IDEA 29
Who Cares About Infinity (Besides Mathematicians)?
The objects of geometrical inquiry are so entirely abstracted from those pursuits which stir up and put in motion the unruly passions of the human heart, that mankind, without difficulty, adopt not only the more simple theorems of the science, but even those abstruse paradoxes which, however they may appear susceptible of demonstration, are at variance with the natural conceptions which the mind, without the aid of philosophy, would be led to entertain upon the subject. The INFINITE DIVISIBILITY of matter, or, in other words, the INFINITE divisibility of a FINITE thing, extending even to the minutest atom, is a point agreed among geometricians, though not less incomprehensible to common sense than any of those mysteries in religion against which the batteries of infidelity have been so industriously levelled. [The Federalist, Number 31]
Modern mathematicians love the concept of infinity; it allows them to dabble in intellectual domains that the classical geometricians regarded as literally out of bounds.
Scientists, on the other hand, are not so sure. Those who lean towards mathematics as a reliable interpreter of the universe are willing to ‘see’ infinity everywhere, even in finitude, as the quotation above indicates. Other scientists of a more practical bent consider observation to be the bedrock of their life’s work; infinity is by definition, as well as real life, unobservable.
Muslims, like mathematicians, believe in the unseen (Q2:3) if they are vigilant (Q2:2). When a mathematician tells me that the line running along the edge of my desk is infinitely divisible, I have no problem with that. I would say that the presence of infinity in finite things or quantities is the invisible fingerprint of AL-LAH that adheres to everything He creates. It retains its finite nature as a created thing, and yet bears the mark of its Infinite Maker in a way that can be argued for, as mathematicians do, but still requires faith insofar as it is “incomprehensible to common sense.”
Why do we believe in any kind of infinity? The Qur’an was revealed to an illiterate Prophet as a message to a people who were notably poetic, i.e., open to symbolism and metaphor, and also disinclined to think theoretically, unlike their Greco-Roman neighbours. You can see a visible shift in Arabic semantics and vocabulary as the abstract terms and generalizations of Plato and Arabic were absorbed into Muslim society by increasing urbanization and the educated classes of Syria and ‘Iraq converting to Islam. But an explicit concept or term for infinity is not found in the Qur’an. So what justifies our using it?
Abstract vocabulary is most useful for a people who are educated to think in philosophical terms, such as we in the West have been (until recently, perhaps), while less precise symbolic language works better, as it did for the Arabs in the Prophet’s time, who lived dramatically, thought poetically, and understood as much by connotation as we do by denotation. Rather than say that GOD is Infinite and Transcendent, we read that GOD is One, that there is no other god but He, that He knows all things, has power over all things, is neither born nor dies, and that He cannot be seen or comprehended in His Exalted Majesty. The former philosophical assertion could be considered a succinct version of the all the latter statements, but the latter ones have the advantage of emotional impact and ease of understanding for the common man. They can be applied to our lives in ways that ‘infinity’ can never match.
If numerical or mathematical infinity appeals to the mathematical mind and has its theoretical uses, then GOD’s Transcendental Infinity is even more important for our spiritual life.
There are three types of human beings in the world. Would-be animals, would-be angels, and the undecided. The would-be animals experience the limitless in only one way — their desires. They look around at the world and see a cramped container with competitors in it and a short span of time to gain as much from it as possible. And thus we have psychopaths, criminals, and those spiritually stunted persons whose eyes are so focused on their immediate advantage that their gaze is never rises to the higher dimensions of life.
The would-be angels regard the indefinability and freedom of the infinite as opportunities for knowledge, spiritual growth, and hope in an absolute justice that will overturn and wipe clean the darkness and decadence of this world. They believe in something higher and better than what they see around them; expressions such as Infinite Goodness and Divine Wisdom are like outward echoes of the inner longings they have always felt. Where do these longings come from? Who can say?
It is the animals who control the airwaves and the screens, and so can work their magic on the undecided as if they know what angels really want. Torn between alluring prospects and undeniable ideals, the undecided mass of mankind is held back from the Infinite by their endless yearnings stimulated by images, funneled into drugs, fueled by loneliness, and confused with the latest fads and fears. They stumble about amid bolts of lightning from on high and the oppressive darkness of a storm at night, as described in Q2:20. A peaceful heaven beckons them, and a bottomless abyss is drawing them closer to destruction. They are surrounded by the Infinite, but they know it not.
May GOD, in His Infinite Mercy, guide them and us on the upward way. We have only to turn a little to get a clear view of Infinity, of the Everafter.
Download the PDF version for free at Ideas Inspired by the Qur’ān – Mont Redmond complete version, or purchase a hard copy at Ideas Inspired by the Qur’an: Redmond, Mont: 9781738842506: Books – Amazon.ca.
Photo by Tim Mossholder on Pexels.com
