The lost pride of Islamic golden age

With a community of 1.6 billion people, Muslims have produced only 12 Nobel Laureates over the past century, of which only 2 have been recognized for contribution towards sciences

The Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) said: “Seek knowledge even as far as China”. In the context of ancient and medieval times it is interpreted as, Muslims should not hesitate to acquire wisdom and knowledge from all potential sources, even if it happens to be coming from non-Islamic lands. The Abbasids who established the Islamic Caliphate in Baghdad in 750 AD after toppling the Umayyad Dynasty were probably the first sincere adherents of this advice by the Prophet (PBUH) in the truest sense.

With a community of 1.6 billion people, Muslims have produced only 12 Nobel Laureates over the past century, of which only 2 have been recognized for contribution towards sciences. This number dwarfs in comparison to the world’s Jewish community, which has produced 197 Nobel Laureates from among a global diaspora of approximately 6 million Jews. According to statistical compilation in 2007 by Pew Research, Muslim nations spend only 0.2 percent of GDP on scientific research and development as against western nations which spend approximately 5 percent of GDP on such activities.

A UN report published in 2002 came to the conclusion that the entire Arab world translates approximately 330 books annually, which is no more than one-fifth the number being translated by Greece annually. It also states that in the past 1,000 years or so since the reign of Abbasid Caliph Al Ma’amun (813-833 AD) (who initiated a revolutionary “translation movement” in the medieval age), Arabs have translated as many books as Spain does in one year alone.

It does not require a genius to figure out that something is dismally wrong with the Muslim world as it lags so far behind everyone else when it comes to producing quality scientific and literary work. More so, since the above statistics are representative of the same civilization which, at one point, led the world in scientific research and discoveries during medieval period and was the torchbearer to European renaissance and enlightenment.

One can imagine, if great medieval Islamic scientists such as Ibn Sina, Al Razi, Al Farabi, Ibn Haytham and other were to be re-born today, they would be totally speechless and dumbfounded at the nadir this once great civilisation has hit.

Scholars and analysts have come up with many different reasons for this precipitous decline such as victory of Ashar’ism (led by the great Islamic scholar Imam Al Ghazali) which received state patronage during Seljuq period over Mu’tazilism, Sack of Baghdad by the Mongols in 1258, Spanish Reconquista in 1492 and others. There is no ambiguity that the above events have contributed significantly to the direction Islamic philosophy took in the post medieval age, especially considering the fact that the above events occurred in quick succession to each other and which never really gave enough opportunity for any sort of revival of Islamic intellectualism to take hold from there on. Before we go deeper into the reasons for this decline let us go back in time to get some sense of what the Islamic Golden Age was like between 8th to the 13th Century.

The Islamic Golden Age lasted from the 8th to 13th Century which was also the period when Abbasid Caliphate reigned the vast expanse of land from eastern Mediterranean to borders of India. Unlike their predecessors, the Umayyads, who were more tribal, conservative and ethnically oriented, the Abbasids were more cosmopolitan in their outlook towards managing the caliphate and were relatively open to receiving ideas from all quarters, Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

There were a lot of new converts to Islam from other pre-Islamic religions such as Soroastrianism, Buddhism, Nestorian Christians, and Manichaenism who occupied prominent offices in the Abbasid Caliphate and brought in novel ideas from their cultures and religions. One such family was of the Barmakids, who were Buddhists ancestrally from the Greco-Bactrian region near Balkh, but were rewarded with the highest offices in the Abbasid Caliphate of the “vizeirate”. The administration and financial coffers of the caliphate were under the complete control of Barmakids until they fell out of favor in 803 AD due to internal strife. The prominent Persian “Bukhtishu” family from Gundeshapur. who were Assyrian Nestorian Christians, acted as personal physicians to Abbasid Caliphs such as Harun-Al Rashid and Al Ma’amun, a job generally entrusted to the most faithful and trustworthy. They enjoyed complete support of the Abbasid and contributed tremendously to early Islamic medicine. The first true Islamic hospital (called “bimaristan”) was established in Baghdad under the reign of Caliph Harun Al Rashid and his chief physician Jabril Ibn Bukhtishu’s son was invited to head this hospital.

Similarly, other Nestorian Christians (such as Hunayn Ibn Ishaq) who were learned in Greek sciences were given vital intellectual positions and were involved in massive “translation movements” undertaken during the reign of Caliph Al Ma’amun which resulted in thousands of ancient Greek, Persian and Indian philosophical texts being translated into Arabic.

The writer  is an independent analyst,researcher & commentator on Middle Eastern affairs and Islamic History.Based in Dubai over past 12 years, he works in the private sector

These works were carried out at the “Bayt Al Hikma” (known as House of  the ink of the books thalamic universities adapt to the 21st Century demands by embracing changes where required there cannot be any improvement in the condition of Muslims, let alone reviving the lost Islamic golden age. Historically, Muslims have proven once, that they have the necessary caliber to lead the world in the right direction and they have everything that it takes to revive the glorious Islamic past only if they overcome the myopic outlook consuming their minds for small political gains and take the initiative to pick up on the works and writings of their once glorious ancestors whose legacy unfortunately gathers dust in world libraries.

