If we study the history, the states which achieved success on the basis of power were short-lived, on the contrary, the nations which developed on the basis of ‘knowledge and skill’, ruled the world for a long time. According to the ‘Tatars’, although they achieved success in terms of strength, they soon became like foam in the sea. The example of the scientific achievements of Europe after the Renaissance movement is in front of all of us. The successes achieved by Muslims during their time was also an example.’Baghdad’ was the cradle of knowledge and skill.
People from other countries used to come here to study. There were grand ‘libraries’ with expert teachers. In these libraries, there was a sea of history, sciences and arts of civilizations around the world. At the same time, experts in these sciences were also present. Just think how beautiful that period will be. It is said that in the Abbasid era, there was a ‘library’ in every region. Among these libraries, there was a great library ‘Bayt al-Hikamat Baghdad’. According to historians, the foundation of this library was laid by Caliph Harun al-Rashid. The library was divided into two sections, one dedicated to the library and the other to translations into non-Arabic languages.
Allama Shibli Nomani writes in Rasa’il-e-Shibli: “In addition to the Arabic language, numerous books of Hindi, Persian, Greek, Coptic and Chaldean languages were provided in this great library.” In the ‘library’, there was only one secret to access and advance in various sciences and arts, that was to follow the original teachings of the Holy Quran. Muslims were the holders of the Qur’an, they paid their dues. All the gems that were rare in the teachings of the Qur’an were extracted by the Muslims and subjugated the universe. That is, the Qur’an was included in his practical life. The Qur’an itself gave priority to ‘knowledge’ and raised the ranks of those who possessed ‘knowledge’ (Al-Majdalah: 11). It is because of this knowledge that ‘Madrasas’, ‘Libraries’ and ‘Research Departments’ all came into existence.
Then it happened that the Muslims started to distance themselves from the Qur’an and distance from knowledge, so the beginning of the “decline” began. As the Muslims moved away from knowledge and skills, the ‘decline’ was absorbed into them, until today’s Muslim world is at least ‘hundred years’ behind Europe in terms of knowledge and skills. This journey of decline is still going on. The question is, why did the fall come?One wonders how a nation that is the ‘bearer of the Qur’an’ can remain behind in the world. It was found out that this nation really abandoned the Holy Qur’an. In other words, the rare gems that used to be extracted from the Qur’an, now only reading the Qur’an ‘without understanding’ is considered a reward.
The Qur’an explained the rotation of the earth and the sky, the coming and going of day and night, and said that these signs are for the people of understanding (Al-Imran: 190), but we only looked. What should be hoped for when one is looking at one instruction only? That is, we preserved the Qur’an only because what has happened is that ‘reciting it so many times gives so much reward, the Qur’an should be recited to forgive the dead’ and so on. Muslims have moved away from the original spirit of the Qur’an.As much effort and zeal were carried out for knowledge and skills in the Abbasid era, the way people developed a passion for reading books, the way people achieved perfection in science and arts, the way the Ruler of Time (Mamun) raised the flag of ‘knowledge of friendship’, later it all fell apart. The nation could not cope with the battles that took place with the change of kings.
Historian Shah Moinuddin Ahmad Nadwi has written that the minister of Caliph Mustasim was in league with the Tatars, he invited the Tatars to attack Baghdad to establish the Alavi government. After this attack, the women and children wanted to leave, but the Tatars He did not leave them alive either. After exterminating the population, they returned to Baghdad brutally for forty days. Libraries were burned, Tigris and Euphrates were blackened with ink. Knowledge began to shrink. The libraries which are the foundation of knowledge, gradually started to disappear, until there was not a single library like ‘Bayt-ul-Hikamat’ which contained translations, researches, works and compilations at the same time.
The intoxication of power is above all things, Muslims sacrificed everything for the sake of this power. The Umayyads were subdued by the Abbasids, the Abbasids by the ‘Turks’, the Turks by their own deeds. In India, the Mughals fought each other for ‘power’ and ended the Mughal era. The Ghirs (whites) ruled here from Thath. Even in all these situations, the Muslims did not learn the lesson, i.e. they remained behind in the field of ‘education’.
Although a few reformers, Sir Syed Ahmad Khan being the foremost, tried their best to get the Muslims back their place in the field of education, but it was our Muslims who gave a religious color to the fact that the Muslims were being given English education. being enslaved or being converted to Christianity, etc.
Even in the present era, Muslims have not learned from their mistakes. The series which started with the destruction of ‘Baghdad’ has not stopped yet. Even today, Muslims are not behind the non-Muslims in ‘knowledge and skills’, but far behind. The areas of research are only to the extent of ‘what feat was accomplished by such and such a person’, ‘what invention was made by such and such a Muslim scientist’, ‘how many commentaries have been written on which book’. If you look at theses in universities, you won’t find any special work in them except a few. As a whole we are lagging behind in the field of research.Libraries show how close the people of that city, region are to ‘knowledge’. Although this era is the ‘smart era’, books are now available on mobiles at a click, but it is still a historical fact that ‘libraries’ still exist with their old significance. In the Muslim world, there is currently no such library as ‘Bayt-ul-Hikmat’, which has research, authorship, compilation, translation and observatories at the same time.
We are still not learning from the past. Even today we are engaged in the same battles that have been going on for the past several centuries, such as religious battles, religious battles and the acquisition of power etc. Even today we ignore the ‘scholarly success’ of the people of the West by saying that ‘real success belongs to the hereafter’. We also give non-Muslims a certificate of ‘hell’, we are also creating ‘tricks’ to use their inventions, but we are not doing anything ourselves. The result is before us all.Can even today by building an ‘educational center’ like ‘Baitul Hikmat’ or even better, we can come from decline to rise? Hope and courage give a person the opportunity to move forward, mistakes are happening, but even today we can stand again in the same position, for which there are a few requests;• Become holders of the Qur’an, that is, start practicing the teachings of the Qur’an.• Put education above all your priorities.• Maintain intellectual differences, but avoid hostility.• Focus on reforming nations instead of gaining power.• Keep your morals high.
