The Philosophy of the Teachings of Islam — Page 188
FIFTH QUESTION Sources of Divine Knowledge The comprehensiveness with which the Holy Quran has dealt with this subject cannot be set forth at this stage for want of time. We shall, therefore, confine ourselves to a concise statement by way of illustration. The Holy Quran has drawn attention to three types of knowledge: knowledge by way of certainty of inference, knowledge by way of certainty of sight, and knowledge by way of certainty of experience. As we have already explained in the commentary of the Surah Takāthur, knowledge by certainty of inference is that a thing should be known not directly but through something through which it can be inferred, as by observing smoke we infer the existence of fire. We do not see the fire, but see the smoke and because of it we believe in the existence of the fire. This is certainty by inference. Then if we see the fire, this, according to the Surah Takathur in the Holy Quran, would be certainty by sight. If we were to enter into the fire, our knowledge would have the quality that the Holy Quran names certainty by experience. There is no need to write