Tan Malaka. Philosophy of Life
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Philosophy of Life
Tan Malaka (1948)
Source:Translated by Chris Gray from Indonesian in April 2007. The translation source is
Pandangan Hidup,published by Lumpen (2000)
CONTENTS:
Translator's Introduction
I. Basic Conception
The Apeman
!arly Indonesia
Animism
The "eliefs of India
IndonesiaIndia
About the #rophet $oses
About the #rophet %esus
About the #rophet $uhammad
Ancient Greece
Alteration of the &ystem of #roduction The 'eliious uestion
#hilosophy
$aterialists and Idealists
The Gree* #hilosophers
$ediae+al #hilosophers
#hilosophers and the ,rench 'e+olution
-ialectical $aterialism
!mpirical &cience
The "ranches of !mpirical &cience
The b/ect $ethod Content and &pirit of !mpirical &cience
!astern &ociety and !mpirical &cience
The Gree*s as #ioneers of !mpirical &cience
Loic and -ialectics
II. The Concept of the State
The &tate
The Appearance of the &tate1s Collapse
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The Collapse of the &tate1s Appearance
Thesis Antithesis and &ynthesis
Translator's Introduction
&utan Ibrahim elar -atu* Tan $ala*a better *non as Tan $ala*a as probably born in
3457 in the +illae of #andam Gadan near &uli*i in the $inan*abau area of &umatra into a
entry family (his father as +illae headman). The name Tan $ala*a appears to be an honorary
title similar to the desination of an Irish clan chief as 61'ahilly (6The 1'ahilly in !nlish
usae). !ducation for Indonesians under -utch colonial rule hen Tan $ala*a as born as not
a+ailable abo+e teacher trainin le+el but as a promisin pupil Tan $ala*a attended teacher
trainin school in "u*ittini from 3504 to 3538 completin his studies in 9aarlem in 353:.
"ac* in &umatra he or*ed as a teacher in &umatra from 3535 to 3523. "y this time he had
become a communist. In 3520 he rote a pamphlet entitled 6&o+iet atau #arlement; (6&o+iets or
#arliament;) hich established him as a theoretician.
In ,ebruary 3523 he ent to %a+a and soon became prominent in the #etherlands and as elected to the -utch parliament
but as unable to ta*e his seat because it turned out that he as too youn. 9e then tra+elled to
'ussia here he attended the ,ourth Conress of the Communist International as deleate from
%a+a.
In 3528 he as appointed Comintern representati+e for &outheast Asia and settled in Canton.
The Indonesian communists decided to launch an uprisin. Tan $ala*a as con+inced ?correctly
as it turned out that the risin stood no chance of success. -espite his efforts to pre+ent it the
risin duly too* place in %a+a and &umatra in 352@27 and as duly suppressed by the -utch. It
as thus rouhly contemporaneous ith the eually disastrous 6Commune of Canton launched
by &talin and "u*harin in a desperate attempt to redress the balance after Chian
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9a+in been e/ected by the "ritish colonialists from 9on
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addressee. Tan $ala*a only uses 6*ami hen he means 6e $ar=ists. I ha+e not used this loss
as in all places the meanin is clear from the conte=t.
It is necessary to hihliht certain errors of interpretation and factual inaccuracies in the te=t.
To start ith the ancient Gree* philosopher 9era*leitos ould ha+e denounced the suestion
that he as a materialist ?an assessment put forard by Geore Thomson ho described hissystem as 6the ne plus ultra of materialist monism (6The ,irst #hilosophers Larence
Hishart 35:: p. 248). ,urthermore hile Tan $ala*a brac*ets -emo*ritos ith 9era*leitos as
a dialectician there is no e+idence that he as anythin of the sort. Also there seems to be no
e+idence that the mediae+al Arab philosopher Ibn 'ushd as a $u1tailite nor indeed that the
$u1tailites ere pioneer re+olutionaries and dialectical materialists. $o+in on to the ,rench
'e+olution hereas Tan $ala*a describes Lamartine as a philosopher of that period he as in
fact a poet and acti+e in 34B4E he as born in 3750 and died in 34@5.
There are a number of other uestionable assertions. ,or e=ample the notion that in the 9indu
6'amayana the hite mon*ey is a deroatory reference to Aryan necomers in the subcontinent
is unsupportable and the notion that the 9indu trinity is a refle=ion of concentration of poer
amon the Indian *indoms ill not stand up either. ur current *nolede of preIslamic society
in Arabia suests that class differentiation as already uite far ad+anced in $uhammad1s
lifetime and as in fact a prime factor hich impelled his ministryE see 'ea Aslan 6>o God
but GodE the riins !+olution and ,uture of Islam Arro "oo*s 200@. 9a+in said that Tan
$ala*a as uite correct to emphasie the sharp increase in ineuality in the Islamic orld hich
resulted from the e=tensi+e Arab conuests after the death of the #rophet.
n the sub/ect of the successi+e staes of modes of production the 6set of fi+e early
communism sla+e society feudalism capitalism and socialism hich Tan $ala*a holds to is
no loner uni+ersally accepted by $ar=ists especially as it lea+es out the socalled 6Asiatic $ode
of #roduction hich is clearly identifiable not only in Asia and Africa (ancient !ypt) but also
in preColumbian Latin America. It is interestin to note that Tan $ala*a specifically situates the
fi+e staes in !urope lea+in open the possibility for other types elsehere.
Tan $ala*a1s criticism of the #aris Commune must refer principally to $ar=1s censure of the
leaders for their failure to attac* their opponents militarily at Dersailles(see $ar= and !nels
&elected Hor*s Dolume I p. :3B) hile the latter ere still relati+ely ea* numerically. Tan
$ala*a must surely ha+e been aare of $ar=1s praise for the Communards1 insistence that the
commune should be an e=ecuti+e as ell as a leislati+e body that its officials should be
recallable and that the people1s representati+es should not dra inflated salaries.
I ha+e been able to trace only one uotation from 9eel utilied by Tan $ala*aE this is the one
from 9eel1s 6#hilosophy of 'iht here 9eel says in !nlish translationE 6The march of God
in the orld that is hat the state is. The uotation from !nels1s 6The riin of the ,amily#ri+ate #roperty and the &tate can be found in $ar= and !nels &elected Hor*s Dolume II p.
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835 and I ha+e incorporated the ordin there. Lenin1s obser+ations on bureaucracy and the army
as component parts of the state can be found in Lenin1s Collected Hor*s Dolume 2: p. B32.
The publisher1s introduction hich is not included here suests that interest in Tan $ala*a1s
ritins increased mar*edly folloin the 6Asian Crisis of the late 20th Century hich had a
+ery sinificant impact on the Indonesian economy and on Indonesian society.
I. BASIC CONCEPTION
The Ape-Man
Tens of thousands of years ao at a time hich as still one of impenetrable dar*ness in our
present memory hen concei+ably the Indonesian archipelao as still /oined toether and
connected ith the #hilippines and the continent of Asia and possibly e+en ith Australia also
accordin to an e=pert there li+ed near the +illae of Trinil a creature half animal and half human
*non to science as pithecanthropus erectus the apeman. This particular creature has also been
found in other countries of the orld such as northern China &outh Africa and central !urope.
&ince Charles -arin +ery many bioloists ha+e formed a point of +ie and a conclusion inconflict ith the belief held by reliion up to no selama iniJ reardin the oriins and last days
of humanity in this orld of ours hich is small and +ery insinificant compared ith the +arious
reat stars amon the millions of stars in our Kni+erse in !nlish in oriinalJ.
Early Indonesia
He return to our orld of the aforsesaid Indonesia and e return to obser+in its inhabitants
!+en no e can still itness people li+in at a +ery lo stae of de+elopment interspersed ith
other sorts of animals at the hihest le+el li*e the oran utan the +arious human inhabitants of
the mountainous areas and /unle e=peanses of reater Indonesia.
The
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body hich they need to co+er. "ouhs branches and forest lea+es ma*in as it ere a nest hih
up in a tree. are sufficent li*eise to i+e /ust enouh shelter aainst rain heat and daner from
enemies.
The abo+e picture can be found more or less accurate e+en no for se+eral places in the
Indonesian archipelao. 9ere I ill o on to i+e an e=planation of the close conne=ion beteenhumans and their en+ironment. The en+ironment of Indonesia hich is +ery rich does not
compel its people continually to chane their bones or rac* their brains in order to acuire food
and clothin or obtain eapons and protection aainst ild animals or a cruel orld. Hhere the
situation does not yet compel it there human poer cle+erness and *nolede remain as they
ere in the beinnin. "ut here conditions en+ironment and society undero alteration there
the enery and intellience of the inhabitants of Indonesia indicate li*eise a full capability for all
*inds of material and spiritual proress reuired by an en+ironment and society sub/ect to chane.
f course there is a bi difference beteen the psycholoical orld alam/ianyaJ of the people
of early Indonesia such as the
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/unle e=panse. In the thouht of a person ho is completely primiti+e the spirit can only be
bro*en because it has been struc* by a bi tree.
