propaganda and misinformation campaigns against Islam. For example if you ask someone in the street, ‘What do you think of Buddhism?’ They would answer, ‘I do not know,’ but when it is about, ‘the religion of Islam,’ they would reply with phrases such as, ‘Ah, yes, marrying four women, keeping them at home, having a tent.’ As you see, there is a type of partial lack of information present, there are clichés found on televisions and in newspapers; concrete symbols exist and all of these distort Islam entirely.

Today Islam is not known very well and people have gotten completely inaccurate ideas. Unfortunately, I think that these arise from failing to generate the necessary image about Islam by Muslim countries. In addition, the misinformation planted as the result of the wars of imperialism contributed to this. Unfortunately there are fractions observed among Muslim countries and this hinders the solutions needed for this and many other issues. Muslims have the same Book, the Prophet and his tradition, culture, and the Qur’anic language, which is Arabic. Yet these countries fight frequently and do not pay attention to this common heritage. In my opinion, the main reason for Westerners not to accept Islam is the lack of unity among Muslims. In fact, this is a separate issue. Islam as a religion should not be adopted through political and social reasons, but through the point of views and paradigms that it brings to the Creator, life, humans, and the universe.

In order to describe Islam as is, it is essential to read Rumi, Ibn Arabi, and briefly, the works of all the great Islamic thinkers. People get very surprised. The other day, I went to the doctor; they are very educated people. His wife, who called me in the evening, asked me ‘what are you doing now?’ I told her that I had just completed the translation of the Mathnawi. She asked what that was. I then told her that the Mathnawi mentions nuclear break down, the atomic bomb. They did not believe. As you see, people do not know the main reason of scientific developments in the middle ages.

The first medical school was established by Arabs in France. The greatest doctor of the era was in Spain. There were many successful scientists who were very ahead of their times, but nobody is aware of this. While I was doing my doctorate on Islamic philosophy at the Sorbonne University, I discovered Islam, but while studying at the university before starting my doctorate on Rumi, nobody taught us about Muslim thinkers. They were teaching German, English, Latin, and Greek philosophers.

There is a long way to go, so much to do. Now there are intellectuals who love and embrace Islam. These people should announce what lies at the essence of Islam to the world.

In her will, written to her spiritual stepson, Prof. Dr. Abdullah Ozturk, Ms Hawwa asked to be buried near the tomb of Rumi, in Konya. After she walked to the horizon of her soul on July 24, 1999, Dr. Ozturk went to great efforts to fulfill this will and she was buried at the Ucler Graveyard, near the tomb of Rumi, on December 17, 2008, exactly the time of “Seb-i Arus” the wedding day, as Rumi described death.

Mathematics, or “the queen of the sciences” as Carl Friedrich Gauss called it, plays an important role in our lives. A world without mathematics is unimaginable. Throughout history, many scholars have made important contributions to this science, among them a great number of Muslims. It is beyond the scope of a short article like this one to mention all the contributions of Muslim scholars to mathematics; therefore, I will concentrate on only four aspects: translations of earlier works, and contributions to algebra, geometry, and trigonometry. In order to understand fully how great were the works of scholars in the past, one needs to look at them with the eye of a person of the same era, since things that are well-known facts today might not have been known at all in the past.

There has never been a conflict between science and Islam. Muslims understand everything in the universe as a letter from God Almighty inviting us to study it to have knowledge of Him. In fact, the first verse of the Qur’an to be revealed was:

Read! In the Name of your Lord, Who created… (Alaq 96:1).

Besides commanding us to read the Qur’an, by mentioning the creation the verse also draws our attention to the universe. There are many verses which ask Muslims to think, to know, to learn and so on. Moreover, there are various sayings of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, encouraging Muslims to seek knowledge. One hadith says, “A believer never stops seeking knowledge until they enter Paradise” (al-Tirmidhi).

In another hadith, the Prophet said, “Seeking knowledge is a duty on every Muslim” (Bukhari). Hence it is no surprise to see early Muslim scholars who were dealing with different sciences.

Translations

Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) said, “Knowledge is the lost property of a Muslim; whoever finds it must take it” [1]; hence Muslims started seeking knowledge. One way they did this was to start translating all kinds of knowledge that they thought to be useful. There were two main sources from which Muslim scholars made translations in order to develop the field of science, the Hindus and the Greeks. The Abbasid caliph al-Mamun (804–832) had a university built and ordered its scholars to translate into Arabic many works of Greek scholarship. Between 771 and 773 CE the Hindu numerals were introduced into the Muslim world as a result of the translation of Sithanta from Sanskrit into Arabic by Abu Abdullah Muhammad Ibrahim al-Fazari. Another great mathematician, Thabit ibn Qurra, not only translated works written by Euclid, Archimedes, Apollonius, Ptolemy and Eutocius, but he also founded a school of translation and supervised many other translations of books from Greek into Arabic. While Hajjaj bin Yusuf translated Euclid’s Elements into Arabic, al-Jayyani wrote an important commentary on it which appears in the Fihrist (Index), a work compiled by the bookseller Ibn an-Nadim in 988. A simplified version of Ptolemy’s Almagest appears in Abul-Wafa’s book of Tahir al-Majisty and Kitab al-Kamil. Abu’l Wafa Al-Buzjani commented on and simplified the works of Euclid, Ptolemy and Diophantus. The sons of Musa bin Shakir also organized translations of Greek works.

These translations played an important role in the development of mathematics in the Muslim world. Moreover, the ancient Greek texts have survived thanks to these translations.

