Reflections on knowledge and culture

As for science, it is natural, and my speech is based on the first of its foundations, which are strict principles verified through practical experiments through which humans seek to understand everything around them in the universe without being bound by certain precautions. As for the theoretical part, it relates to philosophical and theoretical issues in which the overall discussion involves doubt and certainty. As for art, it is the ecstasy of the soul, the refinement of the self, and an endless love for everything beautiful in appearance and essence. As for language, it is a set of terms adopted by a people for mutual understanding, recording what they perceive through experience, and defining their identity, and they sought to formulate rules for it as much as possible. Therefore, the language of a people is their identity, and it is the vessel containing their culture and civilization. As for history, it is two types: the first are narratives that are recited and inherited, in which subjective elements appear, employed to suit the demands of time and place, and thus objectivity diminishes over the years. The second is scientific, subject to its methodology, which adopts doubt and evidence as means to reach what actually happened, aiming to achieve an accurate understanding of past and present events and to explore future horizons. As for images, they are documents that provide another dimension to people and events, enriching human imagination. The book before us deals with some issues of science, art, language, and history as perceived by the author at different times. Although many years have passed since their events, he sees them today as if with his own eyes, as if time has stopped at them or as if it has passed slowly in similar doses, but not identical. When we reflect on their implications for what is happening today, we reach a frightening conclusion: the idea based on authority is what has spread among humans. Human behavior has been throughout history governed by what is called the "inevitability of insisting on the act of error." Although humans are generally born with similar potentials, they learn contradictory ideas through different methods that push them toward this terrible insistence. Therefore, the whole issue revolves around acquired science and acquired knowledge. Perhaps a day will come when people everywhere agree on teaching the youth one set of principles—perhaps in different ways—that enshrine high ideals and affirm the humanity of humans.