Anyways, where we can we go for profound epistemological insight?
I would like to direct the reader's attention to two sources of profound epistemological insight. The first source is Surah Al-Baqarah.
This is the Book about which there is no doubt, a guidance for those conscious of Allah -
Who believe in the unseen, establish prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them,
And who believe in what has been revealed to you, [O Muhammad], and what was revealed before
you, and of the Hereafter they are certain [in faith].
Those are upon
I would like to direct the reader's attention to two sources of profound epistemological insight. The first source is Surah Al-Baqarah.
This is the Book about which there is no doubt, a guidance for those conscious of Allah -
Who believe in the unseen, establish prayer, and spend out of what We have provided for them,
And who believe in what has been revealed to you, [O Muhammad], and what was revealed before
you, and of the Hereafter they are certain [in faith].
Those are upon
guidance from their Lord, and it is those who are the successful.
Indeed, those who disbelieve - it is all the same for them whether you warn them or do not warn them - they will not believe.
Allah has set a seal upon their hearts and upon their hearing, and over their vision is a veil. And for them is a great punishment.
And of the people are some who say, "We believe in Allah and the Last Day," but they are not believers.
They [think to] deceive Allah and those who believe, but they deceive not except themselves and perceive [it] not.
In their hearts is disease, so Allah has increased their disease; and for them is a painful punishment because they [habitually] used to lie.
And when it is said to them, "Do not cause corruption on the earth," they say, "We are but reformers."
Unquestionably, it is they who are the corrupters, but they perceive [it] not.
And when it is said to them, "Believe as the people have believed," they say, "Should we believe as the foolish have believed?" Unquestionably, it is they who are the foolish, but they know [it] not.
And when they meet those who believe, they say, "We believe"; but when they are alone with their evil ones, they say, "Indeed, we are with you; we were only mockers."
[But] Allah mocks them and prolongs them in their transgression [while] they wander blindly.
Those are the ones who have purchased error [in exchange] for guidance, so their transaction has brought no profit, nor were they guided.
-Surah Al-Baqarah 2:2-16
Those ayah contain more epistemological insight than anything Plato ever wrote. Meno is thought-provoking but Plato never reached the level of depth that Surah Al-Baqarah reaches.
I would like to direct the reader's attention to the profound epistemological insight of Sheikh Ibn Baz:
"All praise and thanks are due to Allaah, the Lord of the worlds; and the good end is for the pious. Prayers and peace be upon His Slave and Messenger; the best of His creation, the faithful to His revelation, our Messenger and Leader, Muhammad the son of 'Abdullaah; upon his family, his Companions and whoever follows his way until the Day of Judgement.
To proceed: Indeed the virtues and merits of knowledge ('ilm) are well known to everyone. It is the most noble thing that one can ask for, and the best thing a seeker can strive to attain. Knowledge consists of many branches, but according to the scholars of Islaam: "What is meant by knowledge in the absolute sense is Islamic knowledge."
This is the intended meaning of knowledge in the Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam). In the absolute sense, it is knowledge regarding Allaah, His names and attributes, knowledge of His rights over His creation, and what He, the One free from all defects, the Most High, has prescribed for them. It is the detailed knowledge of the path that leads to Allaah; knowledge of the purpose of our creation; and the end which the slave will result in, in the Hereafter.
This Islamic knowledge is the best of sciences worth acquiring because through it Allaah is recognized and acknowledged, and by it He is worshipped. One who possesses this knowledge knows what Allaah has made lawful for him and what He has prohibited him from; what pleases Him and what evokes His anger. With this knowledge a person knows his result with Allaah and his end. From amongst the people, those who have taken upon themselves to observe the precepts of the Religion will result in Paradise and bliss, and the rest (which are the majority) will result in a place of disgrace, humiliation and misery. The people of knowledge have cautioned us about this and explained that knowledge is confined to this meaning."
-Sheikh Ibn Baz
There was (and is) a famous epistemological debate in philosophy between the rationalists and empiricists. Notice how the debate is rigged against religion. They frame it as rationalism versus empiricism. The rationalist camp claimed that knowledge is attained through secular, unaided human "Reason". The empiricists claimed that knowledge is known through empirical sense-data.
The whole debate is a gigantic fallacy of the false dilemma. The highest form of knowledge, knowledge in the absolute sense, is not attained through sense-data nor through uaided, secular human "Reason".
