Islam's Quantum Question: Reconciling Muslim Tradition and Modern Science

by Nidhal Guessoum

In secular Europe the veracity of modern science is almost always taken for granted. Whether they think of the evolutionary proofs of Darwin or of spectacular investigation into the boundaries of physics conducted by CERN's Large Hadron Collider, most people assume that scientific enquiry goes to the heart of fundamental truths about the universe. Yet elsewhere, science is under siege. In the USA, Christian fundamentalists contest whether evolution should be taught in schools at all. And in Muslim countries like Tunisia, Egypt, Pakistan and Malaysia, a mere 15 per cent of those recently surveyed believed Darwin's theory to be 'true' or 'probably true'. This thoughtful and passionately argued book contends absolutely to the not only that evolutionary theory does not contradict core Muslim beliefs, but that many scholars, from Islam's golden age to the present, adopted a worldview that accepted evolution as a given. Guessoum suggests that the Islamic world, just like the Christian, needs to take scientific questions - 'quantum questions' - with the utmost seriousness if it is to recover its true heritage and integrity.
In its application of a specifically Muslim perspective to important topics like cosmology, divine action and evolution, the book makes a vital contribution to debate in the disputed field of 'science and religion'.

Genres: Islam, Science, Religion, Philosophy, Nonfiction, History, Theology

432 pages, Paperback

First published January 15, 2009

About the author

Algerian astrophysicist, Professor of Physics and Astronomy at the American University of Sharjah, UAE.
MSc and PhD from the University of California at San Diego; spent two years at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and many visits at research centers in Europe and the USA; has published many technical research papers and lectured internationally (at Cambridge, Oxford, Cornell, Wisconsin, etc.).
In addition to his academic work, he writes about issues related to science, education, the Arab world, and Islam.
He is a regular columnist for Gulf News (UAE) and has made notable contributions to Nature Middle East and other publications.
He has also appeared many times on international media outlets, including Al-Jazeera, BBC, NPR, France 2, Le Monde, and others.
With a number of books, articles, lectures, and videos on the subject, he has become a prime scholar on Islam and Science.

Reviews

[Siddiq Husainy · Rating 5 out of 5]

[Islam's Quantum Question]
[Nidhal Guessoum]

I should admit, this is my first real heavy book dealing with science at the core of it. What I mean is that, this book discusses science from the basic principles, philosophy, metaphysical base, methodologies and history of science although some may find it a bit too superficial.

Anyhow, this is not a typical book that will just lay down amazing scientific facts that will blow you away.

No. This is a book that forces you to re-think your stand on a few ideas and stand on a few topics.
Honestly, at times I'm pretty lost while reading this as some of the things cannot be perceived by my intellect yet. but I hope with time, some of it will make sense.

One of the most important aspects that Muslims need to know is regarding the school of thoughts in the "Islamic Science". I'll list a few mentioned in this book. I would defer from expanding with my own words regarding each school's thought for I doubt I managed to comprehend the subtlety of each school of thought.

1. Nasr's school (perennial philosophy and science).
For those who are familiar with Prof. Osman Bakar(I wrote a review of his book once, under the title Science and Tawhid) would probably know that he is highly influenced(or should I say a disciple) by this school.

2. Ismail Al-faruqi and the islamization of knowledge.
The death of Ismail Al-Faruqi and his wife, as well as their son and the tragedic injuries to their daughter was a tragic one. However, his thoughts and contribution in trying to formulate a concept of Islamization of knowledge is still alive till today, though one would think how it would expand if he is still alive. Syed Naquib al-Attas is also a prominent scholar that falls in this school of thought.

3.Ziauddin Sardar and the Ijmali school.
I would say Sardar is one of the staunchest critics of modern science. However, his critics are sometimes too exaggerated.

4. Abdus Salam and Hoodbhoy: ' science is objective and universal'.

5. Theistic science as proposed by Mehdi Golshani. The fifth one is not really a school of thought, but worth noting here due to the idea.

As I mentioned above, the main problem that Muslim scientist/thinkers have with modern science is not regarding the facts, but the issue with methodology and philosophy of modern science. Hence, each of these school proposes a different program/viewpoint/philosophy as the alternative.

--
Other important topics discussed in this book include regarding Islam and design, and the theory of evolution.

