Abstract

The relationship between science and religion has been one of the most fundamental and contested issues in the history of philosophical, theological, and scientific thought in both the West and the Islamic world. The central question of this research is whether an epistemological and philosophical model can be presented that, while preserving the relative independence of science and religion, avoids conflict, absolute separation, one‑sided application, and eclecticism, and provides the ground for constructive interaction between the two. In response to this question, the present article analyses and critiques four principal approaches to the relationship between science and religion—conflict, separation, one‑sided application, and synthesis—and demonstrates that each of these approaches suffers from serious epistemological and methodological deficiencies. Subsequently, drawing upon the meta‑approach of “philosophical interactionism” and utilising the foundations of Islamic philosophy, particularly Transcendent Wisdom (al-ḥikmah al-mutaʿāliyah), an alternative model for explicating the relationship between science and religion is presented. The principal achievement of the research is that philosophy, as a foundational and epistemically mediating discipline, can provide a framework in which science and religion are situated neither in opposition nor in complete separation, but rather in an interactive, complementary, and synergistic relationship. On the basis of this approach, science and religion, while maintaining their methodological and domain‑specific differences, are able to reinforce one another in understanding reality, meaning, and the ultimate purpose of existence. The research method is library‑based and grounded in descriptive‑critical analysis.