Algebra and geometry

The word “algebra” comes from “Al-Jabr”, which is taken from the title of the book Hisab Al-Jabr wal Muqabala by Muhammad ibn Musa al-Khwarizmi (780–850). Al-Khwarizmi, after whom the “algorithm” is named, was one of the great mathematicians of all times. Europe was first introduced to algebra as a result of the translation of Khwarizmi’s book into Latin by Robert Chester in 1143. The book has three parts. The first part deals with six different types of equations:

(ax² = bx) ; (ax² = b) ; (ax = b) ; (ax² + bx = c) ; (ax² + c = bx) ; (bx + c = ax²)

Khwarizmi gives both arithmetic and geometric methods to solve these six types of problems [2]. He also introduces algebraic multiplication and division. The second part of Hisab Al-Jabr deals with mensuration. Here he describes the rules of computing areas and volumes. Since Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, said, “Learn the laws of inheritance and teach them to people, for that is half of knowledge,”[3] the last and the largest part of this section concerns legacies, which requires a good understanding of the Islamic laws of inheritance. Khwarizmi develops Hindu numerals and introduces the concept of zero, or “sifr” in Arabic, to Europe. The word “zero” actually comes from Latin “zephirum,” which is derived from the Arabic word “sifr.”

The three sons of Musa bin Shakir (about 800–860) were perhaps the first Muslim mathematicians to study Greek works. They wrote a great book on geometry, Kitab Marifat Masakhat Al-Ashkal (The Book of the Measurement of Plane and Spherical Figures), which was later translated into Latin by Gerard of Cremona. In the book, although they used similar methods to those of Archimedes, they move a step further than the Greeks to consider volumes and areas as numbers, and hence they developed a new approach to mathematics. For example, they described the constant number pi as “the magnitude which, when multiplied by the diameter of a circle, yields the circumference.”[4]

A well-known poet, philosopher and astronomer Omar Khayyam (1048–1122) was at the same time a great mathematician. His most famous book on algebra is Treatise on the Demonstration of Problems of Algebra. In his book besides giving both arithmetic and geometric solutions to second degree equations he also describes geometric solutions to third degree equations by the method of intersecting conic sections. He also discovered binomial expansion [26]. His work later helped develop both algebra and geometry.

Thabit bin Qurra (836–901) was an important mathematician who made many discoveries in his time. As mentioned in the Dictionary of Scientific Biography [5] he “played an important role in preparing the way for such important mathematical discoveries as the extension of the concept of number to (positive) real numbers, integral calculus, theorems in spherical trigonometry, analytic geometry, and non-Euclidean geometry. In astronomy Thabit was one of the first reformers of the Ptolemaic system, and in mechanics he was a founder of statics.”

To give an idea of his importance, we will just give here, without details, one of his theorems on amicable numbers. Two natural numbers m and n are called “amicable” if each is equal to the sum of the proper divisors of the other:

for n > 1, let pn=3.2^2n–1 and qn=9.2^2n–1–1. If p_n–1 , p_n and q_n are prime numbers, then a=2n p_n–1 p_n and b=2ⁿq_n are amicable. [6]

Abu Kamil (about 850–930), an Egyptian mathematician, wrote the Book on Algebra which consists of three parts:

(1) Solutions of quadratic equations,

(2) Application of algebra to geometry,

(3) Diophantine equations.[7],[8]

He improved the work of Khwarizmi and applied algebraic methods to geometry. His research was on quadratic equations, multiplication and division of algebraic quantities. His work also includes addition and subtraction of radicals. He found the following formulas:

ax.bx=abx²; a(bx)=(ab)x; (10–x)(10–x)=100+x²–20x

Abu Kamil also wrote the Book On Surveying and Geometry, which was intended for government land surveyors. There, he stated the nontrivial rules for calculating areas, volumes, perimeters, and diagonals of different objects in geometry.[9]

Ibrahim ibn Sinan (908–946), a grandson of Thabit bin Qurra, was both an astronomer and a mathematician. Fuat Sezgin writes, “He was one of the most important mathematicians in the medieval Islamic world.” [10] He studied geometry, and his work on calculation of the area under the graph of a parabola is especially appreciated. Going further than Archimedes, he introduced a more general method of integration. [11]

Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn al-Husayn al-Karaji (953–1029), also known as al-Karkhi, is regarded as the first person to have developed algebraic operations without using geometry. One of his major works was Al-Fakhri fi’l-jabr wa’l-muqabala (Glorious on algebra). Historian Woepcke recognizes Al-Fakhri as the beginning of the theory of algebraic calculus. [12] Here, al-Karkhi introduced the monomials x, x², x³, … and 1/x, 1/x², 1/x³, … and explained product rules among them. Moreover, he was the first to find the solutions of the equations ax²ⁿ+bxⁿ=c. [13] Al-Karkhi proved the sum formula for integral cubes by using the method of proof by induction, and hence became the first to use this method. [14]

Abu’l Hasan ibn Ali al-Qalasadi (1412–1486) was an Andalusian Muslim mathematician. His main contribution was to introduce algebraic symbolism, and he used short Arabic words for his symbols. For example, he used the symbol for the sound “sh” from the Arabic word meaning “thing” to represent what we call x, the unknown. [15]

Trigonometry

Khwarizmi also contributed to trigonometry. He established accurate trigonometric tables for sine and cosine, and he was the first to introduce tangent tables. [16] In 1126, these works were translated into Latin by Adelard of Bath.

Al-Battani or Albetagnius (about 850–929) was a Muslim astronomer and mathematician. In his research on astronomy he used trigonometric methods which were a lot more advanced than the geometric methods used by Ptolemy. [17] He introduced trigonometric ratios. For example, for a right triangle with adjacent sides a and b, he gives the formula b sin(A) = a sin(90⁰ – A), which is equivalent to tan A = a/b. He was the first to introduce the cotangent function. [18]

Muhammad Abu’l Wafa (940–998), born at Buzjan in Khorasan, introduced the use of secant, cosecant and tangent functions. He gave a new method of constructing sine tables. He calculated sin(30^0) with an accuracy of up to eight decimal digits. He improved spherical trigonometry and proved the law of sines for general spherical triangles. [19] In particular, he developed the half/double angle formulas:

2 sin² (x/2)=1–cos x; sin 2x=2sin x cos x

He was the first to introduce the notion of secant and cosecant, and hence completed the list of all six trigonometric functions. [20]

Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Muadh Al-Jayyani (989–1079) was an Arab mathematician from Andalus. He was the author of The Book of Unknown Arcs of a Sphere which was “the first treatise on spherical trigonometry.” [21] Here he mentioned formulas for right handed triangles and law of sines. He also stated the formula for the solution of a spherical triangle in terms of the polar triangle. [21] He had a strong influence on the West.

