THE ISLAMIC APPROACH TO LIFE: THE FOUNDATIONS
We are living in a period of cultural cnsls. It seems as if the
very foundations of contemporary society are being threatened
from within and without. The family, as a basic and most sensitive
institution of culture, is being undermined by powerful and
destructive forces.
1
All the symptoms suggest that the crisis in general is deepening
and the institution of the family is, in particular, weakening,
even disintegrating in Europe and America.
2 It is time to pause for
a while and re-examine the foundations on which family life is
built in the contemporary West and also to study alternative foundations
and structures in other cultural traditions. This will help
contemporary man to identify the nature of the crisis that confronts
him today and will also point to some of the possibilities
that are still open to him. I would like to discuss in the following
pages the concept of family life in Islam, its foundations, structure
and principles.
We shall be in a better position to understand the institution of
the family in Islam if we start by a brief statement about the
Islamic approach to life, religion and culture.
1 .
TswlJid: The Oneness of God
Islam affirms the Oneness of God and His indivisible sovereignty
1. See:
Da~iel Bell. The Coming of Post-Industrial Society, (London: Heinemann. 1974);
Robert L. Helibroner. The Human Prospect, The New York Review of Books. January 24.
1974; and Pitrim A. Sorokin. Social Philosophies of an Age of Crisis, (London: Adam
& Charles Black. 1950).
2. This is borne out by the explosion of sex outside marriage. by the exponential rise in
divorce and desertion rates. in broken homes. in abortions and illegitimate births and
in juvenile delinquency. and by the plight of the aged. See J. Dominian. The Marriage
Relationship Today, (London: The Mothers' Union. 1974); Vance Packard. Tha Sexual
Wilderness, (New York: David McKay Co .. 196B); '1viarjorie Rittwagen. Sins of
Their Fathers, (Boston: Houghton Mifflin. 195B).
of the Universe. God is the Creator, the Master and the Sustainer
of all that exists. Everything is operating according to His plan. He
has revealed, through His Prophets, the Right Path for the
guidance of mankind. All Prophets (peace be upon them) have
preached the same message - that of acceptance of God's
sovereignty. They invited men and women to a life of virtue, purity,
justice and peace. and to act according to the guidance He has
revealed. All Prophets. from Adam, Noah and Ibrahim (Abraham)
to Musa (Moses), 'Ts5 (Jesus) and
Mu~ammad (peace and
blessings of God be on them) taught the same religion of acceptance
of and submission to God and commitment to peace, i.e.
Islam.3 Man's failure lies in not protecting and preserving the
teachings of the earlier Prophets. As such, the Prophet Muf:1ammad
(peace be upon him) was raised to restate the original message.
to present it in its perfect form and to preserve it in such a way
that the word of God would no longer be confused with the word
of man.4
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THE ISLAMIC APPROACH TO LIFE: THE FOUNDATIONS 
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