Islam and science

Abstract

Science, or at least knowledge, has always had a special status in Islamic culture. As Abdus Salam, the Nobel Prize in physics winner, often noted, some 750 verses of the Qur’an describe the natural world, referring to the Creator and our existence; in contrast, fewer than 250 verses instruct Muslims about various actions in their lives. During its Golden Age, the Islamic civilization produced countless first-rate thinkers and researchers, leading to seminal scientific developments and contributions over many centuries. Generally, Muslims insist that no conflict arose then between Islamic theology and science’s results or methodology.