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Mysterious Universe and
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FOREWORD
Sir James Jeans in
his famous book "The Mysterious Universe", has tried to draw his
own conclusions, from the facts presented by science. He has
sought to know how far this present day science can enlighten us
on certain difficult questions. That perhaps are, for ever set,
beyond the research of human understanding. In the last chapter
of his book, he has placed his own interpretations on the
scientific facts and hypotheses discussed in the main part of
the book. In the first chapter, under the caption of "The Dying
Sun", he has presented a philosophy about the creation of earth,
the appearance of life and man's existence on earth, and the
probable end of life on earth, in the light and limitations of
the present-day-science. Most of these points appeal in
contradiction to the views of religion about these points. We
have viewed these points in the light of the Quran to find a
radical opposition between the two philosophies. How the Quran
has fared in this very exciting and interesting contest is
simply far beyond the expectations of the generality of the
scholarly world. The Quran will be seen working wonder after
wonder, leaving the spectators against with wonder lost in
amazement.
It is with due
regret, that we observe, that science itself has also been
involved in this modern Baconian System of Materialistic
Progress and has been made the instrument of Atheism. We are not
here to sum up the extent of the guilt of the tyrannical Church
(as the Christian writers themselves reflect), nor we are
tempted to attempt an assessment of the justification of the
retaliative tendencies of the votaries of science against the
Church at the time of the renaissance of the West and the birth
of modern science. The topic being very delicate, and one
warranting fuller treatment and extremely realistic approach;
and one which is out of our scope in this present work. We will
only content ourselves by saying, that this
science-religion-conflict whatever its causes, has been an
extremely sad affair for the whole mankind. Leaving all relevant
discussion out at present. We will skip to a place where with
some unusual abruptness, we will now begin to say, that somehow,
from Galileo's Astronomy to Darwin's Biology, and from Newton's
Gravity to Einstein's Relativity, there has not been a discovery
of Theoretical Nature in the whole field of modern science that
failed to emerge as a subject of a science-religion controversy
and a serious conflict. Later on a tendency appeared to believe
in only doctrines of religion that were confirmed by science,
and all the rest were to be rejected. In this criterion were
included the ascertained facts of science and hypotheses and
speculative propositions thereof. Although religious doctrines
are mainly spiritual, and science is spiritually blind. The
predisposition of mind is seen to play a very conspicuous role
in this philosophy in question. It however has provided us with
a type of a philosophy which can be termed as the most typical
of modern misguided trends of the materialistic, and how these
trends have resulted in a misuse of science in a typical way to
reject the established doctrines of faith philosophically. The
merit of such a philosophy shall be put to test at a proper
place later on in this book. We have no mind here as we have
said, to give our judgment in this science-church conflict, but
so much only we shall say that the votaries of science, at a
time when they had found themselves able, and were in a position
to do so, they ought to have put up an endeavour with a gusto
equal to their gusto in science, to make a thorough research in
religion and thereby ought to have conducted a reform in it
instead of striving to strangle it to death in order to get rid
of this supposed embarrassment. Their science in the absence of
the controlling authority of faith consequently came to play a
havoc with their own and with all of the remaining humanity's
lives. Material progress, they have indeed made to an unusual
degree, but alas! to what end?
The scientific
philosophy of the unscientist scientist philosopher may be found
in the first twelve pages of "The Mysterious Universe" of Sir
James Jeans.
Very interesting and very instructive
in its own way, and indeed very amusing, is the philosophy which appears as a
result of this science-limited standard. It may be clearly seen, they who
evolved a philosophy by placing their own interpretations on ascertained facts
and hypotheses of science, how in so doing they have in a very amusing manner
made a general slaughter of religion, philosophy, logic, science and everything,
but in spite of all this carnage, a great fact which they have brought to the
knowledge of the general body of humanity, a fact generally unknown is, about
the limitations of science, and the present level of scientific knowledge which
in fact is hopelessly low. Science is openly declared, as unable at present time
to give answer to the greatest questions which have so log haunted human mind.
They, also, deserve our heart- felt gratitude for having provided us with
unmistakable modern type of philosophy though in fact it is only the modernized
echo of the ancient doubt and disbelief.