Another outstanding mathematician Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201–1274) wrote Treatise On The Quadrilateral, considered the best book on trigonometry written in medieval times, [25] later translated into French by Alexandre Carathéodory Pasha in 1891. In his book al-Tusi made enormous advances in plane and spherical trigonometry. The Dictionary of Scientific Biography [22] states, “This work is really the first in history on trigonometry as an independent branch of pure mathematics and the first in which all six cases for a right-angled spherical triangle are set forth.” The well-known sine law is also stated in this work: a/sin A = b/sin B = c/sin C.

Ghiyath al-Din al-Kashi (1393–1449) produces sine tables of up to eight decimal places. In 1424, he computed 2π to an accuracy of sixteen decimal digits. He wrote a very impressive book on mathematics: Miftah al-Hussab (Key to Arithmetic). His main purpose in this book is to provide sufficient knowledge of mathematics for those who are working on astronomy,surveying, architecture, accounting and trading. [23] He also describes how to find the fifth root of any number. [24]

Unfortunately, the contributions of Muslims often go unrecognized. Muslim scholars contributed to science in many aspects such as mathematics, astronomy, geography, philosophy, medicine, art, architecture and so on. However, today few realize that in that era Islam played an important role in all aspects of life. Europe faced losing the works of major scholars, but as a result of their translations into Arabic most of this scholarship not only survived, but was further developed. Inspired by the Qur’an and hadiths, Muslims sought knowledge for the benefit of humankind. As the Qur’an says, “Are those who know equal to those who know not?”(Zumar 39:9). We should appreciate the scholars of all eras for their contributions to science.

Shirali Kadyrov is a PhD candidate at the Ohio State University, Mathematics Department.

References

1. Tirmidhi, `Ilm, 19.

2. B.L. van der Waerden, A History of Algebra.

3. Ibn Maja, Hadith No: 2719.

4. D. El-Dabbah, The geometrical treatise of the ninth-century Baghdad mathematicians Banu Musa (Russian), in History Methodology Natur. Sci., No. V, Math. Izdat. (Moscow, 1966), 131–139.

5. Y. Dold-Samplonius, A. T. Grigorian, B. A. Rosenfeld, Biography in Dictionary of Scientific Biography (New York 1970–1990).

6. For more, see S. Brentjes and J. P. Hogendijk, Notes on Thabit ibn Qurra and his rule for amicable numbers, Historia Math. 16 (4) (1989), 373–378.

7. R. Lorch, Abu Kamil on the pentagon and decagon, Vestigia mathematica (1993), 215–252.

8. J. Sesiano, La version latine medievale de ‘l’Algebre d’Abu Kamil, in Vestigia mathematica (Amsterdam, 1993), 315–452.

9.J. Sesiano, Le Kitab al-Misaha d’Abu Kamil, Centaurus 38 (1996), 1–21.

10. F. Sezgin, History of Arabic literature (German) Vol. 5 (Leiden, 1974), 292–295.

11. http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Biographies/Ibrahim.html

12. F. Woepcke, Extrait du Fakhri, traite d’Algebre par Abou Bekr Mohammed Ben Alhacan Alkarkhi (Paris, 1853).

13. Boyer, Carl B. (1991). “The Arabic Hegemony”, A History of Mathematics, Second Edition, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 239. ISBN 0471543977.

14. Victor J. Katz (1998). History of Mathematics: An Introduction, p. 255–259. Addison-Wesley. ISBN 0321016181.

15. J. Samso, Las ciencias de los antiguos en al-Andalus (Madrid, 1992).

16. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_trigonometry

17. http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Biographies/Al-Battani.html

18. http://www.unhas.ac.id/~rhiza/saintis/battani.html

19. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/2127/Abul-Wafa

20. http://www.bhatkallys.com/article/article.asp?aid=3442

21. O’Connor, John J. & Robertson, Edmund F., Abu Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Muadh Al-Jayyani.

22. S. H. Nasr, Biography in Dictionary of Scientific Biography (New York 1970–1990).

23. http://www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/~history/Biographies/Al-Kashi.html

24. http://www.bhatkallys.com/article/article.asp?aid=3442

25. http://members.tripod.com/worldupdates/newupdates10/id142.htm

26. Heinrich Dorrie, David Antin (1965). 100 Great Problems of Elementary Mathematics: Their History and Solution, p.34–36. ISBN 0486613488.

It is quite interesting to find that although Nursi clearly states the necessity of interfaith alliance in the Risale-i Nur, and consequently encourages his followers to practice dialogue to establish this alliance, he does not dedicate any section of the Risale-i Nur to the principles of this interfaith dialogue and alliance. In other words, Nursi never titled any part of his works “The Principles of Interfaith Dialogue and Alliance.” Hence, the present article inquires whether Nursi simply ignores the principles of interfaith dialogue and alliance or whether there are implicit interfaith principles in his works.

It is my claim that it is possible to find implicit interfaith principles in the works of Nursi, and that the Twentieth and Twenty-First Gleams and the Twenty-Second Letter are especially good sources for these principles. In these sections, Nursi mainly deals with the different reasons for conflict among Muslims and teaches them his conflict resolution principles to end these conflicts with peaceful alliance. Therefore, it is easy for us to extract the principles of interfaith dialogue and alliance from these sections by paraphrasing Nursi’s conflict resolution principles in the context of interfaith dialogue because most of the principles in these sections are not related specifically to Islam, but to human nature in general.

