What is the straight path?

desires—he was like a dog that pants whether you chase it away or leave it alone. Such are those who reject Our Signs. Tell them this story so they may reflect.” (7:176) Such verses as have termed people blind, deaf and dumb are not meant in the physical sense. Neither they were lying in some abysmal state of insanity. These people who are called deaf, dumb and blind were actually men of great learning and wisdom of their times. They built great houses and forts and were experts in business, agriculture and the cultivation of orchards. They were leading their nations. In connection with the above verse (7:176) the name of Arabia’s Umayyah bin Abi al-Salt is referred to. He was famous not only for his leadership and generosity but also for his poetry and wisdom. Similarly, a man of the later days of Moses, Bala’am, Son of Beor, is described in such terms, although he was one of the most distinguished men in Iraq, in learning and piety. According to Ubadah ibn As-Samit, this verse was also applied to the leaders of Quraysh, who were, in effect, leaders of the whole of Arabia, being custodians of the Kabah. That being so, why were they called blind and deaf. To understand this one should study the difference between man and animal. Apparently, animal has all that a man has and can do all that a man does. He moves about, eats and drinks, sees and hears, and feels pain and happiness. Wherein lies the difference? Biologists tell us what differentiates man from animal is his capacity for conceptual thought. That is to say that animals don’t possess this capability. This explains the difference between the human and the animal level. The animal state is to remain unmoved except by material realities, that is material loss and material gain. On the contrary, human level is that once the truth of something is established at the intellectual level, that should be accepted and life should be planned accordingly. The Quran says: This is the Book: There is no doubt in it. It is a guide for those who are mindful of God, who believe in the unseen’ (2:2-3) That is, the Quran cannot be a guide for those who are never