The examples of the prevailing
trends of that Philosophy
The science has discovered, that,
this earth on which we live, is far too small, a mere microscopic fragment of a
grain of sand in comparison with the incomparably great magnitude of the
universe. This material insignificance of earth has led the unscientific
scientist philosopher to infer that the great architect of this grand universe
could have no special interest either in this earth or the puny life upon it.
And, since the kind of life, we know on earth is suspected by him to exist on
earth alone, its comparative insignificance would render it vain. Any
probability therefore of design, purpose, resurrection, judgment or life in
heaven could not be entertained. As far as purpose of man's existence is
concerned, because science is unable to give some idea about it, man therefore
has to find nothing but bewilderment in this respect.
The atoms have been discovered by
science to exist in some particular arrangement in the living cell. And because
a monkey blindly strumming on a typewriter for untold millions of years stood a
chance to type off a Shakespeare sonnet, and because in the light of this
example, atoms might happen to arrange themselves in a way in which they are
arranged in a living cell, therefore POST
HOC ERGO PROPTER HOC, life could be of accidental nature and the product of blind play of
chance, and hence no probability of a design, order, purpose, control,
resurrection, judgment or the other world.
It has been scientifically realized,
as physical and astronomical principles have shown that life must eventually
cease to exist on earth. But science being unable to show the possibility of any
revival of life after the entropy had attained it climax, life were to be
considered as for ever lost, with no possibility of a resurrection, and so on so
forth. We frankly own ourselves quite at a loss to recognize the true merit of
such a philosophy. Again, we might be utterly mistaken, but we think very
honestly that a butcher might be regarded as far more competent in his own trade
than this our philosopher who is found labouring in the shambles of philosophy.
We now intend to quote the twelve
pages from the “Mysterious Universe" of Sir James Jeans. Within these few pages,
the wonder-pen of Sir Jeans has set all the most essential points of the
Philosophy of our unscientific scientist philosopher in an amazing array. In
view of the style which Sir James Jeans has adopted in stating the facts, there
is every likelihood of a misunderstanding that the thought is his own, but it is
not so, and we are again obliged to sound a warning that the words but not the
thought belong to Sir Jeans.
We intend to show the Quran's view
against the views to be found in these twelve pages, with a belief that this
comparison will be found interesting, particularly because there are instances
of Quran's having based its point on the very same fact of science, on which the
unscientific scientist philosopher has happened to base his, yet the two
inferences emerge in diametrical opposition to each other. Another very
interesting feature of the study is the presence of instances wherein the Quran
has anticipated the thought and has at times forestalled the very words of Sir
James Jeans writings quite miraculously. The Quran has claimed to contain every
example, which claim as it shall be seen the Quran has amazingly brought to a
proof.
The reader shall see in these pages,
how the truths which science had discovered, and which could have served as side
to augment the light of faith have in the hands of a sceptic world turned into
layers of darkness in an endeavor to obscure the light of faith. How very often
we have wished during this study, the presence of this unscientific scientist
philosopher, before us that we may tell him of the atrocities perpetuated by the
tyrannical hier-archies, cruel prelates, merciless bishops, and inconsiderate
popes on Christendom, but would only ask him to what hellish corners of
existence our benign science has driven the whole mankind today, and to what
abominable end this mankind is being driven today or tomorrow. The flames which
consumed one Bruno by the decision of the papal inquisition, were not worse than
the flames of atomic hell into which the whole mankind is going to be cast by
the scientific exquistion, nor was the scourging whip, and to tortiring rack of
the clergy after all worse, at least we may now think, than the piercing
cancer-ridden rays of nuclear radiation. Neither did the faith in church imply
anyway the birth of monsters in an ulcer-ridden humanity. How little this our
philosopher has known in his zeal for apostasy that this his philosophy dealt
the last deadly blow to science itself, because it is such apostatic
philosophies that caused ill-application and misdirection of science to its
atomic end, the end which will bring humanity to its end, and the end of science
along with it. Only the devil can be happy with such philosophies, because hey
serve to bring about that kind of end to humanity, which he so much desires. It
will be seen that this philosopher has done no more than echo the doubts of the
ancient disbeliever, except that he has sought to prove the points in reference
to modern science, and in so doing he has marred the basis of science, itself.
