Integrating Science and Shariah: Scenarios from Higher Education, Islamic Finance and The Halal Industry
Integrasi Sains dan Syariah: Senario dalam Pendidikan Tinggi, Kewangan Islam dan Industri Halal
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53840/n86q4z81Keywords:
Integration, Science, Shariah, Maqasid al-Shariah, Islamization of Knowledge, Naqli and Aqli EpistemologyAbstract
The growing complexity of contemporary challenges requires a more coherent integration of scientific knowledge and shariah principles. However, current approaches remain fragmented and lack a sufficiently systematic framework for practical application. This study critically examines the integration of science and shariah in three selected sectors: higher education, Islamic banking and finance, and the halal industry. Drawing on a critical narrative review of relevant literature, the study analyses existing practices through the concepts of Islamization of Knowledge, revelation-guided science, the integration of Naqli and Aqli knowledge, Tawhid, and Maqasid al-Shariah. The findings demonstrate that integration has progressed beyond theoretical discourse and is increasingly reflected in university curricula, shariah-compliant financial innovation, digital finance, halal governance, and supply-chain traceability. Nevertheless, its implementation remains constrained by epistemological fragmentation, limited multidisciplinary competence, methodological inconsistencies, inadequate technological and shariah literacy, and the absence of standardised shariah governance for emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and blockchain. In the halal industry, an additional concern is the tendency to prioritise procedural halal compliance without adequately incorporating the broader principles of halalan tayyiban, consumer welfare, and sustainability. The study proposes a more systematic and applicable epistemological approach that integrates revelation, reason, and empirical evidence while preserving scientific rigour and alignment with Maqasid al-Shariah. This requires Tawhid-based curricula, cross-disciplinary capacity building, ethical frameworks for emerging technologies, stronger governance, and sustained collaboration among academia, industry, shariah scholars, and regulators. Such integration can transform science and shariah from parallel domains into a unified foundation for ethical, sustainable, and socially meaningful development.
Kerumitan cabaran dalam dunia kontemporari memerlukan integrasi pengetahuan saintifik dan prinsip syariah yang lebih tersusun. Walau bagaimanapun, pendekatan semasa masih bersifat terasing tanpa kerangka kerja yang sistematik untuk aplikasi praktikal. Justeru, kajian ini menilai secara kritis integrasi sains dan syariah dalam tiga sektor terpilih: pendidikan tinggi, perbankan dan kewangan Islam, dan industri halal. Berdasarkan tinjauan naratif kritikal terhadap literatur yang berkaitan, kajian ini menganalisis amalan sedia ada melalui konsep Islamisasi Ilmu, sains berpandukan wahyu, integrasi ilmu Naqli dan Aqli, Tauhid, dan Maqasid al-Syariah. Hasil kajian menunjukkan bahawa integrasi telah berkembang melangkaui wacana teori dan dapat dilihat dalam kurikulum universiti, inovasi kewangan patuh syariah, kewangan digital, tadbir urus halal, dan kebolehkesanan rantaian bekalan. Walau bagaimanapun, pelaksanaannya masih dikekang oleh epistemologi yang terpisah, kurangnya kompetensi dalam menguruskan usaha-usaha multi-disiplin, metodologi yang tidak konsisten, literasi teknologi dan syariah yang tidak mencukupi, dan ketiadaan tadbir urus syariah yang standard untuk teknologi memuncul seperti kecerdasan buatan dan rantaian blok. Dalam industri halal, kebimbangan tambahan termasuk kecenderungan untuk mengutamakan pematuhan prosedur halal tanpa menggabungkan prinsip halalan tayyiban, kebajikan pengguna dan kemampanan. Kajian ini mencadangkan pendekatan epistemologi yang lebih sistematik dan sesuai yang mengintegrasikan wahyu, akal dan bukti empirikal sambil memelihara ketelitian saintifik dan penjajaran dengan Maqasid al-Shariah. Ini memerlukan kurikulum berasaskan Tauhid, pembinaan kapasiti merentas disiplin, rangka kerja etika untuk teknologi baharu, tadbir urus yang lebih kukuh dan kerjasama yang berterusan antara ahli akademik, industri, cendekiawan syariah dan pengawal selia. Integrasi sedemikian boleh mengubah sains dan syariah daripada domain yang hanya bersifat selari kepada domain dasar yang bersepadu untuk pembangunan yang beretika, mampan dan bermakna secara sosial.
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