&o it is in the eyes of this primiti+e personE e+ery terrifyin thin in the en+ironment is thouht
of as bein prenant ith a spirit li*e one1s on self. The bi leafy terrifyin treeF the aterfall
hich thundersF the danerous ild anaimalF e+en a stone and a piece of timber is thouht of asali+e as ha+in a soul.
In truth the antithesis beteen ood and bad hich is concealed in daytoday e=perience is
still not separated out in people1s attitudes. #rimiti+e people do not orship the source of ood as
ood only but also the source of e+il.They i+e sacrifice to both ood and e+il eually. A spirit
hich is e+il accepts orship and sacrifice from a primiti+e person no less than a ood spirit
hich is a friend of human*ind.
It is certain that here the orld is +ery terrifyin there is an e+il spiritF a reat forest tier or a
crocodile attracts more attention than a ood spirit.
It is already clear that in this initial period the outloo* of the Indonesian people bein in this
condition also as based on an understandin *non to e=perts as that form of belief hich is
called animism. !+erythin in this orld as considered as bein ali+e as ha+in a soul.
In conne=ion ith the primiti+e indi+iduals of our nation in the past in a orld here such
people beha+e passi+ely acceptin e+en sufferin nothin but an=iety at this time there operates
a dialectical la that is to say there is a chane in uantity hich occurs little by little becomin
e+entually a chane of disposition (uantity into uality)in !nlish in oriinalJ.
In the daytoday strule for e=istence in the face of +arious daners in the forest on the
mountain in the ater and +arious sorts of disease e+entually their *nolede became
concentrated on ma*in sacrifices to and +eneration of one out of se+eral most feared amon
many feared thins. Amon the tier the crocodile the tree spirit the ater spirit or the spirit of
the hunter finally they settle on the orship of the Great &pirit hich is most sinificant and
conruent ith their daily e=perience and ay of life.
Hhere huntin as a ay of life and acti+ity is e=tremely important there the spirit of the hunter
is much re+erenced. 9ere the hunter spirit finally acuires honour as the Great &pirit.
Hhere society is already uite forardloo*in and here the en+ironment is already
somehat informal and friendly there ood ets rather more attention than e+il. #eople say there
is one lineae of the people of Irian hich considers the suar palm as God by hich they mean
the &upreme "ein. Is it not the case that it is the suar palm amon all the trees and amon
e+erythin else in their en+ironment hich i+es them e+erythin they need for their e=istence;
&ao from the suar palm is a food hich is healthy and the tree has many uses. Its palm fibre can
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be used as a house roof. Its stems can also be used as a spear to catch fish and as an instrument for
defendin oneself aainst an enemy.
An ancient Irianese only reuired se+en suar palms issuin from one o+er a period of se+en
years. The se+enth tree hich as se+en years old fell but it as already ripe. 9e planted a tree
to replace it. This is an acti+ity hich a member of the community needs to enae in i.e. to cutdon a tree ith a lot of sao e+ery year and to plant a tree ith a lot of sao e+ery year. In
addition he can fish or hunt fiht or en/oy himself. In a society of this *ind it is the &ao God
hich is thouht of as the creator of all thins and hich is in chare of e+erythin ber*uasa
dalam sealaalannyaJ. &o it is amon the &aralo*a in Irian.
#lainly the &ao God carries his reatness s*yards hile at the same time he i+es happiness
to human creatures in his en+irons.
The Beliefs of India
He /ump no to another part of the orld to another society namely India The conclusion
e dra after readin the holy boo*s of the $ahabharata the 'amayana and the Kpanishads as
ell as the ritins about the life of &iddhartha Gautama the Lord "uddha and the reliion of
the "uddha. is that from the +ery first times India possessed oriinal inhabitants and that these
consisted of +arious *inds of peoples in+adin from the north and possibly from the east and
south
&econdly e conclude that Indian society at the time at hich all the abo+ementioned boo*s
ere composed already *ne producti+e tools and implements made from metal.
Thirdly that society in India had already mo+ed up from primiti+e communism to the feudal
stae reconiin se+eral ra/as and mahara/as hile arranements in the +illaes remained based
on primiti+ecommunism.
,ourthly ?and this li*eise needs to be noted here that the culture and reliion of India here
recorded as an adeuate refle=ion of the society of that time for those uided by materialist
materialistisJ as opposed to idealist idealistisJ dialectics riinal Indonesian underlinedJ.
Actually in the holy boo*s of India it is difficult to et hold of historical facts and also difficult
to find consistency i.e. basic areement beteen parts and conformity ith the rule of Common
&ense. n the contrary e+en the rele+ant era tari*hJ hich is one important condition for
history is difficult if not impossible to ascertain.
$y ob/ect here ill not be to dra definite conclusions from the holy ritins hich are not
based on historical factsF it is only to brin the obscurity to the surface as a uide for in+estiators.
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>oy only did the +arious 9indu ods and the supreme 9indu deity in this recondite orld ain
an accommodation ith the +arious ra/as and mahara/as in the e=ternal orld that is to say the
orld of politics but they became also completely accommodated to the 9indu social orld. The
+arious castes in 9indu society clima=ed in three principal ones +i. the "rahmin
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society and politics of early Indonesia. Hith that came the roin dominance of the hole of
9indu and Arab (Islamic) reliion o+er Indonesian society also.
In those circumstances at the culmination of the heemony of each reliion 9indu or Arab
(i.e. Islam) the ancient Indonesian beliefs beliefs hich appeared ithin the orld of Indonesia
iself i.e. animism did not +anish from the hearts and minds of a lare part of the Indonesiannation. The hosts hantuJ ho reside in tall trees in the /unle e=panses or in the plunin aters
hich continuously pour forth still impined upon the soul of the inhabitants of Indonesia ho
sa and approached them.
#arallels in the realm of belief in the 9indu period accord also ith parallels in the economic
realm of the Indonesian nation in this period. Althouh forein commerce and enterprise
flourished and ained poer o+er the society of Indonesia Indonesia ne+er passed from the hands
of its people. In other ords the et rice fields the unirriated fields plus the oods ri+ers and
seas in short the land ater and air still remained ithin the rasp of the ancient Indonesian race.
9ence the ancient Indonesian nation as still uaranteed a better and more splendid future than in
the times already past.
The means of li+elihood still tihtly rasped the land the ater and the especially enerous
atmosphere hich someho intensi+ely pressed don upon both foreiners and the nation itself
in the 9indu period all uaranteed an e=istence e+en if an e=tremely simple one.
As in cases of the ealth and mananimity of nature alamJ hich do not compel members of
the human community to strule ith each other and *ill each other in order to et hold of basic
necessities imaes of +arious different *inds of $ahadea could enter under one roof
Knli*e the situation in the country of oriin amon the &aralo*a of %a+a e can itness an
imae of the -estroyer &hi+a side by side ith one of the Creator Dishnu both smilin at each
other.
Abou he !rophe Moses
Let us no turn our thouhts toards the ri+er >ile under the rule of the Lord #haraoh.
Concernin this part of the orld e ha+e a reat deal of historical e+idence the oldest from
any part of the orld.
!ypt in that period many thousands of years ao li*eise reconied +arious different ods.
Amon those +arious ods then as the od 'a i.e. the sun od ho as honoured and
orshipped as supreme od.
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&o accordin to the reliion of the ancient !yptians the od 'a decreed the earth the s*y the
ri+er >ile and the desert alon ith domestic anaimals and humans. All this as fashioned at
once +ia the utterance of one ord only that is to say #tah. &o unli*e the +ie of
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The capable leadership of a person ith only one aim and one resol+e in accordance ith
%eish belief the #rophet $oses1s leadership hich in conditions of hardship and daner often
alone found the Lord God Almihty the leadership of a person ho as con+inced of the
e=istence of that one God ... a leadership hich brouht the %eish nation to that period of lory
deepened %eish belief in the unity and omnipotence of that God more than formerly. ,or the
%eish people in those days it as absolutely riht that 6the proof of the puddin is the eatin.
In !nlish in the oriinalJ.
Hith the completion of its +ictories on by the leadership of one person or se+eral the %eish
tribes hich had before this time reconied se+eral ods each accordin to his tribe there came
therefore also the completion of the +ictory of monotheism a belief in the unity of God amon all
the tribes of the %eish nation.
