The Universe, including the earth and all things in it, are not only changing but evolving. So are human beings and their affairs. Although the basic laws remain the same, Allah creates and recreates (10:35). Both change and constancy are required and are recognised relative to each other. The processes in nature also tend to be cyclic which combines change with constancy and this is no doubt why the Quran directs our attention to the cycles of nature in several places. But it is, perhaps, better from the Islamic point of view to think of these as spirals - things return to the same general position but not exactly. They may evolve rather than stay in an eternal groove or degenerate to a lower position. Human beings are required to be aware of these processes and adjust accordingly. In this pair of opposites, change and constancy, as in all other pairs, a state of shifting balance is required (15:19). Instability, disharmony and disaster results when either of these tendencies outstrips the other. To control the situation, we are required to transcend the pair of opposites and flee unto Allah (51:49-51)and set up a Balanced Way (2:108, 143).

In general evolution for creatures on earth means that there is an accumulation of experiences within the creature as well as in its environment. The environment is changing partly due to the activities and changes in the creatures. New or enhanced characteristics and abilities arise partly because of these accumulations. Creatures must adapt to the changes around them or be replaced by those that do change (6:134, 35:16). Everything has a term (30:8, 13:38. 7:34, 15:4-5). The evolution of the Universe. of the Biosphere and of man are all comparable to the growth of the individual from the fertilized egg to adulthood, old age and death (22:5).

Because Islam Muslim nations have been stagnating for a considerable amount of time, it has been supposed that Islam is a rigid system; that all innovation is rejected; therefore, Islam is unadaptable to changing circumstances and the historical process; that this makes it obsolete or increasingly an obstruction to progress. This, it is claimed, makes it necessary that Islam should be abandoned and that new Prophets must come with a new law for the new age.

The problem with this view is that if the changes due to history make it necessary to change the religion, then religion ceases to have value as a transforming force. Religions are certainly adapted to the times in which they come otherwise they could not be understood, find followers and be applied. But religions do produce changes both in the nature of the people and in their societies. They change the course of history. These changes, it is claimed, make the religion obsolete.

But this depends on how Religion is understood, whether it refers only to events and characteristics that change or to the unchanging forces or laws underlying the changes or to both. There is a difference between what is universally true and what is only a particular example of something, between the essence and the changing form, between the absolute and the relative. The law of Gravity, for instance, is true everywhere, but particular examples of gravity vary from place to place. All men are different, but their humanity is a common feature of them all. Indeed, if we do not have a stable permanent or Absolute standard, how could it be possible to determine the validity of what is relative. By what criteria will we judge that some action, A under conditions C1 is good but under conditions C2 is evil - that a knife, for instance, in a good surgeons hand is good but in that of a murderer it is bad.

Islam contains both the Universal and the particular. The word "Islam" itself refers to true religion, "Surrender to God", and covers all the dispensations of it as brought by all genuine Prophets.

Indeed, the Quran itself illustrates how adaptation can be done, but in a positive direction. At first, only drunkenness at prayer time was forbidden (4:43). It is only later when faith had become sufficiently strong that it was forbidden altogether (2:219, 5:90-91) But a reason is given:- though it is not denied that there is some good in it, the evil outweighs the good.

This verse also indicates that circumstances may change owing to our strivings so that we may have increasing surpluses of resources, energy, time, attention and money which could be beneficially employed.

Somethings which may be possible or impossible at one time or under certain circumstances, may become respectively impossible or possible at other times or under other circumstances. Slavery, for instance was a common practice in the past and may have been a political necessity (i.e. unless all prisoners of war were to be killed, they had to be dealt with in some other way, perhaps to make some economic compensation for the destruction the enemy did.) It is only Islam, among the religions, which has instructions by which the practice could be gradually abolished without causing a political and social upheaval.