Before presenting the list of paraphrased conflict resolution principles in the context of interfaith dialogue and alliance, we would like to demonstrate an example of paraphrasing: For instance, in the Twentieth Gleam, Nursi advises the following principle to resolve a conflict between different Muslim groups: “Adopt the just rule of conduct that the follower of any right outlook has the right to say, “My outlook is true, or the best,” but not that “My outlook alone is true,” or that “My outlook alone is good,” thus implying the falsity or repugnance of all other outlooks.” Although the context of this principle is the interactions between Muslims, it is perfectly right to practice this principle in the interfaith context because it is not related to Islam, but to human nature in general. Consequently, we can paraphrase this principle as follows: In dialogue activities, as Muslims, we can believe or even say that Islam is the right religion or even preferable to that of other religions, but we do not have right to say that other religions have no right in them at all. Similarly, in dialogue activities, Christians can believe or even say that Christianity is the right religion or even preferable to that of other religions, but they do not have right to say that other religions have no right in them at all.

After introducing this example, we can list the paraphrased interfaith principles from Twentieth and Twenty-First Gleams and the Twenty-Second Letter:

1. In our dialogue activities, as Muslims, we should only aim for our Lord’s good pleasure, not the acceptance of the members of other religions because “if Almighty God is pleased, it is of no importance even should the whole world be displeased.”

2. God commands in the Qur’an (Baqara 2:41), …do not sell My Revelations for a trifling price (such as worldly gains, status, and renown). Therefore, in dialogue activities, we should not water down our religious rules and dignity.

3. Human self is prone to make mistakes and deviate from the right path. Therefore, while dialoging with others, we should not trust our selves but God and always seek his help and forgiveness:

Yet I do not claim my self free of error, for assuredly the human carnal soul always commands evil, except that my Lord has mercy (which saves us from committing evil acts). (Yusuf 12:53)

4. If we want to dialogue with the members of other religions, we should accept them in their position and not criticize their religious beliefs and practices. If we like to be respected in our own beliefs, we should respect the beliefs of others. Similarly, in dialogue meetings, we should not excite the envy of the members of other religions by displaying or implying superior virtues.

5. Our primary aim in dialogue activities is God’s good pleasure and his help. Faith alliance is our secondary aim. In other words, we seek faith alliance because it attracts God’s help and support to us. Therefore, if we cannot establish faith alliance with the members of other faiths after all of our sincere efforts, we should not be disappointed. For God is the helper of his sincere servants and no alliance can be superior to God’s alliance.

6. In dialogue events, our actions should always be based on positive motives. That is to say, what motivates our actions should be the love of our own outlook, not the enmity of others’ outlooks. We organize or participate in dialogue events to represent our outlook, not to diminish the outlook of others.

7. In dialogue activities, by focusing on commonalities such as a shared land, a shared language, our common humanity, universal needs and fears, and so on, we will recognize again that what we have in common far exceeds what sets us apart from each other.

8. Because we need unity and inclusion within Muslims and among the People of the Book far more than division and exclusion, let us for now leave aside discussion of the issues that divide us.

9. In our dialogue activities, we should keep in mind that unity among Muslims and the People of the Book attracts for us the help of our Creator against irreligion.

10. The aim of interfaith dialogue is not to argue with the members of other religions. In order to refrain from argumentation, we should know that one who prevails in an argument finds himself in a dangerous position in comparison with his partner, first because he might fall into arrogance in his heart, and second because he may learn nothing new from the discussion. On the other hand, his partner learns new knowledge and his heart is safe from arrogance.

11. In our dialogue activities, we should seek sincere religious people because the people who are sincere in their religion will most probably be sincere in their dialogue with us as well.

12. If we see any hostility from the people that we dialogue with, we should remember the following principle: “If you wish to defeat your enemy, respond to his evil with good. For if you respond with evil, enmity will increase, and even though he will be outwardly defeated, he will nurture hatred in his heart, and hostility will persist. But if you respond to him with good, he will repent and become your friend.”

13. While we dialogue we should keep in mind that people all have different characters and one bad character in a group does not mean that all the people of that group have a similar character. In other words, it would be wrong to generalize one person’s mistake to the whole community. The Qur’an says, …no soul, as bearer of burden, bears (and is made to bear) the burden of another.” (Fatir 35:18)

14. Similarly, one negative aspect of a person does not necessitate that the person is bad as whole.

15. In dialogue activities, all that we say should be true, but we should not say all that is true. For one of insincere intention may sometimes take unkindly to advice, and react to it unfavorably.

16. In times when evil actions prevail, what could we need more than unity, friendship, and inclusion?

17. In times of conflict of opinions, we should act in a positive way, not a negative one. That is to say, we should strive to promote and diffuse our own belief, not seeking to tear down and destroy that of the other, but rather to improve and reform it.

18. In dialogue activities, we should remember that insisting upon consensus in our methods and approaches after finding agreement upon our aims and goals might be a fruitless wish.

19. At every stage of a dialogue activity, the following principle must be our guide: Love for the sake of God, dislike for the sake of God, judge for the sake of God.

In conclusion, we could say that although Nursi does not state interfaith principles explicitly, it is possible to find them mentioned implicitly in The Risale-i Nur and the above list is a good enough source for carrying out any dialogue interaction in a fruitful way.

Suleyman Eris is the author of Islam: A Brief Guide – Belief and Practice.

Law and literature

The relationship between law and literature is ages old. If we go back to the origins of law, among the ancient Greeks it was aligned with rhetoric, speaking and writing. Rhetoric was originally intended to present arguments in court. As law became more professional, it was closed off from this. Thus, law and literature have taken different ways, literature being more and more concerned with the expression of human emotions and feelings, while law became increasingly concerned with the maintenance of social order.