He has committed a glaring blunder in denying whatever the science was unable to
prove, little realizing that present day science in the realm of knowledge
blinked in wonderment, dumb and mute in the arms of mother nature. The absence
of light of faith and lack of fear of resurrection has turned science into the
mother of consuming Hell. Yet here is a chance left. will mankind therefore
condescend to lend a thought to the matter, or will they allow the things as
they may come. It is the eleventh hour, the next will be the zero hour. Pray
watch for the first atomic bomb detonated, and say your last prayer, only if you
will ever be allowed.
Sir James Jeans deserves heart-felt
gratitude of mankind for having exposed the limitations of science in his
"Mysterious Universe", I am not aware in what light the people of the west and
the scientist community have viewed this great work.
I suspect this to be a very abrupt
introduction of a very vast and serious topic, and new and novel indeed. This
attempt may be regarded as an aray of interesting rather startling glimpses of
my another exhaustive study of this very same topic which is based on the twelve
pages of the "Mysterious Universe" of Sir James Jeans, in which it has been
discussed how far this present day science can corroborate and attest
scientifically the spiritual doctrines of faith, and how far it can furnish
answers to the questions of spiritual, metaphysical and moral nature which have
haunted man's mind since the appearance of humanity on earth. Thus Sir James
Jeans has in a very brilliant analysis of the facts --- in a manner so
marvellous no doubt as a mind of the talent and the caliber of Sir James Jeans
only could successfully have adopted, retained and brought to a finish ---
exposed the limitations of science unknown to the mankind in general. I have
brought the Quran in the field to show Quran's views on the various points. The
Quran, as the reader will himself read has done wonders in this respect.
I will, to make the theme clearer at
the outset now, quote in part or in full the foreword of Sir James Jeans as
appears in his “The Mysterious Universe". I feel myself obliged to do this. He
writes:-
"The Present book contains an
expansion of Rede lecture delivered before the University of Cambridge in Nov. 1930. There is widespread conviction that the new teachings of
Astronomy and Physical Science are destined to produce an immense change on our
outlook on the Universe as a whole, and our views as to the significance of
human life. The question at issue is ultimately one of philosophic discussion,
but before the philosopher has a right to speak, science ought first to be asked
to tell all she can, as to ascertained facts and provisional hypotheses. Then,
and then only, may discussion legitimately pass into the realm of philosophy.
With some such thoughts as these in my mind, I wrote the present book, obsessed
by frequent doubts as to whether I could justify an addition to the great
amount, which has already been written on the subject. I can claim no special
qualifications beyond the proverbially advantageous position of the mere
onlooker; I am not a philosopher either by training or inclination, and for many
years my scientific work has lain outside the arena of contending physical
theories. The first four chapters, which form the main part of the book, contain
brief discussions, on very broad lines, of such scientific questions as seem to
me to be of interest, and to provide useful material, for the discussion of the
ultimate philosophical problem. As far as possible, I have avoided overlapping
my former book, "The Universe Around Us", because I hope the present book may be
read as a sequel to that. But an exception has been made in favour of material
which is essential to the main argument, so as to make the present book complete
in itself.
The last chapter stands on a
different level. Every one may claim the right to draw his own conclusions from
the facts presented by modern science. This chapter merely contains the
interpretations, which I, a stranger in the realm of philosophical thought, feel
inclined to place on the scientific facts and hypotheses discussed in the main
part of the book. Many will disagree with it. It was written to that end".
Dorking 1930 (J.H.Jeans)
Sir James Jeans continues in his foreword:-
"In preparing a second edition, I have tried to
bring the scientific matter of the first four chapters up to date, and to remove
all ambiguities from my argument. I found with regret that certain passages in
the original book were liable to be misunderstood, misinterpreted, and even
misquoted in various unexpected ways. Some of these passages have been expunged,
some rewritten and some amplified. Here and there new paragraphs, occasionally
whole pages have been added in the hope of making the argument clearer".