The author is a stalwart critic of the Intellectual Design movement/ creationist movement. Harun Yahya is probably the most prominent figure in this category. He argued that one must differentiate between the concept of:-

1. Argument from design
2. Fine-tuning
3. Anthropic principle
4. Intelligent design.

Although at first glance, there are a few similarities, the concept is actually different.
As for theory of evolution, well, it's certainly a controversial aspect and one that I would do more readings before publicly discuss about it, However, safe to say my stand on theory of evolution is not an absolutist one. With that I mean, I could change my views based on the arguments and explanation that I find most compelling.

[Subhani A. Hussein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Guessoum has an amazing understanding. I wanted to write a book on these topics I found necessary, but no need, he has done it well.
To state that evolution doesn't contradict Islam, you need a very bold and brave audacity. Luckily, he goes further by saying it is rather parallel than contradictory. He is well aware of the state of science in muslim countries, his book is worth reading.

[Ahmad Abdul Rahim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buku ini merupakan tinjauan penulis, Dr Nidhal Guessoum, seorang Professor Fizik dan Astronomi di American University of Sharjah UAE terhadap beberapa percubaan tokoh-tokoh pemikir Muslim kontemporari di dalam melestarikan sains moden menurut kerangka Islam.

Pengalaman pembacaan buku ini sebenarnya adalah lebih mirip kepada suatu kertas kerja yang panjang dan berjela; banyak petikan kata-kata oleh pemikir/saintis yang berkaitan, pemikiran-pemikiran utama satu-satu tokoh disimpulkan kepada 'bullet points'. Pun begitu, subjek yang disentuh penulis adalah sesuatu yang sangat dekat dengan hati aku dan -tidak keterlaluan untuk aku andaikan- umat muslim kontemporari yang ingin mendamaikan ketegangan antara sains moden dengan tradisi agama yang diimani mereka.

I'jaz Ilmiy, suatu usaha untuk menayangkan semula dapatan-dapatan tentang alam yang dicapai oleh sains moden lewat teks-teks suci Islam, tentunya adalah salah satu wacana yang paling popular dalam ranah tersebut. Projek ini paling popular dijalankan oleh Dr Zaghlul Najjar dan Harun Yahya, walaupun kajian oleh Maurice Buccaille untuk topik yang sama mungkin boleh dikatakan sebagai pelopor kepada pendekatan ini. Falasi di sebalik projek mereka adalah terlalu jelas untuk diperjelaskan di sini. Pada masa yang sama, kita jangan lupa bahawa bangkangan yang ditimbulkan terhadap gagasan I'jaz Ilmiy -bahawa ia cuba menyuaikan makna-makna teks suci yang absolut dengan data-data alamsemulajadi yang bersifat relatif- membawa implikasi yang tidak kurang menggerunkan: adakah tugas sains dan agama selamanya harus bercerai? Bukankah kedua-keduanya bertujuan mencari Kebenaran? Kita boleh katakan bahawa tugas sains adalah bertanyakan soalan 'Bagaimana' manakala tugas agama adalah untuk soalan 'Kenapa' - tetapi seseorang harus membutakan kedua belah matanya terhadap perkembangan sains moden (kosmologi moden; antropologi) untuk mereka mengutarakan jawapan tersebut.

Di sinilah datangnya Projek Islamisasi Sains - suatu projek yang mula dibangunkan secara aktif pasca perlangsungan Konferens Pendidikan Islam di Jeddah pada 1977 dan diusahakan secara berasingan oleh (sekurang-kurangnya) tiga tokoh pemikir Seyyed Hossein Nasr, Ismail Faruqi dan Syed Muhammad Naguib al Attas.

Seyyed Hossein Nasr, pengasas Sekolah Tradisionalis-Perennialis itu memperoleh muka surat yang agak banyak di dalam buku ini. Tetapi jumlah helaian yang lebih banyak adalah dirizabkan untuk Ismail Faruqi yang mana pemikiran beliau telah dijadikan batu asas kepada penubuhan Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT). Antara sebabnya mungkin kerana projek milik Faruqi mempunyai 'blue-print' yang lebih konkrit berbanding pemikir-pemikir yang lain, jadi pendekatan analisis ber-kuantitatif yang diambil oleh penulis adalah lebih terpakai. Satu lagi peneraju Islamisasi Sains (yang mana keberadannya di dalam analisis penulis sedikit mengejutkan aku) adalah Ziauddin Sardar dengan sekolah Ijmali-nya.

