ABSTRACT
The relationship between Islam and premodern science was molded by a worldview that constructed the world of nature as one dimension of a created order that encompasses two distinct realms: the visible and the invisible. Furthermore, this worldview considered the visible world (al-zahir) not only a thing in itself, but a sign that pointed to a reality beyond itself. This dual aspect of the visible world imparted a transcendent quality, which made the sciences that explored the visible world an integral part of sacred sciences of Islam. Astronomy, physics, chemistry, and other sciences that explored the physical world thus explored one aspect of a vast reality within the context of a scheme of existence that continuously pointed to a transcendent reality. This worldview, which took nature and all that it contains as a sign of the transcendent reality, is shared by all three Abrahamic faiths: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
