Malfuzat – Volume X — Page 505
17 May 1908 505 knowledge of philosophy and science and then it is expected that they would come to be fond of Islam as well. 1 Defence against the Onslaught of Modern Sciences It is my faith that the Quran is such a perfect book that no modern philosophy or science—even after advancing a thou- sand times from its present state—can ever prevail against it. But how can I hold such an opinion about a person concerning whom I know that he has no inclination towards the knowl- edge contained in the Holy Quran and has never ever paid any attention to it to the extent that he has never studied even one line of the Holy Quran with thought and deliberation? For example, there is the philosophy of spiritual guidance outlined in the Quran that man will receive the outcome of his deeds in the form of Paradise after his death which will have streams flowing underneath it. On the surface it is just a tale, but it is not a tale though it looks like a tale. The truth of it is indeed that the people of that age were like ignorant children due to their lack of knowledge of spiritual sciences. It was necessary, therefore, to explain such subtle and spiritual concepts to them through metaphors appropriate for them, and to help them comprehend the real truth by using similitudes. This is why the Holy Quran adopted this method to make them understand the reality of Paradise but it was stated also that: 1. From Badr: To send your children to the schools of the Aryas or the Christian priests and then to expect that they would be true Muslims is, as they say in Persian, ‘This is an idea which is impossible and pure insanity’ ( Badr, vol. 7, no. 25, p. 4, dated 25 June 1908).