Abou he !rophe "esus
Inconsistency loical contradiction conflict beteen +arious parts conflict as reards date
e+ents at +ariance ith natural la or common sense hich both the e=perts and I myself ha+e
found in the second of the to holy boo*s the ld and >e Testaments are not hat I ish to
focus on here. I thin* that i+en the deree of technical *nolede of science and of e+idence in
the time of the #rophet %esus all the mystery of nature and human supernatural poer as ritten
in the boo* is appropriate to time and place. $y attention here is focussed on morality (ethics)
and on the di+inity hich is recorded in that holy boo*. Conflict of meanin in the matter of
ethics and di+inity hich I thin* can also be found in the holy boo* is perhaps in accord ith
our thouhts if e adopt the opinion of se+eral e=perts hich is that the holy boo* as ritten in
the period folloin the #rophet %esus1s death and contains much understandin already e=pressed
by Gree* riters before the #rophet %esus as born into the orld.
9o can e combine the main arument of the Christian reliionE 6Hhosoe+er shall smite
thee on thy riht chee* turn to him the other also ith the sayin of the #rophet %esusE 6Thin*
not that I am come to send peace on earthE I came not to brin peace but a sord.;
Thus in the matter of ethics. In the matter of di+inity too ho can one reconcile the ne God
i+en prominence in the ld Testament and by the prophets as e=plained abo+e ith the Trinity
the Trimurti since it is Catholic +i. the ne in Three the unity of God the ,ather God the &on
(%esus) and the 9oly &pirit;
#ersonally I thin* it should ha+e been all ne if e are to brin it into conformity ith time
and place. &o therefore for me it is less important that there once li+ed a %e ho called himself
the &on of God. ,or me already a clear enouh field of study is i+en by the Christian reliion and
the ideal of spiritual randeur held in hih esteem as portrayed in the person of the #rophet %esus.
I shall also be satisfied if there are historical e=perts ho come to the conclusion that here the
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%eish nation as under the 'oman coloniers there in the district of Galilee someone called
%esus instiated a re+olt and openly defended the masses aainst the %eish rabbis ho had
become accomplices *a*i tanannyaJ of the 'oman authorities. The leader of the Galilean re+olt
called himself the %eish *in the $essiah %esus >aarenus 'e= %udiorum sicJ
Loo*ed at in this perspecti+e all contradiction +anishes from our conception. The #rophet%esus a+e abundantly his lo+e and affection alon ith the sacrifice of his life to the masses
ho indeed ere li+in in po+erty at that time and ho indeed ere a+id for rebellion especially
in Galilee. If he recommended an attitude of fori+eness that one should 6turn the other chee*
that attitude as directed toards the masses as a hole. Toards the rabbis the #rophet %esus
clearly ad+anced the opposite attitude that is to say if it as necessary to smash the priestly class
arms in hand as oppressors of the %eish people and accomplices of the 'oman coloniers at that
time.
f course there are other possible rational e=planations of the to conflictin moral codes.
ne of these ronly asserts that the %eish masses at that time did not ha+e the poer to oppose
the rabbis oppressors and e=ploiters ho ere in perpetual contact ;lansun berurusan ?there
appears to be an error in the te=t hereJ ith the %eish masses.
&o accordin to this interpretation a passi+e attitude one of acceptance proposed by the
#rophet %esus arose from a feelin of poerlessness +isa+is the 'oman authorities alon ith
the rabbis ho ere the accomplices the administrati+e aents 6inlandersalatnyaJ of the
'oman poer.
,or me this recent e=planation has some force but is less than adeuate. The %eish nation
especially its masses in se+eral tons such as %erusalem and particularly in the district of
Galilee from hich %esus himself came as far from passi+e in its outloo* or 6nrimo as they
say in %a+a. Larescale and smallscale rebellions in pursuit of freedom from e=plotation and
oppression occurred on a flood of occasions acap *aliJ. &o this also is of a piece ith the #rophet
%esus himself hen he faced the rabbis the abo+ementioned loyalist nati+es.
In the 6lifetime of the #rophet %esus himself differences from the God of the #rophet $oses
ere not apparent. God in the #rophet %esus1s time as the eternal one true God. The
philosophical notion of God in hich 3M3M3N8 emered and flourished after the #rophet %esus
had li+ed in this orld. f course there are many secular matters hich can ma*e possible the
emerence and flourishin of 8N3. Later on at the time of the ,rench 'e+olution many elements
of human society brouht about the collapse of that 8N3 philosophy "ut for me that *ind of
philosophy is not the main uestion.
Abou he !rophe Muhammad
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$ore interestin I feel is the return of 3N3 @00 years after the #rophet %esus.
Contemporaneously there occurred the return of a commonplace practical ethic for human
society i.e. faults ere punished proportionately a fault pardoned if ac*noleded as a fault and
beha+iour and future conduct truly and honestly amended. The one ho restored that as
$uhammad bin Abdullah an Arab from the tribe of uraish. &ince there is not much difference
beteen the Arab nation and the %eish as reards nationality and both nations are desinated
&emites therefore in actual fact those three reat prophets $oses %esus and $uhammad are of
the same nationality and descent. Accordin to the "ible itself it is stated that the %es and the
Arabs are both descended from the #rophet Abraham.
Hhen e lance at the totality of the earth1s surface that e *no at the beinnin of the 7th
Century hat is +isible is only collapse in the matter of politics economy society and culture. At
best e ha+e e+idence of stanation malaise inertia complete social brea*don in all areas.
The 'omans in the est ith their colonies in Hestern and >orthern !urope >orth Africa and
Hestern Asia ere in a state of defeat and collapse as a result of pressure and aression on the
part of +arious German tribes from the north. nly the !astern 'omans succeeded in ta*in care
of the ne couraeous peoples ("ularians and others) ho attac*ed in that uarter acceptin
them as enforced uests and members of the family. In the realm of culture only the !astern
'omans ere able to diest the *nolede inherited from the Gree*s and deceased 'omans.
!ypt &yria #ersia %udaea etc. states formerly in authority in the neihbourhood of the
Arabian #eninsula ere all in a situation of life a+erse to a death they didn1t ant *eadaan hidup
enau mati ta* mauJ. Hhereas the Arabian #eninsula already had : million inhabitants a fiure
hich can be considered hih for that timeF it had already attained prosperity by reason of
commerce carried on by cle+er and audacious larescale merchants ho relied on stron armed
desert cara+ans dran up in paramilitary fashion Also in particular the Arabian #eninsula had not
yet endured oppression at the hands of any forein nation. &uch bein the case the Arab nation
as still eneretic stron upriht bra+e and confident in its on strenth. nly beteen the
tribes as there still conflict and arfare. #arallel ith those social conflicts the belief system
also as not yet in the process of becomin united but rather as di+ided amon +arious beliefs
a state of affairs *non after the #rophet $uhammad1s time as the %ahiliyah 6ae of paaninorance ?translatorJ of the Knbelie+ers.
To unite the +arious beliefs of the %ahiliyah as portrayed in the +arious imaes of that timeF to
unify the ideoloy as a synthesis of the +arious ideoloical contradictions e=istin then this as
the or* carried throuh from first to last by the #rophet $uhammad in the direction of national
political social economic and cultural unification.
That unification as not achie+ed by means of one reat imae amon se+eral imaes
pre+alent in Arabia but rather +ia the oneness of God and 9is omnipotence no loner sub/ect totime and place as an imae e=istin anyhere made by a human hand from any material in the
orld hate+er.
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Illiterate does not mean unintellient coardly or dishonest. Contrariise education does not
uarantee courae perse+erance honesty capacity for leadership adroit consideration for the
ne=t day or the ability to ta*e rapid and effecti+e decisions (resourcefulness) in !nlish in the
oriinalJ.
Indeed there is much truth in the Indonesian aphorismE 6To tra+el far is to see much to li+e alon time is to e=perience many thins. The tra+els underta*en by $uhammad bin Abdullah to
the countries borderin Arabia ith the cara+ans a+e all the e=perience and *nolede sufficient
for a leader a eneral a man of letters and a #rophet of the future at the moment hen the
Arabian #eninsula and later on its en+irons ere in reat need of such a leader.
The desire to *no hich flared up in the brain of the youn $uhammad bin Abdullah the
desire to understand the oriin of e+erythin e=istin in the orld and in society as filled by the
societies surroundin Arabia hich had already attained a hih le+el of culture in the past. The
priests and rabbis ere able to i+e instruction or a method of thouht alon ith material for
thouht in order to anser e+ery uestion that arose in a brain that ished to *no about
e+erythin.
It as the earth and s*y of the Arabian #eninsula hich made an unforettable impression on a
person hose obser+ation ould perfect the *nolede ained in con+ersation oin to and fro
beteen $eccah and forein parts. The e=perience ained folloin the cara+ans hich so many
times found themsel+es facin already trained enemies de+eloped e+ery leadership trait hidden in
the soul of $uhammad bin Abdullah.
Trained and disciplined in that 6Kni+ersity of Life in !nlish in oriinalJ hen therefore
the Arabian #eninsula needed o+erall unity $uhammad bin Abdullah stepped forard as
propaandist eneral chief of state leader of society and #rophet.
