Research

There are ayats in the Quran that have implications for the education system because of the rewards associated with them. The ayat of the Quran that highlights the importance of developing spiritual competency by revealing relationship between spirituality, socially responsible behavior, knowledge and wisdom is:

And when Joseph reached maturity, We gave him judgment and knowledge. And thus We reward the Muhsineen (doers of good). (Al-Quran 12:22)

Muhsineen are individuals who do good deeds in a state of Ihsan (Spiritual state) and get knowledge and wisdom as a reward from Allah. This ayat also has social implications as it shows the way education can become “the great equalizer”.

Another ayat of of the Quran that highlights the benefits of educating the heart through zikr (belief based mindfulness practice) and other acts of worship so that we naturally respond to events instead of reacting to them is:

Those who believe (in the Oneness of Allah — Islamic Monotheism), and whose hearts find rest in the remembrance of Allah, Verily, in the remembrance of Allah do hearts find rest. (Al-Quran 13:28)

The truth revealed through these ayats has physical manifestation. We feel it is our responsibility to collect and record evidence of the manifestation of these ayats through research. The physical manifestation of the rewards associated with these ayats occurs in the brain. With the advent of fMRI, evidence related to this manifestation can be collected and recorded. To achieve our goal, we intend to initiate research studies in the fields of positive neuroscience, positive psychology, spirituality, and educational psychology to prove the truthfulness of these ayats to the world so that the purpose and focus of education gets aligned with reality.