“The Most Dangerous Idea?” Islamic Deliberations on Transhumanism

Abstract

This paper provides a discussion of aspects of the transhumanist movement and their intellectual and bioethical implications from an Islamic perspective. After an introduction to transhumanism and some of its variations, it discusses the underlying suppositions of transhumanist thought: The supposed absence of the body – mind – soul complex and the idea of volitional evolution of humankind. It then goes on to discuss the notion of enhancement and body modification, on a technological, pharmacological and genetic level from an Islamic point of view. In conclusion, the paper discusses the idea of “the good life”. The paper concludes that, although transhumanism is not a new idea, but rather a conglomerate of old ideas in technologically backed dystopian garb, and although there are obvious disparages between tenets of transhumanism and Islam at a very basic level, Muslims ought to be aware of its trajectory, as influences and repercussions will be felt globally.