How Can You Compare the Qur’an and Modern Civilization with Respect to Bringing Happiness to People?

 

Together with severely prohibiting idol-worship, the Qur’an also condemns the ‘worship’ of images, which can be a sort of imitation of idol-worship. In an attempt to contest with the Qur’an, modern civilization, by contrast, regards sculpture and making pictures of living beings, which the Qur’an condemns, as one of its virtues. Whereas, forms with or without shadows (sculptures and pictures of living beings) are each either a petrified tyranny (tyranny represented in stone) or embodied ostentation or embodied caprice, which urge people to tyranny, ostentation and capriciousness.

Also, out of compassion, the Qur’an orders women to wear the veil of modesty in order to maintain respect for them, and so that they who are mines of compassion will not be abased under the foot of low desires, nor become the worthless means of exciting lusts. However, modern civilization has drawn women out of their homes, torn aside their veils and led mankind astray into corruption. Whereas, family life is based on mutual love and respect between man and woman, both modestly dressed; modern civilization has destroyed sincere love and respect, and poisoned the family life. Sculptures and pictures, especially obscene ones, have a great share in this moral corruption and spiritual degeneration. Just as to look at the corpse of a beautiful woman deserving of compassion with lust and desire destroys morality, so too looking lustfully at pictures of living women, which are like little corpses, troubles and diverts elevated human feelings, shaking and destroying them.

Thus, besides serving to secure the happiness of mankind in this world, the Qur’anic commandments also serve their eternal happiness. You can compare other subjects with those mentioned.

As modern civilization stands defeated before the Qur’an’s rules and principles concerning social life and mankind, and is bankrupt before the Qur’an’s miraculous content, the European philosophy and scientism, which is the spirit of that civilization, is helpless in the face of the miraculousness of the Qur’an’s wisdom.

 

This article has been adapted from Risale- i Nur Collection.