Toward Epistemological Humility: Humanity is Not the Center of the Universe, and Science is a Mirror of Limitation, Not Absolute Truth – Mohammad Korani, 2026.08.06 – In the midst of our fascination with the achievements of experimental sciences, we have forgotten ourselves; we have forgotten that the researcher, with their complex instruments and refined theories, remains a finite being, governed by their time and place, captive to their senses and limited intellect. The scientific revolution has deluded us into believing that we possess the ultimate key to deciphering the mysteries of existence. Yet the deeper truth revealed by a review of the history of philosophy and science is that every era believes it has arrived at the truth, only for a subsequent age to expose a new illusion.
The call for epistemological humility is not a call to abandon science; rather, it is a restoration of the very essence of science itself—which is founded upon doubt, revision, and the acknowledgment of ignorance. It is a summons for humanity, for the researcher, for the scholar, to recognize their true place: not as the center of the universe, nor the center of existence, but as a small part of an immense whole—a finite mind attempting to touch the edges of a reality whose fullness is known only to its Creator.
—
First: The Limits of the Human Mind in Facing the Great Questions
The human sciences, regardless of their precision and sophistication, remain sciences produced by human beings for the understanding of human beings. As such, they remain governed by the limits of the human mind, by empirical data, and by the historical and cultural contexts within which the researcher operates. Consequently, the claim that these sciences alone are capable of providing a complete explanation of human reality is a claim that exceeds their methodological boundaries.
Many of the great questions—such as the origin of human dignity, the purpose of existence, the objective basis of morality, and the meaning of good and evil—find no definitive answer within empirical methodologies alone. Consider psychometrics: despite its advanced tools, it remains incapable of explaining subjective consciousness and the sense of meaning. Sociology, despite its elegant theories, cannot answer why human beings persistently seek the sacred, or why they possess an innate feeling of connection to a power greater than themselves.
Major Western thinkers have acknowledged these limits. Immanuel Kant established a critique of pure reason that concluded that the human mind cannot grasp the “thing in itself,” and that there are noumenal realities beyond its comprehension. Michel Foucault recognized that every discursive formation is a product of power and historical context, not absolute truth. These acknowledgments are not weaknesses; they represent the height of scientific humility befitting a researcher who knows their limits.
—
Second: The Transcendent Dimension as the Source of Meaning and Morality
Human history reveals that the great civilizations did not rely solely on reason and experience; they also drew upon faith in the existence of a transcendent reality and a supreme source of wisdom—the Creator, who revealed to prophets and messengers teachings aimed at guiding humanity and safeguarding its dignity.
Religion was never, in any era, merely a social phenomenon or cultural heritage; rather, it was an innate whisper responding to the human spirit’s thirst for the absolute. This transcendent dimension is what bestows meaning upon existence, grounds morality, and confers value upon human dignity. Without this dimension, morality becomes mere relativistic convention, dignity becomes an empty legal term devoid of substance, and humanity becomes a purposeless being wandering through the labyrinths of matter.
Religious traditions may differ in the details of their texts or their interpretations—and some researchers argue that certain religious traditions have undergone textual alteration or change throughout history—yet this does not negate the essential idea common to all revealed messages: that the human being is not an isolated entity severed from their source, and that human knowledge remains incomplete if it is cut off from the transcendent dimension.
—
Third: Epistemological Humility Does Not Mean Abandoning the Scientific Method
What is required of scholars in the human sciences is not the abandonment of the scientific method, but rather the cultivation of epistemological humility—the acknowledgment that empirical science is not the sole source of knowledge. Divine revelation, with its vision of humanity, justice, mercy, and responsibility, represents one of the most important sources that should enter into scientific and philosophical discourse about the human being.
Respecting revelation does not mean suspending research or confiscating critique; rather, it means recognizing that humanity, across millennia, has not regarded religion merely as a social phenomenon, but as a path to truth and a source of the values upon which civilizations were built. Hence, any project aspiring to build more complete and just human sciences cannot ignore this great spiritual heritage; rather, it must engage with it through scientific seriousness, philosophical respect, and appreciation befitting its place in human history.
Humility here means that the sociologist acknowledges that society cannot be reduced to economic structures alone; that the psychologist acknowledges that the psyche cannot be reduced to instincts and complexes; that the anthropologist acknowledges that cultures cannot be understood in isolation from their relationship with the sacred. This humility is what opens the door to more comprehensive human sciences—sciences that do not exclude religious experience but integrate it into the fabric of knowledge production.
—
Fourth: Humanity is Not the Center of the Universe
The call for epistemological humility is grounded in a profound existential reality: humanity is not the center of the universe. Since Copernicus, we have known that the Earth is not the center of the solar system; since Darwin, we have known that humanity is not the center of biological creation; since Freud, we have learned that consciousness is not the center of the psyche. Yet contemporary academic discourse persists in placing humanity at the center of everything, as if the universe held no meaning beyond human will and perception.
This epistemological narcissism is what has brought the human sciences to their current state: instruments for social control, justification of supremacy, and the marketing of ideologies. A return to humility means that the researcher acknowledges that there exists a reality greater than themselves, and that they are called not to manufacture meaning, but to discover the meaning that the Creator has placed in existence. This discovery can only be achieved through the integration of reason and revelation, observation and faith, experience and surrender to divine beauty.
—
A Call for a Spiritual Revolution in the Human Sciences
In the end, we call upon scholars of the human sciences to re-examine themselves, to liberate themselves from the shackles of anthropocentrism that lead them to believe they are the sole inspired interpreters of truth. We call upon them to practice humility before the supreme source of knowledge, and to recognize that divine revelation—across its various traditions—is one of the wellsprings of wisdom that cannot be overlooked.
Epistemological humility is not defeat; it is the pinnacle of scientific maturity. Acknowledging that we are not the center of the universe is the first step toward truly understanding the universe, and truly understanding humanity. Likewise, respecting revelation does not mean abandoning critique; it is an invitation to deeper dialogue and a civilizational project more humane and just.
Our final call to them is this: Be humble, for truth is greater than you. Revere the sacred, for human dignity is more sacred than you imagine. And listen, for divine revelation still whispers in the depths of innate human nature, reminding you that true knowledge begins with the acknowledgment of ignorance and culminates in wonder before divine beauty. The concept of “Islamic human sciences” is but a cry in this very direction.
Mohammadabbaskawrani.com
#Merciful_Dignified_Civilization #Islamic_Human_Sciences