Nexus between law and literature

Law and literature are closely interrelated. One of the sources of law is “legal fiction.” Legal fiction, that is, fictio juris means “any assumption which conceals or tends to conceal the fact that the rule of law [has] undergone any alteration, its letter remaining unchanged but its operation being modified” (Islam, 2002). By means of a legal fiction, a child can be adopted from one family into another. In the eye of the law a limited company is given a personality which is distinct from that of its members. Case law is based on a fiction that while enacting a particular rule of law, the legislature had a particular intention. Fiction also played an important role as a source of law in ancient times. There was a rule of procedure in Rome by which a non-Roman was allowed to make a false allegation that he was a Roman citizen and thereby a praetor urbanus was able to try his case. The fiction of citizenship was adopted merely for the purpose of extending the Roman law to the non-Romans. All were under the same “lex gentium.” In England the Court of Exchequer took jurisdiction over civil cases by means of a legal fiction that the plaintiff was the debtor of the king. These fictions were adopted by the courts as devices to add to the jurisdiction of the courts. The old Roman law was laid down in the Twelve Tables, and additions to it were made by Responsa Prudentium-the judgements of the men learned in law. The teachings of the most highly qualified of various nations are still considered as a source of international law.

Fictions stand in the way of the codification of law. A property may be in the actual possession of X, but at the same time may be in the constructive possession of Y, the owner. No trust may have been created, but law may presume the same. By fiction, a Hindu child in the womb becomes entitled to family property.

Legal fiction and legal presumption, however, are not the same. Legal fiction is a source of law while legal presumption is a rule of law. One fact is recognized by law as sufficient proof of another. A notification in the official gazette is presumed by law to have been duly signed by the person by whom it is purported to have been signed. These few examples are perhaps enough for us to understand that law can be regarded as literature.

In this context, we can very relevantly talk about the Holy Qur’an which gives the impression of a perfect piece of exposition on one hand and a storehouse of law on the other. The Qur’an may sound astonishingly literary in terms of content and style, and at the time of its revelation poetry and oratory skills were the most outstanding forms of art in Mecca. Having heard the Qur’an’s enchanting verses, the best poets of the time tore apart their poems for they thought they could not challenge it. But as the Qur’an is the word of God, ascribing literary characteristics to the Holy Scripture is to devalue it. Nevertheless, various powerful forms of expression are found in the Qur’an to convey the message of Islam. The chapters and verses of the Qur’an maintain phonetic and thematic structures so that people can recall the message of the text. The narrative style of the innumerable events, particularly their dramatic presentation, have continued to amaze the scholars throughout the centuries. Sells says, “The values presented in the very early Meccan revelations are repeated throughout the hymnic suras. There is a sense of directness, of intimacy, as if the hearer were being asked repeatedly a simple question: what will be of value at the end of a human life?” (Sells, 1999). But these very verses are basically the laws meant to be for the whole humanity. Coupled with the Prophet’s practice the Qur’an as a main body of Islamic religious law undoubtedly covers almost all the aspects of human life ranging from family, sexuality, hygiene, social issues, business, economics, to politics both national and international. Thus the ultimate law comes in the form of a perfect exposition.

The impact of literature on law is far reaching with regard to teaching, legal writing, statutory interpretations and duly submission of petitions before the bench. Many authors have tried to show the human condition and the law’s effect on it through their literary works from a neutral point of view. The fictional situations presented in literature, they assert, can tell a great deal about political and social situations, and the individuals that often find themselves before the court. Ronald Dworkin in his article, “Law as Interpretation” stated, “I propose that we can improve our understanding of law by comparing legal interpretation with interpretation in other fields of knowledge, particularly literature” (Dworkin, 1982).

Intermingling of law and literature as reflected in the works of some great authors

Some popular as well as critically acclaimed literary works by prominent writers like Shakespeare, Kafka, Dickens, Camus, have dealt with the theme of law. Almost every careful reader would know that these writers were influenced by the legal system of their own time and were aware of its impact both the personal and social level. It would be wrong to think that they took law as the subject matter of their novel or play just to tell an interesting story. In fact, through skilful plot development their views about the then legal system are expressed. What is most interesting here is that they were influenced by the law and have definitely influenced the law as well.

The Stranger or The Outsider is a novel by Albert Camus where the virtues of truth confront the deceits and corruptions of law. We also come to know about the justice system of the time and existing loopholes as the trial for the murder of an Arab proceeds. Furthermore, the novel addresses the issue of the inevitable conflict between defective legal proceedings and a man’s individual way of thinking.

Franz Kafka’s The Trial is another novel where the author exposes how law is abused and made to bring enormous suffering to a man’s life. The main character, Josef K., awakens one morning and, for reasons never revealed, is arrested and subjected to the judicial process for an unspecified crime. Some crucial questions of judicial proceedings like a backlog of cases, arresting on suspicion and detaining a person for an uncertain period, absence of proper investigation, and absence of the right to self-defence are brought to our attention.

Shakespeare’s works contain a remarkable quantity of law terms and they are used very accurately. The use of legal jargon in Hamlet is particularly impressive. But it is The Merchant of Venice, a controversial tale of a Jewish moneylender, that examines themes of justice and the bias of legal systems.

Dickens’ popular novel Bleak House is particularly known for the novelist’s blunt attack on the flaws of the British judiciary system. Dickens’ experience of working as a law clerk in London came in handy in unearthing and depicting the law’s flaws so vividly. The plot concerns a long-running legal battle that takes place between two parties claiming the inheritance of a large property, a battle which in the end costs both parties dearly. Many believe that Dickens’s harsh portrayal of the lengthy Chancery system made way for the reforms that took place in the 1870s.

Benefits of intermingling of law and literature

The intermingling of law and literature produces certain benefits for both the subjects. First, literature is exceptionally capable of probing human psychology and conditions through text. This capacity can be combined with the legal framework which regulates human actions in real life and truly pave the way for a democratic judiciary which is a prerequisite for establishing a just and moral society. Second, literature is considered to be a carrier of human will and freedom of expression. This characteristic can be positively incorporated into the judicial system to facilitate more humane legal decisions. Third, literature helps us understand the text’s role in defining human experience as used in legal rhetoric. Fourth, by applying literary methods in legal writing, laws can be more readily interpreted and legal decisions can be conveyed more effectively. Fifth, reading and writing literature helps improve clarity of expression which is a must for everybody involved in the legal profession. Moreover, every citizen of a society should also acquire this clarity to enable them to defend themselves in the legal arena. Next, special cases can be accommodated through the application of literary standards to legal documents and thus despotism can be reduced to a great extent. In this regard some proponents of the admixture of law and literature argue that this looks back to and restores the image of the lawyer as a person of letters possessing a broad liberal education and being well versed in languages, rhetoric and literature, who views law as an aspect of the humanities and the public life, not a science or a business. Lastly, one of the skills literature teaches lawyers is the power of the imagination so that lawyers learn to place themselves in the shoes of the client, the opponent, the witnesses, the judge, and the jury in order to anticipate reactions to their pleadings, presentation of evidence, arguments, and settlement proposals.

