Knowledge And Khilaafah

About a couple of years ago during one of my visits to Jamia Hamdard, New Delhi, I was sitting with a professor. In the meantime a group of students came to discuss the plans for offering Salaat al-Istisqaa’ (the prayers offered for seeking rainfall) as the rains were scarce at that time. Salaat al-Istisqaa’ is a religious injunction and very much desirable if the situations demand it. No arguments about it. It, however, made me think for a while as it happened in a University – a place for the adventure of ideas and where the ‘impossible’ is expected to be made possible through research and experimentation.

A University should be a place where the laws of nature are discovered and are utilized to make those things happen which the human beings need for the betterment of their situation and which could facilitate them further and further in the discharging of their responsibilities – paving the way also for more and more gratefulness to Almighty. This is in harmony with a number of verses wherein the idea of subjection has been described. One such verse is: “Do you not see that Allah has subjected to your (use) all things in the heavens and the earth, and has made His bounties flow to you in exceeding measure, (both) seen and unseen? Yet there are among men those who dispute about Allah, without knowledge and without guidance, and without a Book to enlighten them.” (Luqmaan, 31: 20)

This subjection (taskheer) is essentially just an indication of huge potentialities of the discovery and utilization of the hidden natural laws. Research and experimentation is all about it. Some of them we already discovered since the inception of the humanity and many of them have not been discovered as yet. “And you have been granted but little knowledge.” (al-Israa’, 17: 85) The subjection (taskheer), therefore, is more of a potentiality than actuality.

The man – by birth – is already the vicegerent (khaleefah) on earth. It is an essential and inseparable part of his career on earth for which no prior establishment of a khilaafah is a precondition. But his khilaafah is subject to knowledge (‘creatively reaching out to the unknown’). Human beings (each one of them) are already khaleefah on this earth within their jurisdiction and as per their capacities. There is no room for waiting to assume this assignment at a given point of time – in futurity. Because, “It is He who has made you successors (khalaa’if) on the earth and has exalted some of you over the others in degrees of rank, so that He may test you by what He has given you.” (al-An‘aam, 6: 165) Another verse reads: “Then We made you their successors in the land, so that We might observe how you would conduct yourselves.” (Yunus, 10: 14)

Those who have more control on the (re)sources of knowledge (‘knowledge is power’) and are more advanced in science and technology are already carrying out the same job of khaleefah - without knowing it and without the cognizance of the higher ideals which the Creator has ordained. This is partly the reason that the results are not that encouraging due to the absence of the ideals. This is where it becomes the responsibility of the upholders of the Faith to regain that status and this is where comes the need for a vision statement. It is not an option. It is an obligation.