(Dorking July Ist, 1931) (J.H.Jeans)
The topic of my book might become clear by now,
and this is a very interesting foreword of Sir James Jeans.
"There
was a widespread conviction in the year 1930," he says "that the new teachings
of Astronomy and Physical Science were destined to
produce an immense change on our outlook on the
universe as a whole, and our views as to the significance of human life".
No doubt the year 1945 appeared with
a change and the sun of the 6th August appeared on earth with the future
scientific manifesto of the human life in its rays. But as far as the question
of the change of man's outlook in virtue of the new teachings of Astronomy and
Physical Science is concerned, the universal conviction in 1930 was the result
only of universal ignorance about the present limits of theoretical science,
which were wishfully and ignorantly and exceedingly over-estimated in virtue of
scientific inventions of chemical and mechanical kind. The same state of man's
mind might have continued for long, or for ever, in utter, and self-imposed
ignorance about science but for two events, namely, the explosion of atomic bomb
in Hiroshima, and the publication of "The Mysterious Universe" of Sir James
Jeans. The former has exposed the inventive faculty of science, the latter its
philosophical caliber, and its ability to give answers to such questions as have
haunted human mind since the appearance of mankind on this earth, which only is
deplorable. As far as the question of the significance of human life is
concerned, it has been dropped to a level where cities and countries could be
blasted out of existence without scruple, or a sigh or a groan. Indeed human
life has lost all value in this world, thanks to the new teachings of science.
And yet, I am writing these words,
and am thinking myself as addressing a universal herd of intoxicated, inebriated
and drunken, Baconian species that would neither listen to, nor understand the
language in which the detrimental side of science or its dreadful hazards are
expressed. They would not listen to a word against it. I too could panegyrize
science to inebriate this mankind and gain gratitude, credit, applause and
prizes.
Sir James Jeans makes a confession of
his non-philosophical inclination, and denies any philosophical training. If,
Sir James Jeans was indeed such as he took himself to be, or feigned himself to
be, then it is heartily wished that let all the philosophers now shed their
philosophical aptitude and unlearn their philosophical training, for it may well
be seen while perusing "The Mysterious Universe" that a non-philosophical had
rushed into the zones almost recklessly, where philosophicals would fear to
tread. Not all the philosophical productions of this modern age could do that
which this little book has done to expose the reality of modern science and to
measure its dimensions. How very dearly I would wish to know the heart of
Bertrand Russell regarding this great, epoch-making work, this
stirring-the-concealed-embers attempt by an exceptionally talented mind.
Why a book that went through seven
successive prints in the span of only three months should suddenly lose its
popularity thereafter, is the question that deserves inquiry by the inquisitive.
And why the passages of the original book were to be misunderstood,
misinterpreted and even misquoted is another question, that needs answers. Ad
what were those unexpected ways in which the passages in question were held up
to criticism, as Sir James Jeans has complained. And did the dissension emerge
from religious or from scientific circles, or both Perhaps indeed, the author of
so out-spoken, so realistic a venture, and the views expressed therein with such
apparent bluntness should expect to fare no better in an age which was in the
habit of being lulled by soft, inebriating song of hope in a paradisiacal future
age having lost itself into the confidence in science, an age bowing before
science in defying allegiance with hopes in it even greater than their hopes in
God, the actual, but unseen Creator. Sir James Jeans perhaps was saved from the
rack due to his great standing as a scientist, and his great ability that
amounted to genius. He made a pell-mell of modern science with daring and with
effect and escaped severe lashing by the presumptive champions of science among
the mediocrity.
This present book, as I have already
said, is a collection of glimpses, and that the topic has been systematically
tackled in another volume, yet I think it deserves its separate existence in
spite of the inevitable repetition of certain facts. It has its own peculiar
form and interest. It also could be regarded as a preparatory to the study of
the greater and more comprehensive book on this topic alluded to, and further it
contains certain important points, which the other volume does not contain.
