[Islam and Sustainable Development: A Review of Bediüzzaman Saïd Nursi’s Philosophy]
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37231/jimk.2021.22.2.601Abstract
Islam, the most sustainable environmental friendly religion, suggests a development model appropriate for humankind in all the times. On the one hand, this suggestion is based on the Holy Qur’an and Sunnah—the ultimate guidelines for humankind. On the other hand, this suggestion is derived from the principles of ecological balance, justice, rights and human welfare. Islamic worldview ensures a sustainable development worldview not just suitable for existing generations but all the generations coming future and preserve the integrity, rights and beauty of other natural elements. Destruction has been forbidden is Islam whereas the fulfillment of basic needs of all the creations is ensured in nature. In the 1987 Report of World Commission on Environment and Development (usually known as Brundtland Commission Report) sustainable development is defined in relation to the “needâ€. It notes about sustainable development, “Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own need†(Brundtland, 1987: 24). What is “need†in Islam? Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, an influential Muslim thinker in 1870s, has illustrated the complex relation of development, need and responsibility to the environment with great spiritual power. His outstanding analysis of interconnectedness in nature and its relation to the Divine Authority unveils a holistic-spiritualistic approach of development. The paper aims to analyze the Islamic approach to the sustainable development. In this connection, the term “need†has been explained in the light of the Holy Qur’an and Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu ’alaihi wa sallam). Finally, it examines and applies Bediüzzaman Saïd Nursi’s thought to the environment and development.
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