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Muslim people. This also means opposing the atheistic position of the secular intellectuals who
defended Western concept of modernity and rejected Islam as a backward ideology. Both parties
had assumed a contradiction between the principles of modernity and Islam. One group, however,
sided with traditional Islam, whereas the other group defended modernity.
Contrary to both positions, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá argues, Islam requires a dynamic approach to religion
and society. He refers to the Islamic tradition according to which Muslims must seek knowledge
from any part of the world even from a far and non-Muslim country like China. He writes:
If it be objected that even where material affairs are concerned foreign importations are
inadmissible, such an argument would only establish the ignorance and absurdity of its
proponents. Have they forgotten the celebrated hadith (holy tradition): “Seek after
knowledge, even unto China”?
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Similarly, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá argues that progressive force of Islamic culture has been an important
cause of the cultural awakening of the medieval West which led to Renaissance, revival of classical
culture, and eventually Reformation. Furthermore, ‘Abdu’l-Bahá calls on Muslim ‘ulama to realize
the progressive role of Islam and initiate fundamental reform and rationalization of different
aspects of Iranian social and spiritual life. Given the political significance of ‘ulama in Iran,
‘Abdu’l-Bahá uses a holy tradition to explicate the duties and responsibilities of ‘ulama, true
scholarship, and the mission of intellectuals. In His detailed and innovative explication, ‘Abdu’l-
Bahá always emphasizes the need for flexibility, historical adaptability, and development of
science and learning in society.
The major difference between ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s interpretation of Islam and the interpretation shared
by both conservative ‘ulama and secular intellectuals is related to the fact that ‘Abdu’l-Bahá does
not equate spirit of Islam with traditionalism. This is the crucial difference. Since ‘Abdu’l-Bahá
emphasizes the dynamic spirit of Islam, consequently the spirit of Islam has to be expressed in
different times in accordance with the conditions of the time. It means that for ‘Abdu’l-Bahá the
spirit of Islam is in fact opposed to the return to past Islamic customs, laws, and traditions. The
specific form of Islamic culture in the beginning of Islam initiated a progressive civilization
precisely because its specific cultural practices corresponded with the objective needs of the time
and the stage of development of humanity. Insistence on traditionalism and calling for return to
past practices, on the other hand, would be totally opposed to both spirit of Islam, and the
requirements of an advancing civilization. In other words, for ‘Abdu’l-Bahá, the spirit of Islam is
not opposed to the authentic conceptions of the culture of modernity and rationalization.
The Secret
, therefore, argues that religion and modernity are not opposed to each other provided
that by religion we understand the spirit of religion and not glorification and worship of tradition.
But ‘Abdu’l-Bahá’s position is equally a rejection of the atheistic premises of the secular
intellectuals who defended modernity at the expense of spiritual and religious commitment. A
more detailed discussion of this issue will be attempted in the next section, but it is necessary to
point out that ‘Abdu’l-Bahá directly attacks the position of the French philosophy of the
Enlightenment concerning the role of religion in society. Contrary to atheistic assumptions of the
French Enlightenment, divine revelation, religious values, and belief in the sanctity of spiritual
guidance are not only necessary for effective order and morality, but also for social and cultural
progress, advancement, modernity, and development.