The lost pride of Islamic golden age

With a community of 1.6 billion people, Muslims have produced only 12 Nobel Laureates over the past century, of which only 2 have been recognized for contribution towards sciences

The Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) said: Seek knowledge even as far as China. In the context of ancient and medieval times it is interpreted as, Muslims should not hesitate to acquire wisdom and knowledge from all potential sources, even if it happens to be coming from non-Islamic lands. The Abbasids who established the Islamic Caliphate in Baghdad in 750 AD after toppling the Umayyad Dynasty were probably the first sincere adherents of this advice by the Prophet (PBUH) in the truest sense. With a community of 1.6 billion people, Muslims have produced only 12 Nobel Laureates over the past century, of which only 2 have been recognized for contribution towards sciences. This number dwarfs in comparison to the worlds Jewish community, which has produced 197 Nobel Laureates from among a global diaspora of approximately 6 million Jews. According to statistical compilation in 2007 by Pew Research, Muslim nations spend only 0.2 percent of GDP on scientific research and development as against western nations which spend approximately 5 percent of GDP on such activities. A UN report published in 2002 came to the conclusion that the entire Arab world translates approximately 330 books annually, which is no more than one-fifth the number being translated by Greece annually. It also states that in the past 1,000 years or so since the reign of Abbasid Caliph Al Maamun (813-833 AD) (who initiated a revolutionary translation movement in the medieval age), Arabs have translated as many books as Spain does in one year alone. It does not require a genius to figure out that something is dismally wrong with the Muslim world as it lags so far behind everyone else when it comes to producing quality scientific and literary work. More so, since the above statistics are representative of the same civilization which, at one point, led the world in scientific research and discoveries during medieval period and was the torchbearer to European renaissance and enlightenment. One can imagine, if great medieval Islamic scientists such as Ibn Sina, Al Razi, Al Farabi, Ibn Haytham and other were to be re-born today, they would be totally speechless and dumbfounded at the nadir this once great civilisation has hit. Scholars and analysts have come up with many different reasons for this precipitous decline such as victory of Asharism (led by the great Islamic scholar Imam Al Ghazali) which received state patronage during Seljuq period over Mutazilism, Sack of Baghdad by the Mongols in 1258, Spanish Reconquista in 1492 and others. There is no ambiguity that the above events have contributed significantly to the direction Islamic philosophy took in the post medieval age, especially considering the fact that the above events occurred in quick succession to each other and which never really gave enough opportunity for any sort of revival of Islamic intellectualism to take hold from there on. Before we go deeper into the reasons for this decline let us go back in time to get some sense of what the Islamic Golden Age was like between 8th to the 13th Century. The Islamic Golden Age lasted from the 8th to 13th Century which was also the period when Abbasid Caliphate reigned the vast expanse of land from eastern Mediterranean to borders of India. Unlike their predecessors, the Umayyads, who were more tribal, conservative and ethnically oriented, the Abbasids were more cosmopolitan in their outlook towards managing the caliphate and were relatively open to receiving ideas from all quarters, Muslims and non-Muslims alike. There were a lot of new converts to Islam from other pre-Islamic religions such as Soroastrianism, Buddhism, Nestorian Christians, and Manichaenism who occupied prominent offices in the Abbasid Caliphate and brought in novel ideas from their cultures and religions. One such family was of the Barmakids, who were Buddhists ancestrally from the Greco-Bactrian region near Balkh, but were rewarded with the highest offices in the Abbasid Caliphate of the vizeirate. The administration and financial coffers of the caliphate were under the complete control of Barmakids until they fell out of favor in 803 AD due to internal strife. The prominent Persian Bukhtishu family from Gundeshapur. who were Assyrian Nestorian Christians, acted as personal physicians to Abbasid Caliphs such as Harun-Al Rashid and Al Maamun, a job generally entrusted to the most faithful and trustworthy. They enjoyed complete support of the Abbasid and contributed tremendously to early Islamic medicine. The first true Islamic hospital (called bimaristan) was established in Baghdad under the reign of Caliph Harun Al Rashid and his chief physician Jabril Ibn Bukhtishus son was invited to head this hospital. Similarly, other Nestorian Christians (such as Hunayn Ibn Ishaq) who were learned in Greek sciences were given vital intellectual positions and were involved in massive translation movements undertaken during the reign of Caliph Al Maamun which resulted in thousands of ancient Greek, Persian and Indian philosophical texts being translated into Arabic. The writer is an independent analyst,researcher commentator on Middle Eastern affairs and Islamic History.Based in Dubai over past 12 years, he works in the private sector These works were carried out at the Bayt Al Hikma (known as House of the ink of the books thalamic universities adapt to the 21st Century demands by embracing changes where required there cannot be any improvement in the condition of Muslims, let alone reviving the lost Islamic golden age. Historically, Muslims have proven once, that they have the necessary caliber to lead the world in the right direction and they have everything that it takes to revive the glorious Islamic past only if they overcome the myopic outlook consuming their minds for small political gains and take the initiative to pick up on the works and writings of their once glorious ancestors whose legacy unfortunately gathers dust in world libraries.