However, one need not think that only law will benefit from this intermingling; rather, it is advantageous for literature as well. The law has immensely enlarged the area and scope for literature already. The law enriches itself every day and this ever widening sphere of law can be a great source for literature. Until now most literature in which law plays a major role has concerned criminal law, ignoring the many disputes over inheritance, contracts, divorce and real property. These very issues can be presented with more legal focus in literature if the writers are interested in knowing a bit more about law and the legal system. In this context we do very well remember the nineteenth-century British novels which are rich sources of thinking about law and lawyers and offer insight into the legal heritage, mainly because the novelists Charles Dickens, George Eliot, Anthony Trollope and others participated in the debate about the best way to implement legal reform. In this regard more scope will be created to consider human feelings, emotions, and the environment where a person is raised. Then theories of punishment-as there are different theories available, like reformative, punitive, deterrent, expiation, preventive, and so on-should be analysed thoroughly. This is where literature can open up windows of thought for the reformers.

In fact, law is not at all a stagnant subject, rather it has undergone huge changes over the ages and literature can very well claim to be the greatest contributor. Different writers in different ages have made the lawmakers think about the loopholes of the prevailing laws through their writings. This is how new interpretations of different laws have come about, and thus the loopholes have been exposed. Similarly, writers have provided us with new ideas about how to define crime and punishment under different circumstances and helped clarify law. Likewise, the discretionary power of the judges and its effects on the justice system can be viewed in a broader literary perspective. In this context the effort of Lord Denning, the greatest law-making judge of the century is worth mentioning. Lord Denning showed his willingness to override precedent to do what he saw as justice and foreshadowed the move towards moulding the law to suit changing times and circumstances.

The definition of an offence can be scrutinised even more critically if it is seen through literature. Taking lessons from literature, life can be improved, which can substantially help the law-enforcement agencies to maintain order in society with ease and comfort. Social and communal conflicts are commonplace in every country and they are well-depicted in literature; law can borrow these materials to deal with them. Literature also helps to find ways of dealing with psychological problems which are quite common in human life and have certain effects on the whole of society. Again literature tells us how to look at these sensitive issues and therefore may help the law manage them in a more delicate way. As edification is one of the objectives of literature, the blending of law and literature ultimately helps the moral development of anybody concerned with the law. Since literature critiques lawyers and the overall legal system, this intermingling will certainly widen the scope for criticising the different shortcomings of the legal system, such as delays in trial proceedings, imprisonment without trial, torture on remand or interrogation, lack of sincerity in investigation, corruption, and so on, and will no doubt help to find ways to curb them.

Recently, in the global perspective, law has expanded its sphere and in the process problems like eviction, mass killing, war crimes, arbitrary power, and illegal occupation by foreign armies have come to the fore. All these issues are the themes of many literary works by different writers, which can assist legal experts to find ways to think about and deal with them. Literature also helps in building a better society by illustrating the consequences of committing crimes and the dreadful conditions of a criminal life.

To conclude, the intermingling of literature and law can give us hope of having a legal system touched by humanity. It may help writers to produce literature with more experience of life and society. At the same time, we need not forget that law is a part of our culture, not a mere technical study and it has a lot to offer to literature as well. As literature is a storehouse of alternative visions of law and society, the more literature comes into the thoughts of a lawyer or a law student, the better is the chance of law in a society paying due regard to human values and emotions, a quality which many people believe law seriously lacks. Likewise, literature should be more concerned with the everyday problems of life and a true reflection of society in the broad view. The times demand that writers do not just project a series of imaginary pictures playing in their minds, and law can truly help literature meet this demand.

Ahamuduzzaman is a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Law, ASA University, Bangladesh. Sharif Rakib Hasan is a Lecturer at the Department of English at the same university.

References

• Brooks, Peter and Gewirtz, Paul. Law’s Stories: Narrative and Rhetoric in the Law, London: Yale University Press, 1996.
• Campbell, John. Shakespeare’s Legal Acquirements, London: Kissinger, 2001.
• Camus, Albert. The Stranger, USA: Tandem Library, 1999.
• Dickens, Charles. Bleak House, London: Yale University Press, 2000.
• Dien, Mawil, Izzi. Islamic Law: From Historical Foundations to Contemporary Practice, Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press, 2004
• Dworkin, Ronald, M. “Law as Interpretation,” Critical Inquiry, 1982, Vol. 9, No. 1. p. 179.
• Islam, Mahmudul. Constitutional Law of Bangladesh, Dhaka: Mullick Brothers. Second edition, 2002, pp. 58–60.
• Minda, Gary. “Law and Literature at Century’s End,” Cardozo Studies in Law and Literature, 1997, Vol. 9 No.2, pp. 245–258.
• Kafka, Franz. The Trial, Munich: Kurt Wolff Verlag, 1925
• Sells, Michael. Approaching the Qur’an, USA: White Cloud Press, 1999.
• Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. USA: Dover Publications, 1992
• –. The Merchant of Venice, USA: Penguin Group, 1998. 

