Qur'anic anthropology, as a branch of the divine sciences, investigates the existential nature of human beings and their position within the cosmic order. This discipline, relying on the verses of the Holy Quran, analyses human behaviours, deeds, and interactions with the realm of Nast, while unveiling the pathways towards perfection and felicity. This manuscript, by systematically rewriting the delivered lectures, provides a scholarly and coherent text intended for researchers and academic audiences. All details and key points of the lectures are elaborated comprehensively within a scientific framework, using a refined language befitting the academic milieu. Organised sections, specialised subtitles, and detailed conclusions, accompanied by sophisticated analogies and metaphors, render this work both rich and engaging.
This section, linked to prior discussions on humanitys place in the system of creation, analyses the role of divine guidance and human self-reliance on the path to felicity from the perspective of the Holy Quran.
Divine guidance, akin to a radiant light, directs humanity towards felicity; yet, on this path, man must rely upon the Divine Will to safeguard himself from error.
And whomever Allah guides, he is the rightly guided; and whomever He leads astray you will never find for them a guardian besides Him. And We will gather them on the Day of Resurrection upon their faces blind, dumb, and deaf. Their refuge will be Hell; whenever it subsides, We increase them in blazing fire.
(Al-Isra: 97)
This verse, by emphasising divine guidance as the sole path to felicity, warns humanity against reliance on anything other than God. Guidance is a gift bestowed by God upon His servants, whereas misguidance results from human erroneous choice. With faith and trust in God, man can liberate himself from the snares of misguidance and tread the path of goodness and felicity.
Reliance on anything other than God resembles placing trust in a deceptive mirage that directs man toward the blazing Hellfire. Religious knowledge ought to lead humanity towards reliance on God and away from misguidance.
This section, connected to the discussion on divine guidance, analyses hereafter orientation as the logic underpinning the understanding of truth from the Quranic perspective.
Hereafter orientation, akin to a divine compass, directs man toward reality and protects him from the deception of falsehoods.
O my people, indeed this worldly life is only enjoyment, and indeed the Hereafter that is the home of [permanent] settlement.
(Ghafir: 39)
This verse clarifies the temporality of this world and the permanence of the Hereafter, thereby calling humanity towards hereafter orientation. Falsehoods, though seemingly beautiful and enticing on the surface, are devoid of truth if they do not lead to the Hereafter. Man must, by focusing on the Hereafter, distinguish truth from falsehood.
Worldliness, like neglecting the abode of permanence, leads man towards falsehood. Religious knowledge should guide man towards hereafter orientation and comprehension of truth.
This section, linked to the discussion on hereafter orientation, analyses divine decree, predestination, and the determination of Nast death from the perspective of the Holy Quran.
Nast death, as an outcome within the collective cosmic system, is influenced by divine decree and predestination; nevertheless, man participates in it through his own volition.
He it is who created you from clay, then decreed a term and a specified term with Him; yet still you doubt.
(Al-Anm: 2)
This verse, by mentioning mans creation from clay and the determination of a fixed term, alludes to mans role in the determination of death. Decree (qad) is Gods general will, but predestination (qadar) operates collectively and is affected by human volitions and the cosmic order. Man, through his choices, can influence the length of life and the quality of death.
Determinism, as a neglect of the collective cosmic system, disregards the role of human volition. Religious knowledge must guide man towards understanding his role in predestination and reliance upon God.
This section, linked to the discussion on decree and predestination, analyses the Hereafter as the inner reality of Nast from the Quranic perspective.
The Hereafter, like the inner essence of the Nast realm, is latent within every particle of this world, and man attains its comprehension through self-knowledge.
From it We created you, and into it We shall return you, and from it We will bring you out once again.
(T H: 55)
This verse, by referring to creation, death, and resurrection from the earth, signifies the interconnectedness of this world and the Hereafter. The Hereafter is the inner reality of this world, and man, through self-knowledge and understanding the divine law "He who knows himself knows his Lord" attains this truth.
Neglecting the inner reality of existence acts as a veil over the truth, preventing man from understanding the Hereafter. Religious knowledge must lead man to self-knowledge and comprehension of Nasts inner reality.
This section, linked to the discussion on the Hereafter, analyses general destruction and the cosmic system from the Quranic perspective.
General destruction, as a part of the divine system, is a pervasive punishment that does not encompass the believers.
And there is no city but that We will destroy it before the Day of Resurrection or punish it with a severe punishment. That is written in the Book.
(Al-Isra: 58)
This verse refers to the universal destruction of earthly regions as part of the divine system. This destruction excludes the believers and solely encompasses the disobedient.
Disobedience to the divine system is akin to treading the path to ruin, leading man towards chastisement. Religious knowledge must guide man to obedience and faith.
This section, linked to the discussion on general destruction, analyses the modality of Nast death from the Quranic perspective.
Nast death, as an orderly process, is influenced by death cells and the will of the Angel of Death; however, man may postpone it through virtuous deeds.
He drinks it down and can hardly swallow it, and death comes to him from every place, yet he is not to die, and behind him is a severe punishment
