Libraries, laboratories, and machines are nothing but means of study and research, and their value lies in knowing how to benefit from them. One may be able to be informed about the sciences of others, but he may still be unable to think and invent anything, and thus remain a student unable to rise to…
Mosques, corners, schools…etc. The mosque: The true center of life for Arabs. Arabs use the mosque as a place for gathering, worship, education, and, when necessary, a place of residence, not just for the worship of God like the churches of Christians. In a previous chapter, we explained the general layout of mosques. We mentioned that…
If we return to the Qur’an’s basic beliefs, we can consider Islam a simplified version of Christianity. However, Islam differs from Christianity in many fundamental principles, especially in absolute monotheism, which is a fundamental principle. This is because the one God, to whom Islam calls, dominates all things, and is not surrounded by angels, saints,…
The Arabs did not neglect industrial applications while they were conducting their theoretical research. The Arabs had great superiority in their industries thanks to their scientific knowledge. We know the results that their industries led to, even if we are ignorant of most of their methods. We know, for example, that they knew how to…
Many of the factors we have mentioned as reasons for the Arabs’ greatness can be used to explain their decline. It is sufficient to look at the important factor of time to know that the most beneficial traits of individuals and nations at one time can produce the worst results at another, and that moral…
Centuries have weighed heavily on the Arabs, and their civilization has long since been consigned to history. Yet, we do not say that they have completely died out. Their religion and language, which they introduced into the world, are now more widespread than they were in their prime. Arabic is the common language from Marrakesh…
The present state of Islam: Reasons for the greatness of the Arabs: We conclude the history of Arab civilization by summarizing the reasons for their greatness and decline in a comprehensive view. We say: The time in which the Arabs appeared was one of the preliminary factors in their strength, and the factor of preliminary time is…
Limitations imposed on dualistic and metaphysical reasoning: A- Restrictions imposed on dual, or binary, reasoning: To establish the first half of this methodological hypothesis, we must first point to two phenomena that can be observed in our previous discussions. First, it appears that Ibn Khaldun, in addressing matters of faith and the role of religion in civilization, turned…
The dynamic relationship between causes and effects: A reader of the Muqaddimah will notice that Ibn Khaldun did not present his economic explanations in a rigid manner. To demonstrate this, we will cite his analysis of phenomena into causes and effects as one of the new methods he applied in studying human civilization and political…
Socio-economic reasoning Here we will discuss three points to test the validity of this hypothesis. These points are: Ibn Khaldun’s assessment of the role played by lifestyle, division of labor and specialization, and finally the role of work in social relations. 1- Ibn Khaldun used lifestyle as a fundamental criterion for distinguishing between the two basic societal…