Another man of letters discussed in this issue is from a neighboring literary nation to that of Aytmatov’s: Dostoyevsky. From his masterpiece Crime and Punishment, Alice Bolton produces a thought-provoking analysis of nineteenth-century “human-centered theories and movements that would be implemented later in the twentieth century.” This piece sheds a bright light on why we continue to have violence at all levels of human existence and how such bloody atrocities, which most of us cannot even stand to hear of, can easily be perpetrated by some people. For those of our readers who would rather focus on the spiritual than the criminal, Bolton’s conclusion offers a comforting solution: “The repair of the human soul is possible only through a return to the Absolute Being.”

Another heart-expanding analysis comes from Mesut Sahin who discusses how we can come to an understanding of suffering in the world that is in agreement with God’s Mercy. He shares with us the glad tidings of the Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, who said, “Never is a believer stricken with a discomfort, an illness, an anxiety, a grief or mental worry or even the pricking of a thorn but God will expiate his sins on account of his patience.”

The author describes Ibn al-Haytham’s life in chronological order, with the last chapter concentrating on the occurrences after his death and how his contributions were inherited by especially Western scientists. He starts the book by describing the environment in and around Basra, a city in the south of what is now Iraq, where Ibn al-Haytham was born in 965 AD. After narrating the story of the spread of Islam in the region, the author indicates that the Muslims showed great interest in the knowledge of their subjects:

“The thirst for knowledge was partly from the religious philosophy of Islam. The Qur’an says: ‘Those who remember Allah [God]…reflect on the creation of the heavens and the earth.’ Prophet Muhammad says: ‘Seeking knowledge is a duty upon every Muslim.’”

The first chapter “Boyhood in Basra” continues with Muslims’ interest in the writings of ancient Greeks, especially Caliph al-Ma’mun and his founding of Bait-ul-Hikmat, or the “House of Wisdom,” a center dedicated to the study and translation of books. The author notes the fact that Muslims did not merely collect and translate the works of other cultures, but absorbed the material and added to it, making it their own. He adds, “This was true not only in literature, but also in science and mathematics. Muslim advances in these areas changed the course of human history.” The mathematical breakthrough of the invention of the number zero by al-Khwarizmi and Abu Kamil’s contributions to advanced algebra are mentioned.

The first chapter ends with a description of the education system in the 10th century Middle East. Many books, translations and original works, found their place in libraries, sometimes attached to mosques. Ibn al-Haytham’s early education took place at the mosque of Basra. The tradition was that every teacher would take up a position by a pillar while the students sat on the floor in a semicircle around him. Munazarah, or debates, were required of every student, where students were posed controversial and difficult questions. The winner was determined according to the thoroughness of the student’s answer and soundness of his logic. Some teachers required students to produce copies of the books, as books were difficult to reproduce. While in the mosques religion, literature, grammar, and rhetoric were taught, the sciences were taught generally in the private homes of amateur scholars. Ibn al-Haytham first studied theology, Qur’an, Hadith (a collection of Prophet Muhammad’s sayings), and law.

The author quotes Ibn al-Haytham explaining why he was inspired to study philosophy and science: “I decided to discover what it is that brings us closer to God, what pleases Him most, and what makes us submissive to His ineluctable Will.” Steffens describes Sunnah and Shi’ite theologies, as the disagreements between Muslim sects troubled young Ibn al-Haytham. He realized that if one belief was true, then a conflicting belief could not be true. False beliefs were dangerous, he reasoned, as they obscured the truth and led believers away from God. After studying various belief systems in depth, he concluded that, in his words, “whatever differences exist between them are based not on the basic tenets of faith or the Ultimate Reality but on sociological content.” In his autobiography Ibn Haytham later wrote, “I studied in considerable detail the beliefs of various sects, thoughts, and theological systems, but I failed to gain anything which could point the way to Reality.” When Ibn al-Haytham discovered the works of Aristotle, he decided to examine the works of God in the universe, rather than studying the words of men. He not only wrote summaries for Aristotle’s works, but also commentaries. He also studied mathematics by Euclid as well as Ptolemy and Archimedes.

The author quotes from Qaysar that Ibn al-Haytham thought about resigning from the government office he was appointed to because of his love of pure learning. This was almost impossible, however, as resignation would have insulted the person who appointed him. He could not run away as this would bring dishonor to his family. According to Qaysar, Ibn al-Haytham pretended to be insane. The author makes a very detailed analysis of what may have actually happened by examining Ibn al-Haytham’s character and the claim that he misleads government officials by playing insane. The author writes, “This behavior seems incongruous with what is known of Ibn al-Haytham’s character and his commitment to Islam, which condemns lying.” He concludes, “Real or fake, Ibn al-Haytham’s mental breakdown allowed him to escape the drudgery of his government job.”

The book then concentrates on how Ibn-al Haytham traveled to Egypt, where he would make most of his contributions to science and especially optics. His invention of the camera obscura (the pinhole camera), his correct description of vision occurring when light rays enter the eye and stimulate the optic nerve, the fact that light travels in straight rays, and radiates from every point on a luminous object in all directions are all mentioned, along with some errors in his famous book Kitab al-Manazir (The Book of Optics). Most importantly, the author goes into great detail about how Ibn al-Haytham performed his research to arrive at these conclusions. Because Ibn al-Haytham established and used the scientific method as we know it today, it becomes apparent why the author calls him the first scientist. The author includes striking examples with diagrams and pictures demonstrating Ibn al Haytham’s experiments.

In his late life, Ibn al-Haytham supported himself by copying manuscripts, as well as teaching in Cairo. The author reports a story from al-Bayhaqi: “Ibn al-Haytham agreed to tutor a Syrian nobleman, Surkhab, but demanded one hundred dinars a month for payment. The price was high, but Surkhab did not hesitate to pay the fee. For years the Syrian studied with Ibn al-Haytham. At the end of his time, his education complete, Surkhab bid his tutor farewell. Ibn al-Haytham asked the nobleman to wait a moment. ‘You deserve this money all the more,’ Ibn al-Haytham said, returning all 3,600 dinars to Surkhab, ‘since I just wished to test your sincerity and, when I saw that for the sake of learning you cared little for money, I devoted full attention towards your education. Do remember that, in any righteous cause, it is not good to accept a return, a bribe, or a gift.”

