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The above-mentioned two approaches to the
evolutionary movement of history have resulted from two concepts about man, his
real identity and his hidden capacities. According to the first concept man is
a prisoner of his material interests, all his actions being invariably
determined by the compulsion of the means of production and economic
conditions. His conscience, his temperament, his judgement, his ideas and his
selections are all but a reflection of his natural and social environment
against the dictates of which he cannot make the slightest move. According to the second concept man is free
from compulsion of nature, environment and temperament. He is the master of his
destiny and righteousness. Human values are inborn in him. He can use his
reasoning power and can implement his ideas. He need not be dictated to by his
environmental conditions. No doubt, man is influenced by his environment but
this is not a unilateral process. Environment, too, is affected by man. Being
free and a master of his environment, man's conduct and his reactions to
environmental conditions are often different from that of an animal. Man's
basic characteristic which, in fact, is the criterion of his humanity is his ability
to control his passions and base desires. This ability which is a very bright
aspect of the human life has been totally ignored by the materialists. No doubt the holy Qur'an interprets history on
the basis of the second view. From the Qur'anic point of view there has been an
eternal conflict between a group of righteous people like Abraham, Moses, Jesus
and Muhammad and their faithful followers on the one hand and the other group
of evil-doers like Nimrud, the Pharaoh, the Jewish tyrants, Abu Sufyan etc. on
the other. Against every Pharaoh there is a Moses, says an
Arabic proverb. In the words of the Persian poet, Mawlawi, two banners have
always been afloat, one white and the other black. In the fight between the
forces of right and the forces of wrong sometimes the former has been
victorious and sometimes the latter. Anyhow, all victories and defeats have
been the outcome of a set of social, economic and moral factors. The holy
Qur'an emphasizes the effect of moral factors and thus turns history into a
source of instruction. If history is considered to be merely a string
of accidental happenings, having no definite cause behind them, it will not be
in any way different from fiction which may provide an entertainment and serve
as a pastime, but it can have no instructional value. In case we admit that history has definite
rules by which it is governed, but think that human will has no part to play in
determining its course, then history may be regarded as instructive from a
theoretical point of view, but can have no practical value. In this case it
will only be as instructive as the farthest galaxy about which we may know
quite a lot, but can do nothing to determine or change its course. In case we concede that history is governed by
definite rules and man also plays an effective role therein, but think that,
despite all that, the determining factor is money or force, then history will
no doubt be instructive, but only as an evil. The same will be the result, if
knowledge is looked upon, not as a determining factor, but as an instrument for
acquiring power or force. However, if we consider history to be subject
to definite rules and at the same time admit that human will plays an effective
and final role in determining its course for the benefit of the society, then
and only then is history both instructive and useful and its study is educative
and rewarding. The holy Qur'an looks upon history from this very angle. The holy Qur'an has described those who are
termed reactionaries as the rabble, pleasure-seekers and egoists and those who
fight for the right cause as the oppressed and the persecuted. From the
Qur'anic point of view the nature of the eternal struggle, which has continued
from the dawn of history and which has helped the advancement of the society,
is moral and human, not material, nor is it a class war. |
