Islamic Socıety Accordıng to Roger Garaudy Civilization and Causes of Collapse Cover Image

Roger Garaudy’ye Göre İslam Toplum Medeniyeti ve Çöküş Nedenleri
Islamic Socıety Accordıng to Roger Garaudy Civilization and Causes of Collapse

Author(s): Mehmet Sulhan
Subject(s): Islam studies, 6th to 12th Centuries, History of Islam, Sociology of Religion
Published by: Tekirdağ Namık Kemal Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi
Keywords: Society; Civilization; Roger Garaudy; Islam; Collapse;

Summary/Abstract: The basic resources of the Islamic Society are generally the Qur'an, the Sunnah, the mind, science and culture. The Islamic society that emerged with the migration of Muhammad from Mecca to Medina in 622 was the beginning of a new civilization. This civilization has created a society based on the unity of belief, which goes beyond the principles of language, color, race, geography, blood ties and nationality. According to the French-born Muslim philosopher Roger Garaudy, this society had a very different, universal and transcendent character than the previous ones. Because the principles of the Arab society from which the prophet came, on the contrary, were based on the principles of tribe, cognate and nationality. While this society was based on the rich-poor, male-female, slave-master and black-white distinctions, the Islamic society abolished all these distinctions and was based on the principles of equality, justice, right, law and piety. The purpose of this society, which is the dual aspect of the Islamic society, which is based on the material and spiritual aspects of the Islamic religion, which is based on happiness in both the world and the hereafter, is to order goodness and prevent evil. Thus, the civilization in question both strengthened its own social structure and contributed to world peace. Garaudy opposes those who say that the Islamic civilization is not original but a product of collection and imitation, and says that this civilization is original and noble and its source is based on revelation. It is a region where great civilizations that left their mark on history such as Sassanid, Byzantine, Mesopotamian, African, Indian and Chinese civilizations were influential in the geography where Islamic civilization spread. While Garaudy attributes the reasons for the collapse of this great civilization, which dominated three continents, to the loss of its lively and dynamic character, he also lists some other reasons. He stated that the most important of these are sectarian bigotry and Muslims' distancing from understanding the Qur'an. According to him, the Qur'an is not a book that addresses only the seventh century. He says that the Qur'an addresses every age on its own terms. During the periods when this address of the divine revelation was fully understood, the Islamic society saw peaks in many areas. For example, during the Andalusian Umayyads, Islamic civilization rose to the position of the most developed country in the world. But when it moved away from its main sources, the decline started and the Islamic civilization went into a collapse.

  • Issue Year: 9/2023
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 483-501
  • Page Count: 19
  • Language: Turkish