In chapter six, the author gives a list of Ibn al-Haytham’s books (about 182 according to Ibn Abi Usaybi’ah), and ends the chapter with a possible journey back to Basra, or a continued stay in Cairo with Ibn al-Haytham’s return to God around 1040 AD. Steffens writes, “He turned towards the Ka’aba, and recited a verse from the Qur’an: ‘Verily my return is to You; I rely upon You and turn unto You.’”

The author ends his book by giving an account of occurrences after Ibn al-Haytham’s death, such as the reason why many works by Ibn Haytham went missing, and how his contributions transferred to Europe. As interest in pure science waned in the Muslim world, the opposite was happening in Europe, the author writes. After giving an account of how Christians in Europe viewed science, he talks about the role of Andalus (current-day Spain) in disseminating knowledge in the Muslim World towards Europe. Also a translator in Toledo translated Ibn al-Haytham’s Kitab al-Manazir, and titled the book De aspectibus, or The Optics. He called the author Alhacen, a Latinized form of al-Hasan. De aspectibus fascinated European scholars. The last chapter recounts how Roger Bacon, a Franciscan monk, wrote Perspectiva, a book on optics based largely on Ibn al-Haytham’s work. One important analysis Steffens makes is very significant:

“Although Roger Bacon acknowledged his debt to Ibn al-Haytham in the field of optics, he did not give the Iraqi scholar credit for having developed the method of inquiry that he strongly advanced. Instead, Bacon praised Peter Peregrinus, a French scholar he met while he was in Paris, as the master of experiments.”

The author explains the reasons behind this by taking a very careful historian’s approach:

“Bacon may have credited Peregrinus over Ibn al-Haytham for pioneering the experimental method because he knew the Frenchman personally and revered his work. Another motive may have been the fact that both Bacon and Peregrinus were devout Christians at a time when Muslims and Christians were fighting for control of Jerusalem and the areas around it in a series of wars known as Crusades. Bacon was a member of the clergy and Peregrinus even fought in one of the Crusades himself. Because of these ongoing conflicts, Bacon may have felt that attaching a Muslim scholar’s name to the scientific method may have slowed down its acceptance among the Christians.”

The book also includes many colorful illustrations from the pages of history relevant to understanding Ibn al-Haytham’s life and his contributions to science. The timeline at the end is very informative. Finally, it has sources, a bibliography, and web pages, which direct the interested reader to further information. I congratulate Bradley Steffens for his beautiful work about Ibn al-Haytham and his advancement of experimental science. I end with the last quotation of the book from Ibn al-Haytham which acts as a general guide for all serious scientists: “The seeker after truth is not one who studies the writings of the ancients and, following his natural disposition, puts his trust in them, but rather the one who suspects his faith in them and questions what he gathers from them, the one who submits to argument and demonstration, and not the sayings of a human being whose nature is fraught with all kinds of imperfection and deficiency. Thus the job of the man who investigates the writings of scientist, if learning the truth is his goal, is to make himself an enemy of all that he reads, and applying his mind to the core and margins of its content, attack it from every side. He should also suspect himself as he performs his critical examination of it, so that he may avoid falling into either prejudice or leniency.”

This work by M. Fethullah Gulen is a continuation of a long tradition of books and articles promoting the cause of serving society through the advancement of universal education. Fethullah Gulen is a widely known and respected Turkish scholar, religious leader, educator, and social reformer, whose values stem from his Islamic faith, and whose overriding interest is in the well-being of Muslims as well as all of mankind. Fethullah Gulen’s many life experiences including a teaching post in Edirne Turkey, and those acquired throughout his life within his faith, have contributed to his understanding of the role of education in shaping the world we live in. His corresponding beliefs that tyranny can be eliminated and justice achieved through education for all mankind are copiously illustrated in this and all of his former works.

Readers in the United States and other western countries will discover many comments, shaped by Fethullah Gulen’s wealth of knowledge and experience that are colored by the filter of his own education, culture, religious beliefs, and national origin. These readers can best benefit from his breathtaking perspective, and depth of understanding, by exercising tolerance and acceptance of his background and life experiences. Indeed, Fethullah Gulen has much wisdom to offer those who are truly willing to contemplate his message.

Obvious to any reader familiar with the works of Fethullah Gulen, the overall intent of this book is to both inform and guide readers in their daily lives Some chapters of this book are titled; The Spiritual Life; The Personal Life; Family; Society; Social Interaction. Fethullah Gulen divides each chapter into several subject areas, and in each subject area he provides several short and to-the-point comments (pearls) designed to provoke thought and shape the understanding, and resultant actions, of his readers.

For an example related to politics; in chapter seven, “Government”, in the subject area of “Republic”, Fethullah Gulen writes: “The Prophet, upon him be peace and blessings, did not claim kingship, and his four immediate political successors followed his example. Kingship appeared when people grew remote from the Islamic spirit, and eventually this digression became a vehicle for oppression and despotism.” This is indeed an interesting pearl, for it contains wise commentary regarding the his- torical development of politics in the Islamic world, and helps us understand the root cause of many of the problems faced by modern day Muslims. It may also help guide some modern day Islamic countries in developing policies and practices that will lead them out of the political, economic, and cultural quagmires they may be experiencing at this time.

Another example, this time related to the science of metaphysics, can be found in chapter nine, “Ideal People”, in the subject area of “Pearls of Wisdom”: “Matter has no comprehension, consciousness, feeling, or will. It is comprised only of some laws and particles (used to form things). What an embarrassing mistake it is to count it as the essence of existence.” Fascinating insight that encourages us to critically examine the values we and our cultures have adopted regarding the worth and value of property and objects.

In Pearls of Wisdom Fethullah Gulen has assembled an awesome collection of wise thoughts and arranged them in logical subject areas in order that we can use them to examine our lives and benefit from his wisdom. There are literally hundreds of pearls in this book, and every one of them requires our immediate attention.