P/s: Nama Al-Attas hampir tidak disebut oleh penulis melainkan di dalam satu atau dua ayat dan pemikiran beliau juga tidak diberikan sebarang bentuk pengenalan. Walaupun begitu beberapa kertas kerja oleh anak muridnya seperti Adi Setia, diakui, telah dimanfaatkan oleh penulis.

Di mata penulis, semua aliran Projek Islamisasi Sains ini adalah dari satu segi tersasar: Perennialis terlalu bernuansakan 'mysticism' sehingga menyebabkan ia tiada punya nilai praktikal yang jelas; aliran Faruqi pula gagal menanggap sains dengan benar sehingga menyebabkan mereka berandaian bahawa usaha pengIslaman sains adalah semudah mengepilkan adjektif 'Islam' pada subjek-subjek sains moden (selalunya sains sosial); manakala sekolah Ijmali, walaupun mempunyai wawasan yang betul, ia tidak mampu mengejar rentak kemajuan rancak sains moden serta dalam masa yang sama terperangkap pula dengan wacana pasca-kolonialisme.

Namun penulis nampaknya tidak menolak premis atau raison d'être di sebalik gerakan Islamisasi Sains ini apabila beliau mencadangkan bahawa suatu projek Sains Ketuhanan (Theistic Science) perlu diusahakan sebagai ganti. Pemikir dan saintis Muslim perlu turut berwacana bersama rakan setugas mereka di Barat yang berkongsi aspirasi yang serupa. Intelligent Design (ID) adalah yang paling popular setakat ini walaupun malangnya wacana tersebut sudah dirampas golongan 'Creationist'. Namun terdapat beberapa gerakan-gerakan lain yang lebih setia terhadap prinsip-prinsip utama sains dan pada masa yang sama tidak pula lupa untuk memanfaatkan daya penjelasan (explanatory power) sains di dalam menghuraikan fenomena-fenomena alam. Fine-Tuning Universe (Ke-tersesuaian Alam Terhadap Kewujudan Manusia) dan Anthropic Principle adalah contoh terbaik.

Ini kerana penulis berpendapat bahawa di dalam merangka suatu model Sains Ke-Tuhanan, aspek metafizikal dan metodologikal di dalam sains moden perlu dikenalpasti terlebih dahulu agar penafian terhadap dakwaan-dakwaan sains moden yang terbit daripada andaian metafizik tidaklah menjejaskan sandaran-sandaran faktanya yang -barang diingat- adalah diperolehi melalui metodologi yang diiktiraf sendiri oleh Islam. Lebih kritikal daripada itu justeru adalah, model atau kosmologi baru itu perlulah berupaya merangkumkan semua fakta-fakta tentang alam semulajadi yang telah thabit (penulis nampaknya memaksudkan di sini teori evolusi, Ledakan Agung, hukum-hukum fizik dll) supaya wacana yang lahir susulan daripadanya adalah relevan dari segi saintifik dan juga teologikal.

Lantas di sinilah timbul beberapa sudut problematik buku ini.

Dr Nidhal cukup arif akan peranan Al-Quran terhadap caratahu Muslim dan bangkangan-bangkangan yang mungkin ditimbulkan lewat pembacaan kepada dalil naqli. Untuk meleraikan kemelut antara dua epistemologi ini (yang satu berdasarkan pemerhatian dan penaakulan akal; yang lagi satu adalah bacaan dan tafsiran terhadap ayat suci), Dr Nidhal mengusulkan penghayatan semula falsafah 'Kebenaran Berkembar' Ibn Rushd. Pembaca tentunya berharap bahawa penulis menghuraikan dengan lebih lanjut tentang aspek pemikiran Ibn Rushd yang beliau ingin perpanjangkan itu.

