Wisdom and Its Manifestations

God Almighty, who has considered the goods of this world with all its phenomena and apparent advantages as little: “The enjoyment of this world is but little”(138), refers to “wisdom” as “abundant good”: “He gives wisdom to whom He wills, and whoever has been given wisdom has certainly been given much good”(139). The world is referred to as “goods” and wisdom as “good”, just as the former is described as “little” and the latter as “abundant”. The essence of this analysis is that the world is insignificant and wisdom is abundant, such that even a little of the former is harmful and much of the latter is beneficial.

In the Qur’an, both rational knowledge and moral advice, as well as jurisprudential and legal issues, are referred to as wisdom due to their firm and solid nature. For example, in the blessed Sūrah al-Isrāʾ, a total of about twenty issues, which begin and end with monotheism and in between contain moral issues, advice, and jurisprudential and legal rulings, are referred to as “wisdom”: “Do not set up another god with God… That is from what your Lord has revealed to you of wisdom. And do not set up with God another god”(140).

Kindness to parents, not hurting them, fulfilling the rights of relatives, the poor, and travelers, avoiding extravagance and miserliness, abstaining from adultery and killing respected souls, observing covenants, and the like, which are mentioned in the aforementioned verses, are issues of practical wisdom that are surrounded by the most important issue of theoretical wisdom, namely monotheism. Therefore, monotheism is the foundation of wisdom, and such firm and solid knowledge and issues are called wisdom.

Luqmān is one of those to whom God Almighty has given wisdom, and consequently abundant good: “And We had certainly given Luqmān wisdom”(141). The first elaboration of wisdom mentioned in this noble verse is gratitude to God Almighty: “And We had certainly given Luqmān wisdom [saying], ‘Be grateful to God.’” It is clear that gratitude to God is not possible without knowledge of Him. Therefore, the first wise words reported from Luqmān are his call to monotheism: “And [mention] when Luqmān said to his son while he was instructing him, ‘O my son, do not associate [anything] with God. Indeed, association [with Him] is great injustice’”(142). Thus, knowledge of the Almighty Truth and His oneness is the beginning of wisdom.

Monotheism and polytheism are questions of theoretical wisdom, while justice and injustice are those of practical wisdom. Therefore, in philosophical and theological discussions, the question is not whether someone who does not accept monotheism and is not a monotheist has committed injustice. However, the Qur’an, in reporting the admonitions of the wise Luqmān, identifies polytheism as injustice: “Indeed, association [with Him] is great injustice.” From this point, the difference between the Qur’an’s educational approach and that employed by the arts of philosophy and theology in explaining rational knowledge becomes clear.

In philosophical and theological books, within the discussion of worldview and theoretical issues, matters of practical wisdom are never brought up. In such disciplines and books, specific proofs are presented to establish the existence of God and His oneness, such as the proof of temporal origination (ḥudūth), motion, design, quidditative contingency (imkān māhawī), existential contingency (imkān faqrī), and the like. In rational discussions and theoretical wisdom, it is not stated beyond this that if the Lord of the world were multiple, creation would be corrupted, and the multiplicity of gods would necessitate either the conjunction of contradictions or their elimination, which is contrary to the rational judgment of the impossibility of conjunction and elimination of contradictions.