Time and place ere +ery appropriate for unity and omnipotence at the beinnin of the 7th
Century. There as also much interest in the Arabian #eninsula and its en+irons at that time.
The society of the Arabian #eninsula +ery much needed a unified leadership capable of
establishin its authority amon the +arious poers of the different tribes. That society also
reuired the presence of one roup i.e. the $uslims hich standin abo+e all nations on earth
could truly be imbued ith the belief in ne Almihty God dominatin e+erythin completely ?
nature humanity spirits and anels.
The spirit of Islam that is to say the spirit of submission to God1s Hill the spirit of acceptance
of God1s +erdict ith a feelin of pleasure the spirit of Islam as the centre of the soul and of
philosophy toether ith a certain practice of belief as not yet *non in human history. A ne
reliion in conflict ith the beliefs of se+eral Arabian tribes as not oin to be abroated e+en if
concealed by the #rophet $uhammad. Hhen one day the #rophet $uhammad1s family at a
meetin reuested that propaanda for Islam be halted because it brouht about disputes and
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threatened the #rophet1s life $uhammad ansered that e+en if the sun on the left and the moon
on the riht forbade such a thin he ould not heed the prohibition.
&o it happened ith the spirit of compact unity amon themsel+es the $uslims ho day by
day *ian hari *ianJ increased reatly in numbersF ith the spirit of confident surrender body and
soul to the Almihty ith a spirit of irreconcilable opposition to the beliefs of the Knbelie+ers1%ahiliyah that finally under the leadership of the #rophet $uhammad after some tenty years of
itinerant propaanda and ith preparation for and enaement in repeated +iolent combat they
achie+ed the unification of the hole Arabian #eninsula.
Hith stron and sturdy unity amon all the Arabian tribes ith a spirit of no capitulation ith
the spirit of Islam of unconditional harmony ith the di+ine decree eually ith a spirit of
unremittin aression aainst the states and peoples surroundin Arabia for the attainment of
+ictory both in the orld and ithin in more or less 300 years the Arab nation came to dominate
the hole $editerranean area in Asia Africa and !urope.
There should be more than formal reconition i+en by the Christian orld concernin the
ser+ice of Arab Islam in the mediae+al centuries e+en don to today as reards philosophy and
empirical science hich has in fact not yet recei+ed proper reconition
Hith the Arab nation e ha+e the completion of a dialectical orbit in a circle !nlish in
oriinalJ Hith the #rophet $oses e ad+ance to a philosophy of the di+ine in hich 3N3 (thesis).
Then the #rophet %esus appears in opposition thereto in the form 8N3 (antithesis). Hith the
#rophet $uhammad there is formed the synthesis i.e. the return of the philosophy of 3N3 but
more complete and richer in content than at the outset.
nly a little of the Islamic philosophy of the di+ine hich as included in fate in God1s
una+oidable desire loo*ed bac* to the old orld i.e. the society of GreeceF the philosophy of
Islam thereby acuired material alon ith +aluable uidance. Islamic philosophy raised up aain
the Gree* philosophy hich had been buried for hundreds of years beneath the 'oman !mpire.
Islamic philosophy as able to separate the fullrained rice from the empty hus* and to plant the
former until it re in the mediae+al centuries.
&o it is fittin that e loo* bac* hundreds of years behind the society of Islam that as
+ictorious noble and prosperous in &pain in !ypt and in "ahdad and return for a moment to
loo* at the society of ancient Greece.
An#ien $ree#e
,or the modern culture of !urope and America ancient Gree* culture is still thouht of as themother culture. #lato as philosopher is still the source for the philosophy of idealism. The
philosophy of 9era*leitos is still thouht of as a +ein of materialism and dialectics. Aristotle is
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still considered as a reatrandfather by se+eral modern empirical scientists (accordin to the
+iepoint of positi+ism). &o +arious branches of modern culture can search diliently for their
roots in the culture of ancient Greece. This is not surprisin if the ancient Gree* lanuae is still
reuired to be studied by students oblied to fathom all modern *nolede and to o deeper
don to the +ery root.
'eliion #hilosophy and !mpirical &cience
If e concentrate our attention on the Hestern Horld i.e. !urope and America three main
lines of culture become +isible to our eyes. After 2:00 years of Hestern Horld history i.e. from
around :00 ".C.!. to the present these three main lines occurE the line of reliion the line of
philosophy and the line of empirical science. All other branches of culture are included in or
dependent on these three main lines.
&o then three main lines in the history of the Hestern Horld a reat mass of e=perience of
proress decline and chane of +alue and status.
In the biest line from :00 ".C.!. to 3:00 C.!. it as reliion that ained the hihest status
and +alue. In that period philosophical science as only the ser+ant of reliionF alon ith
empirical science it miht rather be thouht of as entirely sense perception and opinion. That
moment included the Gree* 'oman and the mediae+al period hich as dominated by Islamic
and Christian society. In the period of the Gree*s and 'omans philosophers had played the main
role in society and in the state.
It may also be said that in the biest line from 3:00 until 34:0 C.!. it as philosophical
science that attained the hihest +alue and status in the society of the Hest. At that time reliion
bean to be pushed bac*. In fact at the time of the ,rench 'e+olution reliion encountered +ery
stiff resistance.
$eanhile empirical science as increasinly pushed to one side and became the principal
support for philosophical science. At that moment it as not the clery that controlled the
leadership of society and the state but rather those in possession of philosophical *nolede and
empirical science real science.
,inally from about 34:0 to the present day it as empirical science hich en/oyed the hihest
+alue and status in society toether ith the state in modern !urope and America. 'eliion
hich had met ith +ery determined resistance at the time of the ,rench 'e+olution as able to
reaa*en but it has not reained the +alue and status it had before the ,rench 'e+olution.
At the middle of the 35th Century the science of philosophy in its oriinal sense bean to
descend from the throne it had occupied in the pre+ious period. ne philosophical roup
protaonists of the philosophy *non as dialectical materialism led by $ar= and !nels
proclaimed 6the end of philosophy. &ince that *nolede as social also it as based on las
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of empirical science. !mpirical science in +arious sub/ects branches and sections has acuired the
hihest +alue and status up until the present.
!mpirical scientists ma*e use of the ord 6philosophy but ith a different meanin from
hat it oriinally had. >oadays the best meanin of it is 6ea+in up eneral principles in the
ords of ,rancis "acon one of se+eral reat empirical scientists in !nlish in oriinalJ.
It appears clear that in the three periods hich e ha+e brouht forard for the Hestern
Horld as decribed abo+e there as a mutual alteration of +alue and status acuired by the three
main lines of culture ?reliion philosophy and empirical science. It so happens that the alteration
in the third main line hich also ran parallel ith alteration in the status of the socialpolitical
reime in !nlish in oriinalJ as rooted in an alteration underone by the system of production
based on e=istin techniues.
Aleraion of he %ysem of !rodu#ion
At the time hen priests and nobles held supreme poer in society and in the state both in
Greece and 'ome and in Hestern !urope in the mediae+al period (round about 3:00 up to 34:0
C.!.) production became more centred on manufacture. "y the end of this time factories ere
already beinnin to be operated by steam poer.
In the boureois period (hich as assisted or opposed by the socialists) here the
boureoisie held supreme poer o+er society and the state in Hestern !urope and America
(ranin from 34:0 to 35B4) production came under the control of finance capital in !nlish in
oriinalJ and monopolies. Technoloy ad+anced rapidly from steam enery to electric poer oil
and noadays atomic enery.
The &eli'ious uesion
It so happens that e all more or less understand the reliious uestion. The uestion centres
on thisE hat is the oriin of the earth the stars the s*y in short the hole uni+erse and ho ill
it end;
Hhat is the oriin of the human race and ho ill it end; Three di+ine reliions the %eish
Christian and Islamic base all oriins and endins on the ill of God. The uni+erse as decreed
all at once by God Almihty. 9umanity is a creation of God. 9uman destiny is surrendered by the
three reliions to God1s desire. The destiny of the indi+idual is decided by that person1s deeds and
reliious de+otion. -eeds and reliious de+otion ill determine afterards at the ensuin day of
/udement hat merit or punishment ill be recei+ed. &omeone ho is de+out and has a luc*y
destiny ill ha+e their sins pardoned and enter hea+en. &omeone ho is uilty ith a per+erse
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destiny ill be consined to hell. In brief all three reliions ill determine the ay of attainin
hea+en and a+oidin hell.
The 9indu and "uddhist reliions ha+e a different understandin of the oriin and end of
humanity. The "uddha &iddhartha Gautama put forard fi+e ays to attain hea+en. In contrast
to the three abo+ementioned reliions the "uddhist reliion ma*es a person1s end depend onpersonal responsibility and personal conduct.
