Distinctive Characteristics of Islamic Civilisation: A Qur’ânic Perspective
Kabuye Uthman Sulaiman*
ABSTRACT
A new civilisation is born when another civilisation passes away or goes into a state of decline. After many centuries of existence, The Islamic civilisation has gone into a state of decline. The decline saw the emergence of a new civilisation known as the modern Western civilisation which is believed to have contributed enormously to the physical development of human civilisation and to be the greatest enemy of mankind because of its secularization philosophical program. Several studies indicate that the foundation of this latter civilisation was laid by the early Muslims but in no way are they the same. The aim of this paper is not to prove or disapprove the argument that the early Muslims laid the foundation for the modern Western civilisation, but rather to expound the distinctive characteristics of Islamic civilisation from the standpoint of the Holy Qur’Én. To achieve this aim, the study begins with an overview of Islamic conception of man, followed by an analysis of the meaning of ‘Islamic civilisation’ and the factors that contributed to its construction.