while conceding the existence of God, have rejected the view that
certain men, chosen by God, were made the recipients of His
Revelation. They believe that human reason is capable of giving all
the guidance that man needs in this life. Man, they affirm, can solve
all the problems in the world, with the help of his reason. He does
not need the direct guidance of God. Humanism, Religion without
Revelation-which, by the way, is the title of a well-known book by
Julian Huxley is their creed. There is nothing new about this creed.
The Qur'an tells us that it was prevalent during the time of
Muhammad (PBUH). Concerning those who held this view the Qur'an
says:
Ask them: Whose is the earth and whoever therein is, ye know? They
will say, of God. Say thou; Will ye not then mind? Ask them: who is the
Rabb of the several heavenly bodies and the Rabb of the glorious
Throne (of power over the entire universe)? They will say: they are of
God. Say thou: will ye then not take care of (not doing anything against
His laws)?
Ask them: Who is it in whose hand is the kingdom of all things and
who protects (all) but is not protected (by any), if ye but know? They
will say: in God's. Say thou: how then are ye deluded? Nay, We have
brought them the truth (in this Book) and they are liars (when they say
that they do believe in God but not in His Book) (23:84-90).
Belief in Divine Revelation is the necessary corollary of belief in
God. To deny Revelation is to strike at the root of deen. To permit
human reason to usurp the office of Wahi is to let man usurp the
place of God. As a matter of fact, it is absurd to believe in God
while denying His guidance. Suppose A believes that the universe
was created by God, and B affirms that it was the product of natural
causes. As these beliefs have no practical consequences, it is
immaterial which one is chosen and which one is rejected. But
suppose A believes that he ought to behave in such a way so as not to
transgress the limits prescribed by Divine Revelation and B believes
that he is free to act in any way he likes. In this case, it is obvious that
the difference between them is of vital importance to others. A is
trustworthy and reliable, while no one will take the risk of trusting B.
Without belief in Revelation, belief in God is a matter of academic
interest. As the following quotation shows, Ouspensky holds the
same view:
If there is no idea of Revelation, there is no religion. And in religion
Islam: A Challenge to Religion 107