Studying the Place of Transcendental Ideals and Human Instincts in Modern Psychology: An Insight into the Alternative Discourse of Mohammad Rafi-ud-Din

Abstract

The integration of psychological and natural sciences is an ongoing process that aims to understand the human mind in the context of the natural world. Rafi-ud-Din has made significant contributions to this field with his concept of human nature and psychology. He argues that the urge for ideals is the real, ultimate, and sole dynamic power of human actions, and that it finds its roots not in instincts but in something transcendental and metaphysical. He describes man as a spiritual and moral self that has innate knowledge of good and evil, and builds his own discourse to describe human nature in the light of the Qur’ān. He also addresses the influential theories of Marx, Freud, Adler, and MacDougall at length and critiques the ideas that view human nature as primarily driven by instincts, arguing that this view reduces man to the status of a social animal and ignores the spiritual and moral dimension of human existence. His alternative discourse on the role of instincts in human psychology and the place of transcendent ideals in understanding man offers a unique perspective on this topic, and his work is an important contribution to the ongoing debate on the integration of psychological and natural sciences. This paper aims to study the ideas and approaches of Rafi-ud-Din about Human Nature and his efforts to refute the thoughts of modern thinkers.