Abbasid Dynasty: Religion and Science - Essay Example

Religion and Theology Abbasid Dynasty: Religion and Science In the modern world, there has been a tendency to consider religion and science to be mutually exclusive and unable to coexist in one society maintaining equal positions. However, a more peaceful synthesis is possible, and it is illustrated by the example of the Islamic world and the Abbasid caliphate in particular. There, in the Islamic world, development of science and culture was vigorously encouraged by the reigning dynasty of Abbasids. Though originally theocratic in its nature, the state was a fertile ground for scientific achievements as the governors supported this initiative. This can be explained by the adherence to the Qur’an teachings that celebrating knowledge as a high value. The Abbasid caliphate was a feudalistic state ruled by the dynasty of Abbasids. Being in existence from 750 to 1258, the state included the territories of the modern Arabic countries of Asia, a part of Central Asia, Iran, Egypt, and North Africa. The dynasty came to dethrone and replace the Umayyads who were in power at that time, and the claims for supreme power were justified by the fact that latter didn’t belong to the Prophet Muhammad’s kin, even though they descended from the Quraysh tribe. The Abbasids, in their turn, are believed to have originated from the kin of Hashim and the Prophet’s uncle Al-‘Abbas ibn ‘Abd al-Muttalib in particular. Thus, they descent virtually entitled the Abbasids to rule the caliphate and gave a more distinct theocratic “flavor” to the state. The Abbasids’ replacing the Umayyads and coming of power was marked by numerous changes and reforms in military, political, administrative and scientific spheres. In fact, the year of 750 when the dynasty finally gained power, is believed to be one of the main turning points in the history of the Islamic world leading it to the age of prosperity. The entire reign of the Abbasid dynasty could be formally divided into 4 periods: first is the age of prosperity lasting from 750 to 861; second, the age of decline (861-946), being controlled by the Buyid dynasty in 946-1075; and the last – the period of suppression by the Seljuq dynasty (1075-1194). The Golden age of the caliphate and the dynasty in particular came with the rule of such caliphs as Harun Al-Rashid, Al-Mahdi, Al-Mansur, and Al-Ma’mun. With the dynasty in power, the very nature of the supreme power granted to the caliph underwent some changes: whereas the caliph was earlier the commander of the Muslim army, he was the head of the whole Muslim community now, and the role of religion increased considerably – it was given more importance than ethnicity. Moreover, in religious policy, the Abbasid dynasty maintained balance between non-Arabic traditions and different Islamic movements. The Abbasids’ epoch was prosperous virtually in every field of endeavor – alchemy, astronomy, mathematics, optics, medicine etc., and the state became a center for science and inventions, because knowledge was strongly encouraged. Muslim scientists were in the forefront of progress in science1; and the contribution they made to development of the world’s civilization is vast. Being loyal adherents of the Muslim doctrine, Abbasid rulers took much inspiration in the teachings stated in Hadith and Qur’an that paid special attention to the value of knowledge. For instance, one of the religious injunctions states that the ink of a scholar has greater value than the blood of a martyr2. Owing to such enthusiasm and interest towards science and culture, this period is often called the Renaissance of Islam3. Both the Umayyads and the Abbasids lent considerable support to scientists and scholars. In the golden age of the caliphate, the capital city hosted many artists, scholars, poets, engineers, philosophers and merchants who contributed to economics, science, nautics, literature, agriculture and other branches, either using their new inventions or making use of the old traditions. The Muslims’ role in the human sciences’ development was rather significant, but the most influential achievements were made in natural sciences such as mathematics, astronomy and medicine. The impact of these achievements can be judged by the number of Arabic scientific works that were later translated and used as a foundation for further European researches. It is remarkable, that Muslim medicine was especially fruitful at that historical period. Abbasid caliphate was the country where the first hospitals were established along with other medical institutions. The first hospital dates back to the year 707, even before the Abbasids came of power. Moreover, the most impressive peculiarity is that