It is attained through divine revelation, through the Quran and the Sunnah. Sheikh Ibn Baz was blind yet look at the level of knowledge the man achieved. The road to that attainment is through the study of the Quran and the Sunnah and of the Islamic sciences.
(EDIT: sorry, I don't know why the formatting is so weird.... I tried to fix it and it won't fix for some reason).
Indeed, those who disbelieve - it is all the same for them whether you warn them or do not warn them - they will not believe.
Allah has set a seal upon their hearts and upon their hearing, and over their vision is a veil. And for them is a great punishment.
And of the people are some who say, "We believe in Allah and the Last Day," but they are not believers.
They [think to] deceive Allah and those who believe, but they deceive not except themselves and perceive [it] not.
In their hearts is disease, so Allah has increased their disease; and for them is a painful punishment because they [habitually] used to lie.
And when it is said to them, "Do not cause corruption on the earth," they say, "We are but reformers."
Unquestionably, it is they who are the corrupters, but they perceive [it] not.
And when it is said to them, "Believe as the people have believed," they say, "Should we believe as the foolish have believed?" Unquestionably, it is they who are the foolish, but they know [it] not.
And when they meet those who believe, they say, "We believe"; but when they are alone with their evil ones, they say, "Indeed, we are with you; we were only mockers."
[But] Allah mocks them and prolongs them in their transgression [while] they wander blindly.
Those are the ones who have purchased error [in exchange] for guidance, so their transaction has brought no profit, nor were they guided.
-Surah Al-Baqarah 2:2-16
Those ayah contain more epistemological insight than anything Plato ever wrote. Meno is thought-provoking but Plato never reached the level of depth that Surah Al-Baqarah reaches.
I would like to direct the reader's attention to the profound epistemological insight of Sheikh Ibn Baz:
"All praise and thanks are due to Allaah, the Lord of the worlds; and the good end is for the pious. Prayers and peace be upon His Slave and Messenger; the best of His creation, the faithful to His revelation, our Messenger and Leader, Muhammad the son of 'Abdullaah; upon his family, his Companions and whoever follows his way until the Day of Judgement.
To proceed: Indeed the virtues and merits of knowledge ('ilm) are well known to everyone. It is the most noble thing that one can ask for, and the best thing a seeker can strive to attain. Knowledge consists of many branches, but according to the scholars of Islaam: "What is meant by knowledge in the absolute sense is Islamic knowledge."
This is the intended meaning of knowledge in the Book of Allaah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (sallallahu alaihi wasallam). In the absolute sense, it is knowledge regarding Allaah, His names and attributes, knowledge of His rights over His creation, and what He, the One free from all defects, the Most High, has prescribed for them. It is the detailed knowledge of the path that leads to Allaah; knowledge of the purpose of our creation; and the end which the slave will result in, in the Hereafter.
This Islamic knowledge is the best of sciences worth acquiring because through it Allaah is recognized and acknowledged, and by it He is worshipped. One who possesses this knowledge knows what Allaah has made lawful for him and what He has prohibited him from; what pleases Him and what evokes His anger. With this knowledge a person knows his result with Allaah and his end. From amongst the people, those who have taken upon themselves to observe the precepts of the Religion will result in Paradise and bliss, and the rest (which are the majority) will result in a place of disgrace, humiliation and misery. The people of knowledge have cautioned us about this and explained that knowledge is confined to this meaning."
-Sheikh Ibn Baz
There was (and is) a famous epistemological debate in philosophy between the rationalists and empiricists. Notice how the debate is rigged against religion. They frame it as rationalism versus empiricism. The rationalist camp claimed that knowledge is attained through secular, unaided human "Reason". The empiricists claimed that knowledge is known through empirical sense-data.
The whole debate is a gigantic fallacy of the false dilemma. The highest form of knowledge, knowledge in the absolute sense, is not attained through sense-data nor through uaided, secular human "Reason".
It is attained through divine revelation, through the Quran and the Sunnah. Sheikh Ibn Baz was blind yet look at the level of knowledge the man achieved. The road to that attainment is through the study of the Quran and the Sunnah and of the Islamic sciences.
(EDIT: sorry, I don't know why the formatting is so weird.... I tried to fix it and it won't fix for some reason).