Amongst many others, a basic change brought about by the Islamic revolution was similar in some respects to the scientific revolution of modern times; that is, the rooting out of superstitious thinking and the general prevalence of thinking based on facts.

The continued existence of nature worship and superstitious thinking in ancient times was due to the ignorance of human beings regarding nature. Ancient man used to judge natural phenomena by their appearance. Astounded by the power of nature and without an understanding of natural phenomena, he began to hold them sacred. It was this awe surrounding nature that gave rise in ancient times to many stories, now called myths. On the basis of pure conjecture, man developed many suppositions which, in the course of time, became widespread beliefs, rooted in the human imagination.

In every age man has had a set of beliefs which moulded his thoughts and deeds. In ancient times this set of beliefs was entirely based on myths. The 7th century AD saw a change in this pattern of thinking. Now importance was attached to facts instead of superstition.

This revolutionary shift from superstition to facts can be traced as a contribution of the message of Islam. Anyone who understands the pristine message of Islam from the Quran and the teachings of the Hadith will realize that the prevalent superstitions in the society were understood as false and were shunned by those who accepted the facts presented by the Prophet. How did this happen? By the simple fact that the message of Islam presented the concept of God being the Creator of everything and that nature was to be explored and God had to be worshipped. So, the awe surrounding nature was replaced with a spirit of research and enquiry.

The Quran repeatedly enjoins man to reflect on the objects of the universe thereby inspiring one towards scientific enquiry.

In the wake of this revolution all those things which were held sacred earlier were relegated to the status of mere creatures. They were there to be harnessed by man and not for man to be enslaved by them. They were entirely helpless beings, mere objects and not the masters of man.

Earlier as nature was placed upon a pedestal of sanctity it had completely discouraged an investigation of it. Without such investigation, scientific and industrial progress was simply not possible. Here what Islam simply did was to separate the Creator from the creation and gave a message that nature was meant for us to make use of and to benefit from it.

In this way, it has happened that the phenomena of nature, looked upon by ancient man with reverence, have now become objects of investigation. The Quran repeatedly enjoins man to reflect on the objects of the universe thereby inspiring one towards scientific enquiry.

This is no simple matter. The act of pondering over the nature of the phenomena of the universe has been encouraged in Islam. This thinking results in putting things in the universe to research and investigation. The following example will illustrate the difference between science and superstition presenting to the discerning reader the message of Islam on the issue.

One of the phenomena of nature in our world is the eclipse: sometimes the sun going into eclipse and at other times the moon. Today we have discovered the astronomical laws governing these phenomena but, in ancient times, man was ignorant of what these phenomena and their causes actually were. Strange and wonderful stories on the basis of conjecture were, therefore, concocted to bring them within the realm of human understanding

The Chinese account of the eclipse and its ‘remedy’ is one of the more fanciful.

When an eclipse occurred, the Chinese thought that the sun was being swallowed by a huge dragon. The whole population joined in making as much noise as possible to scare it away. They always succeeded! (Ian Nicholson, Astronomy 1978)

Considering their ‘success,’ it is little wonder that the Chinese used the same tactics with happy conviction on subsequent occasions. It is now common knowledge that the dates and durations of such eclipses are entirely calculable, just as the course of Halley’s Comet was entirely predictable.

It was during this age of superstition that Islam had the following teaching about eclipse. It so happened that the death of the Prophet’s son Ibrahim, at the age of one and a half coincided with a solar eclipse.

The ancient belief still being prevalent that eclipses were caused by the death of an important person, some of the inhabitants of Madinah began spreading the story that the eclipse was due to the death of the Prophet’s son. The Prophet, on hearing this, gathered his people together and explained the truth to them. This account of his is set forth in two of the authentic books of Hadith, Muslim and Bukhari:

After praising and glorifying God he said: “Eclipses of the sun and moon are not due to the death of any human being; they are just two signs given by God. When you observe an eclipse, you should pray to God, praise Him, ask for His mercy and blessings, and give something in charity.”

The scientific way of thinking of the modern age initiated in the early period of Islam, continued as a process, spreading from one country to another until it reached the west where it saw its culmination in the western world. In respect of its reality, this scientific thinking is a revolution desirable by Islam itself. The Quran and the teachings of the Prophet contain suggestions towards science and encourage its adherents to undertake scientific pursuits.

The Prophet mentioned these suggestions as signs of God in the universe, and the Quran has the following to say about these signs in order to know Him as He is in the unseen:

We will show them our signs in the universe and within themselves, until it becomes clear to them that this is the truth. (41:53)