The Quran could not have anything
against the science proper. That is, the ascertained knowledge of the laws of
nature based on proved truths, but such a philosophy as this which the
unscientific scientist philosopher has produced, could in no way gain Quran's
recognition. Nor would this atom bomb producing, this atomic radiation,
plague-bomb producing science, expect Quran's confirmation. Quran is not merely
a book of religion, it rather contains all knowledge that human ken could grasp,
including this modern science, all of it to nuclear phenomenon, and this modern
Baconian Philosophy too to its minuteness.
Another point which deserves notice
and excites feelings of real admiration in our heart is the scientist's
scrupulous honesty in matters of science and his really admirable discernment of
various scientific values to a most minute degree and to slightest shades. He
evinces a very reliable knowledge of the existing state of every point of
science, its flaws, its doubts, its discrepancies, its merits, the degree of its
reliability and its possible future trends and scopes, in contrariety to some
non-scientist writers, who sometimes venture to treat purely a topic of science,
to demonstrate their vagueness. The disposition of their mind, and the play of
their emotions, and particularly insufficient knowledge and little understanding
of all the various corners of science, their pens are seen to play the pranks of
a nature which are worth seeing, and rarely fail to excite wonder or laughter or
contempt or all. For example, whereas Sir James Jeans, while explaining his
hypothesis about the separation of earth and other planets from the sun, has
described the whole thing in a language which clearly shows the suggestive
nature of his view. The non-scientist in repeating the very same thing would
reproduce the same as a proved variety and a most ascertained fact of science,
ignoring all the "ifs" and "buts" and "perhaps" and "might bees" of Sir James
Jeans.
But the dazzle which the unscientific
scientist philosopher has not been able to bear is that of faith, like a bat
who, though, extremely dexterous in the darkness of night is seen to be quite
helpless during the day in the presence of sun's light. I, however, despite all
my extreme philosophical differences, have entertained a real regard for the
unscientific scientist philosopher due merely to his spotless honesty,
immaculate conduct and creditable knowledge of science; yet, for his lack of
faith I could not blame him, since faith is a gift of God, and no amount of
knowledge could procure that quality in case it were not there. No teacher or
preacher, or sign can create faith if not given by God. But God's Grace is
affluent, and His Mercy unabounding. He can give the gift of faith to anyone any
moment. Springs have been found to gush forth from the heart of rocks, and most
obstinate of infidels have been known to become leading among the faithful. If
then by the grace of the Beneficent and Merciful Allah, our present day
unscientific scientist philosopher would ever feel the inebriating dazzle of
faith in his heart and the truth has dawned on him, surely he will prove a real
asset to mankind due to his factual knowledge of science and his honesty, and
then he will be found to the joy of believing world to employ the same facts of
science in favour of faith, design, purpose, order and divine government by
exposing and repudiating this modern Baconian science just as Sir James Jeans
has done due to the extreme urge of real knowledge and truth. He certainly will
reveal to the ignorant and innocent world the real curse of this curse of
curses, this modern, systematic, ever-increasing, infinite and eternal science.
This world which today despite its ever growing heaps of commodities, despite
its dazzling shows of luxury, and despite its cars, cameras, radios,
televisions, clinics, and cinemas, its aeroplanes, appolos, sea-ships and
sky-scrapers is a frightful hovel of miseries, and a prey to the atomic demon,
could become a place worth living, and struggling peacefully toward the
destination, real destination: the heaven, in case this mother of atomic
miseries, this one-eyed science were removed to leave this world free to think
and act.
And let it be remembered, that
whenever we refer to unscientific scientist philosopher, we do not at all mean,
Sir Jeans. He has only presented the resumable thought of others. Rather he has
exposed the weakness of science. His thought appears in the last chapter of the
same book “The Mysterious Universe”, which is quite different from this
unscientific scientist philosopher's and shows serenity. And lastly let it be
remembered that the thought and conclusions found in the twelve pages of “The
Mysterious Universe" which are the subject of our discussion here are not at all
those of Sir James Jeans' own. He has only represented the trend and the
capacity of science in the field of philosophy. He has manifestly negated most
of these conclusions in the last chapter of his book. He deserves utmost respect
of mankind. He has clarified the things and has shown the limitations of modern
science in a way what warrants unusually great admiration.
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