1-The
claim that Muslims did not respect the ancient civilizations is a false and
unjust allegation. In fact they benefited from the positive aspects of these
civilizations and they translated many Greek, Persian and Indian books into
Arabic, solemnly believing that human heritage includes the skills, the
experience and the learning of different nations all of which should be
employed for the benefit of mankind. In this respect the Prophet
said:"Seek knowledge even if it is in China".This means that one
should seek to acquire knowledge even in a land that does not believe in
one's faith and even if it were at the other end of the world since at that
time China was considered the most distant place on earth.
2-
The Muslim philosopher Ibn Rushed explained the Muslim's attitude concerning
the ancient civilization in the following passage. "The religion of Islam
urges us to read the books of the civilization that preceded us provided that
their aim was to guide people to the truth which our faith urges us to follow.
This includes the use of our powers of comprehension and reasoning in studying
all created beings ." Ibn Rushd then added:" We must study and
understand what they wrote in their books .It is then up to us to accept what
is consistent with our beliefs to be grateful to them. However, whatever is not
consistent with our beliefs should not confuse us , but we should reject it ,
warn others about it and not blame them in any way."
3-
It is a historical fact the Muslims did not set fire to the Library of Alexandria. This unjust
and unfounded accusation has been ascribed to the Muslims by the enemies of
Islam who spread this rumour, which was confirmed in peoples' minds as if it
were an established fact .This false accusation was spread during the
thirteenth century A.D.as a result of the aggressive attitude of the Crusaders,
and it is still repeated up to this very day in spite of the authentic proof of
objective historians who have refuted it.
The
origin of this false allegation goes back to Omar ben Al Khattab, the second
Orthodox Caliph, who was falsely accused of having given the order to set fire
to the Library. He was also falsely accused of having said that if the books in
the library contained what was written in the Quran, then they were useless and
if these books contained any contradiction to what was written in the Quran ,
then they must be destroyed. It has been proved beyond a shadow of doubt that
'Omar never made such a statement . Another accusation which is equally false
and unjust is that the Muslim Arabs used books in the library as fuel for the
public baths for six whole months.
4-
Sigrid Hunke presented documentary evidence in her books :
"
Allah is completely different ",proving that the Arabs entered Alexandria
in the year 642 A.D. and that there had been no library in Egypt then, since
the library had been burned and destroyed centuries before that date .She also
added that there were no public baths in Egypt during that era. Sigrid Hunke stated
that the old library annexed to the academy founded by Ptolomy the First (
Soter) about the year 300 B.C. was burned in the year 47 B.C. when Julius
Caesar besieged the city. The library was later rebuilt by Cleopatra who
furnished it with books from Bergamun.
5- The third century A.D witnessed the beginning of the organized destruction
of the Library of Alexandria.
Emperor Caracal suspended the Academy, and religious fundamentalists set fire
to the library, which they considered to be a manifestation of Paganism. In the
year 391 A.D. Patriarch Theophilos obtained the permission of Emperor
Theodosios to destroy what remained of the Academy and to set fire to the
annexed library which at that time, contained three hundred thousand scrolls,
in order to found a church and a monastery in its place .Destruction of the
library was resumed in the fifth century A.D .during the attack launched upon
the Pagan men of learning and scholars and their places of worship in addition
to the destruction of their library.
The
aforementioned facts prove that the allegations concerning setting fire to the
library of Alexandria were spread in order to distort the image of Islam so
that the Muslims would appear to be the enemies of learning and civilization,
when in fact they were completely innocent of the crime they had been accused
of .