Is Intellect Antagonistic To Religion?

Question

I was reading an article on your site: Dress below the ankles. I have a question for you. I heard some people arguing over this question that dress should be above ankle and I have seen people doing this during their prayers. It never made sense to me that such thing could be requirement enforced by religion. So I never cared about it.

Now coming to my question which is a bit general: I normally try to think religion in a logical sense. If there is some injunction, then it should have some sense and some purpose behind it. I always doubt things which do not seem to have any purpose behind it. So my question is how true is it? Someone argued with me that you cannot weigh islamic injunctions through logic and sense? Do you have any reference for it or you can point me to something.

Response

The fact of the matter is that God Almighty has required every person to use 'aqal', i.e. intellect. The concept that one should not use intellect in understanding Islam has no basis in Quran and is in fact contrary to its teachings. After all God gave every human being each of the faculties they have then how can He have them not use one of them in study of the religion! Quran, on the other hand, invites non-Muslims with logical arguments. I believe that this concept is a mistaken one and everyone who believes that intellect cannot be used needs to address it again in the light of Quran. Consider the following:

إِنَّ فِي خَلْقِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَاخْتِلاَفِ اللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ وَالْفُلْكِ الَّتِي تَجْرِي فِي الْبَحْرِ بِمَا يَنفَعُ النَّاسَ وَمَا أَنزَلَ اللّهُ مِنَ السَّمَاء مِن مَّاء فَأَحْيَا بِهِ الأرْضَ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهَا وَبَثَّ فِيهَا مِن كُلِّ دَآبَّةٍ وَتَصْرِيفِ الرِّيَاحِ وَالسَّحَابِ الْمُسَخِّرِ بَيْنَ السَّمَاء وَالأَرْضِ لآيَاتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَعْقِلُونَ

In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the difference of night and day, and the ships which run upon the sea with that which is of use to men, and the water which God sends down from the sky, thereby reviving the earth after its death, and dispersing all kinds of beasts therein, and in the ordinance of the winds, and the clouds ordained between the heaven and earth, are signs for people who have sense (aqal). (Quran 2:164)

هُوَ الَّذِي جَعَلَ الشَّمْسَ ضِيَاء وَالْقَمَرَ نُورًا وَقَدَّرَهُ مَنَازِلَ لِتَعْلَمُواْ عَدَدَ السِّنِينَ وَالْحِسَابَ مَا خَلَقَ اللّهُ ذَلِكَ إِلاَّ بِالْحَقِّ يُفَصِّلُ الآيَاتِ لِقَوْمٍ يَعْلَمُونَ * إِنَّ فِي اخْتِلاَفِ اللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ وَمَا خَلَقَ اللّهُ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ لآيَاتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَتَّقُونَ

He it is Who appointed the sun a splendour and the moon a light, and measured for her stages, so that you may know the number of the years, and the reckoning. God did not create all without purpose. He explains His signs for people who want to know. Lo! in the difference of day and night and all that God created in the heavens and the earth are portents, verily, for those who ward off evil. (Quran 10:5-6)

Not only that, even when it presents the ideas of halaal and haraam – let alone the belief in God and the Hereafter – it still presents arguments and asks its addressees to provide evidence in return. I have failed to understand why people suggest that logic cannot be used in religion. For instance,

قُلْ أَرَأَيْتُم مَّا أَنزَلَ اللّهُ لَكُم مِّن رِّزْقٍ فَجَعَلْتُم مِّنْهُ حَرَامًا وَحَلاَلاً قُلْ آللّهُ أَذِنَ لَكُمْ أَمْ عَلَى اللّهِ تَفْتَرُونَ

Say, "Do you see that you have forbidden some and made lawful some of that which God has sent down to you?" Say: "Has God indeed permitted it to you, or do you invent and attribute against God?" (Quran 10:59)

So for the part of the use of intellect in religion, there is no reason whatsoever to believe that intellect cannot be used in religion. In fact, Quran condemns those who do not use their intellect. Quran says thus,

وَمَا كَانَ لِنَفْسٍ أَن تُؤْمِنَ إِلاَّ بِإِذْنِ اللّهِ وَيَجْعَلُ الرِّجْسَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ لاَ يَعْقِلُونَ

And He casts uncleanness on those who do not use intellect (aqal). (Quran 10:100)

As a result, those who stress that intellect is antagonist to religion need to answer that how else should have God asked us to use our intellect. In addition to that, on what basis are they saying that intellect cannot be used in religion, and if it is a requirement put forth by God for us?

You may also want to see Quran Addresses the Intellect section in my Understanding the Quran article.

At the same time, I will also suggest that using intellect does not mean that we reject everything that does not appeal us. Rather it means that we continue to investigate and find why somebody is making a particular case, say dress ankles for instance. This is like a question of any other sciences - mathematics or physics, whatever you want - where when one is unable to solve it, they spend days and months researching to find a solution. One approach could have been just to say that the issue at hand is against logic and hence I will not follow it. The other approach is to request the person to bring forth their sources, or even research and understand the issue at your own. If at the end of your research you are convinced that it is a direct Islamic commandment then you shall have to follow it. However, if you are convinced otherwise then there is no obligation upon you to follow it and you can present your findings to those who suggested it to you in the first place. People are not always perceptive in matters of religion and you may not be successful, in which case you should present it only to those who are willing to listen to you. It should not happen, however, that you also completely close your ears under the banner of 'intellect' and not listen to them. There would be no difference between them and you then.

I agree with you that it is important that we use our intellect in understanding the purpose behind commandments of God. Understanding this purpose and spirit is as important as actually knowing the commandment itself. It is probable that one may not be able to understand wisdom behind God's every command, but as long as it is proven that it is from God, I think one must follow it. The reason being that I unable to understand wisdom behind one of God's commandment is my own limitation; any directive from God still has all the benefits that God, in His Ultimate Wisdom, ordained for us in that directive.