INTELLECTUAL SCIENCES
“In the Islamic tradition, a clear distinction has always been drawn between transmitted [naqli] and intellectual [‘aqli] learning. Transmitted learning is knowledge that has been passed on from generation to generation. In contrast, intellectual learning cannot really be passed on…Intellectual learning must be recovered anew by each generation…To avoid possible misunderstandings, let me stress the fact that the two types of learning intermix in the human soul. Their relationship is complementary, not antagonistic. Most of the Muslim intellectuals took it for granted that faith in the transmitted learning along with practice of the transmitted rituals were necessary aids to intellectual understanding. In some branches of the intellectual tradition, it was even held that faith in transmitted knowledge was indispensable for the full actualization of the human intellect.”
~William Chittick~