He already understand all this Hhat is riht and proper is up to each adherent of a reliion in
person. Hhat is correct for one is not correct for sure for another. ,or me reliion is decidedly
tetapJ 6eine #ri+atsache a pri+ate matterJ or personal belief of each indi+idual. Hith the
proress of philosophy loic and mathematics reliious people also ma*e use of this *nolede
for the purpose of clarifyin the principles of their reliion. "ut hat is clear for one reliious
adherent is not yet clear for the adherent of another reliion. 'eliion stays fi=ed as somethin
each indi+idual can rely on.
!hilosophy
As ith the reliious uestion the uestion of philosophy also depends reatly on your point
of +ie. "ut for us the uestion of hat point of +ie can be satisfactory and accurate and
capable of pro+idin a solution is a uestion already ad+anced by ,riedrich !nels in the last
century. Accordin to !nels philosophers can be di+ided into to roups the materialist roupand the idealist roup. "eteen these to bi roups hich form to mutually incompatible
poles there e=ist +arieties hich under further analysis actually form part of one or other roup
materialist or idealist. #hilosophers di+ide into the to roups as a conseuence of the conflictin
ansers they i+e to the philosophical uestionE hat is the cause (primus ?primary) and hat is
deri+ati+e beteen matter and the idea in !nlish in the oriinalJ; In the uni+erse there e=ists the
problem of matter and of the poer in nature hich mo+es that matter. Amon animal species the
uestion chanes to become the problem of body and soul (instincti+e lifeprinciple). In the
human species the uestion alters to become one of body and spiritual thouht. #hilosophers as*E
hich comes first material ob/ect or force material substrate or soul matter or spirit;
Maerialiss and Idealiss
The materialists anser that it is matter the corporeal substrate hich is primary and
fundamental. 6There is no spirit apart from matter. #eople must be able to eat in order to thin*.
&o before there ere people on earth the earth and the stars already e=isted say the materialist
philosophers.
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Accordin to the idealists it is the idea force and spirit hich is primary and matter and
material ob/ects hich are deri+ati+e in !nlish in oriinalJ. Accordin to the e=treme idealists
hat e=ists in the uni+erse is ideas only that is to say the idea that e=ists ithin the brain of the
philosopher himself. Indeed this +ie is connected ith the poer of the supreme od 'a ho
filled the +oid at the beinnin of the orld ith the stars the earth the ri+ers the plants the
animals and humanity in the tin*lin of an eye after the ord 6#tah had been decreed (see
6$adilo).
Hhate+er the difference in +iepoint it is clear that the ridicule aimed at the materialists by
the idealists to the effect that the materialists only concei+e of eatin and drin*in and the
pleasures of life is completely ithout proper foundation.
The $reek !hilosophers
Truly after the Gree* thin*ers bean to free themsel+es from the umbilical cord of beliefs
based upon nothin but doma and bean seriously to face up to the uni+erse e *no too the
ansers i+en by them. They arri+ed at four elements earth ater air and fire. !nclosed ithin
his on spiritual self as an in+estiator of the uni+erse as ell as bein hampered by matter and
the mo+ement of matter Oeno dre the conclusion that 6motion (of matter) is only an illusion of
the senses in !nlish in oriinalJ.
A famous capable thin*er of the Gree* nation #lato later made use of a mode of thouhthich separated matter from force *odratJ the physical from the spiritual concludin that the
oriinal entity as the absolute idea in !nlish in oriinalJ. Dia a mode of abstract thouht i.e.
classification (analysis) he arri+ed at the Loos of the Horld the Horld &pirit. There is much
similarity beteen #lato1s Loos and the 9indu Atma.
In contrast 9era*leitos a comparable thin*er ho based himself firmly on reality alon ith
the motion of matter formulated a conclusion hich to this day is of reat sinificance for us +i.
6A thin both e=ists and does not e=ist because e+erythin is fluid chaneable alays different
fore+er appearin and +anishin. 9era*leitos reconied the e=istence of matter e+en proposin
the molecular hypothesis hich more than to thousand years later as nely confirmed by
empirical scientists. $oreo+er in opposition to Oeno 9era*leitos suested that motion as a
characteristic of matter and cause of matter alays in+ol+ed chane (>ichts ist alles ird ?
>othin is e+erythin becomes) accordin to the la of motion that is to say the -ialectical la.
"eteen or alonside the to aforementioned roups stood the iant thin*er Aristotle. As a
physician ho alays reconied the e=istence of matter and spirit and as the father of se+eral
sciences in particular the science of life (bioloy) Aristotle centred his attention on a certain
structure a certain system. Aristotle more than Oeno and #lato paid attention to the interior
composition of matter. "ut the las of thouht hich he a+e priority to ere the las of loic
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Aristotle1s classification reardin plants animals and other entities separate from plants and
animals as actually somethin that the schoolmen in !nlish in oriinalJ the boo* specialists of
the $iddle Aes reatly delihted in. As the boo* specialists truly li+ed li+es that ere separate
from the masses they separated themsel+es from animals and plants in actual fact Thus the boo*
*nolede of the philosophers of the $iddle Aes as suspended in midair terantun di
aanaan sa/aJ /ust as their li+es ere in reality di+orced from the popular masses ho
produced all the necessities of life of the philosophers in the $iddle Aes.
,rom :00 C.!. don to 3:00 C.!. philosophy as still based on reliion and rudimentary
empirical science. The idealists made use of reliious beliefs as premisses (basic e+idence) in
system formation. "ut the materialists no loner made use of elements of reliious beliefs as
premisses. They only used real e+idence as premisses.
"oth idealists and materialists utilied mathematics physics and primiti+e bioloy especially
in e=planation. Hith more and more de+elopment of empirical science the more e=planation
based on beliefs hich could not be pro+ed (petitio principii)arument in a circle in hich the
conclusion is assumed in the premisses ?translatorJ as left behind.
!hilosophers and he *ren#h &eoluion
Around the time of the ,rench 'e+olution empirical science had already made +ery reat
proress compared ith the ae of #lato 9era*leitos and Aristotle. In ,rance e reconie iantsof mathematics and the physical sciences as ell as mechanics such as $aupertuis Clairut
-1Alembert Larane Laplace ,ourier Carnot #ascal and others. In !nland there arose a iant
of mathematics and physics namely Isaac >eton. In the orld of chemistry there appeared a
,renchman called La+oisier ho ordered the science systematically a process representin a
more ad+anced de+elopment than that of Ibn &ina an Arab chemist
At the same time Cu+ier de+eloped Aristotle1s findins. The theorem of #ythaoras as
e=panded by >eton /ust as the thouht of Archimedes as by #ascal. All this could be enlared
upon but it ould be li*e comparin an infant ith an adult.
It is not surprisin if the proress of empirical science hich had already brided an apparent
ap of tens of thousands of years from ancient times to the $iddle Aes afforded material hich
as not +alued by the philosophers. "ut the philosophers ere di+ided permanently into to
roups idealist and materialist. $oreo+er each roup utilied the proress of empirical science as
proof in !nlish in oriinalJ of the correctness of their respecti+e theories.
In !nland there emered to most important philosophers the priest "er*eley and -a+id
9ume. "ased on the spirituality of the spectator -a+id 9ume ith the determined consistency of
a philosopher said that in the final analysis in !nlish in the oriinalJ e+erythin in the uni+erse
is nothin but a bundle of conceptions in !nlish in the oriinalJ concernin the uni+erse.
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$oreo+er 9ume said that 6you for him (9ume) as only an 6imae in the brain of 9ume and
nothin else. In truth in this case 9ume contradicted himself. "ecause if 9ume said that other
people ere for him only an imae in his brain then other people could say that 9ume himself
did not e=ist e=cept as an imae in other people1s brains. 6Pou for 9ume is 6I for those other
people. Contrariise 6I for 9ume ould be 6you for those other people.
Immanuel
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in a +illae in Germany becomin more and more out of date from a re+olutionary point of +ie
and in the ay of thin*in accordin to the fashion of dialectical materialism.
Thouht based on dialectics as e=tended by $ar= and by his friend and contemporary
,riedrich !nels. "esides bein men of letters the to of them ere de+otees of mathematics
ho often dre on ,rench and !nlish utopian socialism. They also made use of Charles-arin1s theory of e+olution as ell as the economic theories of Adam &mith and -a+id 'icardo
in the formulation of their theory. Hith the disco+ery of the cause in !nlish in oriinalJ or more
accurately condition in !nlish in oriinalJ i.e. the reason for social proress socialism hich
had been based on utopia as outlined by Thomas $ore &aint &imon ,ourier and 'obert en
altered to become scientific socialism in !nlish in oriinalJ. Hhat is considered as the cause in
!nlish in oriinalJ of chane includin social chane is the stae by stae alteration in the mode
of productionE such is the ma*eup of the science of history based on material reality *non as
historical materialism in !nlish in oriinalJ that is to say the materialist conception of history.