Tetapi sebaliknya penulis cuma menegaskan bahawa ia adalah usaha pentaawilan semula ayat-ayat Quran yang di'lihat' bertentangan dengan dapatan ilmu pengetahuan semasa. Hal ini boleh dicapai sekiranya -menurut penulis- kita membuka mata kita kepada pembacaan yang lebih berlapis (multi-level) dan bernuansa serta bukan literalis terhadap teks-teks suci Islam. Penulis mencadangkan kaedah hermeneutik jurutera-cum-pemikir Syria, Muhammad Shahrour dan faylasuf Mesir Hassan Hanafy antara yang lain untuk tujuan tersebut. Aku sempat membelek beberapa buku Mohamed Shahrour di kedai buku sekitar Kaherah tempohari di samping menonton petikan-petikan video beliau dan perkataan pertama yang terlintas dalam benak aku adalah "gila".

Tidak kurang problematik adalah penulis cuba untuk memberikan penjelasan-penjelasan rasional kepada kisah mukjizat Nabi seperti kisah Laut Merah yang terpisah sewaktu Nabi Musa menyelamatkan Bani Israil, dan kisah Nabi Isa yang meyembuhkan orang buta. Dalam pada itu beliau bisu untuk memberikan penjelasan yang sama terhadap peristiwa pembelahan bulan oleh Nabi walaupun beliau kerap menyebut tentang-nya di bahagian awal buku ini!

Dan ini menyebabkan aku tertanya: apakah kepercayaan kepada hukum alam semulajadi tidak mampu bersekedudukan dengan kepercayaan kepada mukjizat-mukjizat Nabi? Sepanjang 363 mukasurat, penulis tidak cuba untuk melayan kemungkinan tersebut: dan itu, bagi aku, lebih serius daripada hermenutik longar Shahrour yang dicadangkan atau huraian falsafah Ibn Rushd yang terlalu singkat, adalah kecacatan terbesar buku ini.

[Rahell Omer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an insightful book. Covers so many topics and indeed thought-provoking for the Muslim youth, ones interested in (modern) science particularly.

[Nuruddin Azri · Rating 4 out of 5]

I decided to finish up my reading on Islam’s Quantum Question by Nidhal Guessoum after reading Popper’s All Life is Problem Solving and Muzaffar Iqbal’s The Making of Islamic Science. Frankly speaking, I almost surrender reading this book after reaching half of it because the style of editing is a little bit messy (all titles for each chapters and subchapters are written in small letters!).

The hardcopy of this book is actually quite hard to obtain. I bought this pricey book in 2017 from Academic Bookshop which is located in Dokki, Cairo. I used to read articles and listen to a few Arabic lectures delivered by the author later on as the topics that he tackles are mostly intriguing and he spoke fluently in Arabic fushā. One can simultaneously learn Arabic language in addition to science.

In this book, the author divides it into two big portions. The first portion is about the fundamentals (God, Quran, science, Islamic science and I’jāz) while the second portion dissects on the contemporary issues like cosmology, design, anthropic principle and evolutional theory. Here, he discusses about a broad scope of scholars like Nasr, al-Faruqi, Sardar, Golshani, Muzaffar Iqbal until Bucaille, Zagloul Naggar, Harun Yahya and Darwin. He proposes his criticism for each of them in the end of the book.

The book started with a good introduction, but while reaching in the middle, one would find that it is not really enganging as the solution appears vague. The author outline his solutions in the last chapter but unfortunately, the solutions that the author offered despite pivotal, it is still inadequate.

If Muzaffar Iqbal believes that in order to root the modern science, we need to root its ethical, epistemological and ontological point of view, on the contrary, Guessoum believes that in order to reconcile Islam and modern science, we need to seriously introduce history and philosophy of science to the society. He also proposed that Muslim scholars need to understand and engage with the discourse of modern science rigorously.

The author pointed out that one of the greatest dilemma facing by the current Muslim world is that science stream students find that Islamic science is weird to them while the religious preachers finds a difficulty to comprehend the intricacies of modern science (this is how “secularisation become a philosophical program” as coined by Prof. al-Attas).

By reaching the end of this book, one would find that the author’s thesis and stance in this book is a little bit peculiar and oxymoron especially about the evolutional theory, the author’s “loose” classification of scholars (without delineating the tiny line of difference between them) and some strange quotations from Muhammad Shahrour.

To get a good framework about philosophy of science, I would recommend Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, Popper’s works and A. F. Chalmer’s What is This Thing Called Science?, al-Attas’ Islam and the Philosophy of Science (in Prolegomena) and its commentary by Dr. Adi Setia.

