The transformation of science into a part of the struggle for politics and power has been realized by the hands of second-class brilliant and incompetent intellectuals. These are the ones who penetrate the various strata of society. They play the main role in the reach of science and thought to society. The scientist and the intellectual cannot establish relations with society (except for utopian expectations), since the time devoted to scientific work does not allow it. For this reason, there is a need for tools for the sharing of knowledge and mutual communication between the intellectual and society. These are second-class intellectuals such as preachers, clergy, journalists, teachers, who are the opinion leaders of society, and of course most importantly, educational institutions organized by the bureaucracy.
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These structures are mostly parallel structures organized under the control of the central authority and their purpose is to ensure the training of individuals who are suitable for the system and management style that the state (power) wants to dominate. As a result, “civilization”, that is, the ideal utopia, is condemned to the real-political order, and even the conception of civilization becomes the main cause of quarrels and struggles. I think it would be a big mistake to expect something from the brains of societies like ours, which have not been able to digest scientific thought and have not even been able to make an epistomological discussion of the modern world and the Westernized mind, who are condemned to memorize the literature and have become dull and even disgraced as a result.
The purpose of this article is not to get into an epistomology discussion. Only the content of the topic we want to discuss necessitates such an introduction. Because, when it comes to the “theory of evolution”, as a result of the approaches of ideologies, politics and second-class intellectuals that disrupt our mental world, the theory is evaluated in the same way as irreligion; sadra has made it necessary to have a discussion of healing and a meaningful epistemology.
First of all, the theory of evolution is not a debate that began with Darwin. Evolution, that is, the transformation of living things into other species by changing over time; It is a discussion of how physical creation, the first form of metaphysical change and transformation that spiritualists describe as reincarnation, Janists as tenasüh, and the Companion-Kitab religions describe as resurrection after death. From a paradoxical point of view, although humanity accepted evolution for the hereafter (life after death), it did not want to accept evolution on Earth, the beginning of the first creation. Especially the People of the Book…
However, evolution in the Islamic geography has been discussed since the Abbasids. Theory of evolution; It should be noted that it is not a static, but a dynamic theory and has a structure that is always developing within itself. That’s what being scientific means.
The first debate was initiated by Jabir ibn Hayyan (d. 815), who is considered the pioneer of modern chemistry in Daru’l-Hikma, which was founded during the Abbasid period. Jabir states that man and other living things come into being spontaneously. He maintains that Allah created only four basic elements and that living things emanate from these four basic elements. According to Hayyan, it is possible for minerals, plants, animals and humans to be produced in the laboratory as a fabric.
Jahz (died M.869) claims that by Allah’s command, all creatures, including man, were created from a single core being. Jahz openly defended biological evolution in his Kitabu’l-Hayavan. According to him, Allah, Who initiated the creation of the universe, also formed it through evolution; and it has made species constantly evolving.
We can read the same thoughts and researches in Biruni, ibn Miskeveyh, Ibn Tufayl, Ibn Nafis, Ibn Sina, Ibn Khaldun. Of course, the Islamic scholars and intellectuals we have listed one after another have not articulated a theory of evolution in the modern sense. It is pointless to expect this anyway. Because knowledge develops over time and the sources on which it is based change. But in the end, the main idea is the same, and that is the theory of evolution.
The theory of evolution, which we have briefly exemplified to remind us that it has been discussed in the history of Islamic thought, has once again become the center of our world of thought with Darwin. And this time he came up with stronger theses. He also came to the debate with the support of a political mind, that is, Marxism. This is precisely the framework in which the theory of evolution is discussed in our country.
The fact is, however, that the theory of evolution states that the origin of living things is a single living organism; it explains that changes occur as a result of the proliferation of this organism and natural selection. This is the essence of the matter, and the theory of evolution does not enter into an ontological debate. It only tries to understand how existence began. If Muslims could call it the “theory of creation” in the modern period, we would have the opportunity to re-discuss the creation theory of ontology, especially the early science of Kalam.
In the modern era, evolution has been denied in line with the Vatican’s acceptance that “If the theory of creation collapses, Christianity will collapse.” For Jesus is the son of God, and the son of God is the argument that he cannot and should not come from the creature called “Homo erectus” (which is magazineized in us as man from the ape).
In the Islamic geography, evolution has been rendered indisputable by militaristic attacks such as “they deny Allah and deny creation” by associations and organizations to which the Vatican makes financial contributions. Of course, the formation of this reaction was influenced by the use of theory by westernist and materialist groups just to insult religion and to verify their political and ideological ideas. Despite all this, our discussion of the theory of evolution will enable modern Islamic thought to be drawn into a healthy and fruitful medium.
Reading the Theory of Evolution with Friedrich Engels
In general, in Islamic countries and, of course, in Turkey, the theory of evolution is read with the materialist approach of Friedrich Engels. Because, according to Engels, the theory of evolution is the most important scientific theory that supports Marxist-dialectical thought. (The concept of dialectics is simply the thesis that all developments in the universe are achieved through conflict.)
Marx argues that the history of humanity is a history of strife and war, and that the class war that will take place in the modern period will take place between the proletariat and the capitalist bourgeois. He says that the capitalist order must be overthrown because, according to him, societies have followed a process of development in line with economic factors. Slave society has become feudal society, feudal society has turned into capitalist society. In the end, a revolution will establish a socialist society and reach the highest level of history.
Darwin was also investigating the fact that all living things evolved as a result of the struggle for survival and became what they are today. The evolutionary struggle was a macro-level example of class struggle among people. “Darwin’s work is a great work. It forms the basis of the class struggle in history from the point of view of the natural sciences.” (Marx Engels Letters, vol. 2, p.126)
Engels defended the philosophical content of the theory of evolution as he saw it as a scientific supporter of dialectics and dealt with it with a materialist approach.
I do not want to continue the discussion of evolution at the foot of materialist thought by reminding us that neo-Nazi fascism also adopted the theory of evolution and that the theory was not only used by Marxists.
Accepting Evolution in Islamic Thought.
The most important problem of the Islamic geography is still the following; to think of every subject in terms of religious literature, such as faith and denial, is also to occupy the mind with it. However, modern science is not the result of faith, but of research, of experimentation (trial-and-error, that is, experimentation) accumulation. Evolution is not a matter to be believed. Nor is it a belief system that should be rejected. It is only the subject of a scientific debate and research. We cannot see that the debate of scholars on evolution during the Abbasid period was treated as a question of reason.
However, contrary to popular belief, evolution should be the subject of a scientific study that will make positive contributions to the change of the intellectual inadequacy faced by Islamic thought in the modern period and the idea of a second-class civilization.