The philosophy associated ith matter in motion is *non as dialectical materialism.
It is called materialism because matter thouht of as primary is the oriin of the uni+erse. It is
also called dialectical because the ay of approachin the uestion of matter alon ith creation
in the uni+erse is under conditions of contradiction and motion i.e. under conditions of
appearance roth and collapse.
After $ar= and !nels had identified the cause or condition the reason of alteration and
chane as somethin ithin human society human history chaned li*eise from somethin
i+en o+er to chance *ebetulanJ somethin fated but not caused and ha+in no real
conseuences to somethin specific ha+in a cause an end a rationale and a result. In this ay
also the science of history chaned from a orld of mystery to one of reality. 9ence the human
mind bean to penetrate the oriins and direction of a certain society as ell as its drama
la*onnyaJ.
After matter in its entirety and in all forms of motion in the uni+erse had been dissected
analyed in+estiated and its las ascertained since the ae of the Gree* philosophers there
occurred also a chane and alteration in philosophy hose uestion asE hat does this all
mean; in !nlish in oriinalJ so that it became a problem for empirical scientists ho
in+estiated and analyed it foundin +arious empirical sciences in the process.
Empiri#al %#ien#e
!nels1s conclusion as accurate hen he said that o+er a period of de+elopment lastin
centuries philosophical *nolede became bro*en up and separated out so that it became
empirical science (Hissenschaft) i.e. +arious *inds of *nolede concernin human history and
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+arious *inds concernin >ature in !nlish in oriinalJ. Hhat remained of philosophy in
!nels1s +ie as loic and dialectics.
He turn bac* aain to the beinnins of empirical science to the ae of the Gree*s and from
there as uic* as lihtnin to modern times. Then e turn for a moment to loic and dialectics
hich !nels called the residue of philosophy.
It happened that in more or less 2:00 years of anderin science hich as thouht of as the
child of philosophy and the randchild of reliion in lare measure not yet free of the umbilical
cord of its mother and randmother that empirical science facin tentanJ a +ery reat orld not
+isible in its entirety because it as so bi arri+ed at a minute orld not +isible to the eye
because it as so small. ne uni+erse in !nlish in oriinalJ hich could be seen by the na*ed
eye in times past no ith the eye armed ith microscope and telescope increasinly became
se+eral uni+erses. >o e reconie the e=istence of other planets and solar systems. He are also
familiar ith the orld of the molecule and the atom. The molecule and the atom concecei+ed
terciptaJ as a hypothesis or uess on the part of the to dialectical materialists 9era*leitos and
-emo*ritos can no be +isually +erified ith the aid of the microscope. In fact empirical science
can reach thins that are e+en smaller. The atom hich at the beinnin it as thouht could not
be di+ided turns out to be di+isible into to the proton and the electron. %ust as the !arth and the
&unF /ust as one solar system or anotherF /ust as one uni+erse or another uni+erse in !nlish in
oriinalJ in the reat uni+erse di alam raya iniJ is held toether by the forces of attraction and
repulsion in !nlish in oriinalJ hich can be said to come under the cateory of thesis and
antithesis in dialectics so li*eise the to aforementioned orlds the aforesaid proton and
electron are held toether by the force of attraction and repulsion becomin one atom one
synthesis of an atom. In short the synthesis of proton and elctron is the atomF the synthesis of
atom and atom is the moleculeF the synthesis of molecule and molecule is a bodyF the synthesis of
earth and sun is the solar system the synthesis of one solar system ith another and finally of one
uni+erse ith another in !nlish in orinalJ is our reat uni+erse.
In these 2:00 years in accordance ith dialectics and its la of thesis antithesis and synthesis
the human brain has come to *no a +ery reat orld hich is our reat uni+erse and a +ery
small orld hich is the aforementioned electron and proton.
The Bran#hes of Empiri#al %#ien#e
Hho *nos ho empirical science ill be di+ided aain;
If e ma*e use of a loical di+ision in !nlish in oriinalJ of empirical science e obtain to
classes namely those sciences hich comprise the historical class and those that comprise the
natural class. !mpirical science concerned ith human history di+ides into socioloy and history
the science of politics the science of la the science of economics the science of literature etc.
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!mpirical science concerned ith this reat uni+erse is li*eise di+ided into astronomy physics
in !nlish in oriinalJ the science of chemistry the science of electricity and so on. Alonside
these e find the science of mathematics hich demonstrably and in reality is based on any
product hate+er hich can be represented as a number or a letter in !nlish in oriinalJ. He
*no the science of measurement the science of arithmetic alebra trionometry and suchli*e.
This di+ision is not confined to the biest branches each branch is also di+ided. %ust notice
ho many e=perts there are in medical science. He reconie e=perts on teeth ears noses hair
and so on. Pou may ta*e e=amples also from leal science hich is di+ided into se+eral
subsections such as consitutional la la of nations ci+il la and criminal la in !nlish in
oriinalJ.
There is a +ery bi daner if a person ho is an e=pert in one branch of empirical science does
not reconie the relation beteen his *nolede and doens of other *inds of *nolede so that
they li+e apart from those other forms of e=pertise. In other ords there is a daner if a doctor
ho is an e=pert on hair disappears and +anishes into haar*lo+ery (hairsplittin) forettin the
relationship beteen hair and all the other parts of the body and human health in eneral. The
daner is no less reat if an e=pert in crime a criminoloist loo*s at crime from the anle of the
indi+idual only as if he ere to foret that the action of a person ho li+es in society is
conditioned in !nlish in oriinalJ dependent on +arious internal and e=ternal situationsF
dependent on the mo+ement of life hich is comple= and connected also ith the economic and
political social and cultural situation in society itself.
'eardin the daner of framentation separation and de+iation there is a +ery stron current
a tradition ithin the orld of empirical science toards coordination and reconne=ion of the
+arious forms of *nolede hich ha+e been bro*en apart because of its on de+elopment As I
mentioned pre+iously this is probably hat as en+isaed dima*sud*anJ by one famous
scientist in ea+in up eneral principles in !nlish in oriinalJ as the interpretation of modern
philosophy.
The ,be#. Mehod. /onen and %piri of Empiri#al %#ien#e
It is not possible but there is also no need for us here to approach and interpret all the content
or e+en part of the +arious branches of science. He already ha+e enouh of importance here to
attempt an interpretation of the aim and ob/ect of empirical science and of the method used to
attain its ob/ect. Also as reards the matter it ma*es use of and finally the spirit that it brins forth
in order to attain its ob/ect.
ne phrase hich is customarily used in order to define (determine) the ob/ect of empirical
science is simplification by eneraliation in !nlish in oriinalJ or facilitatin the inclusion of
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somethin bein studied in hat is already better *non or the inclusion of hat is n ot yet
*non in hat is already better *non.
Another phrase hich is also used for definin the purpose of empirical science is the
folloinE the oraniation of the facts in !nlish in oriinalJ. I feel this formula is +ery
practical. In conne=ion ith this I translate 6science by 6science of e+idence.
"ut no less practical is another formula published in the scientific orld to establish las and
systems in !nlish in oriinalJ.
&o much for the ob/ect of empirical science.
As reards the methods of attainin the oal this is done ith the methods of loic
classification statistics and measurement alon ith eihin often also ma*in use of the
dialectical method. In loic e are concerned ith hat is *non as induction deduction and+erification. In mathematics e are concerned ith hat is called the method of synthesis the
method of analysis and reductio ad absurdum. These to *inds of methods of thin*in in loic
and mathematics arfe not +ery different. !lsehere I ha+e put forard a more ad+anced analysis
of this topic +i. in 6$adilo. 9ere I only ish to mention in passin the method scientists use
to attain their ob/ect that is to say to arri+e at las and systems in !nlish in oriinalJ.
The content or e+idence made use of by empirical science is obtained by ay of obser+ation
or e=periment in !nlish in oriinalJ. The e=perimental method is more fruitful. "ecauseE ith
the ay of obser+ation the in+estiator only plays a passi+e role silent and atchful only
hereas ith the e=perimental method the in+estiator can mo+e the ob/ect from one place to
another and mi= +arious thins toether accordin to the aim in +ie. Hhile the obser+er can only
scrutinie the life and characteristics of each plant and animal at each particular spot the
oranier of an e=periment may breed a ne plant or e+en animal in order to obtain a ne
species one hich is bier stroner and healthier.
9o rapid as the ad+ance of empirical science folloin Galileo At the beinnin of the
37th Century Galileo oranied his e=periment in !nlish in oriinalJ at the toer of #isa. ne
can say that that e=periment opened the door for the acuisition of countless natural resources for
humanity. ,rom the four elements *non by the ancient Gree*s namely earth ater air and fire
the science of chemistry at this moment in time already *nos 52 elements in !nlish in
oriinalJ.
