odern science, al-Attas observed, often studies the natural world purely in terms of empirical phenomena, treating nature as an object to be analysed and manipulated. This approach has produced remarkable scientific achievements and material benefits, yet it has also encouraged a purely instrumental attitude toward the environment. When nature is reduced to mere objects of exploitation, ethical and spiritual considerations are easily ignored.

Al-Attas warned that the pursuit of knowledge without higher purpose could lead humanity to imagine itself as autonomous and self-sufficient. In such a worldview, human beings risked forgetting their dependence on the Divine.

By contrast, Islamic metaphysics presents a vision of reality in which the material world is inseparable from a deeper spiritual order. For al-Attas, this metaphysical framework provided the necessary foundation for a balanced understanding of knowledge, ethics and human responsibility. In developing his philosophical perspective, al-Attas drew extensively on the rich intellectual heritage of Islamic philosophy and Sufism, paying particular attention to classical debates concerning the nature of existence and reality.

Within the Islamic intellectual tradition, philosophers and theologians frequently emphasised mahiyyah (essence) as the defining characteristic of things, referring to what a thing is—its quiddity or essential nature. Through this perspective, reality was analysed by identifying the attributes that determine the identity and classification of beings; for example, the essence of the human being was classically defined as a “rational animal.” By contrast, many Sufi thinkers focused on wuj d (existence), the actuality of being itself. From this standpoint, existence is regarded as the primary and shared reality underlying all created things, though it manifests in different degrees and forms.

Al-Attas placed particular emphasis on this Sufi orientation toward wuj d, considering it especially significant for understanding the relationship between the created world and the Divine. The multiplicity and diversity observable in the world, he argued, do not contradict the unity of existence; rather, they represent the many ways in which existence—ultimately derived from God—is received and expressed by created beings. At the same time, he emphasised the transcendence of God, whose essence remains beyond human comprehension even as creation reflects aspects of divine order and wisdom.

Al-Attas’s metaphysical outlook was deeply rooted in the classical heritage of Islamic scholarship. Among the most significant influences on his thought was Ibn Arabi, whose doctrine of wa dat al-wuj d (the unity of being) shaped al-Attas’s understanding of existence as a fundamental reality. The synthesis of theology, philosophy and spirituality developed by Al-Ghazali likewise informed his conception of knowledge as a path that integrates intellectual understanding with ethical and spiritual transformation.

Debates within the tradition of kal m, particularly those associated with Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, contributed to discussions concerning the relationship between essence and existence. Later philosophical developments, especially the doctrine of the primacy of existence (a lat al-wuj d) articulated by Mulla Sadra, also resonate with Al-Attas’s emphasis on existence as the central ontological principle. Earlier still, Ibn Sina had formulated the influential distinction between essence and existence that later thinkers would elaborate and reinterpret.

Among contemporary scholars, the work of Seyyed Hossein Nasr invites comparison with al-Attas. Both thinkers emphasise Islamic metaphysics and spirituality, critique the dominance of modern secular conceptions of knowledge and draw extensively on classical Islamic philosophy and Sufi traditions. Each stresses the unity of existence and the sacred character of knowledge within the Islamic worldview. Yet their intellectual orientations differ in emphasis: while al-Attas is particularly known for his project of the Islamisation of knowledge and his epistemological critique of modernity—shaped partly by the Malay-Islamic intellectual tradition—Nasr’s work is more closely associated with the Traditionalist or Perennialist school and often extends into broader reflections on religion, metaphysics and environmental philosophy.

While widely known for his philosophical writings, al-Attas also made pioneering contributions to the study of Malay literature and intellectual history. His early literary work, Rangkaian Ruba’iyyat, published in 1959, helped establish him as an important voice in modern Malay letters. His scholarly research focused especially on the rich tradition of Malay Sufism. His doctoral dissertation, later published as The Mysticism of Hamzah Fansuri, remains one of the most comprehensive studies of the influential Sixteenth-Century Sufi poet and thinker. Through meticulous examination of manuscripts and historical sources, al-Attas clarified the philosophical ideas of Fansuri and corrected several misunderstandings that had persisted in earlier scholarship.

He also demonstrated that Hamzah Fansuri played a crucial role in shaping the Malay poetic form known as sha‘ir and produced some of the earliest authoritative commentaries on the works of early Malay Sufi scholars, including Nuruddin al-Raniri. Beyond literary studies, al-Attas conducted detailed research on early Malay manuscripts and contributed to debates on the historical development of the Malay language. His work helped illuminate the deep connections between Islamic thought and the intellectual culture of Southeast Asia.

Al-Attas’s scholarship also intersected with cultural and political questions in post-independence Malaysia. During debates in the late 1960s over the role of language in national identity, he articulated a philosophical argument for the importance of the Malay language as a vehicle of intellectual and cultural expression.

As dean of the Faculty of Arts at the University of Malaya, he encouraged the systematic use of Malay as an academic language capable of conveying complex scholarly ideas. His efforts contributed to the consolidation of Malay as the national language and strengthened its role within the country’s educational institutions.

Perhaps the most tangible expression of al-Attas’s intellectual vision was his role in establishing the International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilisation in Kuala Lumpur. Conceived as a centre for advanced research in Islamic philosophy, history and civilization, the ISTAC reflected his belief that intellectual renewal required institutions grounded in a coherent worldview.

Al-Attas was deeply involved in the design and development of the institute. He oversaw not only its academic programs but also its architectural aesthetic, drawing inspiration from classical Islamic traditions. The institute’s library, which housed rare manuscripts and specialised collections, became one of the most important resources for scholars of Islamic civilisation in Southeast Asia. Through the ISTAC, al-Attas sought to cultivate a new generation of scholars capable of engaging both the classical Islamic tradition and the challenges of modern intellectual life.

With his death at the age of ninety-four, Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas leaves behind a formidable intellectual legacy. His writings continue to influence discussions on education, philosophy and the future of Islamic civilisation. More broadly, his work represents a sustained attempt to address one of the central questions facing modern Muslim societies: how to engage with contemporary knowledge and institutions while remaining faithful to the ethical and spiritual principles of Islam.

For al-Attas, the answer lay not in rejecting modernity outright nor in embracing it uncritically, but in re-examining the foundations of knowledge itself. By restoring the metaphysical and moral dimensions of learning, he believed it would be possible to cultivate individuals and societies grounded in wisdom rather than mere technical power.

In an age often characterised by rapid change and intellectual fragmentation, al-Attas’s writings remind readers that knowledge, when properly understood, is inseparable from the search for truth, justice and spiritual meaning. His life’s work stands as an enduring contribution to the ongoing conversation about the place of faith, philosophy, and civilisation in the modern world.

(Concluded)

The writer is a professor in the Faculty of Liberal Arts at the Beaconhouse National University, Lahore.