The nature of evil and good is often understood rather naively or simplistically. It is, for instance pointed out that if there is no slavery then the instructions about treating slaves kindly and freeing them in the Quran becomes redundant. Apart from the fact that slavery may well return in the future and all tendencies that lead to it ought to be fought against all the time, there are innumerable kinds and degrees of slavery. There is economic, political, cultural, and psychological slavery. People can be mentally conditioned, imprisoned in convention, tradition and social class. They might be restricted, by debt, or by bad health, or by habit, ignorance, and lack of abilities and opportunities. They may be governed by phobias, addictions, hallucinations, delusions, and superstitions. Anyone controlled by something external is a slave. People may be controlled by the News media, various kinds of authorities, Banks and Moneylenders. The employee deprived of the means to make his own living, is an economic slave, specially when he can be thrown onto the scrap heap when he ceases to be useful or profitable to the employer. This kind of slavery still exists world-wide. Similar considerations apply to theft and murder. People can be deprived of reputation, social standing, abilities, friends, time, resources etc.

This verse describes the essentials of religion and may be understood as denying that it consists of ritualism, dogmatism and institutionalism. It is not the forms that count but the motives and the faith they are based on. These create flexibility and can manifest in various ways.

Religion itself can change :-

Since all these other ways are valid, it is not the case that only one form is correct. There may be different kinds of vessels but the spirit in them may be the same. This is, of course, also true of human beings.

Some people invoke the following Hadith:-

But this may be countered with :-

This apparent contradiction is resolved if we keep the distinction between spiritual truths and temporal changes in mind.

Consider also the following :-

The number of Laws in the Quran is very small. Compare this with the Laws which modern states require. The inference is that the Quran is not a book of law as such, but a book of guidance. Most of the laws are left to human beings. Indeed, it is human beings who must interpret and apply the Quran. In the past several ulema (scholars) codified the teachings of the Quran and Hadith into laws. Stagnation came about as the result of sticking to these or abandoning them when circumstances changed. But there is no justification for supposing that the right to interpret the Quran as conditions change and to apply it has been abolished. Scholarship does not mean past scholarship. The new scholars must take into considerations the changed circumstances in the world as well as the new developments in knowledge and techniques. In so far as the Quran contains universal truths it must deal with what is generally true, and this means that it applies to many particular cases. It is only necessary to use Qias (measuring or analogical reasoning).

We read:-

From this we infer the Quran does not wish to construct a rigid unalterable system.

Examples of guidelines rather than rigid laws are :-

The Prophet interpreted and applied the Quran for the circumstances in which he found himself. It is this that should be followed. To imitate him unintelligently is a form of idolatry - but the Quran and the Prophet insist that he is a man. The following is an example of following the Prophet rather than imitating him:-

The Quran ought not to be understand superficially. Though it is true that Muslim communities have become stagnant, the idea that Islam itself is inherently static can be rejected. But the idea that the Religion can be changed by the whims of man as has happened in other religions must also be rejected. Religion comes from a higher man through Prophets. A balance is needed, and Islam is also called the Balanced Way (2:108).

It is a wholly dangerous attitude to reject some parts of the Quran based on personal opinion, prejudices and limited understanding. This makes the person himself into the criterion. Different people will pick and choose according to their different opinions and we have misguidance, conflict and sectarianism. This is exactly the position Muslims have now arrived at. Do we change the ban on adultery or usury or alcohol because it is now widely practiced or because somebody thinks it ought to be ignored? The Quran itself warns us about this tendency: -

It is true, of course, that nothing is seen as it is but has to be interpreted by man. Everyone, therefore, interprets the Quran according to their experiences, knowledge, capacities for understanding, temperaments, interests and so on. But never must these be mistaken for what the Quran actually says or what Allah knows. One qualifies one's opinion by the principle of uncertainty - "Inshallah" or "but Allah knows best". Anything else is sheer arrogance and egotism. The intelligent thing is to admit one's limitations, to be humble, and to seek a way to truth. This is also the scientific way. It is a path along which one progresses. The stages on it are not the destination. One can be cautious and experiment.

The Quran can be regarded as a book that describes general principles, each of which covers numerous particular instances. But it is only as the conditions of life change and new things, events and ways of thinking and doing arise that we can see the Quran in new ways not available in the past. This is why there must be constant study of the Quran by scholars, new interpretations and applications. Not to do so is to suppose that the Quran is dead and no longer the transforming, creative Word of Allah.