these hospitals were state-funded, i.e. it was the government who covered all expenses related to hospital maintenance and food supplies for patients. Serious attention was paid to leprosy – leprous citizens were taken into custody so that the disease don’t spread. Furthermore, Muslim doctors have been pioneers in studies and treatment of various eye diseases for ages. Muslim medical science is proud of the famous scientist of the Abbasid period, Ibn Sina (who is known as Avicenna in the Western world). Numerous contagious diseases, connection between the human’s mental and physical condition and the very first prototype of anesthesia were discovered by this prominent scientist. The overall number of his works in medicine is believed to reach 50, with only 30 of them surviving to the modern days. These include theoretical issues, works on separate illnesses and treatment methods, pharmaceutical science and so on. His canon of medical science is one of the crucial works of Avicenna which has survived till nowadays. This work was used as a main textbook in a range of the best medical universities in Europe in 12-17 centuries. This is a medical encyclopedia containing both theory and practice concerning prevention and treatment of diseases. Another science which was well developed in the caliphate is chemistry. In fact, it is a Muslim scientist Jabir ibn Hayyan who is believed to be the father of chemistry. Hayyan was a famous Muslim alchemist and the specialist in natural sciences. There is description of numerous acids, minerals and metal among his achievements. Moreover, researches in metal refining, glass-making, textiles dying and manganese dioxide use also belong to his legacy. On the other hand, probably one of the most revolutionary and progressive thoughts generated by this scholar is the assumption about the immense energy captured inside the atom as well as the thought about the possibility of the atom’s splitting. Hayyan claimed that the energy emitted while splitting a single atom is enough to ruin the entire Baghdad. In the age of Abbasids, the significant intellectual achievements were observed during the reign of Harum Al-Rashid and his descendants (particularly Muhammad Al-Mutasim and Al-Mamum). Numerous medieval Muslim scholars played a significant role in sharing achievements and knowledge with the Western civilization dominated by Christianity. And here, it would be right to mention that the early medieval West denied science as opposed to theological doctrine and thought scientific progress to undermine influence of religion. However, European scholars also managed to contribute to Arabic science by translations of works belonging to Greek thinkers first to Syriac and then to Arabic4. During Harun al-Rashid’s reign, a large library was established in Baghdad. The caliph favored development of science, poetry and music, inviting prominent scholars, musicians, poets and doctors to the court. His son, Al-Mamun, was recognized as the patron of science, scholars were involved in government affairs. He also established the House of Wisdom in Baghdad, which functioned as a library, an academy and an institute of translation5. The meridian arc was measured with his support, Ptolemy’s “Almagest” was translated to the Arabic language and the astronomic observatory was built with Al-Mamun’s support. Positive attitude of Islam towards knowledge planted the idea that science should be favored and encouraged in its development. Thus, the Abbasids stimulated development of both human and natural sciences. Moreover, practical importance of the disciplines like medicine, mathematics and chemistry motivated scholars to work in these directions. In the 9th century, the caliphate became a center where scientists from different countries could communicate with each other during the meetings held in the capital: these meetings involved philosophers, astronomers, theologians and other scholars regardless of their religious views. That is why, the reign of the Abbasid dynasty was a period when religion and science walked hand in hand, and the Muslim civilization became a kind of melting pot collecting, mixing and advancing the knowledge absorbed from China, Persia, Egypt, Rome, Greece and Byzantium. References: Chisholm, Hugh. “Abbasids”, Encyclopædia Britannica. Accessed October 14, 2014: http://www.britannica.com/ Gregorian, Vartan. Islam: A Mosaic, Not a Monolith, Brookings Institution Press, 2003. Hill, Donald. Islamic Science and Engineering, Edinburgh University Press, 1993. p.4. Huff, Toby E. The Rise of Early Modern Science: Islam, China, and the West, Cambridge University Press, 2003. Kraemer, Joel L. Humanism in the Renaissance of Islam, Brill Publishers, 1992. Read More