Safeeha, Roshan and Shehu, Fatmir Mehdi (2026) Human-nature relationship and the contemporary ecological crisis: an eco-ethical paradigm from Al-Ghazālī’s philosophy. Al Hikmah International Journal of Islamic Studies and Human Science, 9 (2). pp. 156-176. E-ISSN 2637-0581
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Abstract
The existing contemporary ecological crisis, often referred to as the “triple planetary crisis” of climate change, loss of biodiversity, and pollution, has increased global concern about the relationship between humans and nature. In this paper, I argue that ecological degradation is not merely a technical or political problem, but a moral and spiritual crisis rooted in excess, disordered desire, and diminished accountability toward creation. This research aims to examine the ethical philosophy of Al-Ghazālī as a paradigm for the reframing of the human-nature relationship in the contemporary ecological and environmental discourse. The paper reconstructs an eco-ethical paradigm drawing on selected texts from Al-Ghazālī’s works based on key Islamic concepts such as Tawḥīd, Āyāt, Fiṭrah, Tazkiyyah, Tafakkur, Khilāfah, Amānah, Mīzān, ʿAdl, Adab, Zuhd and Iqtiṣād. Also discusses moderation, self-discipline, humility, contemplation and ethical responsibility for nature. Al-Ghazālī’s virtue-oriented moral psychology, along with Qur’ānic principles of stewardship, balance, anti-wastefulness, and accountability for fasād, presents a theocentric and responsibility-oriented ecological ethic, the study shows. This paper employs a qualitative conceptual approach, drawing on textual analysis and philosophical reconstruction. It concludes that Al-Ghazālī’s ethical framework has much to offer Islamic environmental ethics and the broader field of ecological virtue ethics, as it shifts humanity's emphasis from domination to trust, restraint, and contemplative coexistence with creation.
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