A cursory glance at the world of creation makes us realize the changes and development that have taken place throughout history. The earth’s movement and the various particles that form it, including atoms and electrons, all indicate the fact that the nature is blended with changes and progress.

The seasonal cycles, such as the advent of winter and its replacement by the freshness of spring, are all indicative of changes.       All these facts show that the world of creation is not without objective. Although changes and development are part of nature, all changes are not positive. Even in the world of nature, every kind of change is not beneficial for mankind. For instance, unseasonal rain or winter, or for that matter, heat wave, cause damage to the crops and the environment, although only the All-Wise God knows the reason behind these phenomena. In the evolution and development of society, changes lead to both perfection and destruction. Let us see the position of Islam towards changes and modernization. For example, if two days in the life of a person are the same, without any progress, it is actually a loss. This is ample proof of the progressive nature of Islam which always strives for growth and perfection. Islam not only accepts changes and developments but it gives it a direction for positive. According to Islam, the world and mankind have not been created in vain, but have a purpose behind. There is a destination towards which all of us are moving, and we should reach it in a positive state, and not a self-destructive state. Each and every change is not optimal, even if it is called modernization. Only the change that leads to perfection is desirable. Modernization does not mean moving in ambiguously.

In order to ensure proper progress of the ummah, Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) left behind the Thaqalayn or the Two Very Valuable things. These are the Holy Qur’an, which is the Revealed Word of Allah, and the Ahl al-Bayt or the Blessed Household, who are immaculate exemplars. The Prophet said the two will never separate from each other. This means without firm adherence to these two Valuable things, which are never outdated or appear stale, proper and positive changes will not happen. In other words, any change that sidelines or ignores the holy Qur’an and the Infallible Imams, is not a change at all, and cannot be called modernization. Islam says that real modernization can be achieved only by practical adherence to the tenets of religion. No wonder, God calls Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) the Most Excellent Exemplar for mankind. In other words, progress in the real sense is possible only by following the teachings of Islam., and making changes in accordance with what the Prophet and his Household have taught. Thus a true believer learns by acquiring knowledge and experiencing what he has learned. The Prophet’s First Infallible Heir, Imam Ali (AS): Human experiences have no end and the knowledge of a wise man always increases through his experiences.

Islam defines the criteria for modernization. For instance one should have a high and worthy goal. Modernization should meet both the worldly and spiritual needs, with guarantee for salvation in afterlife. In addition, modernization should not be an obstacle to perfection. Islam believes that changes and modernization which do not enjoy specific objectives are not desirable. As a matter of fact, Islam condemns the changes or so-called modernization that is contradictory to the interests of the society and to the high human ideals. In view of these factors, the Islamic society's utilization of western scientific and technological achievements should be based on conscious relationship. For the past two centuries, the encounter with western civilization has had a mixed reaction among Muslims. Some have unconditionally accepted the western civilization while some have rejected it outright, including many known for their wisdom. This is something natural, although neither way it is feasible. In this way, any logical confrontation with the western civilization should be based on analysis and scrutiny. Islam is thus always against extremist encounter tendencies.

Utility of science and technology is accepted by Islam. In terms of Islam, whatever is in agreement with divine teachings can be used in one's life. For instance, if secularism and humanism in the west are contradictory to the Islamic teachings this does not nullify the usage of the west-make electricity, telephone and media and improper utility of these devices does not mean that they are useless. Thus the improper utilization of some achievements of the western civilization cannot be a reason for putting aside all of them. Historical evidence shows that the Islamic society in countering the western civilization and modernization has gone through many ups and downs. For instance, at the beginning, such tendency was not the result of interest in the west but it was aimed at utilizing some achievements of the western communities for materializing the scientific and industrial growth and progress among Muslims. But in some other juncture of time, modernization led to westernization, the point of time which should be considered yielding to the west. In this time, youths from some Muslim communities were sent to Europe for studying and when they returned back they took the lead of affairs with the help of foreign colonialists. These westernized youths, as elites and intellectuals monopolized the political power, economic and administrative management, as well as cultural, literary, scientific and educational activities. Actually, it was the colonialists who led the westernization current behind the curtain. Thus, the west-educated agents encouraged people to imitate the west blindly. Even, some were so interested in the western technology that they ignored the Islamic injunctions. An example of this self-alienation can be viewed in the Iranian Pahlavi regime before the Islamic revolution which led to cultural, political and economic colonialism. At that time reformed leaders like Imam Khomeini (May his soul rest in peace) rose and campaigned for the revival of religious values. Imam Khomeini called on Muslims to reform their behaviors and warned them about the risk of hegemony and exploitation under the pretext of modernization.

It was with the Imam's guidelines that the Iranian Muslim nation went through the way of political, cultural and economic independence in the most difficult conditions. Today too, in the light of the leadership and  prudence of Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamanei, the Iranians, one after another, conquest the peaks of science and technology and display modernization within the framework of the sublime Islamic teachings.