To get a good framework about history of science, I would suggest Nasr’s Science and Civilization in Islam, Jim al-Khalili’s The Pathfinders, George Saliba’s Rethinking the Roots of Modern Science, Ehsan Masood’s Science and Islam, Howard Turner’s Science in Medieval Islam and Muzaffar Iqbal’s The Making of Islamic Science.

Then, one can delve into the heated discourse revolving the topic like works by Stephen Hawking, John C. Lennox’s God and Stephen Hawking, Russell’s The Impact of Science on Society, Feynman’s Six Easy Pieces and Martin Rees’ From Here to Infinity.

Works by Peter Medawar and Max Planck are classic and significant but one would find it a little bit tedious and dry to start on.

[Khairul Hezry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I confess that I cannot give a proper review of this book as it revolves around a subject (scientific theories) that I have no knowledge of other than a few bits of facts here and there.

It is perhaps my lack of scientific knowledge that I found this book just a bit on the side of 'heavy reading' even though Nidhal Guessoum writes in a clear and detailed manner that even a science dunce like me can understand.

He argues that Muslims today have regressed when confronted with science, preferring instead to interpret the Quran almost literally, something that was not practised by Muslim scholars during Islam's Golden Age. He argues that Muslim scholars in the past had no problems accepting evolutionary theory as long as it did not contradict God. For example, our wisdom tooth, the appendix and a tail bone at the of our spines are all useless parts of our bodies and yet there they are. If Man was created as is, why are there then these appendages that do nothing and go nowhere? Did God create an imperfect species on purpose? Or did ancient man have a need for these now useless organs? If so, doesn't that support an evolutionary argument (not necessarily a Darwinian one since that would reject the existence of an Intelligent Designer).

Islam and evolution isn't the only topic argued in this book (he presents Islam's argument for a God, the cosmos and the universe) but the chapter on evolution is the most controversial. Conservatives would probably brand him a heretic which proves one of his point in the book: that Muslims today ignore science at their peril. We should emulate scholars like Ibn Khaldun, Ibn Miskawayh, al-Farabi and Ikhwan as-Safa who not only did not reject totally the theory of evolution but in fact accepted it as a given.

He also confirms something that I myself have suspected all along and that is Harun Yahya is a hack who writes about subjects he knows nothing about. That itself is already worth 3 star ratings.

[Ahsen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought-provoking literature review on many topics of personal interest such as evolution and quantum physics. The introduction chapters on the compatibility of modern science with Islam are strong, but I felt that the book lost its focus as Guessoum delved into more specific theories.

[Farouk Abu Alhana · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book lacks focus. Guessoum attempts to cover topics such as the metaphysics of science, "Islamic science," the science-in-the-Qur'an trend, cosmology, design, the anthropic principle, and biological evolution in less than 400 pages. It is clear that he is well-read, but the entire book reads like an extended literature review article and suffers as a result. His thesis, that Muslims should adopt Ibn Rushd's (Averroes') double-principle that 1) no conflict can exist between revealed truth and science (in Averroes' case, philosophy) and 2) - in the presence of apparent contradiction - to engage in ta'wil (figurative, "multi-layered" interpretation), is hardly expounded throughout.

Despite the subtitle, Guessoum is quite dismissive of or, at the very least indifferent to, tradition (a term he never defines). The bulk of tradition is jettisoned and pitted squarely against the few good philosophers Guessoum identifies as the stalwarts of reason and rationality (Averroes, Avicenna, al-Farabi). In the course of adumbrating positions, for example, ideas are summarily approved ("I completely agree...") or disapproved ("This line of attack is completely mistaken..."), without further elaboration. It would have been more fruitful to have properly engaged classical sources than deny them any role in current discussions on science and Islam. As a case in point, at one point Guessoum mentions in passing that exegetes debated the order of creation. It would have been helpful to readers if he had noted that Qatadah, with whom al-Tabari agrees, held the Heavens' creation to have preceded that of the Earth.

There are also some errors (al-Ghazali inventing Ash'arite occasionalism, humans having evolved from *apes* are a couple that immediately come to mind) and lack of nuance in terminology ("conservative," "traditional" [cosmology, stance on creation, etc.], "literal[ism]", etc.] that detract from the book as a whole.

