The Importance of Reason | Sunday Guardian | 26th February 2012 | Page 15
The Quran gives great importance to the faculty of reason. There are dozens of verses in the Quran that emphasise the importance of rational thinking. One such verse is found in the chapter Al-Anfal (The Spoils of War). The translation of this verse is as under: "The worst creatures in God's eyes are those who are deaf and dumb, and who do not use their reason" (8:22). What is reason? Reason is the power of the mind to think, understand, and form judgments by a process of logic. This power is given to every human being by the Creator. Reason is the greatest faculty of every man and woman. Reason alone is the distinctive quality of man. Reason is not an isolated faculty. According to the Quran, the fact is that the whole creation is based on reason. The religion revealed by God is also a rational religion everyone is required to plan his life by using his reason. Those who fail to do so, are according to the Quran, deaf, dumb and blind (2:18). Only that belief is a valid belief that is based on reason and understanding. Reason is so important that it is said that man is a rational animal. Man has an unlimited mind, full of unlimited capacity, but mind is like a hidden treasure. It is everyone's first duty to unfold his or her potential. One who dies without unfolding his intellectual potential, he is dying like an animal. He fails to fulfil the creation plan of God. Reason needs to be developed. According to the Quran there are several ways of this intellectual development — study, contemplation, observation, taking lessons from experiences, etc. It means that every man and woman must inculcate the spirit of learning in their personality.