I should say that the dimensions of this birthday, which was followed by blessings and culminated in appointment of Muhammad as prophet and the descent of the divine revelation on the blessed heart of that master, have not yet become clear for humankind.
The one whom the holy Quran sought has not been discovered, as it should by the far-sighted people of the end of time. When one notices the amount that has been discovered and compares it with the pre-Islam sciences, philosophy and social justices, he will realizes that this same amount has brought about developments which are unprecedented in the world, and is unrivalled. In mystical journey, you notice what has prevailed in pre-Islam period and post-Islam period and what changes have been introduced by the teachings of the sacred Islam and the holy Quran.
While in pre-Islam period, there were great men such as Aristotle and his likes, but when one deliberates on their works, it becomes clear that they never smack of what is there in the Quran. Take the verses quoted in narrations handed down to us regarding the far-sighted people of the end of time such as the Chapter Hamd and six verses of Chapter Hadid for instance. I cannot imagine that the truth of these verses can be discovered by man, neither present day man nor the future ones the way it should be. Of course, many interpretations have so far been made thereof and many valuable research works have been conducted, but the horizon of the Quran goes beyond these attempts. Take the holy verse “He is the First and the Last, and the Outward and the Inward.” (Quran, 57: 3) One might imagine that the beginning of creation is Allah and end of it is Allah, that He is the outward according to His signs and inward in accordance to His Names. However, this is not basically the case in point as others and we have understood. The question is beyond these ones." He is the outward" negates the original appearance for other than Him. Appearance belongs to Him only. This is the fact of the matter. However, it is difficult to understand that appearance belongs to Him and that the universe and the entire existence are His manifestations. The term" with you" in the phrase" He is along with you" as cited in narrations signifies that He is with us. He is here and we are here. Philosophers interpret this as the company of guidance but does this guardianship solve the dilemma? Is it like the association in cause and effect? Is it like the association of manifestation and the possessor of manifestation? This is not the case. The far-sighted men at the end of time have understood the question better than others as far as the depth of their understanding is concerned.
Imam Baqir (a.s.) has been quoted as saying “I deduce all laws, rules and truths from ‘Samad’ (free from want).” (Tafsir al-Burhan, vol. 4, p. 526) This expression is noteworthy. Obviously, we can also understand the principles of knowledge, but his point goes beyond these definitions. Anyhow, it is of utmost regret for human beings who do not want to know, who fail to proceed with the track of knowledge and who have not taken steps towards knowledge of the book of God. They have not established relationship with the source of revelation to receive the interpretation from the source of revelation. That relationship only existed between the messenger of God and God and by the same token between prophet and a select few. Such is the case with regard to the philosophical questions. When you study the philosophy of Aristotle, which is perhaps the best kind of philosophy in pre-Islam era, you easily notice that it is very different for Islamic philosophy. Although his philosophy is very valuable and Avicenna has described Aristotle logic as impregnable, when comparing it with the Islamic philosophy we understand that they are worlds apart.
The Quran deals with all aspects of human life such as moral, educational and other issues. It attends to all needs and aspects of human beings, which are limitless, and all can avail of this great table in proportion to their capacity. Unfortunately, people do not make great use of this table, and all prophets from Adam to the last prophet did not accomplish the purpose they had. Although every from of perfection in the world stems from them, they could not achieve the purpose.
Sahifeh, vol. 18, Page: 215-217
Speech, December 22, 1983