Despite the criticism, Guessoum should be applauded and acknowledged for contributing to the discussion on Islam and science, an area that is desperately in need of attention.

[Ali · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is a strange story , five hundred years ago, in the dark corner of the earth , in dark ages, there was all kinds of ignorance, stupidity,barbarism,and extreme religious fundamentalism. But some how for countless reasons, the inhabitants of this region transform their societies, develop science& technology and dominate the world . This dominating process brought riches and effluence to them but wreck havoc on the environment and other societies special Muslim Societies.This defeat in so obvious and humiliating on all levels that it can't be accepted by Muslims. How can this happen when divine guidance and support is with us. So there must be something fundamentally wrong with this scenario. We were superior ( Still are theoretically) Our knowledge is superior to this corrupt science. The science &technology which help dominating the west have sinister basis. In order to safe the world science should be Islamize. Only the purified science would be the source of rise of Muslim societies and would create a better future for this planet and its inhabitants .

This book is the reviews of all these desperate efforts of Some Muslim scholars (Enjoying all the knowledge,freedom and benefits of western societies) to reconcile Islam with science. There modern education and knowledge have provided then tools to criticize science from various angles. They are also harsh critic of each other. Some are mixing mysticism with science, some finding hidden scientific meaning in scriptures, and some adding postmodern philosophy with religion for the cure of science . All of their efforts have add nothing significant to promote knowledge in Muslim societies. One thing they have done is to help promote the pseudo superiority complex and cultural narcissism in Muslim societies.

Anyhow this is an interesting book, should be read by all.

[Khalid Alnaqbi · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author put a lot of effort into writing this book. It is well-organized. It is highly recommended for those who are interested in knowing the relationship between Islam and science. This book will reform and renew a lot of the ideas that you may embrace. For a typical Sheikh, this book will be really mind-blowing.

I tried to focus on the main ideas and I skimmed frequently.

If you are willing to read this book, I recommend you to listen to this lecture as an introduction:
http://podcasts.ox.ac.uk/reconciling-...

[Khalid Alqassimi · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brief introduction to the history and philosophy of science as it relates to Islam.

Professor Guessoum takes us through a 350 page crash course of Islamic philosophy of science, Islamic philosophers and their contribution, and the different schools of thought in Islam with relation to science.
I would say this book attempts to educate the reader about modern and contemporary issues that arise when considering Islam and science, such as I'jaz theory, the whole topic of design in the universe, and the introduction of purpose to science; leading to the importance of teaching Philosophy of Science to students.

The book successfully does what it sets out to do, and for that I highly recommend it to all who wish to learn more about the Islamic world's contribution to the philosophy of science.

[Fatima Sarder · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a must read for every Muslim who thinks about the ever-widening rift between Islam and modern science. It addresses the following:

1. Why religious teachings do not have to be antagonistic towards modern findings.

2. Classical Islamic scholars quoted the Qur'an for inspiration when they delved in scientific studies.

3. The Qur'an is a book of general guidance and should not be used as scientific literature as the holy text is universal and must appeal to all populations.

4. It advocates theistic sciences and calls into question how the purely materialistic outlook of modern science cannot fully explain everything.

5. Education in Islamic countries need to e over-hauled. Science and Islamic tenets must be taught together so individuals than think critically and draw informed conclusions.

6. Darwin's theory of evolution is explained and discussed along with other evolutionary theories. It is also pointed how some classical scholars believed in Darwinian style evolution.

7. Highlights several Islamic scientists; their movements and values regarding modern science.

The scope of this work is vast and due to the wide variety of topics discussed, the author could not go in-depth.

I should also note that the author believes in Darwinian evolution and presents arguments on how the Qur'an accepts such a model. I do not know what to think about that.

[Suprihariadi · Rating 4 out of 5]

tadinya saya kira buku ini tentang pseudosains yang di bumbui dalil-dalil agama, ternyaa ilmiah beneran, gak sampe otak saya.hehehe..

[Ziyad Hasanin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't really know where to start, this book truly captivated my mind for a whole week, whereas I initially planned 3-4 weeks to "study" it.

