Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, Founding Rector of Üsküdar University, met with students at Çapa Fen Lisesi. Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, who held a talk titled “Faith and Science,” stated that the approach ‘If there is science, there is no religion; if there is religion, there is no science’ is entirely an old urban legend of materialism. Tarhan, pointing out that science is not a state but a process, said; “Science is not static, it is being on the way, it is a process.” Tarhan emphasized that Tawhid is the belief that best describes rational belief, which is one of the four paths leading humanity to truth, and stated that finding the truth becomes easier by using reasoning methods.
Students showed great interest in the talk held in the Çapa Fen Lisesi conference hall.
“If you look at events from a bird's eye view, you see everything”
Psychiatrist Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, Founding Rector of Üsküdar University, reminded that religious sciences and natural sciences are not rivals but complementary to each other. Tarhan said; “The approach ‘If there is science, there is no religion; if there is religion, there is no science’ is entirely an old urban legend of materialism. Currently, there is no scientific basis for this. It was proven after quantum physics emerged. After quantum physics, it was understood that sciences are a whole. Every science is a whole. There is even a somewhat categorized form of the integrity of sciences. Currently, you cannot understand religious sciences and natural sciences unless you look at them from above. There is a saying, ‘to look from a military helicopter,’ meaning if you look at events from a bird's eye view, you see everything.”
“What we call matter is concentrated energy”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan, noting the beginning of post-materialist science, emphasized that the universe is energy-based. Tarhan said; “Materialism was explaining it, but now it is understood that the universe is not matter-based, but energy-based. Now, it is even being discussed that the universe is actually digitally based. There is no such thing as matter; what we call matter is concentrated energy. Previously, it was said, ‘Digital is everything,’ but now it is said, ‘Everything is digital.’ We are also digital. We are subjective observers. What we call matter exists when we look at it, and it does not exist when we don't. When we look, it's a particle; when we don't, it's a wave. We are matter when we look, but when we don't look, when our consciousness is lost, we are energy. Quantum says this. What we call matter is just the window we look through. In fact, we live in a universe beyond matter. What we call the world, what we call the universe, is a simulation.”
“Science is not a state, but a process”
Tarhan emphasized that science is not static, but a process. Tarhan said; “Science is not a state, it is a process. New discoveries happen, we reach new information, and with that information, we reconstruct old information. Science is not stable; it is being on the way, it is a process. We currently describe the truth according to the information we have. Mevlana has the ‘Allegory of the Blind Men and the Elephant.’ There, they put blind men next to an elephant and ask them to ‘describe the elephant.’ One says; ‘It is like a long trunk,’ another says; ‘It is like a sail held by its ear…’ All describe it, and what they all say is actually correct. But when you look from a different perspective, that is not the truth. It is correct, but not the truth. Because we try to understand the universe with our small minds. According to quantum physics, matter came first, and information emerged from it dialectically. That is, the cause-and-effect relationship emerged, but in quantum physics, information, a universal database, comes first. After the universal database, there is mathematics and calculation. After that, there is design, energy, physics. Then there is matter, chemistry, biology. In other words, there can be no project without information. A building cannot be built without information. Information is needed first. According to quantum physics, we call it information. And because digital is currently the best explanation for that information, it is stated as such.”
“Tawhid is currently the most rational belief”
Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan spoke about the four fundamental paths that lead humanity to truth, stating that the first is experiment and observation, the second is reasoning methods, the third is rational intuition, and the fourth is rational belief. Tarhan said; “Firstly, experiment and observation, the laboratory. Secondly, reasoning methods such as reduction, induction, and modal logic, where you find antipathy. Theoretical physics and theoretical biology emerged this way. That is, you theorize, and then you introduce it. Thirdly, rational intuition; for example, Newton found his apple through rational intuition. There are three apples in history that affected humanity. One is Prophet Adam’s apple, the other is Newton’s apple, and the third is Apple’s apple… Questions and decisions in the universe change according to new information over time. To find the truth in the universe, humankind has embarked on a journey, and this must involve reasoning. The fourth is rational belief. There are 4,300 religions. All say; ‘An external force, a higher consciousness is needed.’ They say, ‘There is an external will, an unseen reality.’ The belief in Tawhid, which I have tried to write about in my books, is currently the most rational belief.”
