9.3 Kita Adalah yang Terbaru dan Terhebat (Kata-Kata Terakhir yang Terkenal)
9.3 We Are The Latest And Greatest (famous Last Words)
Moderniti dan al-Quran
Modernity and the Quran
Salah satu pendorong utama progresivisme moral ialah kepercayaan terhadap kemajuan sains. Jika pengetahuan kita tentang sains dan teknologi telah maju begitu jauh di zaman moden, maka wajarlah dikatakan bahawa kita sebagai sebuah tamadun juga telah maju dari segi moral, dan bahawa ilmu moral kita lebih unggul daripada ilmu bangsa-bangsa terdahulu. Hujah sebegini bukanlah sesuatu yang baharu. Semua tamadun besar pernah meyakini perkara yang sama tentang diri mereka sendiri, dan ini ialah sikap minda yang secara langsung ditentang dalam al-Quran apabila Allah memerintahkan kita supaya memerhati sisa-sisa dan runtuhan tamadun-tamadun terdahulu, yang walaupun mencapai kejayaan teknikal yang hebat, telah dibinasakan kerana kesombongan dan pemberontakan mereka terhadap Tuhan dan para rasul-Nya. Malah, al-Quran melangkah lebih jauh lagi dengan menyatakan bahawa bukan sahaja kamu silap kerana bersikap sombong dengan menganggap kekuatan dan pencapaian teknikal kamu menjamin kebenaran dan keunggulan moral, tetapi kamu juga silap kerana menyangka bahawa kamu ialah tamadun yang paling kuat dan paling maju dalam sejarah. Sebenarnya, ada yang lebih hebat daripada kamu dari segi kekuatan, jumlah, dan kesan mereka terhadap muka bumi.
One of the main drivers of moral progressivism is the belief in scientific progress. If our knowledge of science and technology has advanced so much in the modern era, then it stands to reason that we as a civilization have also advanced morally, that our moral knowledge also is superior to that of peoples in the past. This line of reasoning is not new. It is something all major civilizations have believed of themselves, and it is a mindset that is directly opposed in the Quran when Allah tells us to look at the remnants and ruins of past civilizations who, despite their great technical achievements, were destroyed for their arrogance and rebellion against God and His messengers. In fact, the Quran goes further than this by saying, not only are you wrong for being arrogant in thinking that your strength and technical achievement translates to rectitude and moral superiority, but you are also wrong for thinking that you are the strongest and most technically advanced civilization of history. There were others greater in strength, numbers, and impact on the land.
"Tidakkah mereka mengembara di muka bumi dan melihat bagaimana kesudahan orang-orang sebelum mereka? Padahal mereka lebih hebat daripada mereka dari segi kekuatan."
“Have they not traveled through the land and observed how was the end of those before them? And they were greater than them in power.”
Fatir (Q35:44)
Fatir (Q35:44)
Adakah mereka tidak mengembara di muka bumi dan memerhatikan bagaimana kesudahan orang-orang sebelum mereka? Mereka lebih kuat daripada mereka dan lebih banyak meninggalkan kesan di muka bumi, tetapi Allah menimpakan azab ke atas mereka kerana dosa-dosa mereka. Dan mereka tidak mempunyai sesiapa pun yang dapat melindungi mereka daripada Allah.
“Have they not traveled through the land and observed how was the end of those who were before them? They were greater than them in strength and in impression on the land, but Allah seized them for their sins. And they had not from Allah any protector.”
Ghafir (Q40:21)
Ghafir (Q40:21)
Adakah mereka tidak mengembara di muka bumi lalu memerhatikan bagaimana kesudahan orang-orang sebelum mereka? Mereka lebih ramai daripada mereka dan lebih hebat kekuatannya serta lebih banyak kesan mereka di muka bumi, tetapi apa yang mereka usahakan tidak memberi manfaat kepada mereka.
“Have they not traveled through the land and observed how was the end of those before them? They were more numerous than themselves and greater in strength and in impression on the land, but they were not availed by what they used to earn.”
Ghafir (Q40:82)
Ghafir (Q40:82)
"Apakah mereka tidak mengembara di muka bumi lalu memerhatikan bagaimana akibat orang-orang sebelum mereka? Mereka itu lebih kuat daripada mereka dan lebih banyak mengolah bumi serta memakmurkannya daripada yang telah dimakmurkan oleh mereka, dan para rasul mereka datang kepada mereka dengan membawa bukti-bukti yang nyata. Maka Allah sekali-kali tidak menzalimi mereka, tetapi merekalah yang menzalimi diri mereka sendiri."
“Have they not traveled through the earth and observed how was the end of those before them? They were greater than them in power, and they plowed the earth and built it up more than they have built it up, and their messengers came to them with clear evidences. And Allah would not ever have wronged them, but they were wronging themselves.”
Ar-Rum (Q30:9)
Ar-Rum (Q30:9)
"Kami tinggikan darjat sesiapa yang Kami kehendaki, tetapi di atas setiap orang yang berilmu ada lagi yang lebih mengetahui."
“We raise in degrees whom We will, but over every possessor of knowledge is one [more] knowing.”
Yusuf (Q12:76)
Yusuf (Q12:76)
Kita mungkin tertanya-tanya sama ada terdapat tamadun-tamadun dahulu yang lebih maju dari segi teknologi berbanding kita pada hari ini. Hanya Allah yang mengetahui. Kita tidak sepatutnya membuat andaian secara automatik bahawa tidak ada. Yang lebih penting, kita tidak sepatutnya menilai nilai sesuatu kaum berdasarkan sejauh mana mereka "moden", tetapi berdasarkan sejauh mana mereka selaras sepenuhnya dengan apa yang dibawa oleh Rasul yang terakhir ﷺ.
We might wonder whether there were past civilizations that were more technically advanced than ours today. Only Allah knows. We shouldn’t automatically assume that there weren’t. More importantly, we should not judge a people’s values by how “modern” they are but by how completely they accord with what the last Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم has brought.