Rasulullah "sall-Allahu 'alaihi wa sallam' declared, "Work for your worldly affairs as if
you would never die!" A hadith ash-Sharif quoted by al-Imam al-Manawi states, "Al-hikmatu
dallat al-Mumin". (Scientific knowledge is the lost property of the Believer. He should get it
wherever he finds it!) Whether inimical or friendly, all men of science unanimously state that the
Islamic religion supports the progress of societies and sheds a light on the way to civilization.
For example, British Lord John Davenport stated, "No people have ever come who respected
knowledge and culture more deeply than Muslims do," and explained in detail with examples
and documents that Islam guided societies to progress and welfare.
In a speech to an enormous audience in 1972, Dr. Kiris Traglor, American professor of history at
the Technical University of Texas, stated that the source of inspiration and development for the
European Renaissance was Islam, that Muslims, coming to Spain and Sicily, had laid the
foundations of modern techniques and developments and had taught that scientific progress
would be possible only through improvement in chemistry, medicine, astronomy, navigation,
geography, cartography and mathematics, and that these branches of knowledge had been
brought to Europe through north Africa and Spain by Muslims. He further stressed the
contribution of written Islamic knowledge on valuable parchments and papyri in the useful
development of the modern press. The lies of an immoral, vicious enemy of Islam, who has no
share in knowledge besides sheer title, certainly cannot cover up this fact. The sun cannot be
plastered with sticky mud.

Let us quote two of the millions of passages praising Islam's illuminating the way of civilization.
We will select them not from the East, which he slanders and dislikes, but from the West, which
he admires: Mocheim said, "It is an absolute fact that the scientific knowledge, physics,
chemistry, astronomy and mathematics, that has spread over Europe since the tenth century was
adopted from Islamic schools, and especially that the Muslims in Andalusia (Spain) were
Europe's masters. The Romans and the Goths had struggled for two hundred years in order to
capture Andalusia, whereas Muslims conquered the peninsula in twenty years. Crossing the
Pyrenees, they spread up to France. Muslims' superiority with respect to knowledge, wisdom and
morals was no less than the affectivity of their arms." Lord Davenport said, "Europe is indebted
to Muslims today, too. Hadrat Muhammad "alaihi 's-salam" s
83d
aid, "Dignity, honor and superiority
are measured not by property but by knowledge and wisdom.' Islamic States have been
administered by the most powerful hands for centuries. Muslims' spreading over three continents
has become the most honorable victory in history."
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As a matter of fact, a hadith of Rasul-i
akram (the Prophet) states: "Hikmat (that is science and art) is the lost property of the Muslims.
Let him take it wherever he finds it!" Yet, this is not following the Europeans; it is finding and
acquiring knowledge and science even from them and striving to be superior to them.