Sir Francis Bacon and Rene Descartes are the two original names associated with the Philosophy of Modern Science. Putting man at the center of the world, the seventeenth century Bacon concluded that the world is, what it is perceived by the human senses. According to him, there was no other world or worldly existence beyond human perception, that is, there was no spiritual world in as was widely believed. It was a very bold statement made at a time when the world was dominated by church ideology. But he was a politician, so he was more interested in knowing if there was another seat of power beyond the perception of the man as alleged by the church fathers, than a study of the natural phenomena.
The Genius of Guru Nanak Descartes, who was a mathematician and the inventor of coordinate geometry, went a step further. Barely two decades after Bacon, he declared that though it was correct that the sole source of human knowledge were his sense perceptions, but man must double check the information coming from this source. In other words, he must discard faith and should not follow the senses blindly. So, his slogan was ‘doubt everything unless proved’. He unambitiously stated that one should not admit anything unless it has proof of existence in the same way in which propositions in Geometry have. According to him a method characterized by the accuracy of mathematical logic and geometrical proofs is essential to obtain the true, perfect, verifiable and valid knowledge of the existential world and its notions. This was a departing note from the traditional religious beliefs and teachings of the Church fathers. It proceeded to become an established philosophy of science by passing through the hands of later thinkers like David Hume, Baruch Spinoza, Ludwig Feuerbach, Karl Marx and Frederick Engels.
But much earlier than these seventeenth century and later western philosophers and scientists, Guru Nanak had made even a bolder assertion in this field in the sixteenth century. He had emphasized upon the indispensability of mathematical reasoning and accuracy in the investigation of the ultimate reality of the universe which he called the Karta or the creator at a time when the leaders of all religions believed and lived by a divine power called God. He was the pioneer in the field of scientific study of nature who highlighted the need for bringing accuracy in its investigations. He not only emphasized upon the need for precision and relevance of research but also put forward a concrete framework of methodology for this purpose.
Thus, the Guru was neither a supporter of the Bhakti Movement in India nor the founder of a religion as many people believe. He was on the other hand, the father of the philosophy of modern science based on the logical concepts of mathematics. He preceded the earliest European thinkers like Sir Francis Bacon and Rene Descartes who recognized the worth of this fact after him.
However, most Sikh scholars and interpreters of Sikh scripture still recognize him as the founder of the Sikh religion. This belief tends to lower his towering genius to the level of a worshiping monk in his own land. It also reduces his icon of scientific method Ekonkar (ੴ) to the status of divinity, that is, the traditional God. Therefore, there is a need to study the compositions of the Great Guru in an objective and logical manner to ascertain their true historical and scientific value.
Read in Punjabi
Descartes, who was a mathematician and the inventor of coordinate geometry, went a step further. Barely two decades after Bacon, he declared that though it was correct that the sole source of human knowledge were his sense perceptions, but man must double check the information coming from this source. In other words, he must discard faith and should not follow the senses blindly. So, his slogan was ‘doubt everything unless proved’. He unambitiously stated that one should not admit anything unless it has proof of existence in the same way in which propositions in Geometry have. According to him a method characterized by the accuracy of mathematical logic and geometrical proofs is essential to obtain the true, perfect, verifiable and valid knowledge of the existential world and its notions. This was a departing note from the traditional religious beliefs and teachings of the Church fathers. It proceeded to become an established philosophy of science by passing through the hands of later thinkers like David Hume, Baruch Spinoza, Ludwig Feuerbach, Karl Marx and Frederick Engels.
But much earlier than these seventeenth century and later western philosophers and scientists, Guru Nanak had made even a bolder assertion in this field in the sixteenth century. He had emphasized upon the indispensability of mathematical reasoning and accuracy in the investigation of the ultimate reality of the universe which he called the Karta or the creator at a time when the leaders of all religions believed and lived by a divine power called God. He was the pioneer in the field of scientific study of nature who highlighted the need for bringing accuracy in its investigations. He not only emphasized upon the need for precision and relevance of research but also put forward a concrete framework of methodology for this purpose.
Thus, the Guru was neither a supporter of the Bhakti Movement in India nor the founder of a religion as many people believe. He was on the other hand, the father of the philosophy of modern science based on the logical concepts of mathematics. He preceded the earliest European thinkers like Sir Francis Bacon and Rene Descartes who recognized the worth of this fact after him.
However, most Sikh scholars and interpreters of Sikh scripture still recognize him as the founder of the Sikh religion. This belief tends to lower his towering genius to the level of a worshiping monk in his own land. It also reduces his icon of scientific method Ekonkar (ੴ) to the status of divinity, that is, the traditional God. Therefore, there is a need to study the compositions of the Great Guru in an objective and logical manner to ascertain their true historical and scientific value.