The Quran contains not only Laws, but also teaches Justice, Compassion, and Truth. It is, therefore, perfectly possible to suspend the harshness of a law by means of compassion without flouting the Quran. On the other hand it is also sometimes necessary to suspend compassion because wisdom demands it. If, for instance, there is too much compassion for the thief or adulterer then these evils may spread and create so much suffering as to negate the aims of the compassion which suspended the punishment, many times over.

In order to understand this adaptability we need to understand the Foundations of Islam.

Firstly, the Quran, being the Word of Allah, provides us with the Criteria and Constitution that defines the basic framework within which the Law is framed. The Quran is a Guidance rather than a Law. It provides mostly general principles rather than rules. Where it does provide rules these could be regarded as illustrations.

But the Quran has to be studied and understood by human beings. This requires a discipline which is itself derived from the Quran and must be properly applied. In general terms, a comprehensive educational system is required where the emphasis is on the development of human potentialities and values. It is not placed on just training or the inculcation of facts and habits of thought, motivation and action, but on the development of inner integration and unity, character, heart, feelings, values, consciousness, conscience and will (control and self-control).

Thirdly, all human beings have limitations. Therefore, many cooperative minds are better than any individual mind. Mutual, discussions, conferences, consultations and agreements are, therefore, important. This requires an appropriate organization and suitable techniques. The Debate is an inappropriate method since it requires each side to take up an entrenched position to defend their own and attack the other. Here the ego is dominant and winning, not truth, becomes much more important. Argumentation is, therefore, forbidden in Islam. Discussion with objective intentions is quite a different matter. It requires surrender both in the sense of giving up the ego and in the sense of submitting to truth.

The interpretation of the Quran will itself change according to the level of understanding of the people who study it and also according to the change in circumstances. This is because some things apply to one set of circumstances and others to another set. Some rules, instructions or features will, therefore, increase in importance while others might lapse.

The Foundations of Islam in order of importance are as follows :-

(1) Allah - He is the Creator and Lord of the Universe, and human beings are vicegerents (2:30). A Muslim by definition is one who accepts this and "surrenders to Allah". This implies also that he must develop an awareness of Allah - the Spirit within him must become active and his consciousness, conscience and will must be activated. This requires an appropriate discipline.

As Allah is the supreme authority in Islam and He is the creator of all, then the Laws, forces, processes of the Universe must also be accepted. This may be called the Principle of Objectivity and refers not only to thought, but also to motivation and action. However, Allah creates and recreates and He could produce many different kinds of Universes. He also sent many different forms of religion to mankind. Therefore, the surrender to Allah implies something more than the acceptance of any particular limited or restricted form whatever. It implies the possibility of contact with the very source of creativity because he has the spirit of Allah within him (32:9). It is this vicegerency which gives credence to all the other factors - The Quran, for instance, is a revelation to Muhammad (saw).

(2) The Quran - Other Scriptures are also recognised, but because they have been misinterpreted or even adulterated, they are judged by the Quran. It also points to nature and the Universe, and is a reminder of creation.

(3) The Sunna

The Sunna refers to the actions and sayings of the Prophets as he applied the Quran to the conditions of the times, place and people in which he found himself. Although these have changed, it is still possible to learn and obtain guidance from how such adaptation was made. This is because situations are not completely different from each other but have some features in common. They fall into classes or they may simply be different combinations of the same features.

The Prophet Muhammad (saw) also represents all Prophets since the Quran revealed through him confirms the mission of past Prophets and their Scriptures.

(4) Other Authorities: -

Thus, this third authority refers to the saints and the righteous, and can include experts of all kinds who have gained their expertise by dint of their own efforts and who have been placed by the Leaders of the community, originally the Prophet himself, in positions where they perform various functions for the community including an educational one. There ought to be a continuous chain (3:103) of authority proceeding from Allah through the Prophet to these authorities, and then to the rest of community. Here we can include Tafsir (Exegesis) - The commentaries and elucidation of the Learned (Ulema), though the application and adaptation of these for a modern age will require a living exponent.