,inally and no less important the spirit of ob/ecti+ity (not bein sub/ecti+ely in+ol+ed a prey
to emotion and selfinterest) side by side ith the spirit of ad+enture in !nlish in oriinalJ in
the sense of bein able to leap from the orld of fact to the orld of hypothesis and theory is a
sine ua non for a scientist. An e=pert ho only remains ithin the orld of facts alone and is not
capable of freein him or herself from facts so as to be able to fly up to the orld of hypothesis
and theory ill not be able to formulate las and systems in !nlish in oriinalJ hich are the
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ob/ect of science in !nlish in oriinalJ. Those people ill dell fore+er in the orld of fact
only.
Easern %o#iey and Empiri#al %#ien#e
It is not uite correct to say that the society of the !ast apart from the Arabs did not *no
empirical science. It is not uite correct to say that India China and the rest only *ne reliion
and philosophy and did not *no science in !nlish in oriinalJ. It is reported that the father of
eometry as a 9indu from "urma and they say also that India for a lon time already *ne
alebra. Also the Chinese understood ho to ma*e a circle e+en if they did not *no the Qr
formula hich e *no. >o one ill fail to be surprised and influenced by the loic of the reat
teacher
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the las of empirical science had not become freely separated out sprinin up from the facts
themsel+es.
The $reeks as !ioneers of Empiri#al %#ien#e
&o it is fittin that e should honour the Gree* nation as pioneers of modern empirical science.
Indeed both literally and metaphorically dalam arti tulisan dan lisanJ Archimedes leapt from the
realm of brute fact to the orld of la rulin o+er brute fact.
,or such a lon time Archimedes ondered hy and ho his body spran upards if he
submered himself in ater into any *ind of ater at any time. ,inally he ot the inspiration and
for the first time established the cause and conseuence he as loo*in for. Archimdes disco+ered
the la concernin thins hich sin* drift and float in ater hich e no learn in school. In his
/oy Archimedes not only /umped out of the ater shoutin 6!ure*a !ure*a (6I1+e ot it) and
runnin up and don ithout clothes on but he leapt from the orld of matter to the orld of
la. The more the years ent by the more the la first disco+ered by him floered and soared.
The la realied in the past as +alid for all times and all places until one of his folloers
disco+ered mercury. !+eryday ob/ects li*e ood do not sin* in mercury but they float. Later on it
became e+ident that it as not the la of Archimedes that as ron but rather its formulation
as not uite e=tensi+e enouh. In fact Archimedes1s la acuired +erification in !nlish in
oriinalJ because of the aforementioned ne fact (mercury). >oadays 6ater is idened in
e=tent to co+er oil ater mercury or to co+er all liuids. 6A person or 6ood as e=tended to
all ob/ects. The la of Archimedes re and thro+e until Gay Lussac etc. Till it as e=tended to
the air to the stratosphere to here #rof. #icard spran up to search for confirmation of
*nolede. #icard +oyaed to a orld only thouht of as true accordin to hypothesis only 9e
sailed as an ad+enturer from the *non orld to a orld not yet *non /ust li*e Columbus
'onald sicJAmundsen and other ocean e=plorers
In this ay the method of induction deduction and +erification considered most important by
loic and empirical science as perfected. Also better perfected as the search for causes that is
to say by means of fi+e *non methodsE
3. $ethod of Areement
2. $ethod of -ifference
8. %oint $ethod of Areement and -ifference combined ?translatorJ
B. $ethod of Concomitant Dariation
:. $ethod of 'esidue all in !nlish in oriinalJ.
A report has been handed don to us to the effect that #ythaoras did not li+e to pro+e in
!nlish in oriinalJ the riht anle that e *no. >ot only that the first time he set up his
theories and the method of pro+in them #ythaoras e+en areed ith the ambience of his ae by
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ele+atin number and the theory of number to the supernatural orld. $any numbers ere
considered as di+ine by the reat teacher #ythaoras. 9ence #ythaoras influenced the orld of
reliion the orld of philosophy and relati+e to our analysis here the orld of mathematics.
Than*s to #ythaoras1s pioneerin or* e after 2:00 years ha+e arri+ed at +arious comple=
mathematical theories such as !instein1s theory of relati+ity than*s to iants of mathematics such
as ,ermat Laplace >eton etc.
And ithin all the reatness and merit of those mathematicians e should certainly not foret
the reatness and merit of the $uslims ho de+eloped abstraction in !nlish in oriinalJ in a
more ad+anced form. >umbers used as symbols for thins ere isolated from any *ind of thin
ahtsoe+er. The number 8 can become a symbol for three soldiers three bombers or three
bamboo spi*es. "ut alebra ascends one le+el further by ele+atin letters to the position of
symbols. The letter = for e=ample may represent the number 3 2 8 and so on. Hithout alebra
e could not arri+e at the theories of trionometry and !insteinian relati+ity. The techniues of
alebra made possible or at least reatly facilitated the proress of mathematics. The leap from
ob/ects to numbers and the leap from numbers to letters a+e !instein and >eton the instruments
to facilitate the leap to the orld of the stars in the s*y and for measurin all the forces in motion
in this reat uni+erse from the motion of sand stone earth and sun to the motion of the atom and
of a sunbeam hich mo+es at 800000 *m per second
It is said by some e=perts that the classification put forard by Aristotle as froen by the
*nolede of the $iddle Aes. A statement of that *ind cannot be accepted /ust li*e that. It is
necessary to e=amine ho the situation reardin production in the $iddle Aes and mediae+al
society froe that classification of Aristotle1s. "ut in reality it is the classification much utilied by
Aristotle hich became an important apparatus alon ith dialectics for the pioneer of modern
bioloy Charles -arin. Hhen -arin +oyaed in his ship 6"eale to study the species in
!nlish in oriinalJ of plants and animals on land sea and air -arin as not free from the
method of classification induction and the method of establishin causes shaped by Aristotle in
his loic. Indeed the beinnin of the 35th Century as a period hich as capable of raisin up
aain the li+e *nolede hich already pioneered by Aristotle. The *nolede hich as first
de+eloped by those iant thin*ers of Greece could still be halted in the inter+enin period
because production techniue and *nolede in eneral did not yet permit a resurence for uic*
and rapid proress as it did after reachin the hands of Charles -arin ho li+ed ithin the
omb of modern capitalist society.
Li*eise for more than 2000 years the theory of the molecule and the atom alon ith the
materialist tradition and dialectical ay of thin*in stemmin from 9era*leitos -emo*ritos and
!picurus had to be froen and buried in anticipation of a society and a mode of production
compatible ith cle+er specialists li*e $ar= !nels and Lenin ho ere capable of re+i+in the
theory tradition and method lon froen and hidden ma*in it e=tended and perfected.
&o much for empirical science at this point
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0o'i# and +iale#i#s
A +ery short e=planation of loic and dialectics ill be i+en here.
The content consituent parts character history and scope of loic li*eise the content
consituent parts character history scope and +arieties of dialectics e ha+e already e=plained at
reat lenth in 6$adilo. 9ere e ill e=plain the distinuishin features and scope of each of
the to ays of thin*in in accordance ith the biest di+idinline only. He shall also deal
once more ith the to types of dialectics idealist dialectics and materialist dialectics.
The orld reconies Aristotle as the father of loic. 9e it as ho first formulated loic as a
separate science. That formulation achie+ed such perfection that one could say that from the time
of Aristotle till the time of %ohn &tuart $ill and Kebere loic did not undero much important
alteration. ne cay say that amon all other branches of science loic cannot be remo+ed or e+en
attentuated ithout e=periencin a failure or deficiency as reards the science of *nolede itself.
-ialectics in the hands of 9era*leitos and -emo*ritos as already capable of penetratin the
realm of matter as far as molecules and atoms hich ere in+isible but can be seen afresh ith a
microscope in this modern ae. "ut ith the proress of *nolede concernin all thins and the
motion of matter dialectics as the las of thouht based on matter in motion obtained a stimulus
it ne+er e=perienced in the orld of the past a static orld arrested passi+e.
In the hands of 9eel the leader of a boureoisdemocratic current in Germany hich
opposed the feudalaristocratic one the idealist dialectic reached reat heihts. In the hands of
$ar= and !nels as leaders of the proletariancommunist current in Hestern !urope opposin
capitalist democracy dialectical materialism became a tool of thouht for the re+olutionary
proletariat of the hole orld.
In the hands of the "olshe+i*s the mode of thouht of dialectical materialism as able to form
a mass party satu partai $urbaJ capable of crushin feudalboureois 'ussia and establishin the
dictatorship of the 'ussian masses *aum $urba 'usiaJ.
&o loic is often construed as the las of thouht or method of thouht. This interpretation is
+alid.
Are there differences beteen the to las of thouht and if so hat are they; At first siht
only I thin* the differences in the to las of thouht are located in the method of positionin
ob/ects in+estiated by the researcher.
