These are they whom God's Law of Retribution has deprived (as a
result of their own doing) of the blessings of life and has made them
deaf and has blinded their eyes. Will they not then meditate on the
Qur'an or are there locks on their hearts? (47:23-24)
The Qur'an appeals to man's reason and understanding. Its
teaching is couched in a language which is lucid and intelligible.
"Thus God makes plain to you His Revelations that haply you may
reflect” (2:219). The great truth to be apprehended by man is that he
is the architect of his fate so that what he is in this world and what he
will be in the Hereafter depend solely on his own actions. Good acts
necessarily elevate him and bad actions inevitably degrade him. His
welfare and misery are the result of his own deeds. He cannot shift
his responsibility to others.
The Qur'an insists that even success in war depends on the right
use of reason. It is generally believed that an army which is inspired
with courage and fired with zeal is sure to win. The Qur'an claims
that victory falls to the lot of men who remain cool and collected in
the presence of danger and whose thinking is not clouded by
passion. A hundred such men, the believers, are said to be a match
for a thousand unbelievers who are swayed by passion, because they
are, as the Qur'an puts it, "a folk without understanding" (8:65).
It is clear that the Qur'an assigns an important role to reason in
the life of man. The Nabi is enjoined not to demand blind
obedience from men but to exhort them to think and ponder. The
following verse leaves no room for doubt that the Qur'an
encourages and approves of independent thinking:
Say, I exhort you unto one thing. And what is that one thing? It is that "ye
awake, for Allah's sake by twos and singly. And then, reflect” ( 34 : 46 ).
The Qur'an expects man to think and use his power of
understanding. If he does this, he will be sure to follow the right
path. The point to bear in mind is that the path which leads to
success, that is eligibility for a higher plane of existence, can be
discovered and followed only with the combined help of reason and
revelation. These sources of guidance are supplementary to each
other. If they are kept within their proper spheres, there will be no
conflict between them. The Rasool, therefore, is bidden to say:
This is my way. My invitation to you to follow Allah's path is based on
reason and insight-mine as well as of those who follow me (12:108).
The Qur'an challenges the opponents of Islam to produce
Reason and Eiman 113