Islam, the West and the Muslim Mind – Do Muslims Still Have an Islamic Worldview?

In this episode, we are joined by Syed Muhammed Muhiyuddin al-Attas, a lecturer in Islamic thought whose academic work focuses on the Islamic worldview, the modern West, and the thought of the late Muslim thinker Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas. A special edition of 'The Muslim Conversation' hosted by Omar Alkhatib. We explore some of the most fundamental concepts we use to understand ourselves and the world around us: religion, freedom, happiness, knowledge and modernity. But do these concepts mean the same thing within an Islamic worldview as they do within modern Western thought? The conversation turns to modernity and secularization, and to why the West, according to al-Attas, should not simply be understood as a geographical region, but also as a particular worldview. We discuss what happens when Muslims adopt modern concepts and categories without examining the underlying assumptions they carry about the human being, God and reality. We also explore "adab" – a central concept in the thought of Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas – and the idea of recognizing and acknowledging the proper place of things. What does this mean for our understanding of knowledge, morality and the way we live our lives? Finally, the conversation moves from philosophy to the inner human being. What is the difference between Islamic self-discipline and modern self-help? Can knowledge truly transform a person if the heart does not follow? And what happens to our understanding of happiness and success when material life becomes the measure of a good life? A conversation about Islamic thought, the West, modernity, secularization, adab, and rediscovering the concepts through which we understand the world. Follow, like, comment and share 'Det, Muslimer Taler Om' on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok and your preferred podcast platforms.