,ormal loic is used to situate somethin that is bein e=amned in a static distinct
unchaneable and lastin condition in !nlish in oriinalJ. &uch an ob/ect must be in+estiated
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sinly and separately and rearded as unrelated to and unconnected ith other thins at the
appropriate time and place.
-ialectics is used to position somethin under in+estiation in a condition of mo+ement
conne=ion chane and contradiction in !nlish in oriinalJ. &omethin li*e that must be
e=amined in motion selfcontradiction emerin and collapsin also at one particular time.
,or someone usin serious loic faced ith a problem in that situation there is a serious
anserE 6Pes is yes and no is no. Pes cannot be no and no cannot be yes. ne thin cannot
comprise its opposite. As Kebere said 6A precise uestion ith a precise meanin +i. 1is it
the case that there is a certain definite characteristic possessed by a particular ob/ect;1 must be
ansered 1yes1 or 1no1. ne cannot anser 1yes and no1. There are three premisses of loicE (3) A
N AF (2) A does not eual >onAF (8) there is no bride beteen A and >onA. (These three
premisses are also called 6The #rinciple of Identity).
In conne=ion ith these three main aforementioned premisses an ob/ect is classified as A or
>onA. And a certain conclusion concernin the one or the other cannot be true of both of them.
!=ampleE
Is a co coloured blac* or hite if loo*ed at from the left side;
Indeed if it is only one or a limited colour hich is possessed by somethin hich is mo+in
then a uestion of that *ind can be ansered ith 6blac* or 6hite only. ,or e=ample someparts of that co loo*ed at from the left are hite not blac*. And if loo*ed at from the riht hand
side the co is the opposite that is to say blac* and not hite.
&o the anser arees ith 6A N A and not >onA.
"ut hat is the anser if someone as*sE 6Hhat colour is the hole co blac* or hite;
That uestion cannot be ansered ith 6hite only or 6blac* only.
"ut here dialectics can step in and inter+ene ith the folloin anserE 6The hole co is
both hite and blac*. r in other ords 6the co is spotted.
That co still has not yet by and lare endured e+erythin that is to say from its infancy to
hen it became an adult durin hich time its colour often underent alteration. And that co
has not mo+ed ith the speed of liht i.e. at 800000 *m per second. In this case a not yet fi=ed
colour 6spotted may suffice. Has it not the case that in the &econd Horld Har a decepti+e
colour (an aberration) in !nlish in oriinalJ (because a chane of colour is connected ith liht
and mo+ement amon other thins) as used by the American armada to decei+e its enemies;
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9ence in conne=ion ith somethin comple= in !nlish in oriinalJ but still in a motionless
condition loic is already forced to reuest assistance from dialectics. And especially so in
conditions of motion.
This is indeed so ith a uestion such as 6Is a ball hich is uic*ly rolled for a second in this
position di titi* iniJ or not; This cannot be ansered 6yes or 6no only. If the anser 6no isi+en it is ron because actually the ball is at the intended point. If the anser is 6yes e+en
this anser is ron because the respondent has not yet finished sayin 6yes before the ball has
already one beyond that point. &o formal loic is holly insufficient in this caseF formal loic
must reuest help from dialectics in order to i+e the anser 6yes and 6no (both at once).
In truth for a +ery lon time empirical scientists ha+e ac*noleded that
3. All force or enery in !nlish in oriinalJ in this reat uni+erse e=pressed as liht heat and
rays in !nlish in oriinalJ alon ith concealed reser+es such as manetism electricity and
chemical forces all of that is in the form of motion in the uni+erse chanin from one form to
another. 9ence ith its appearance in one form of enery it +anishes in another until all motion
in the uni+erse consists of ceaseless chane from form to form.
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animals and 3003 other e=amples ... here loic and statics sicJ and measurement in the manner of
mathematics are no loner useful. In this case it is dialectics hich has the capacity to i+e the
anser.
Hhen certainty in chane has already appeared (ater has already turned into steam
manetism has already turned into electricity the sun has already become the earth a plant hasalready turned into an animal) then in that case e can ma*e use of loic statics mathematics
and the science of measurin as ell as eihin At a later date Kebre also dre the
folloin conclusionE in a simple problem one can use formal loic. "ut hen one is concerned
ith +arious ob/ects containin +arious contradictory features then e must ac*nolede the
coincidence of opposites in !nlish in oriinalJ. Conseuently in this case 6yes and 6no may
be utilied toether
n one pae in his boo* entitled 6Loic 9eel a +ery reat German philosopher said more
or less thisE
6-iale*ti* nennen ir solche eistliche "eeun bei denen das etrennt scheinenden durch
sichselbst d. h. durch das as sie sind in einander ueberehen und so das etrennt scheinenden
aufheben. (I am oblied to uote from memory).
The meanin is more or less as follosE 6He call dialectics the (spiritual) mo+ement of
thouht hereby hat is formed essentially separate i.e. affected by its on characteristics
mutually bein transformed is in the process in its form separated out and neated (i.e. reunited).
There are many similarities beteen 9eel and his e=pupil $ar= "ut there is also a reat
difference beteen them the teacher and the pupil after the pupil1s thouht emered from ithin
the omb of thouht of the teacher.
,irst similarityE both types of thin*in eually ma*e use of the dialectical method i.e. the
in+estiation of somethin under conditions of motion contradiction appearance roth and
collapse.
&econd similarityE both of them eually repudiate any eternal distinction beteen 6yes and
6no. In the mo+ement of thesis antithesis and synthesis in the final analysis 6yes can become
6no and so on. In this mo+ement uantity radually lambat launJ chanes to become uality in
!nlish in oriinalJ. In this ay >eation der >eation (the neation of the neation) is achie+ed.
&o it happens that accordin to the science of loic and mathematics that to ob/ects hich are
each eual to a third ob/ect are both eual to each other. "ut to ob/ects hich each differ from
the third ob/ect are not yet definitely eual to each other.
He ha+e already shon abo+e that the to reat thin*ers 9eel and $ar= both had the same
hostile attitude to formal loic.
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They both eually disareed ith the notion of an eternal distinction beteen 6yes and
6no.They both eually carried out their in+estiations in a dialectical frameor* suasanaJ
(motion and contradiction). "ut there are also bi differences beteen the to protaonists of
dialectics.
It so happens that 9eel made dialectics depend on the theory and interpreation of idealism.Hhereas $ar= based dialectics on the theory and interpreation of materialism. 9eel as an
adherent of idealist dialectics. $ar= li*eise his friend and cothin*er !nels as an adherent of
materialist dialectics.
In 6-ialectics and Loic #le*hano+ suested that the differences beteen materialist and
idealist dialectics ere as follosE
In 9eel1s system the dialectic is eui+alent to metaphysics. ,or us dialectics hines on the
*nolede of nature (the las of nature).
In 9eel1s system the demiouros the creator in !nlish in oriinalJ or ma*er of reality is the
absolute idea in !nlish in oriinalJ. ,or us that absolute idea is only an abstraction in !nlish in
the oriinalJ from motion. And throuh motion e+ery synthesis arisin from the condition of
e+erythin occurs.
Accordin to 9eel proressi+e understandin is caused by the realiation and resolution
*einsyafan dan penyelesaianJ of +arious contradictions e=istin ithin the concept in !nlish in
the oriinalJ. Accordin to our materialist theory all contradictions e=istin in thouht arisin
from the realm of thouht as ell as +arious contradictions that e=ist in reality are refle=ions
ithin the human brainF this is one e=planation of the real orld (phenomena) resultin from
contradictions hich are found ha+in a common basis +i. motion.
Accordin to 9eel all real proress is determined by the proress of thouht ( the idea) in
!nlish in oriinalJ. Accordin to our conception the proress of thouht can be e=plained by
real proress the proress of understandin by the proress of (human) life.
Thus $ar= and !nels brouht bac* to earth hat as up in the air and redirected hat had
been situated by 9eel on the round up into the air and remo+ed the +eil of mystery hich
9eel had imposed on the operations of the dialectic. In this ay in the hands of $ar= and !nels
dialectics became a eapon of re+olution pure and simple.
Camouflaed under a +eil of mystery dialectics had become a eapon of reactionary forces in
Germany. ,or 9eel dialectics as a re+olutionary eapon aainst the feudal class but chaned
into a eapon of reaction +isa+is the proletarian class. ,or $ar= and !nels as defenders of the
proletarian class dialectics based on materialism as a precise reliable and perfect eapon
aainst the feudalist and the boureois class.
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It ould ta*e a lon time to conduct further analysis here of the similarities and differences in
method and conceptual theory in a or* hich is intended only as a series of brief obser+ations.
!lsehere I ha+e ritten a broader and deeper commentary in somehat more detail. I ish to
touch aain briefly on these similarities and differences by ay of a preliminary e=amination
only as ell as to discuss the similarities a