The depth and span of research done into the book is impressive, and, given its written in 2009 -way before the Arab spring and the following intellectual upheaval, is actually interesting as it sheds lights on the recent history of the scientific arguments that are currently held in the arab world (regarding evolution mainly). I shall state, however, that I do believe that the current predilection in the arab world -at least in the elitist form- is different from the case 10 years ago, and there are actually lots of new voices that came up discussing such topics in a new manner.

My main issues with the book, despite the fact that I genuinely loved it, were:
1) the lack of sufficient Islamic scholarly support (or research thereof), such as Professor Nidhal's open acceptance of Muhammad Shahrour's theories which I've seen severe criticism to of being un-methodological and "apologetic" in a sense. However Sharour's views aren't central in the author's thesis. Surprisingly, although understandably, the author didn't attempt any "exegetic" theories or hermeneutic reading of scientific theories to comply them with the Islamic texts. I shall refer back to this point late on.

2) Sometimes the explanations and descriptiveness were boring, but as it seems Prof. Nidhal was more concerned showing that a reconciliation between Islam and science is possible rather than presenting his own theories and conjectures. He usually pointed out his own principles and beliefs at the end of the conclusion of each chapter, which thankfully made it easier to recap all the information and views mentioned. Needless to say in general I did love the thoroughness of the research done.

The main argument of Prof. Nidhal is similar to my own current conviction, that the (miraculous) nature of the Quran linguistically, rhetorically, and figuratively allow it to have several layers of reading that make it possible for everyone to read it and understand it in light of his own view of the universe (the 7th century bedouin, the contemporary laymen muslim, and the modern-day scientist) as well as have a spiritual meaning -not necessarily literally and naturalistically true-. He thus from the very beginning adopt Ibn Rushd's stance on the relation between Sharia/Scripture and Wisdom/Science.
His views on science are rather profound, and does point out to the devastating state of the Arab world's scientific culture. (TBH sometimes I stopped reading to contemplate our damned current state). I can say that I am whole-heartedly supportive of his stances. Moreover I am actually in total support of the rejection of setting the Quranic texts as a basis for (natural) scientific research needless to say to make the text (or rather, the interpretation of the text?) rule over science.

Really profound book despite my minor disagreements with some topics, and a good start for people concerned with the topic of science and religion.

[Sana Khan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this book made me aware of many muslim thinkers/philosophers which I hadn't heard of. It just goes to show how lacking we are in theology and philosophy and other matters which can be "controversial" to religion. I appreciate the immense herculean amount of effort taken to dig up and compile relevant information from thinkers and scientists from all over the world. The author covered both point of views in each relevant argument, be it of intelligence design or evolution. I learned a lot about pertaining to evolutionary and cosmic aspects, along with the various point of views of prominent thinkers. After reading this book, I wish I had a deeper knowledge of the history of science, philosophy, theology and science itself. I completely agree with the author that such subjects should be taught at school level so students can have intellectual discourse and open their minds to other ideas, in turn creating new ones. I was especially drawn to the chapters which discussed evolution and took in various view points (along with relevant Quranic interpretations) from western and muslim thinkers/scientists. Exposing the public and especially students to these ideas would shed more light and help clarify a whole lot of misunderstandings which have lead to the downfall of questioning, productive discourse and deeper investigation in the Islamic world.

[Sadeem Sajid · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have confused thoughts about this book.

One one end, it's incredibly thorough in handling different ideas prevalent in the scientific community and in introducing scientific discussions to the reader. I particularly love how it's laid out in a discussion style rather than a "here's the correct view" style, which exposes the reader to good dialogue but left to form his own informed opinion.

On the other hand, it's particularly weak in its treatment of Islam and its discussions. The author, like many others, focuses on what normal Muslims think rather than what the well established methodologies of the tradition conclude. He completely leaves many of these schools out of the discussion. Secondly, there is a weakness in the author's refutation of traditional ideas. He does not allude to the primary concern of a young Muslim's mind: "This interpretation contradicts that of well-established rules of Tafsir and the statements of the Sahaba, so won't this make me introduce deviance into the religion?" Appropriately, no one wants to subscribe to dangerous deviations that put their afterlife at risk.

Other than that, I do say that this is an essential read that opens up your mind to amazing ideas. Very well done.

