An innovative thinker and a powerful spokesman for reform in the Muslim world; he is either revered or vilified. In the last decade, he has been fighting for the integration of Muslims in the West.
“The Quest For Meaning,” his latest publication, reflects his current preoccupations. In fact, Ramadan dedicates the book to his former students who will “rediscover here the fragrances of a teaching of philosophy.”
“The Quest For Meaning,” a dense and confusing philosophical discourse at times, seems more like a textbook than a journey. Yet, the author invites us to travel along “ the paths of the heart, the mind and the imaginary.” The world we live in has never been so open and diverse. On the other hand, we are marked by our differences and are becoming increasingly individualistic sometimes to the point of narcissism. We need to rediscover some basic truths to create a harmonious and respectful global community.
Ramadan has attempted to explain complex notions such as the ethics of independence and the independence of ethics, the sense of belonging, emotion and spirituality, to name but a few, “in the simplest and most approachable way.” He also writes in the introduction that no philosophical knowledge is required before searching for the universal truths. Yet, that statement is overly optimistic.
This book has turned out to be a display of Ramadan’s vast academic knowledge of Western, Islamic and Oriental philosophies. In fact, there are so many names mentioned in the book that a bibliography would have been useful.
Reading this book is compared to a journey that takes us far away and back to ourselves. The chapters are like windows, which invite us to look out but do not provide us with answers. They are merely perspectives “that remind us that, ultimately, human beings are all alike in their joys, their sufferings and their loves.”
In spite of it being tedious, “The Quest for Meaning” offers some insightful passages concerning the current phenomenon of standardization. For instance, women of all ages are driven by fashion diktats and oppressed by a constant focus on looking young, beautiful and slim. It has reached a point where “two-thirds of 16-year-old girls are unhappy with their bodies and experience a profound lack of well-being in the richest societies on the planet,” said Ramadan.
Furthermore, consumerism now affects every society in our globalized world. We are submerged with information and images that have, so to speak, desensitized us. We have become in many ways blasé to other people’s suffering.
“It is true that we have often lost the ability to marvel at the simple things in life, as a result of either pessimism or lassitude, but we can only conclude that we have also and to a dangerous extent, lost our capacity for outrage and revolt. Our representations are becoming standardized just as our intellect and sensibilities are atrophying,” remarked Ramadan.
The leitmotiv of “The Quest for Meaning” is the necessity to understand our fundamental beliefs before condemning and blaming others. We have to learn the art of criticizing others without being unfair and arrogant. We have to practice tolerance and respect those who differ from us.
As we reach the end of the book, alias the journey, we are told these are only the first steps on a journey that never ends.
This is definitely not one of Ramadan’s best books. Unsurprisingly, in the last pages, the author himself describes the book as “a strange mixture of analytic thought, Cartesianism, strict rationalism and flights of mysticism, some of them quite ethereal.” He also wonders candidly: “How can we describe this book and how can we define the mind that conceived and produced it?”
It was deceitfully tempting for the author, a brilliant thinker, to reformulate Western, Islamic and Oriental philosophies in light of the world’s globalization. The core of Ramadan’s message is clear: men and women need to rediscover the value of universal truths in order to live in respectful and peaceful harmony. However, endless repetitions, and a confusing verbiage prevent us from understanding Ramadan’s “philosophy of pluralism.” “The Quest for Meaning” falls short of a meaning, and the philosophy fails to convince.