We have to be careful, however, what we mean by Ulema. Learning implies that a person is modified by what he has learnt. It does not refer to mere factual intellectual knowledge or ability to repeat something or even only understanding, but the fact that someone's behaviour is based on it. It is this that gives a person the experiences on which deeper understand depends. Otherwise it remains abstract and remote. We are told in the Hadith that nations can be destroyed because the Learned are corrupt or ignorant. It can hardly be denied that this fate has overtaken Muslim nations. Obviously, if those considered to be superior by a community in knowledge, ability and virtue are of a low quality then the whole community must be at even lower quality. The quality of the ulema, therefore, depends on the quality of the whole community and vice versa, and both are inter-dependent with the quality of the educational, cultural and family system taken as one.

It is supposed that the term Ulema refers only to those who have religious knowledge or even only knowledge of the Quran. But there was no distinction in the past between different kinds of knowledge. Allah created everything in the Universe and all things are inter-connected and form a unity. The Quran is constantly pointing to nature both outside in the universe and within us, and also to historical events.

As Muslims are required to seek knowledge of all kinds, meditate upon it, and integrate it into their lives, then if they obey this instruction, knowledge will constantly expand. Ulema cannot then mean past ulema. It is unfortunate that Muslims have given up the responsibilities connected with their vicegerency and made sacrosanct the writings of past authorities. This is a form of idolatry for which they are punished with stagnation and loss of power. Obviously, these authorities must be people concerned with the next two factors.

(5) Aql - This refers to intelligence and its meaning should not be confined to intellect or reason. It refers to the faculties of inspiration, reason and observation.

(a) Qias - Measuring. Qias refers to the use of Analogy, i.e. comparison with certain standards, models. ideals and units. If something applies to one case then it also applies to another similar case. However, in so far as the cases are different this must also be taken into consideration.

(b) A distinction should be made between Taqleed (blind adherence) and Ittibaa (reasoned adherence) to the religious teachings, laws and practices. The only justification for the former is that a person has insufficient knowledge or ability, but he should strive to rectify this.

(c) Observation - inspection, testing, investigation, experiment, Self-observation, introspection. The Quran is constantly pointing to Nature for evidence and proof. i.e. 17:36

(d) Questioning: - Inquiring, deliberately seeking knowledge.

We can question (i) those who have knowledge (ii) nature through observation and experiment (iii) the Scriptures by study (iv) Allah through prayer.

(e) Istihsaan and Istislaah - Preferences based on judgment of what is more relevant, suitable or important and what is more conducive to the public interest, welfare and development. It includes the necessity for social responsibility. Some things are known to be generally beneficial, harmful, acceptable or unacceptable.

(6) Shurah and Ijma - Mutual consultation, conferences, consensus of opinion, agreements, assemblies. Since the vicegerency is invested in the community (Umma ), they have the right to be consulted, The Prophet himself was obliged to consult his followers in matters of policy. Consultations with all those concerned, affected or have the expertise and knowledge is necessary. Agreement has to be arrived at after exertion, meditation, investigation and study of the subject. The whole of the nation could be concerned in certain political matters, but only scientists in science, or professionals in matters relating to that profession. Or it may concern only the two or more people entering a contract. Agreement can be:- (i) in words, (ii) in action or practice and (iii) by silence.

It is necessary to remember, however, that Islam is not an economic system, nor a political one, nor a cultural or educational system in the narrow sense. It is a system for human development.

(7) It follows, therefore: -

(a) Since Allah is supreme, the community is ruled by certain values defined as the attributes of Allah. These include the following 7 - Unity, Goodness, Truth, Beauty, Justice, Compassion, and Usefulness.

(b) That the Quran provides Muslims with a guidance, a framework, a criterion and a Constitution.

(c) That the Islamic community in conjunction with the Quran should provide a comprehensive educational system - this includes a suitable family life and domestic conditions, as well as general social conditions (political, economic and cultural) - where human beings of high quality can be formed and who may be selected by the community for the Central Assembly. A person learns not only from study, but also from practice, responsibility and from teaching. There ought not to be a separation between the industrial, political, civil, cultural, educational, legal and spiritual aspects at all. The system must be such that all those at the higher level are teachers and guides for those at lower levels, and all at lower levels take those at higher level as teachers and guides. It will be an advantage for each and for the community as a whole.

----------<O>----------