[Hamdanil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Finally, a book about Islam and science from someone who understand both. The author is an Algerian Physics and Astronomy professor, who's familiar with both the Islamic tradition and the history and philosophy of science. The writing shows incredible knowledge, honesty and integrity on his part. He tries to clarify contemporary issues on the topic (e.g. evolution, fine-tuning of the universe). He also critique certain common practices in the Islamic world, such as trying to match modern scientific theories with certain Quranic verses, but the authors often don't really understand the theories they are talking about. The author draws from his own knowledge as well as cites various authorities on the topic. Doesn't answer all questions, but IMO it's the right direction for this important discussion.

[Waseem Naser · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book is definitely an update on the discourse between Islam and modern science that somehow got frozen in the 80's with people like Nasr, Sardar and Faruqi. But the book badly needs editing and re-structuring. The experience was more like going through his lecture notes and one has to wait till the final chapter for an elaboration of his views which were just mentioned in passing when discussing them in the previous chapters. His decision to begin with Ibn Rushd's views probably made me raise my expectations but sadly by the end there was hardly any mention of him again.
What the book does do is analyse the views of contemporary Muslims towards modern science- specifically Nasr, Sardar, Faruqi and I'jazis and provide a good critique of them. Prof Nidhal should either tone down the ambitious title and make it a review of existing views of Muslims or re-structure the contents and make his views the focal point.
That said, this book is the best out there on Islam's response to scientific theories of today. Prof Nidhal is an established scientist and is well versed in the historical and philosophical aspects of natural science, although they are not dealt with in the book.

[Johnny B. Rempit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truthfully, I am at a loss as to how to write a review of this book. It is a brilliant work. Let me just copy a paragraph from the introduction itself and hopefully, your interest will be piqued.

"This book aims at presenting perhaps not only a brilliantly novel philosophy of Islam and science but also a coherent, viable and very modern synthesis of the main and valid principles of science with the core principles of Islam, through a reasonable (not overly liberal) reading. I will show that all we need to construct is an evenhanded 'quantum' (dual) model of harmony with full knowledge of science and its philosophy and methods - not to succumb to its positivistic and materialistic doctrines - and a middle ground approach to Islam, staying away from the traditionalist approach and resisiting the ultra-liberal siren calls. A careful reconstruction will thus be needed."

An essential read.

[Vika Gardner · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book constructs the author's understanding of what Muslims do think about Islam and science, and then at the end of each chapter, what they *should* think. I would have liked not to have the lecture at the end of each chapter, but much of the other work is very interesting, and I wish more people would read it.

Includes long and useful discussions of ijaz/miracles in the Qur'an, of which the author is not a fan. He has a useful discussion differentiating the usual ijaz from using science in an exegetical mode.

Includes a discussion of evolution and whether or not human evolution conflicts with Islam [or here, more properly the Qur'an]. Read it, and then go watch a Fatimah Jackson video for contrast.

Includes a discussion of physical cosmology that touched on dark matter that left me so curious I made my local astronomer give me more details.

Totally needed a bibliography.

[Romadhani · Rating 4 out of 5]

An exceptional book with extensive literature reviews about the (perceived) conflict between science and religious traditions, particularly Islam, in the classic and modern era. It also explains in detail the poor state of the scientific works in the modern Muslim world.

Unfortunately, the proposal to reconcile the conflict is rather limited and incomprehensive. The book also somehow gives less appreciation to religious scholars, while praising a lot to the Muslim philosophers and thinkers; something that I find imbalance. Prof. Guessoum might have a broader perspective with the sign of loyalty to the Islamic basic sources if he had considered using the work of previous Ulama, e.g. Syaikhul Islam Ibn Taimiyyah.

[Haz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Religion v/s science..`Authur doesnt goes much deep to the basic aspects of the conflict/differences,which is what i was eagerly looking.Rather he ventures on to a survey to the various and diverse streams of attempts going with in the muslim world.He definetly take sides and explains his view points very well,But there is very little orginal as a contribution..Being a scientist himself,having blind faith with rationalism and modern science(as he rightly asks,what could be the more viable alternative?),I will say his voice deserves to be heard..

[Waqas Mhd · Rating 4 out of 5]

great book. actually not what i had expected but nonetheless its not bad at all.

[Noha · Rating 1 out of 5]

Too much effort for nothing

[Mohamed Hasn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great effort put in one great book.