“The creator of this universe cannot be of the same kind as this universe”
Referring to Surah Al-Ikhlas as proof of Tawhid, Prof. Dr. Tarhan said; “We say that the creator of this universe cannot be of the same kind as the universe. For example, you tell a chef, ‘Make a cake.’ When asked, ‘Who made the cake?’ this person made it, that person made it. But if you ask, ‘Who made the chef?’ well, the chef is not of the same kind as the cake. The creator of this universe is also not of the same kind as this universe; it is a separate kind. Therefore, its most beautiful definition is: having no spouse or equal, neither born nor begotten, unique and singular, everything is dependent on it, but it is dependent on nothing. This is something defined in Surah Al-Ikhlas. This is the proof of Tawhid in the Quran. It is the most important surah for explaining Tawhid. That is, if we want to understand this universe, if we want to understand the creator, what qualities must the creator possess? If we want to understand with our minds, we say that only such a being can be the creator.”
“Finding truth becomes easier with reasoning methods”
Prof. Dr. Tarhan, noting that true reality can be found through reason, said; “Truth is not found through the five senses; it is found through reasoning. Allah has given humans reason. There are many tests; if ‘Allah is one’ were written in the stars in the sky during the test, it wouldn't be a test. What is and what is not will be discerned by reason. Someone who believes in the metaphor that this world is a test would think, ‘If this world is a test, there must be a difference between those who find themselves with their reason and those who don’t. If we came from infinity and are going to infinity, and if this world is a test, then those who do good and those who do bad must somehow be separated.’ In that case, this becomes very rational information. When you see the world as a test, you also understand why evils exist. Therefore, when you act with reasoning methods, finding the truth becomes easier.”
“The 5% difference makes a human being human…”
Prof. Dr. Tarhan explained the need for belief using Maslow's pyramid of psychosocial needs; “At the very base are physiological needs such as eating, drinking, reproduction, and shelter. At the second level, there is the need for security, the need to love and be loved. After that, he had placed the need for self-actualization at the top of the pyramid, but later he changed the top of the pyramid, calling it ‘Self-transcendence.’ That is, he called it the need to transcend oneself. Humanity’s most important need is the need to transcend oneself. He speaks of 4 genes in humans: metacognition genes. One of these metacognition genes is the novelty-seeking gene. This gene is found in hyperactive individuals. Think of a bee, a spider, an ant; they build their nests the same way they did a thousand years ago, but humans do not build their current homes the same as their homes a year ago, because humans have a novelty-seeking gene. The second gene is the meaning-seeking gene. No living creature other than humans seeks meaning. The third gene is the time perception gene. No living creature other than humans can perceive past and future. For example, go to slaughterhouses. The animal will be slaughtered soon. It continues to graze because it has no concept of time. There is no before and after. The fourth metacognition gene is the death perception gene. That is, humans are the only beings who know they will die. When you look at the genetic codes of chimpanzees and humans, they are 95% similar. There is a 5% difference between chimpanzees and humans. This 5% difference makes a human being human. It causes humans to produce philosophy. It develops symbolic thinking, conceptual thinking, and abstract thinking skills. Humans have such genetics. All these humans need to search for meaning. Humans have this need, which other living creatures do not.”
“Humans embark on a quest to meet their limitless needs”
Tarhan emphasized that religion is a psychosocial need for humans; “A human’s power, abilities, and intelligence are limited, but their needs are limitless. Humans embark on a quest to meet these limitless needs. Because if a person has a need, this need awakens a desire in them. If it awakens a desire, it motivates them to act. That is the most important thing in the pyramid of needs. If you want to make a horse drink water, you cannot make it drink by hitting its head. If you make it thirsty, it will drink on its own. Humans also have such a need. Humans have a need to search for meaning.”
“A person needs a mental refuge”
Speaking about third-level psychotherapies, Tarhan said; “As one of the steps of third-level psychotherapies, a person needs a mental refuge. We use it in trauma treatment. There are things traumas can control, and things they cannot. There are things within one's power, and things beyond it. In matters beyond their control or power, the feeling of being part of a meaning, being part of a whole, finding refuge in a mental sanctuary comforts a person. If there is no such feeling of being part of a meaning, a person falls into depression. They feel the need to commit suicide. That is why, to meet a person's need for meaning, even if religion is not preached to them, they tend to create their own religion.”
At the end of the organized event, a plaque was presented to Prof. Dr. Nevzat Tarhan by Fatih Boyracı, Principal of Çapa Fen Lisesi.
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