grasp the sense of his words and relate it meaningfully to their lives.
The Qur'an makes an important distinction between "nazar" and
"basar." Nazar refers to the fact of passively receiving certain visual
stimuli. Basar is insight, the grasping of the essential meaning of the
thing of which the visual stimuli are mere signs. The same
distinction applies to other senses, such as hearing, etc:
And of them are some who hearken to thee but will thou make the
deaf to hear although they have no senses (10:42).
What the Qur'an is driving at is that a man whose mind is clouded
with prejudices and preconceptions, will not be able to apprehend
the truth, even though it stares him in the face. To apprehend it, he
must approach it with an open and unbiased mind, must
concentrate his attention upon it and must strive to comprehend it
in relation to his genuine knowledge and authentic experience. In
effect, the Qur'an recommends them an a posteriori approach to
Revelation. By implication, the a priori approach is not favoured.
The Qur'an's position on this question may be summarised in this
way: rid your mind of all preconceived ill-founded notions. Give
close and earnest attention to the Revelation and have full confidence
(Eiman) in it. Relate the Revelation to the well-established facts of
human experience. Project your findings into the future as far as
your reason can take you along the high roads lit by Revelation.
Enrich your experience by the experience you have yet to
experience. And, in the new vistas and the widened horizons that
open up before you, identify the stars of your destiny and address
yourself to the problems of life at hand. If you approach Revelation
in a proper frame of mind, making full use of the powers with
which you are equipped – reason and Eiman, hope and clarity – you
can apprehend the truth enshrined in it, and guided by it, can march
forward to the glorious destiny that awaits you. But you must
deliberately, and of your own free will, choose the path which is
pointed out. God could have compelled you to be good if He had
wanted. But such goodness would have had no value. Only
goodness that you acquire through your own efforts has value. You
are free to choose, and if you use your faculties aright, you will make
a proper choice.
This, in brief, is the advice that the Qur'an offers to man. It is
reiterated in numerous verses. When the Nabi grew worried that
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